Touching the Sky part 2

Serana and Tarrion left Ancestor glade, with a better feeling than when they entered it. They now knew where to find Auriel's Bow, Serana felt more at ease because she knew that prophecies are only possible futures, and Tarrion had regained all of his strength after their lengthy trip through the Soul Cairn. It had weakened him more than he had thought, but now he felt strong again.

But more than that, they felt their love for each other. Serana had thought that she would never find anything like it again. That she was dead inside, and the feelings like love were forever gone. But now, as held Tarrion's hand as he helped her down the log, she felt a deep and powerful warmth inside of her, and it made everything brighter. For the first time in a long time, she looked forward to the future, knowing that there would be someone to share it with her.

And Tarrion felt the same for her. He knew that there was no-one in Tamriel he would rather be with, and that he would do anything for her. Tarrion had done great deeds, and helped many others. He saved countless, and killed more. But now there was someone that helped him, more than anyone has ever helped him, and what he now felt for Serana, was something he could not describe.

They left the small cavern and stepped out into the open air, and Tarrion saw that the sun was still high, although clouds blocked its rays. But he did not pay attention to the sky, but to what was right in front of him.

He saw both their horses lying dead on the ground, and six Vampires surrounded them before either of them could so much as blink. Two large gargoyles dropped down from the mountainside and blocked the passage back to Ancestor Glade. All of their opponents looked fiercely at them, with their swords in their hands, and their eyes glowing with hatred.

"Ah, finally." a voice said, and another Vampire walked from behind a tree. "I was wondering why it took so long."

Serana could not believe her eyes. "Orthjolf?"

"Ah… so you do remember who we are?" Orthjolf said sarcastically. "We thought you had forgotten who we are… who you are."

"Why are you here?"

"Oh, don't play coy Serana. You know full well why we are here. We are here for the prophecy. We are here to take you back to your father."

"You will not take her anywhere!" Tarrion said, and he drew his sword.

"Silence, mortal! You are the last here that should speak! Our lord Harkon offered you his blood, let you live…. And this is how you repay him? By taking his daughter away, and plotting against him? I knew mortals were ungrateful, but you are exceptional."

"You know why I left, Orthjolf." Serana interrupted him. "This prophecy cannot come true… Harkon must be stopped."

"We know what you think, Serana. But you are mistaken when you think that we give a damn! Lord Harkon is willing to forgive you for what you did at Forebear's Holdout… for killing Malkus… for what you have done so far."

Orthjolf had stayed calm so far. He simply walked behind the other Vampires and stared at Tarrion, ready to react as soon as he would make a move.

"You have a choice to make, Serana." Orthjolf continued. "Step away from the mortal, and be welcomed back…. Or be dragged to your father, and see the mortal butchered before your eyes."

Serana sighed. Tarrion saw no anger in her, only grief. He, on the other hand, was trembling with rage. Orthjolf calmly stated that Serana would be brought to her father, but Tarrion understood that she would be tortured, and that made him angrier than ever.

"Orthjolf, please. Leave now… don't stand in our way." Serana said as she pulled her dagger.

"I see… in chains it is then."

Tarrion had enough of it, and he saw that Orthjolf had no intention of letting Tarrion live. He took a deep breath and Shouted.

TIID KLO UL

Time slowed further than ever, and Tarrion charged at the Vampires. He was now faster than all of them, and he drove his sword through their hearts, or decapitated them. He rammed his sword through the chest of one of the gargoyles, grabbed the other's neck and snapped it, pulled the sword out of the chest of the first one, and threw it at the last remaining Vampire that now had a terrified expression on her face. The sword went through her and came out her spine. When the Shout finally wore off, all the bodies fell to the ground at the same time, and Orthjolf stood alone, with an enraged, and fully powered, Tarrion staring at him, and it looked like his eyes were glowing with fury.

Orthjolf turned around and ran off the mountain. He was much faster than Tarrion, and he was now far below him, but Tarrion ran to the edge of the plateau and jumped.

"Tarrion!" Serana screamed, but he disappeared over the edge and fell to the ground below him.

FEIM

His body became transparent and he looked like a wraith as he became ethereal through the Shout's power. He landed in front of a fleeing Orthjolf, who stumbled and tripped as he saw how Tarrion made a fifty foot drop and stood up like nothing happened. He drew his sword but Tarrion Shouted again.

ZUN

Orthjolf's sword flew out of his hand and before he could react Tarrion grabbed him by his throat. The Shout had worn off and Serana came running down the path.

"Now give me one good reason why I shouldn't light your skull up!"

"Because I ask you not to."

Tarrion looked at Serana. She had no anger or hate in her eyes, just something Tarrion did not understand.

"Let him go, Tarrion…. Let him go."

Tarrion preferred to snap Orthjolf's neck, but instead he sighed and let Orthjolf go. Orthjolf jumped up and ran as fast as he could. Tarrion looked how he disappeared in the distance, and he felt himself relax. The rage he felt was slowly ebbing away.

"Thank you." Serana said and she grabbed his hand. "Thank you for not killing him."

"I just don't understand why." Tarrion said.

"I don't know either…. Maybe… maybe others will now see that we just want to stop the prophecy. We just want to stop Harkon, and maybe they will now think twice before following him… but…"

Serana sighed.

"Maybe I made a mistake now…"

Tarrion shook his head.

"What will happen, happens. We have given them a choice now."

Serana held his hand tighter, and they made sure Orthjolf was long gone before they continued. They now had to travel on foot, and they knew it would be a long trip. Tarrion had the location of Darkfall Cave, and he knew it was in the westernmost end of Haafingar. They decided to first go to Falkreath and buy a new pair of horses.

-Haafingar-

After a long and tiresome journey they finally reached Haafingar Hold. They had to make the entire journey on foot, since there were no horses for sale in Falkreath. They had decided to keep east of the Reach, where the roads were safest, since the Forsworn still made the Reach a dangerous place.

"Are we there yet?"

"Almost there…"

"You said the exact same... when we passed Dragon Bridge."

"I know… because you asked the exact same back then."

"Fair enough."

"When we pass the Orc Stronghold… it is only a bit further."

They passed the Orc Stronghold Mor Khazgur a bit later, and Tarrion asked if they knew of a cave nearby.

"You mean a very dark cave? Yes we know of one." was the answer. Borgakh stood on the palisade as a lookout. "We do no enter it, because it is said to be cursed. No one can enter it, because it is far too dark, and hidden dangers lie everywhere."

"Can you point us in the right direction?" Serana asked.

"Yes, but I do not advise to enter it."

Borgakh did give them directions to the cave, but she did not lead them to it. She was not allowed to leave the stronghold, but it did not take long for Tarrion and Serana to find the cave. It was nothing more than a dark hole in the mountainside, and it looked like there was no light present there.

"Well… she did not lie when she said it was dark here."

"Don't worry. I can see in there perfectly." Serana said and she walked into the cave. Tarrion followed her and was surrounded by darkness.

Tarrion understood why this cave was called 'Darkfall Cave', because it truly was dark in there. Tarrion could not see a thing, and Serana had to grab his hand and lead him like he was blind. He kicked many loose stones and stumbled many times before he had enough of it. He cast Candlelight and a small orb of light hovered above them.

"Wow! Bright!"

Serana covered her eyes.

"Sorry… I should have warned you."

The orb of light lit the dark corridors with a pale, blue light and Tarrion was able to move around without tripping every few feet. In the light of the Candlelight spell, Tarrion saw that there was something different about the cave. The tunnel walls were smooth, but the ground was covered with stones. But besides that, the light could not shine any further than a few metres ahead. The darkness was so intense that even Serana could not see more than ten metres.

After a few turns and corridors, they came across a small cavern with a rope bridge. It was old and looked mostly rotten, but it held them and they reached the other end without breaking it.

"This is a dead end."

Serana stopped and looked around. Tarrion could not see as much as she could but he could see that the walls now surrounded them, and a few small ore veins were slightly visible in the light of the Candlelight spell.

"Are you sure?" he asked her. "Did we miss a pathway?"

"Not that I saw… but this is definitely a dead end. There is no pathway, no corridor… nothing."

"Maybe a hidden lever?"

"No… nothing. The walls are smooth and there are no torches, or pull chains."

Serana looked around one last time, and then turned around.

"Let's go back… maybe we did miss something."

They both left and returned to the previous corridors and crossed the bridge.

As soon as they reached the centre of the bridge, they heard a rope snap and before either of them could react, the bridge shook, the ropes snapped, the wooden planks broke and they both fell to the darkness below.

It was a short fall and Tarrion was terrified by it. While Serana could still see in the dark, he could not see anything, as the Candlelight spell had worn off, and he was again surrounded by darkness. Before he reached it, he could hear water flow below him and not a second later, he plummeted into a dark, underground river and was swept away. His head hit a few rocks, his knee scraped the rocky bottom of the river, and he tumbled head over heels through the darkness. He did not know which way was up, or which way he was going. It all felt like a blur and he was still not able to surface and breath. He felt his lungs getting wet, and suddenly the water disappeared and Tarrion fell through the air again. He breathed in the cold cave air, and in a flash he saw countless pale eyes staring at him, before he fell into the river once again and was swept further. His back hit a rock and while is armour blocked most of the impact, he still shouted in pain, only to feel how the cold water entered his mouth.

Then, suddenly, he felt the rocky ground under him and tumbled over a ledge. He fell on the hard, wet rocks below and couched up a splash of water. He heard a loud thump next to him and he saw two red, glowing eyes. Serana had fallen next to him and coughed.

"Sp… spiders!" she coughed and Tarrion turned around and saw an army of eyes charge at them.

He cast a powerful fire spell, and for a moment the cavern was lit up. Tarrion saw seven large Frostbite Spiders running at them, only for two of them to be incinerated. Two charged at Serana, but they were impaled by large Ice Spears and fell motionless on the ground. A third one jumped at Tarrion, but he shouted and the spider was frozen solid and when it hit the ground, it fell in pieces. The two that remained saw that they could not win, and ran back whence they came.

"That hurt!" Tarrion stretched and rubbed his head. He felt how warm blood dripped from his scalp. "Damn… you alright?"

"Yes… I'm fine." he heard Serana say. "A few bruises but that is it. You?"

"I scraped my knee and back, but my armour blocked most of the impact. But I think my head is bleeding."

Serana walked up to him and she lowered his head so she could see the wound.

"Yes… a small cut, but nothing serious by the looks of it. It is not really bleeding, just leaking a bit of blood."

She rubbed her fingers over the wound and removed some of the blood, and licked it of her fingers.

"Well… I guess we can't really get out of here without finding another path."

"True." Tarrion said. "Can you see where the path leads? I still can't see anything."

"Yes… this way."

Tarrion followed Serana as best he could. She lead him away from the spiders and through other parts of the caves. The further they went into the growing dark, the stronger the stench of rotting flesh became. After they followed a corridor upward, they came across a small camp, in the middle of the cave. A small torch dimly lit the camp and Tarrion saw parts of human bodies lying around.

Serana looked around to see any clues of what happened.

"These people were…. Why would anyone want to set up camp here?... I wonder what happened to them."

They followed another pathway that lead further down, and after another few left and right turns, they came across a large cavern. The stench of blood and death was thick and it sounded like there were Trolls about, but Serana lead him away from the Trolls to the other end of the cavern. There Tarrion finally saw light.

At first he thought it was daylight, but when he looked again, he saw that the light came from many candles and a strange altar. A small statue of a sun on a pedestal stood upon the altar, and it seemed as if the sun glowed and bathed the area in a warm light. There was also a small structure, like a dome, with the same statue on top of it, made in a way that Tarrion had not seen before.

"Come forward… You have nothing to fear here." An elf appeared from the shadows, but he was unlike any elf Tarrion or Serana had ever seen before.

He was clad in a strange white armour, and his skin was just as white. He had the same face as a High Elf, though it was clear he was not a High Elf. His hair was white, and he had a mace strapped to his belt.

"Who are you?" Serana asked.

"I am Knight-Paladin Gelebor, and I welcome you to the Great Chantry of Auriel."

"This is a chantry to Auriel?" Tarrion asked.

"Auriel… Auri-El… Alkosh, Akatosh. The sovereign of the Snow Elves has many names."

Serana and Tarrion looked at each other, then back at Gelebor.

"Snow Elf?" they asked at the same time.

"You're a Falmer?" Tarrion continued.

Gelebor sighed. "I prefer Snow Elf. The name Falmer holds a negative meaning to all. Those twisted creatures you call 'Falmer', I call the 'Betrayed'. But I know that you have not come here to debate history… you have come here for Auriel's Bow, have you not?"

"How do you know?"

"For thousands of years I have guarded this chantry as it's sentinel. The only reason why travellers have come here, is because of Auriel's Bow, and every time I ask them for their assistance. It has been like this for so long, I cannot imagine another way anymore."

"You require our assistance?" Serana asked. "With what?"

"Yes… I need you to kill Arch-Curate Vyrthur… my brother."

"Kill your brother?" Tarrion asked, and he noticed how Gelebor stayed calm when he asked it, like it meant nothing to him. "Why?"

Gelebor sighed again. "The kinship between us is gone… I don't know what happened to him, but he is no longer the same… It was the Betrayed, they did… something to him. I just don't understand why Auri-El would allow this to happen."

"What have the Betrayed done?"

"They swept into the Chantry and began killing everyone without mercy, without pause. I lead a small group of paladins… but we were no match for the Betrayed's sheer numbers. They breached the Inner Sanctum, where I believe they corrupted Vyrthur."

"Then… how do you know he is still alive?" Serana asked.

"I know it, because I have seen him. He doesn't seem under any duress or in pain…. He just… stands there, as if waiting. I cannot leave the wayshrines… that would be a violation to my sacred duty to the Chantry of Auriel, and a direct assault on the Betrayed, would only lead to my death."

"You mentioned wayshrines?" Serana asked.

"Yes… let me show you." and Gelebor lead them to the dome-like structure with the statue of a sun on top of it.

He stepped up to it and cast a small spell. The sun on top of the structure glowed brightly and suddenly the entire dome began to quake. Slowly the structure became taller, and it looked like it raised from the ground, until a large wayshrine had appeared. It had a six sides, with one of them being the entryway and a large basin was in the centre of it.

"So this is Snow Elf magic." Serana said as she walked up to the shrine. "Incredible."

Gelebor began explaining. "This structure is known as a 'wayshrine'. They were used for meditation and for transport, when the Chantry was a place of peace and enlightenment. Prelates of these shrines were charged with teaching the mantras of Auriel to our initiates."

Serana seemed intrigued by this.

"What does that basin in the centre signify?" and Gelebor seemed delighted to explain. Like he once again was able to fulfil his duties he was charged to do.

"Once the initiate completed his mantras, he'd dip a ceremonial ewer into the basin at the wayshrine's centre, and then proceed to the next wayshrine."

"So these initiates had to lug around a heavy pitcher of water? Marvellous… for how long would they have to do that?"

"Well, once the initiate's entire enlightenment was complete, he'd bring the ewer to the Chantry's Inner Sanctum. Pouring the contents of the ewer into the sacred basin in the Inner Sanctum would allow him to enter, for an audience with the Arch-Curate himself."

"All that, just do end up dumping it out?.. That doesn't make sense to me."

"It's symbolic… I don't expect you to understand."

"So let me get this straight…" Tarrion said. "We need to do all that nonsense to get into the temple, kill your brother and claim Auriel's Bow?"

Gelebor sighed and nodded. "I know how it all sounds… but if there would be another way, I would have done it long ago."

He walked back to the altar and grabbed a ceremonial ewer and gave that to Tarrion.

"The only way to get to the Inner Sanctum is to follow into the initiate's footsteps, and travel from wayshrine to wayshrine. The first lay at the end of Darkfall Passage, a place that signifies the absence of enlightenment."

"So how many of these wayshrines are there?" Serana asked.

"There are five in total, spread far apart across the Chantry, but it is not only caves. The Chantry encompasses more than just a few caves, but you'll see that soon enough. When you reach a wayshrine there should be a prelate tending to it. They will allow you to draw the waters from the basin at the centre, as if you have been enlightened."

"So can these prelates help us?"

"I'm afraid not." Gelebor answered. "The prelates were butchered when the Betrayed swept across the Chantry, but through the grace of Auriel, they were restored to continue their duties. They are ghosts of what they once were, and will not respond to you in any way, other than thinking you have come to be enlightened. They think the Chantry is still a place of worship, and will think that you are an initiate."

"So they cannot help us in finding the next wayshrine?"

"The wayshrines themselves are not that difficult to find. Just follow the path, and look around, and you will find them. I'm afraid I cannot help you with anything else, other than grant you my hopes for a safe journey."

Gelebor returned to the altar and kneeled before it. Serana looked at Tarrion and they both thought the same.

'Another long dungeon'

They entered the wayshrine and saw that a strange portal had opened, and they saw that it lead to a dark cave.

"Great." Tarrion said. "Another long walk through the dark."

"Don't tell me you're afraid of the dark." Serana teased him, and Tarrion chuckled

"No, of course not. I have you here."

And he grabbed her hand as they stepped through the portal.

=End of Chapter=

=Author's Notes=

And so they now have to travel through Darkfall Passage. Past all those bloody falmer… you have no idea how much I hate that part of the questline. Too many falmer, way too dark, you can't see for shit.

But that is their problem for the time being, and we have Serana. She can see in the dark and now they have an excuse to hold hands ;)

Also, speaking of holding hands, i will have the romance a bit on hold for now. They have more important stuff to do right now, plus, nobody wants two lovebirds constantly making googly eyes at each other, being overly in love... But don't worry, the romance will recurface later.

Dragon Language used:

Tiid Klo Ul: Time Sand Eternety (from the Slow Time Shout)

Feim: Fade (From the Become Ethereal Shout)

Zun: Weapon (From the Disarm Shout)

Characters:

Borgakh: Young She-Orc, from the Mul Khazgur Stronghold. She can give you a quick quest called 'The ForgeMasters Fingers'.

Orthjolf: Nord Vampire, constantly at odds with Vingalmo. Both vying for Harkon's throne. I put him here for shits and giggles. If you side with the Vampires, you have to obtain the 'Bloodstone Chalice'. He then has a plot to kill you, so I thought it would be fun to have that part now.

Knight-Paladin Gelebor: One of two remaining Snow Elves. Brother to Arch-Curate Vyrthur. Tending the Wayshrines, not doing much… just hanging around. Probably having some 'alone-time' all day long…. What? What else is he going to do?

Arch-Curate Vyrthur: One of the two remaining Snow Elves. Brother to Knight-Paladin Gelebor. He pops up in one of the next chapters. No idea what he is doing with his time.

PPS: I am Dutch (from the Netherlands) so if there are any mistakes in spelling/grammar, please let me know.