Author's Note:

Happy Halloween, those of you who celebrate it :)

I hope you're all ready for the witches, ghouls and vampires. Some of which you might even find here ;)

Enjoy the chapter :3

Chapter LV – Butting Heads

"Thank you for doing this, Brelyna," Aeyrin gave the Dunmer a careful smile.

They headed out of the cavern immediately and went straight towards Rorikstead. Brelyna was in the area. They could spot her from a distance by the constant flashes of light from her detection spell. She was with a group of guards, but when they explained the situation, she went with the two of them without a question.

"Yeah. Sure," she nodded. She had been very silent the entire time. It was uncomfortable.

Aeyrin couldn't help herself. She had to say something.

"Uhm… about what happened…"

"Save it," Brelyna immediately interrupted her. "Don't do this. Seriously," she growled.

Well… message received. Aeyrin instantly deflated. Though that made Brelyna talk again, surprisingly enough.

"Look, I'm not mad at you. I know it wasn't your fault. I know that. But I just… I don't wanna talk about it, alright? I'm not mad but I can't help that I feel… it shouldn't have happened like that. So please, just drop it. I just need some distance. But it's… it's alright."

That was understandable. Of course she would be bitter, even if rationally she knew Aeyrin was not at fault. She couldn't blame her for her emotions after losing her closest friend after all.

"Alright. I'm sorry," Aeyrin nodded. "Thank you for helping. I hope Dexion is alright." That was a safer topic.

"I don't know. This shit sounds fishy. Nobody from the temple actually went and looked for him. They were waiting for the guards or me to do it. You know how paranoid they are. They didn't want to show up anywhere around any authorities like this."

"Yeah we figured," Bishop nodded. He kept watching the ground for fresh footprints. There was a large group they were following. It was a good sign. "But who the fuck even knew he was here?"

"I don't know, but I'm pretty sure he wasn't subtle about it," Brelyna sighed. "He probably left his information with the census at the border. And anyone could have tracked him from that, I guess. The question is… who would want to?"

Right. Who needed a Moth Priest for their mission? Was it possible that someone else was working on getting rid of the dragons in secret? Did someone else find an Elder Scroll that needed to be read at the Throat?

But… nobody would actually get to the Throat, right? Not to talk to Paarthurnax.

Maybe they had other sources of information.

This was concerning. But Aeyrin couldn't help but be a little hopeful about this.

Could there actually be some more help out there? Maybe they had more stuff figured out. Maybe they knew how to learn the Shout. Or transcribe it somehow.

"There!" Brelyna suddenly called out and pointed in the distance. "Uuuh… wow."

"What? 'Wow' what?" Bishop scowled at her. There was nothing he could see in the distance.

"It's… shit. It's far. But there's a lot of people. I can only see tiny specks though. They're really far and off the road, but it's that way," she pointed again in the same direction, somewhere off the road towards the south east.

"Uhm… wait a minute. I use two spells to find corpses too, but it's waning." Brelyna's hand lit up again in soft purple magic this time. They saw her do this before too before she did the darker one. "Well… you're in for a fight, I think."

"Wait, you can see creatures too?" Bishop raised his brow at her.

"No, I said corpses. And the undead. There's corpses more near here, but then there's a lot of… moving dots. Undead," she explained.

Hmmm… a group of mercenaries in the same armor took Dexion to a place filled with undead? Why? This made no sense.

"This is so fucking weird," Bishop scowled. Nothing about this made any sense.

"Yeah. I hope he's not one of the corpses," Brelyna sighed. "I'm not… I'm not fighting. You bring him back to the temple alright? Hopefully in one piece."

"Of course. Thank you, again," Aeyrin nodded at her and she tried to smile, but she was too concerned right now to do that.

What in the Gods' names was happening?

…

There were corpses on the ground in front of the cavern, leaving Bishop and Aeyrin with a clear indication about just where to go.

There were several men in heavy armor in the same style, just like the farmer had reported. It was nothing they'd seen before though – studded leather with small plate squares all over it. It was pretty smart – it provided the protection of a full plate, but because it wasn't all melted into one big plate, the person could move in it better. Their weapons were of odd design too – they had runic ornaments on them in style which was not commonly seen throughout Skyrim. But most of all, the shields caught their eyes. There was something that resembled the symbol of a sun on all of them.

Who were these people? They were clearly some faction with all that uniform equipment, unless they were a very rich mercenary company. But it was nothing either Bishop or Aeyrin had ever seen. Were these people from Cyrodiil? It didn't ring any bells from there either.

Of course, their corpses weren't the only ones in front of the cave. There were others, though while the mercenaries had six dead there, there were only two other people there. They wore dark outfits, mostly black, red and violet, and the clothes were generally light, made only from cloth and leather. Maybe mages?

Bishop knelt down to one of the lightly clad corpses and studied the woman. Her face was odd. He wasn't sure why. It was very gaunt. On a hunch, he moved his hand towards her eyes and opened one of her eyelids.

Fuck!

"Vampires," he growled. It made sense that Brelyna's spell showed undead. Vampires. He could clearly see the yellow eyes, though they were not glowing much. They usually glowed much more when the creature was alive. And when he parted the woman's lips with his fingers, the fangs only confirmed it.

"Vampires? So… the soldiers brought Dexion into a vampire den? Or did vampires ambush them on the road?" Aeyrin pondered.

"Probably the second. I doubt they were bringing him to them, judging from the corpses," Bishop nodded as he straightened up again.

"Well, at least we know what we're in for," Aeyrin smiled a bit, though fighting vampires always made her anxious. Somehow it always ended up very bad for her. Somehow she always got bitten. She hated that feeling. They had to be careful. "Let's go."

Bishop took point and entered the cave promptly. There was one more corpse in the narrow hallway where they entered, but there was nothing else. They heard noises though. The distinct noise of battle and magic.

Bishop continued with Aeyrin right on his heel until he reached the next chamber. There he stopped.

It was a scene he did not expect.

The first thing he noticed was a large blue barrier. And in the middle of it – a man in white robes, holding it up. Dexion! He was alive. And he was shielding himself from the battle.

There was a group of those soldiers and a group of the vampires and they all fought together in front of the barrier. It looked like… were the vampires defending Dexion? That was weird.

"Don't waver! They'll fall soon!" A vampire woman called out to the Moth Priest when his barrier flickered a little. They were defending him! What the fuck was going on? And… when he concentrated his gaze on the woman, he noticed something even more shocking.

Her eyes glowed much like the rest of them and it was plain to see what she was. But past an almost distractingly red lipstick and behind her jet-black hair, Bishop noticed the glint of something big and golden fastened to her back.

"What the fuck?" He whispered. Between the noise of the room, the only one to hear him could be Aeyrin.

"What is happening?" She whispered back, trying to concentrate on the scene. But she couldn't see that far with the same clarity as Bishop did.

"The vampires are protecting Dexion," Bishop explained. "One of them has an Elder Scroll on her back."

Aeyrin's eyes widened at him. There were people investigating the dragons! But… vampires?

"What do we do? Do we join and attack the soldiers?" Bishop asked. Right now, the battle could go either way.

"More intruders!" A voice boomed through the room.

Fuck! Someone noticed them. One of the soldiers began to run towards the exit to take care of the people at their backs but a vampire followed him instantly.

Bishop and Aeyrin got ready for battle. As the soldier was approaching, Bishop promptly aimed his bow. That fucker had a full helmet on, but he was running in a straight line. Bishop could find a good trajectory.

He let his arrow loose, and just as he predicted, it hit right inside the helmet's slit, into the soldier's face. The man fell on the ground instantly. Dead. Good.

But the vampire ran on. Towards them with a menacing glare on his face.

"What the fuck? They're both attacking us!" Bishop huffed while Aeyrin's hand lit up with a bright light.

A beam of that light shot straight at the running vampire and a disturbing scream echoed through the cavern as sizzling flames and light enveloped the creature's body.

"Forget it. Let's just get rid of them all and save Dexion. Whatever's happening," Aeyrin nodded in determination. It took only very little aggression from a damn vampire to convince her of their ill intent. She had no idea why they were protecting Dexion, but it didn't matter. Dexion was going to be the safest with the two of them.

She readied her mace and headed forth while Bishop ran to the side to another vantage point. He could get to Dexion's barrier and hide behind it, only peeking out to make his shots.

"The vampires' lackeys! Get them!" Another soldier yelled out when Aeyrin made it to the fray. She didn't care what anybody mistakenly thought anymore – Dexion needed to be saved. But if they could save the woman with the Scroll, she might have more information.

She wanted to know what was going on, but it was always hard to negotiate with people in the middle of a battle. And she didn't even know if the vampires really were Dexion's allies. And everyone was immediately aggressive.

An armored woman charged at her right away with her hammer brandished while she spotted one of the vampires running at her with his hands lighting up with familiar red lights.

She had to get rid of that one first.

Her free hand lit up again – she didn't even bother with the shield. She needed her magic for this. It was still a little disconcerting that this very spell now could harm her too, but she tried not to dwell on it.

The spell shot at the vampire, who clearly didn't see it coming. He fell to the ground, sizzling, within moments.

The soldier saw the whole thing. Aeyrin promptly turned towards her, but apparently, even the fact that Aeyrin just fought the vampire didn't deter the woman. She ran forth, and before Aeyrin could do anything else, her hammer smashed into her leg.

A dull pain reverberated through her very bone and she was forced to kneel with a pained yelp. She felt something on her leg – a searing feeling. The hammer was enchanted! And she recognized the burning pain. It wasn't like fire. It was the exact magic she just used against the vampire.

"Knew you were one of them," the woman snarled and heaved to smash her hammer against Aeyrin's head this time.

Aeyrin quickly dropped even more to the ground and rolled to the side, avoiding the blow. Thank the Gods. She just barely made it. The woman's hammer clanked hard against the stone floor, sending noise through the chamber and alerting even more enemies. Another armored man fighting a vampire right next to her stabbed the creature in one fluid motion and turned towards Aeyrin.

She scrambled on the ground before she could finally get a proper hold on her weapon. She was still crouching on the ground, but when the man reached her, she smashed her mace into his hip before he could slash her. He stumbled a little, but what made more damage was her own enchantment. He began to shake with the effects of the lightning as a scream escaped his lips at the combined freeze and burn on the spot.

It gave her time. She managed to get up on her feet clumsily and she smashed against him again. And when he stumbled, she bashed his head in with her mace.

Dammit, she forgot about the woman.

But when she turned around, she saw her dead on the ground with an arrow protruding from her head.

Good. Bishop had her back. But the battle was far from over. More people ran towards her, both soldiers and vampires.

Bishop picked the targets around Aeyrin carefully. She was getting surrounded and he needed to ease her situation. He was half-hidden by the barrier, but it looked like Dexion didn't even notice him there. Neither did the vampire guarding him.

The battle raged on as he picked his targets one by one. Aeyrin got hit again though and she ended up on the ground once more. Fuck. He looked for the one threatening her the most. The herd had thinned considerably – there were only three groups fighting now. One was by the wall, two sword-locked enemies, a vampire and a soldier. The other group had two soldiers on the ground while a vampire cast those annoying red orbs onto them. They were as good as done for.

And the last group was Aeyrin surrounded by three soldiers.

Bishop shot the one approaching her, but before he could pick his next target, suddenly, the barrier disappeared.

"Come, let's get out of here now," the vampire with the Scroll almost whispered.

"Yes, mistress."

What the fuck?

Dexion's voice was so monotonous and empty. Was he… was he charmed? Fuck! That explained so much. Bishop couldn't let her take him away.

He cast a brief glance towards Aeyrin. She was up on her feet again and fighting. She seemed to have a handle on things. As much as he wanted to focus on her, he needed to react. He saw the vampire grab Dexion's hand and drag him. They both had their backs to him so they likely didn't even notice him yet.

"Get your fucking hands off our Moth Priest, bloodsucker!" He snarled and immediately pointed his bow at the vampire's head. That got her attention.

He would have shot her, but… would that free Dexion from the compulsion or not? He wasn't so sure. He was under the charm himself before and it passed. Did it pass with time or because Aeyrin killed the vampire controlling him back then? He still had no idea. And what if Dexion defended this bloodsucker?

The vampire instantly pulled the Moth Priest into her arms and brandished a dagger, pressing it against his neck.

"Lower your bow and I won't have to harm him," the vampire scowled at Bishop.

"Hah! Right. You clearly want him alive," Bishop scoffed at her.

"There are more of his kind down south. I don't need him," the vampire instantly countered.

Fuck. Well… that was the case for him and Aeyrin too, but… the Moth Priests would likely not send another one voluntarily after Dexion died. And the vampire clearly had other methods of making people do what she wanted.

Bishop wavered. He lowered his bow a little, but he still had his arrow notched and ready as he gave the vampire a challenging look.

But then, he felt something very unpleasantly familiar.

"You will not harm me, human," she smiled at him victoriously.

Right. Why would he harm her? She was just protecting Dexion from these people. He didn't want to harm her. Not at all.

"I will leave now with the priest and you won't follow," she continued.

It was her priest. She won him fair and square. She should get to leave with him. It was alright. Maybe she needed him more than they did.

"I won't follow," Bishop heard how monotonous his voice was, but he didn't really find it disturbing at all this time. It seemed so normal.

Her eyes were so beautiful. He had never seen a vampire's eyes look like this. They were special. The bright yellow glow was there, but her thin black pupils shone in the center. No other vampires had black pupils like this. Like there was a breathtaking darkness in her core distinguishing her from the rest.

"Bishop! Kill her!"

He heard a familiar voice. Aeyrin was there, breathing visibly heavily as she tried to keep herself up on her feet. She was gripping her upper arm as if it was hurt. He could barely focus on her though. She stood behind the vampire and he could not stop staring at her dark beauty.

The vampire smiled victoriously as she turned her back to Bishop and faced Aeyrin.

Aeyrin's eyes went wide as the vampire's gaze pierced her. She managed to deal with the rest of the attackers. By the time the two assaulting her were dead, a vampire made its way towards her and hit her with the red spell right as she hit him with her own spell, killing him. Then the last soldier came and slashed her upper arm so much it cut through her chain, but the floating red orbs affected him too and he was on the ground soon. She managed to smash her mace into his head and while it barely did any damage with the lack of her strength, the enchantment killed him. At least his sword wasn't enchanted with that nasty light spell.

But now she was too weak to fight this one last vampire.

She knew she shouldn't watch her too much though.

And she could still keep herself up on her feet.

Aeyrin let out a feral growl, gathering all the strength she could muster as she dashed forth. She may have been slower than usual, but the vampire still held Dexion firmly with a threatening glare.

The creature made sure to keep Dexion in the way of Aeyrin's mace, but she didn't actually smash it against anyone. It was a mislead. Instead, she reached out with her wounded arm, letting out a piercing scream as she grabbed something.

There was a moment of confusion as the three of them ended up in a strange tangled mess. Aeyrin's mace ended up on the ground, as did the vampire's dagger. Dexion staggered back from the scene, and Aeyrin got shoved back roughly. But not without her spoils. She held on tightly, as tightly as she could, to that golden case she knew so well. And as she was shoved back, the Scroll got torn out of the vampire's clasp and stayed in Aeyrin's hands.

There they were. The vampire staring at the thief incredulously as Aeyrin clutched the Scroll in her arms. Bishop and Dexion just stood there, unmoving.

"Release them both from your spell or I'll destroy this," Aeyrin snarled.

"Pfft. You're bluffing," the vampire scoffed. "You don't even know what it is. You can't destroy something like that."

"It's an Elder Scroll and I know exactly how to destroy one. I've done that before," Aeyrin scowled. It was a bluff, but she hoped she was convincing. The vampire at least looked uncertain. And surprised that Aeyrin knew what it was. She had so many questions, but this was no time for a discussion.

But then, her eyes bore into Aeyrin's again with that strange intensity.

"Give me the Scroll and do not follow," her voice reverberated in Aeyrin's ears unpleasantly, almost ringing in her head.

Oh Gods. She knew this feeling. She recognized it now. Her stomach lurched and she felt that overwhelming sickness again. She couldn't stand it.

She leaned to the side and threw up on the ground instantly, emptying the contents of her stomach. Well, it did serve to confuse the vampire even more.

Aeyrin wiped her mouth quickly when she was done and looked back at the vampire. She was staring at Aeyrin in slight bafflement, but she was clearly more expectant to see the effects of her charm.

"Never," Aeyrin growled. "Release them now."

"What just happened?" The vampire blinked at her.

"Ever tried to charm a dragon?" Aeyrin scoffed at her menacingly. That made the vampire even more taken aback. Granted, Aeyrin had no idea if the charms had this effect on her because of the werewolf blood or the dragon soul, but she knew that 'dragon' sounded much more intimidating.

"A 'dragon'?" The vampire raised her brow. "I heard they are back. I didn't think they'd look like this." She looked Aeyrin up and down, but she was visibly disturbed. Then her eyes went to Dexion, then Bishop.

Aeyrin was still on the ground so she didn't get to react much. The vampire grabbed Dexion again and pulled him into her arms. Then she looked at Bishop intently.

"Drop your bow and kick it away, human."

Bishop obeyed her instantly. He dropped his bow and kicked it far away from him, letting it slide across the stone ground. Damn, now they were both incapable of doing any harm.

The vampire sighed then and she gave Bishop a long stare followed by a few rapid blinks. His rigid stance suddenly relaxed and he let out a long sigh as if he had been holding his breath for a long time.

"Haah. Fuck. What the fuck?" He looked around in confusion – to the vampire holding the priest, wherever he could, either to see the corpses or to find his bow, then to Aeyrin who was on the ground clutching the Elder Scroll.

"He's released," the vampire nodded at Aeyrin. "Give me back the Scroll and I'll leave you two alive."

This time there was no nausea. The vampire was no longer charming her. She was… negotiating.

"No. Let Dexion go!" Aeyrin snarled.

"Give me the Scroll, mortal!" The vampire hissed. "Or… dragon. Whatever you are. You have no idea how much is at stake here."

"You bring an Elder Scroll to a cave full of people attacking you? How fucking stupid are you, bloodsucker?" Bishop smirked at her. He wasn't sure what just happened, but it seemed incredibly daft to him for sure.

"I had no choice," the vampire gritted her teeth. "I need the priest to read it. Give it back."

"Why? Are you trying to stop the dragons too?" Aeyrin's eyes lit up with hope, but the vampire only gave her a blank stare.

"I'm trying to stop you, dragon," the creature scoffed. "I need to know what the Scroll says. And if you know what's good for you, you won't destroy it."

"'Destroy it'?" Bishop blinked at Aeyrin in confusion. Could an Elder Scroll even be destroyed?

"What?" The vampire gave Aeyrin an instant suspicious glare. Bishop's doubt made her waver too.

"You need to read the Scroll, fine!" Aeyrin grumbled. "Just have him read it now and let him come with us."

"No. I can't. I need him," the vampire shook her head promptly. "Give me the Scroll now, dragon! It's the last time I ask nicely."

Oo-oh. Fine. She wanted the Scroll? She would get the Scroll.

Aeyrin collected herself off the ground. The effects of the spell were long gone and she could stand and move steadily. She gripped the Scroll tightly and took a few more steps towards the vampire. The creature visibly relaxed at that, but that was a mistake on her part.

Before Aeyrin reached her, when she was sure Bishop was out of the way of what would happen, she very quickly grabbed the lower thin golden bar on the Scroll and yanked it down.

Next moment was so confusing. Aeyrin shut her eyes tightly when she saw a bright light behind her eyelids. Then she heard a very shocked hiss from the vampire.

But then words echoed in the chamber. Dexion's voice.

"Daughter of Coldharbour. Blood sacrifice. Eternal night. Hmm… I need more. Too little. Needs more. Eclipse."

Dexion stopped talking and Aeyrin quickly pulled the bar back, closing the Scroll. She only reluctantly blinked her eyes open. The vampire and Bishop looked in the same state of utter shock as she was.

"What… what happened?" Aeyrin whispered quietly. There was strange silence enveloping the whole room.

"I read the Scroll as mistress instructed," Dexion merely nodded in a completely monotonous voice. "It requires more, mistress."

"Yes. I know," the vampire lowered her head somberly suddenly. "So… it's true. It's really true."

She looked so… defeated. Broken.

What happened? What was the Scroll talking about?

"What's true?" Bishop broke the somber silence after a while. This didn't sound good. What did the Scroll talk about?

"World enveloped in darkness. You should… you should leave, mortals. Leave me the Scroll and leave, please. Nowhere will be safe for you soon. Not for any of you."

"'Darkness'," Aeyrin gasped as the word rang an unpleasant bell in her head. She looked at Bishop and she instantly knew he thought of the same thing. Idgrod's vision. World enveloped in darkness. Was this what it was about? That thing that was so important that it made an appearance in the seer's vision in spite of the dragon menace?

The vampire looked at Bishop and Aeyrin curiously, as if she only now noticed that the words had some effect on the two of them. She suddenly didn't seem nearly as aggressive as before. She looked back at the corpses littering the ground, then back at them once more.

"You… why do you need the Moth Priest?" She cocked her head to the side. Dexion was no longer in her embrace, but he just stood there numbly, not reacting at all.

"Did you hear of Alduin's return?" Aeyrin decided to be forthcoming. Something disturbing was going on. And she was not going to ignore it for the sake of her quest. Vampire or not, they needed to talk right now.

"Alduin? The firstborn of Akatosh? I… heard of him. A long time ago. But I only just woke up recently," The vampire shook her head.

"'Woke up'? From what?" Bishop gaped at her. What the fuck did that mean?

"I was… entombed. To protect the Scroll while my father looked for others and for a way to learn the details of this prophecy. This one is only a part. We need… more. He needs more. But I…"

"What? Why did anyone 'entomb' you?" Aeyrin stared at her in shock. That sounded horrid! Was she awake during this entombing? "Why not just hide the Scroll?"

"And what the fuck is this prophecy about the darkness?" Bishop shook his head incredulously. What did that mean?

"I… ugh," the vampire huffed in frustration. "Please, tell me who you are and why you need the Moth Priest first. Were you the ones who called him to Skyrim?"

Bishop and Aeyrin shared an uncertain look. Should they reveal everything to this vampire? Then again, what reason would they have not to? She didn't even know that Alduin was back. She was clearly dealing with her own shit. And if there was another horrid prophecy promising some eternal night, they should really let her make use of Dexion's services, right? Or at the very least they needed to find out what this was about and what her intentions were.

In the end, they nodded at each other. The reading of the Scroll got too disturbing to ignore, especially with Idgrod's vision so freshly on their mind after her ominous letter. And they needed to cooperate with this vampire for now if they wanted answers.

"I'm the Dragonborn. The… last Dragonborn, I think. There's a prophecy of Alduin's return and the Last Dragonborn being… well… I guess I have to stop him. He's back and gaining strength and resurrecting the dragons," Aeyrin explained.

"Ah. Alduin, the World-Eater. Yes, that would probably not be good. I remember the stories of the dragon wars. And I've heard of the dragons returning. So you need to know more about the prophecy? That's why you sent for Dexion here?" The vampire nodded thoughtfully.

"No. We know the prophecy. Everyone does, apparently," Aeyrin almost rolled her eyes. It was certainly a popular legend in Skyrim. "We had Dexion meet us here so that we can take him to a place of the final battle with Alduin from the dragon wars. We need to see how to defeat him and the Scrolls can…"

"I understand," the vampire nodded again. "Yes. That… that would be important."

"Your turn," Bishop scowled at her.

"My name is Serana," the vampire introduced herself. "My family has been around for Eras. And my father… he is what you might call 'royalty' amongst our kind."

"You're a vampire princess?" Bishop smirked mockingly, though he found that the word had taken a different meaning for him. It didn't feel right calling anyone but Aeyrin 'princess', not even an actual one. Or a self-proclaimed one.

"You can call it that, if you like," Serana shrugged. "I am called something else entirely," she stared into the ground for a while with a troubled look on her face, but she promptly got back to her explanation. "My father heard of this prophecy – the eternal night. A prophecy that should say how to blacken the sun and bring about permanent darkness. And he is eager to force this prophecy to come true. He thinks that it will be the dawn of a new glorious era for vampires. That we will be on the hunt openly without any fear and that humankind will wither until they are nothing but our slaves."

"You don't agree?" Aeyrin raised her brow at Serana. She was saying it so disdainfully.

"No," Serana sighed. "Humankind will die without the sun. There is not even a question about it. We are immortal creatures. We might have a few years of this glorious hunt, but what then? What happens when all life on Nirn dies? We cannot feed on death. And besides… the world here. We barely know it, but he would have it destroyed without even opening his eyes."

That was… surprisingly passionate. She was so convincing. Was she lying? It was impossible to tell. But she was right. Vampires wouldn't survive without humans and humans wouldn't survive without the sun and animals and plants that it fed. It was a logic her father was clearly missing.

There was not enough glowing mushrooms in the world to sustain a human population without the sun.

Was it really possible to darken the sun?

"So why are you trying to read the Scrolls that spell out this prophecy?" Bishop frowned at her.

"I'm getting to that," Serana raised her hand to curb his questions. "My father was interested in this prophecy for a long time. He knew some sparse things and… made us participate in things to bring it to fruition, but he still knew too little. He had some information from sources I don't even know and he had this Scroll. From what we know, he needs three Scrolls in total. Specific ones. Those that speak of this prophecy. And… he had me entombed with this Scroll when the gates of Oblivion opened. He got worried that Dagon's forces would go after vampires eagerly to anger Molag Bal. And he had me hidden with the Scroll to protect us both."

"You were entombed for two hundred years?" Aeyrin's eyes widened. "Were you… conscious?"

"And how old are you?" Bishop asked. It was already disturbing.

"I was effectively asleep. Vampires can enter deep sleep in certain conditions," Serana explained before she turned towards Bishop. "And I was born in the Second Era, if that is important. Year five hundred seventy five."

"You're like fucking thousand years old!" Bishop couldn't hide his astonishment. That was both terrifying and… no, it was just terrifying.

"I suppose so, yes. But much of it was spent… no, never mind," Serana sighed. "What I meant to say is that I was awoken by my fellow clansmen very recently. Father apparently got the second Scroll from… someone. And he decided he is almost at his goal, so he wanted both me and the Scroll I protected under his guard. And I… I went with it. I 'help' him in his search for the final Scroll. So that I can do this. So that I can read them and learn of the prophecy before he does. So that I can stop him. I managed to convince him to let me take this Scroll with me to make sure the Moth Priest was not a fake, but… I will need to figure out how to get them all read before him, I suppose. Father learned from these… these people," she gestured to one of the soldiers. "He has a spy in their midst. And he learned that they were protecting the Moth Priests from afar. And once they learned that one was headed to Skyrim, they were intent on bringing him to safety so that my father would not get to him. They know of the prophecy. They are the ones who hid the second Scroll in the first place."

"Who are they?" Aeyrin scowled. She had never seen them anywhere.

"An ancient order," Serana nodded. "They call themselves the Dawnguard. They are vampire hunters. But specifically, they have a long standing feud with our clans that spans over centuries because of the prophecy. Father thought them all dead and the Scroll lost, but there was a recent resurgence and covert recruitment efforts. So he wisened up and got himself a willing human lackey who would join them and find out where the Scroll is being kept."

"I assume they want to stop the prophecy too," Aeyrin nodded thoughtfully.

"Yes. Of course they do. Anyone not blinded with power and carnage like my father would want that," Serana scoffed disdainfully.

"Then why the fuck would you kill them?" Bishop shook his head at her.

"I had no choice!" Serana promptly retorted. "My father doesn't trust me alone. He wouldn't send me to find the priest and take the Scroll by myself. My clansmen were with me," she gestured to the corpses of the vampires. "I had to play my part until I could take Dexion and sneak away during the battle and have him read the Scroll. If my clansmen would win, then we would continue back home with none the wiser. If not, I would… well…"

"'Well' what?" Aeyrin raised her brow. Would she not return home then?

"I would have a chance. I think. I… need help. I need to know more and I need to figure out a way to find the third Scroll and get them read before my father can. Or just stop it before it happens. And I thought. I hoped… I hoped I could find a way to approach the Dawnguard. Maybe charm some human to be my hostage or… or maybe try to… I don't know. They'd kill me on the spot."

This was… a lot. A lot to take in.

And vampire or not, Serana's cause was important. And she sounded very convincing.

Aeyrin racked her brain for a while as an idea formed in her head. All the while she tried to chase away the disturbing thoughts.

A year ago you wouldn't even listen to the vampire. You would call it a monster and kill it without hesitation. Then what would have happened?

Should she be grateful for her lycanthropy? It… changed her. Maybe Serana had no choice either. She made use of the tools given to her, but… she was not a monster. Maybe part of her was, but there was… a human there. It took Aeyrin a long time to come to terms with this.

"I have an idea," she nodded at Serana in determination. "This is important. We can't let your father do this."

"'We'?" Serana raised her brow at her.

"Well… kind of. We need the Moth Priest, Serana. But… that would also mean that he would be safe. And you could contact us whenever you get a chance to get the Scrolls to be read by him."

"Father will want a Moth Priest," Serana sighed. "I came here for him."

"Tell him he was killed," Bishop suggested. "The Dawnguard watch the ones down south, you said, right? So he likely won't try to… get another one. Just convince him that whoever sent for this one will eventually send for another one. It makes sense. And it buys you time."

"True. And it would give me exclusive access to Dexion," Serana pondered.

"And we'll help you approach the Dawnguard," Aeyrin smiled. Sure, those people attacked them here, but it was a battle already. They should be more malleable under different circumstances, right? If Serana's father could sneak a lackey there, there had to be a way.

"Really?" Serana looked surprised. "You would do that? From what you said, you might have a status that… that could be well received. Reliable," she nodded at Aeyrin.

"Free Dexion and let us take him back where he's supposed to be and we have a deal," Aeyrin looked at Bishop first, but he only nodded. It was strange when he had no protests, but he looked quite disturbed by the news. She was sure that if it wasn't for Idgrod, it wouldn't have struck such a cord, but they both knew now that this was important.

"Very well. I have no more options. I have no more allies," Serana agreed before she turned towards Dexion. There it was again – the intense stare and a few blinks and Dexion's body slumped with a gasp.

"Uh… what… y-you…" he took a few steps away from Serana before his eyes landed on Bishop and Aeyrin. "Dragonborn! That thing is…"

"Easy, Dexion. You're safe now," Aeyrin gave him a comforting smile. "This is Serana. I know she's a vampire, but she's an important ally right now."

"I remember her eyes," Dexion kept his gaze adamantly away from the vampire. "Your people came for me, but vampires attacked us. And then she looked at me."

"They weren't our people," Aeyrin shook her head somberly. "I'm sorry about everything Dexion, but we'll take you to our people now to work on a solution for the dragon problem. We'll explain what happened on the way. There's… more happening than we knew."

Dexion looked warily at the Elder Scroll in Aeyrin's hands. That was when Serana remembered it.

"I need it back. I can't come back without it," Serana scowled. Well… that was understandable.

Aeyrin handed the Scroll back to Serana, much to Dexion's surprise, and she addressed her again. "You shouldn't walk around with that. If you have somewhere to hide it, do it. We'll drop off Dexion and then meet you… somewhere and go find the Dawnguard."

"Very well," Serana nodded. "We can meet in a small empty shack I saw only a short distance away. North east from here. A little way off the road. I'll wait there. I hope I'm not wrong in trusting you."

"Same here, bloodsucker," Bishop threw her a glare, just to be sure. This was disturbing and it was one of the rare times he actually felt like they fucking needed to help. Because if this prophecy really came true, that would be a bigger disaster than getting enslaved by the dragons. Everything would die with no chance to fight back. Because how would anyone fight an extinguished sun?

"I will leave you to your explanations, mortals," Serana nodded at them, completely ignoring Bishop's glare. Maybe she was used to it, being a vampire and all. "I will be in the shack. Don't keep me waiting too long. The journey will take time."

Before they could ask where they were even going, Serana marched away from them.

This was probably the strangest development that could have come to pass.

But it was one problem they couldn't bring themselves to ignore.