Kindred Judgment part 2
-Fort Dawnguard-
"Serana… stop pacing around the room."
"I can't…. I hate waiting like this."
"I thought you didn't want this to happen."
Serana stopped. She sighed and looked at Tarrion and he could see the look in her eyes.
"I know… I still don't want this…. But I know it is inevitable. And waiting on the edge of an event that I cannot escape is worse than the event itself."
The night had passed, and the men and women outside were still preparing to leave. During the night another group of warriors had arrived. Several warriors from the Dawnguard had returned from a scouting mission, and Isran had not expected them to return in time. The group consisted out of fifteen men and women, led by Ingjard and Beleval. Ingjard was a Nord woman with fiery red hair and Beleval was a Dunmer who refused to be lesser than any man. Both women had proved themselves skilled fighters with an indomitable will. Isran had greeted them both with open arms, but Tarrion slept through the commotion caused by them.
He and Serana slept through the entire night, and were woken up by Lydia early in the morning. Tarrion had put on his armour and struggled with his gauntlets, while Serana paced around the room waiting for him to be ready.
"How long do you think we will be on the road before we reach this Northwatch Keep?"
"Hmm. On my own it would take me a day. Last night Isran told me that it would take a bit more than a day, but he did not include the supplies and wagons we have to move as well. If we're lucky, we will have a three day walk ahead of us."
"Three days." Serana moaned.
It took another hour before everyone was ready to leave. Several wagons and carts were brought to carry the supplies, weapons and provisions. Tarrion now stood on one of the main towers with Lydia standing next to him.
"Are you alright, my thane?" she asked. "You seem worried."
Tarrion took a deep breath before answering. "Tell me Lydia… how many battles have we fought together?"
Lydia now had an expression of concern on her face, and her clear, brown eyes looked at Tarrion like it was the first time she had seen him.
"What do you mean?"
"We have fought together, side by side, in battles beyond count." Tarrion sighed. "We have fought man and beast. Bandits, bears, the undead, mages, undead mages, Dwarven automatons and even Dragons. I…. I just have the feeling that this battle will be different. I'm worried. Not about me, but about those that I care about. About my friends."
Lydia grabbed Tarrion and turned his head towards her. "You have fought foes that are the stuff of nightmares, and every time you came out alive and well."
"Alive, but not well." Tarrion corrected her. "Otherwise I wouldn't have a single scar on my body, and you have helped patch me up countless times."
Lydia waved that away. "I know, but not even Alduin was a match for you. These are Vampires… powerful ones… but still only Vampires."
And suddenly she looked at Tarrion with a stern look. "And let me make one thing perfectly clear. I will not allow you to die… I am your housecarl, and I have sworn to protect you."
"Damnit Lydia, you're not making this easier."
Tarrion sighed again and grabbed something from his belt. He showed it to Lydia and she saw that it was an axe. It was inlayed with runes and it seemed sharp enough to split a hair in two.
"I want you to have this." Tarrion said, and he raised his hand before she could protest. "Don't…. just take it. This axe was made specifically to fight the undead, and I would feel better if you would carry it. And yes… I am sure."
Lydia took the axe in her hands, but Tarrion saw that she did not feel better. She seemed to worry even more, but Tarrion shook his head and she thanked him. He now overlooked everyone below in the valley. In total a good fifty men and women were gathered, of which fifteen would stay behind to protect the fortress. Tarrion knew that they looked outnumbered but he also knew that his housecarl Jordis would wait for him at Northwatch Keep, and he was confident that general Tullius would lend him some of his men.
Below a horn sounded. The signal to leave. Tarrion and Lydia climbed down the tower and Serana joined them at the entrance to the main hall. Aela was talking to the twins, as they would stay behind to lead the defenders. Neither of them seemed to like it one bit, but they knew they had to protect civilians and the fortress.
"… and no matter what happens. If you see that you cannot win it, you have permission to transform. I don't care if others may see you do it… you will not die because you think you can't transform. Clear?"
Both Farkas and Vilkas nodded.
"Don't worry Aela… we can do this."
"Yes, don't worry about us. Worry about yourself."
She turned around and walked to Tarrion.
"They are right, you know?" Tarrion said to her. "They are both experienced warriors. Vilkas is smart enough to see the best moment in battle, and Farkas…. 'has the strength of Ysgramor'."
"I know.. I know. But enough of that… the others are leaving already."
"Agreed… but one last thing Aela."
Tarrion grabbed a shield from his back. It was a golden, strange looking shield and Aela looked confused at Tarrion.
"Take this." he said. "Just take it… I won't accept 'no' as an answer."
"I wasn't going to say 'no', but…. Why this shield?"
"This is a special shield. It stores the energy from blocked attacks and fires it back when you hit someone with it. Use it well."
Aela, Lydia, Tarrion and Serana joined the others forces as they left the valley. Serana was quiet and walked in the back, with her hood on. The sun was behind the clouds, but she refused to walk without her hood. She and Tarrion walked in the back, behind Aela and Lydia who had a conversation about the best way to kill the Vampires. Tarrion kept his eyes on Serana who walked in silence and seemed to stare at her feet. Tarrion grabbed her hand an slowed his pace a bit, so Lydia and Aela wouldn't hear them.
"Are you alright?"
"I… I think so." she said, and Tarrion could hear that her voice was stronger than he expected. "I know it is the right thing to do, and I know that we have no choice…. It is not easy…"
"If you are not ready to face Harkon…." Tarrion started, but Serana interrupted him.
"No… I am ready. I want him to know that he has brought this upon himself. I… I am ready…. I think."
-Whiterun Hold-
Tarrion and Serana walked to the front of the column. They had just reached the Whiterun's Western Watchtower, and they agreed to rest there for the night. It was already dark and the moon had almost reached its highest point already, but Isran had refused to stop. It wasn't until they marched deep into the night, he agreed to rest. There another three warriors joined the still growing force. Rayya, Argis and Gregor waited for Tarrion at the watchtower, and after Tarrion had greeted them, they mingled amongst the others.
"Tarrion, we should go."
Tarrion turned around and saw Serana standing next to him.
"What?"
"We should go…. This is taking too long, and there is nothing we can do here. I suggest we go ahead."
Tarrion saw the look in her eyes, and he thought he recognized it. It was the same look she had when she asked to be fed, and he nodded.
"I'll tell Isran that…."
"No… please, let's just go… now."
"What is it?" Tarrion looked at her, but she did not look back. There was something about her tone that made Tarrion uneasy. He did not know what it was, but he agreed. Without a word he grabbed two horses that were kept at the watchtower and rode off with Serana into the night.
At first Tarrion wanted to make the horse trod at an easy pace, but Serana urged her horse into a gallop. She forced the horse to go so fast, Tarrion had a hard time keeping up with her, and she stopped for no-one and nothing. He rode behind her and saw how both she and her horse had become a shadow and a gale, as they flew through Rorikstead. Several guards had to jump away to avoid being run over and they hollered a few insults.
-Haafingar-
Serana finally stopped. They had reached the north-western mountains near Solitude and they could see the fortress of Northwatch Keep below. The sun had begun to rise and it was clearly going to be a cloudy day. Serana dismounted and stepped to the edge of the mountainside. Tarrion dismounted as well and walked up to her. During the entire gallop Serana had not said a word.
"Serana… talk to me…."
She did not answer immediately, but looked out over the sea, and Tarrion knew that she could see the fortress in the distance.
"We're alone… aren't we?" she asked and Tarrion nodded.
"Yes we are…. Come.. talk to me… what is it?"
Serana sighed and she closed her eyes. "I'm sorry… I just… needed to get away from everyone else for a moment. I couldn't stand being around them anymore."
"Why? They are on our side… they are our friends."
"They are your friends." Serana said, and the frustration in her voice was clear. She turned around and her eyes flared. "Your housecarls and friends are here, and everyone in the Dawnguard loves you for what you did, what you do and what you are. But me…. they hate me! While you were away to fetch that axe, nobody said a word to me…. They treated me as a leper, as a…. as a Vampire. And they were not wrong. I am a Vampire, a Pure-Blooded Vampire even, and they see me as the enemy. And don't tell me I'm wrong, because Isran still hates me. Lydia seems to tolerate me, but only because you tell her to. Otherwise she would have killed me long ago."
Serana sighed again. She had clearly held those word back for a while, and they now burst from her.
"And now… we march against my father, who, despite everything, is still my father, and everyone wants to see him dead and kill every Vampire along the way. They see as just as much of an abomination as my father! How can I stay around people like that?"
Tarrion could not answer her, but came standing next to her and also looked out over the sea. A cold breeze came from the north, and it played with Serana's hair. He stood there, conflicted with his thoughts for a while, trying to think of something to say. He sighed.
"Serana… as I said before, I do not know what you are going through. I cannot give you advice on this… I cannot tell you how to feel…. But I can tell you this. If there was another way, I would take it in a heartbeat. If I could make the others like you, I would do so right now. If I could make your pain go away… I would do so. The only thing that might be a relief is that, after this, we won't have to deal with Isran or the Dawnguard anymore."
"That is a bit of a relief, in fact…. But what about you?"
"What about me?"
"What will you do after this?" Serana looked at him and he saw her eyes growing wider. The soft glow was clearly visible in the night.
"Me? I'm not sure." he made himself sound like he was considering, but in truth he had made up his mind long ago. "I can go back to saving the day again… being a bad-ass Dragonborn that I am and continue to help people, and save damsels in distress, having them fall for me."
Serana took a deep breath through her nose and pouted her lips in protest and Tarrion smirked. "Or I might take it easy for a while…. I do have a large manor in Falkreath that I still have to visit. I'm sure the builders are done furnishing it by now, so I should be able to move in. The only problem now is that it would be slightly lonely… alone, facing the cold nights of Skyrim by myself…. With no-one to talk to…"
"I thought that one of your housecarls would move in?" Serana teased him back, and she smirked too now.
"True, but…. Well… she is not exactly a very talkative person."
"Mhm…." Serana nodded. "Then who do you want to talk to?"
"I was thinking about getting a dog." Tarrion smiled.
Serana slapped him on his head, and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek.
"Thank you… for taking my mind of all this." And Tarrion wrapped his arm around her.
"Anytime."
-Outside Northwatch Keep-
The next day was the day of the attack. With the help of another fifteen guardsmen Jordis had cleared out Northwatch Keep and brought the boats to the shore. Now seven small boats, enough for all of them, were moored close by. Tarrion stood on the highest tower and looked to the north where he saw the dark shadow of Volkihar Castle loom in the distance.
Isran and his forces had arrived the previous night, and now everyone had assembled between the walls of the fortress, where Isran had decided to make a speech. He stood above the gate so that everyone could see him.
"Everyone! Gather 'round…. Come on then! We haven't got all day."
He waited for everyone to stand in the small courtyard before his voice echoed over them.
"For too long we have allowed these Vampires to poison the night, and kill our people. Now, we have the means to strike back!" and he held up a golden bow. "We now have Auriel's Bow! The Gods themselves have favoured us, and we must answer with action! We will march on their, and destroy those wretched abominations so they can no longer corrupt our world!"
He pulled his large hammer from his back and struck with it on the stones.
"This is our fight! And this is our fate! THIS IS THE TIME OF THE DAWNGUARD!"
The men and women below drew their swords and shouted loud.
"Kill the abominations!"
"For the Dawnguard! For Skyrim!"
"Give them a crossbow bolt between the eyes for me!"
Serana heard how Isran had called her kind 'abominations', but she was not surprised. She knew how Isran felt about Vampires, and she no longer cared. She climed the tower and came standing next to Tarrion and looked at the fortress what once was her home. With her Vampire eyes she could see more than Tarrion, but the sunlight blocked out much.
"Can you see them?" Tarrion asked her.
"Yes."
Serana saw indeed a large number of men and women on the beach of the island. She saw small barricades an palisades, and behind them at least one hundred vampires and thralls were gathered. She saw that Harkon wanted to intimidate, and had put the host of his forces on the beach. She could not see who they were, for the sun blocked her vision.
"I can see at least one hundred." she said.
Tarrion nodded. "It seems Harkon doesn't want us to even reach the fortress gates. He wants to deter us at the beach."
He smiled. "He is over confident."
"We will have a hard time getting through the beach."
"No we won't." Tarrion simply said and he climbed down the tower.
He walked over the walls and came standing next to Isran above the gate.
"I hope you won't get scared."
"What do you mean?" Isran asked, but Tarrion braced himself.
ODAHVIING
Isran jumped back when he heard the sound and power of Tarrion's Voice, but when nothing happened he looked at him with one eyebrow raised.
"What was that supposed to be?"
"Calling a friend."
A thundering roar echoed over the mountains. It was so loud, Tarrion saw that it created a small avalanche, and he smiled. Several of the men below jumped up at the sound of it and grabbed their bows.
"What was that?" a few asked, but Tarrion now looked at something over the mountains.
A large dragon had appeared and it now came flying down the mountain. Isran went pale, and they could hear Agmear and Celann.
"DRAGON!"
"TAKE COVER!"
"Everyone! Calm down!"
Aela came walking through the men and tried to calm them down.
The red Dragon roared again and flew over the now terrified humans below him, and Tarrion could hear him laugh. Tarrion jumped down from the walls and the Dragon landed in front of him and the ground shook.
"Odaviing, old friend. I'm glad you've come."
"Tarrion Thuri. You have called me, and so I have come. What is it that you need of me?"
"Your help, but before I ask you, I must call one other friend."
Odaviing looked confused at Tarrion as he walked past him and Shouted to the ground.
DURNEHVIIR
The ground shook and broke open and black flames poured from them. Many of the men had gathered on the walls to look at the dragon, but they now cowered even more as it looked like the flames of Oblivion itself burned the ground, and even Odaviing backed away. With a thundering roar the undead Dragon climbed out of the ground, the same way the undead would climb from their graves, and he turned around and faced Tarrion.
"Ahh… the free air of Vus at long last…." he said. "I see that you are in need of my aid Qahnaarin…. And you have brought another of the Dov here. What can we do for you?"
Tarrion smiled. He turned around and saw how everyone was gathered on the walls to look at the two large Dragons, and they did not know what they saw. Only Aela, Lydia, Jordis, and Serana stayed calm, for they had seen Tarrion like this before. Strong, commanding, fearless and powerful.
"I need your help in besieging a fortress to the north of here." Tarrion said to the two Dragons. "There are a lot of Vampires and their thralls gathered there, and we are heavily outnumbered. I know you cannot enter the castle itself, but you can clear the beach. I know you will find defences there, but you will be able to breach them."
"Would you have us scatter these Rovaan Vulon? Like leaves in the wind?" Odahviing asked.
"No." Tarrion said, and his voice turned serious. "I want you to burn the beaches. Do not leave a single stone unscorched, and let no-one get away. Bring the fear to them, and let them know that their end has come. Furthermore, I am sure they will have sentries inside the fortress, ready to fire spells at us. If you can, turn them to ashes. I will lead over the water in the boats."
"Hmmm, your enemies will surely see you coming, Qahnaarin. How will you defend yourself if you get hit with these spells? Those boats are made of wood and will burn like torches."
"I know." Tarrion continued. "I will arrange for cover along the way. I just want you to clear the beaches and take down as many sentries as you can."
Both Durnehviir and Odahviing agreed and flew away.
"You are a young Dova." Tarrion heard Durnehviir say to Odahviing. "I hope I don't have to teach you to fly."
"Careful, old one. You might need help with the crossing."
Both Dragons laughed and flew in a storm to the north.
Tarrion now led everyone to the boats. He would take the middle ship, which was also the largest. Aela, Serana, Jordis, Lydia, Isran and Durak would join him along with a few guardsmen.
"How exactly do you want to give us 'cover'?" Aela asked.
"I will create a thick mist. You won't see three feet in front of you. I will be able to see and navigate through it, but others won't. Therefore we will tie the boats together, so that none of them will get lost in the mist."
And as Tarrion said, the boats were tied together. The largest boat would be in the middle, with three boats on either side.
Tarrion looked up and saw both Dragons dive to the beaches, and he saw the fire that escaped from both their mouths. He could vaguely hear their voices, but they were drowned in the screams and cries from Vampires and their thralls being burned.
After a few moments everyone had gathered in the boats. Tarrion stood on the front of the middle one and looked out over the sea in front of him. The sky was clouded, but he could clearly see the fortress in front of him. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply before he Shouted.
VEN MUL RIIK
In less than no time a thick fog had covered everything, and they left the shores. Behind him Tarrion could hear the others feel confused and they said they felt strange. Tarrion did not feel this, as he had experienced this before. In Sovngarde, Alduin had set up a similar soul snare in this mist. But Tarrion had no intention of capturing the souls of all aboard the ships. He wanted them safely across the water to reach the island.
The cries and screams from their enemies now sounded far off and Tarrion could not hear Durnehviir or Odahviing, but he knew they would not be killed. 'Those Vampires may be powerful,' he thought. 'but they cannot stand against two Dragons. And a third is on his way, and this one is more powerful than many Dragons combined.'
He felt energy build up in him, as he now clearly remembered what Harkon had said and done. What he had done against his own kind, his own family, his own wife and daughter. Tarrion felt himself fill with rage and anger toward all those who had wronged both him, the province of Skyrim… and Serana. He now cared more for her than anyone else, and he knew that Harkon would not survive to see the end of this day.
=End of Chapter=
=Author's Notes=
Soo, finally this chapter is done. This one was a pain in the ass…. You have no idea. I don't know how many parts of this chapter I re-wrote, re-checked and deleted, only to bring them back again. It never felt right with me, but I think I did it right now. I hope so, and I hope you like it so far. The final battle awaits us, and I know this is another chapter with only more feelings and build up to said battle.
There has been one guy who pointed out that the battle is going to be small, compared to what a real-life battle would be. I know this, and I can only agree with him/her (no idea if it is a he or she). I will explain the same here, what I explained to him:
In the game you only see a handful of warriors, like 10 in total, storm Castle Volkihar. I now have a hard time imagining a full scale battle with many thousands of men, siege equipment, battering rams etc. , based on just that. So I am keeping it small, and I'm sorry for that. I would like to make it a massive battle, but I just have a hard time imagining that. Sorry :)
He also pointed out that Skyrim is technically the size of Alaska, and thus it would take them at least a full week to travel from the one end of Skyrim to the other end. I now did change 1 day to 3 days, but it is still pretty small. I once again can only agree with him, and I do have to apologize for not making it so. "Is it too late to say sorry?" (Gods I hate that song)
Dragon Language Used:
Od-ah-viing: Snow Winged Hunter (From the Call Dragon Shout)
Dur-Neh-Viir: Curse Never Dying (From the Summon Durneviir Shout)
Ven Mul Riik: Wind Strong Gale (Alduin uses this shout to create his Soulsnare in Sovngarde. You cannot use this shout in the game, but who cares :)
Thuri: My (Over)Lord
Vus: Nirn
Qahnaarin: Vanquisher
Rovaan Vulon: Nightwalkers
Characters:
Ingjard: Nord woman, redhead, member of the Dawnguard.
Beleval: Dunmer woman, also member of the Dawnguard.
Argis: (The bulwark), Male Nord, housecarl in Markarth.
Gregor: Male Nord, Housecarl in the Pale.
Jordis: (The swordmaiden), Nord woman, housecarl in Solitude, and twin sister to Lydia. (not really but come on, they look exactly the same, just with a different hairdo)
Odahviing: Red Dragon. Helps you get to Skuldafn and allows you to call for him for help after you defeat Alduin.
(As always) I am Dutch (From the Netherlands) so if there are any mistakes in spelling/grammar please tell me about it.