Chapter 6
OCansino- Yeah, that's the point of the chapter, unfortunately. Getting Brelyna's thoughts on stuff. Not the most exciting thing, but I like to do it on occasion. And the stuff with Vaermina is going to be explained in this chapter. Whether or not it's satisfying is up for debate.
WhiteElfElder- Maybe he just wants the soul piece of Voldemort. Or maybe he wants both that and Harry. Who knows.
Dragonborn
"Hermaeus Mora." Said the Dragonborn as he looked upon the Daedric Prince of Fate and Knowledge, on guard with whatever the Daedric Prince had in mind. "You're the reason behind the plight on Winterhold right now, aren't you?"
"Ah, Dragonborn." Said Hermaeus Mora with a hint of both smug satisfaction and the calmness of a wise entity. "How astute of you. Indeed that is true, if only a little."
"Isn't dreams the domain of Vaermina? Bet she isn't too happy to hear about you treading on her domain." Said Serana as she looked at the manifestation of Hermaeus Mora. Though Serana primarily had issues with the Daedric Prince known as Molag Bal, the creator of Vampires, she knew all Daedric Princes were dangerous.
Daedric Princes. Considered the most powerful of all Daedra, immortal beings from a plane of existence known as Oblivion. Each Daedric prince, even the weakest, was a being of incredible power and held huge swaths of territory in Oblivion known as the Plains of Oblivion. Each of these plains is the domain of a single Daedric Prince, of which they can do whatever they please. These plains are constantly shrinking and expanding as each Daedric Prince gains or loses power against their fellow Princes, of which they're all constantly at odds.
The Daedric Princes, like all Daedra, considered Tamriel and it's inhabitants their playthings and often manipulate or conduct dark deeds upon them, either to advance their own agendas against their fellow Princes or just for their amusement. Some, like Azura, are more caring, if such a term can be given to the Daedric Princes, towards their pawns in Tamriel and others, like Molag Bal, the Daedric Prince of domination and enslavement, care little about them, only caring about their success and what they can offer him. Hermaeus Mora was in the middle of those two spectrums.
Hermaeus Mora cared little about the people of Tamriel, only caring about what they can offer to him, like most Daedric Princes. However, for those that interest him or those that come to his service to serve him well, Hermaeus Mora will reward them or offer deals in exchange for what he seeks, often knowledge he wants. The Dragonborn had made dealings with Hermaeus Mora in the past and, though he considered Hermaeus one of the more tolerable Daedric Princes, he was still a monster that ruined lives and destroyed families all for the sake of his pursuit of knowledge and himself. The situation involving Miraak being a primary example of the Daedric Prince and what he'll do in order to obtain what he desires.
"Why, yes, it is, Daughter of Coldharbour." Said Hermaeus Mora, causing Serana to stiffen a bit at the mention of Molag Bal's domain and her title as a female vampire created through a ritual with Molag Bal himself. "Normally treading upon the territories and influences of another Daedric Prince is grounds for conflict, but Vaermina has allowed me to influence the dreams of the people of Winterhold. Within her specified instructions, of course. Vaermina is not one that takes kindly to those that enter her spheres of influence but also do so in a way that angers her."
"And what does Winterhold possess that would cause two Daedric Princes to work together." Said the Dragonborn to Hermaeus Mora. Never in his life has he heard of Daedric Princes working together for a common goal. All of his encounters with the Daedric Princes were always with one of them at a time. Sometimes it was plotting against fellow Daedric Princes, other times they demanded something of him or someone else, him stopping their relics from harming others, fools toying with powers they failed to understand, or because he needed something of them. The ways he met the various Daedric Princes of Oblivion were varied, some of which were rather mundane, if such a thing can be said when interacting with some of the most powerful beings in Oblivion, to some of the most horrific acts that the Dragonborn has even committed in his life, some of which he regretted committing but couldn't do anything about it at the time. Hermaeus Mora wasn't the most despicable of the Daedric Princes, in fact he was actually one of the more tolerable Daedric Princes that the Dragonborn has encountered, but he still committed despicable acts in the pursuit of his desires. This act with Winterhold just being an example of that. And this was without including Vaermina into the mix. Though the Dragonborn had little interactions with Vaermina when compared to Hermaeus Mora, she was still a Daedric Prince and thus wasn't something to be taken lightly.
"What we desire is merely something that the College has taken under its care." Said Hermaeus Mora, getting straight to the point, seeing no point in delaying the inevitable. "Someone that is of great interest to us. I believe that you know who I'm speaking about, Daughter of Coldharbor." Serana widened her eyes at what Hermaeus Mora had just said.
"You're talking about the child that Brelyna adopted, aren't you." Said Serana as she looked at Hermaeus Mora's form, stunned that little boy was the cause for what was going on in Winterhold and had drawn the attention of both Hermaeus Mora and Vaermina to him. "Why would you want him? He's nothing too special at all."
"Ah, but that is where you are mistaken, Daughter of Coldharbor." Said Hermaeus Mora as he looked at both the Dragonborn and Serana with his many eyes. "The boy is quite special indeed. Just in a way that you wouldn't have expected. You see, the boy owes his very life to me."
"What do you mean by that?" Asked the Dragonborn as he dreaded internally what Hermaeus Mora meant by the boy owing his life to him.
"You see." Said Hermaeus Mora. "His birth mother was quite an interesting user of magic. Magic that I had no knowledge of until I met her. I would have loved to have more time with her and make her a pawn of mine, but alas, she has unfortunately expired. Slain by a wizard whose power is nothing compared to the likes of you Dragonborn. A pity though, she could have offered me so much knowledge and opportunity for me, but it matters little in the end. Not after what she offered in exchange for the Daedric Princes in saving her son's life."
"And what exactly did she offer in return for saving her son's life?" Asked the Dragonborn, not liking what he was hearing from Hermaeus Mora right now. Making a deal with any Daedric Prince can be a dangerous thing that can, more often than not, backfire on the mortal that dared to even consider such a thing in the first place. To hear that a child was involved in such a dealing made the Dragonborn and his lover a bit nervous, especially when it was a child that one of their closest friends had adopted and had grown attached to.
"In exchange for saving her son's life from the wizard that claimed her life along with that of her husband, this woman has agreed to give his life to me. In any capacity I deem worthy of me." Explained Hermaeus Mora with a small amount of glee and satisfaction in his voice. Upon hearing that, the Dragonborn glared at the Daedric Prince along with Serana.
"So you used a woman's desperation to save her own child in order to garner yourself another servant for you to use and discard once they've proven to be no longer useful." Said the Dragonborn as he looked Hermaeus Mora in disgust.
"In a manner of speaking, but the outcome is still the same." Said Hermaeus Mora, uncaring to the Dragonborn's disgust over his methods. Again he saw no point in trying to deceive the Dragonborn or altering things to better serve him. "Now Dragonborn, I believe you know what I desire now. I've allowed the child to have a new caretaker and life because he is of no use to me as of yet, but now that he is older and is being trained in the arts of magic, he is now of use to me and I desire his services when he becomes of age. When he turns eleven to be precise. That is when his service will truly begin and when I begin to acquire what his mother promised me in return for saving her son." The Dragonborn, upon hearing all that, thought about what to say before speaking it.
"And what exactly is he suppose to do for you? What exactly can an eleven year old child provide for you that someone more capable and experienced can do? Like myself?" Asked the Dragonborn, ready to do whatever it takes to make Hermaeus Mora let go of his hold on Brelyna's adopted child.
"*Chuckles* I do applaud your desire to protect the weak and helpless Dragonborn. I do respect that of you." Said Hermaeus Mora. "Fortunately for you, and that of the boy's caretaker, I do seek your assistance in this matter and it's one that benefits us all." Upon hearing that, Serana couldn't help but crack a dry comment.
"Oh, joy. So tell us, what we got to do? Kill a dragon or obtain some secret scroll or book that somehow managed to evade your grasp and thus you want it." Said Serana as she made her comment. "Is that it?"
"In a manner of speaking, yes." Said Hermaeus Mora, surprising Serana a bit. "What I desire is for the child to be protected. You see, I believe you already know this, but this child is special. He comes from another plane of existence. One separate from Tamriel and Oblivion." Upon hearing that, Serana couldn't help but widen her eyes in shock at what Hermaeus Mora just said. The Dragonborn, meanwhile, simply remained stoic, though Hermaeus Mora can sense the surprise within the Dragonborn.
The Dragonborn and the instructors of the College of Winterhold had long suspected that Harry was from another realm entirely. His magic not only didn't match anything found in Tamriel. Even those found in ancient tomes and books. And then there were the strange items found around the boy when he was first found. None of it matched what was found in Tamriel at all. At least those known to the Empire and the College. Thus, two theories propped up by various instructors in the college.
One was that they came from another civilization in Tamriel. One whose architecture and culture is different from any witnessed in the Empire so far. And that the reason the child and the materials around him when he was first found near Winterhold was a result of some freakish magical incident. This was the more reasonable theory. The other theory was similar just a bit moreā¦unreasonable.
The other theory was that the boy and the materials around him initial came from another realm entirely. That some powerful and unknown magic cause him to arrive in Winterhold unharmed. The reason for this was the strange materials found with the boy as well as his magic that didn't correlate with anything in Tamriel. Even the ancient Dwemer didn't have anything like the magic used found in the boy nor any of the Elven races have any memory or recollection of the boy's natural magic either.
It was a strange and wild theory, one that most didn't really put any real merit into. The Dragonborn, however, had seen plenty of absurd and unbelievable things in his time in Tamriel, especially in Skyrim, that he has come to accept that there were many things out in the various realms that can be claimed as impossible by those that the Dragonborn knew and even the Dragonborn himself. He had simply seen too much to deny that things that were deemed impossible by yourself or those you trust just because they deem it so. His encounters with the Daedric Princes and venturing to a handful of their realms or those owned by other beings of Oblivion all but proved that.
Still, to hear that Brelyna's adopted child was from another realm entirely was a shock to the Dragonborn. Not to mention the boy has a connection forced upon him with a Daedric Prince because of what his mother did to save his life. At least that was what Hermaeus Mora claimed. The Dragonborn didn't know the whole story, but he knew enough of Hermaeus Mora that he would twist a deal to better serve him while also twisting it in a way so he doesn't have to exert much effort to uphold his end of the bargain or, perhaps worst of all, twist the deal that will end with the dissatisfaction or disappointment of those that attempt to make a deal with the Daedric Prince. At best.
"What could have caused the boy's birth mother to make a deal with a Daedric Prince." Thought the Dragonborn as he looked upon Hermaeus Mora. "What wizard would force her to do such a thing?"
"You can learn about the history of my dealings with the boy's mother after we make our arrangements, Dragonborn." Said Hermaeus Mora, suspecting what was going on in the Dragonborn's head at the moment. "This is what I offer. In exchange for releasing the people of Winterhold from my grasp, you will protect the child from harm when I send him to that realm and assist him in acquiring knowledge that I desire. Knowledge that I care not how is acquired so long as I have it in my grasp. Do this and keep the child alive and I will end what is befalling on the people of Winterhold. This, Hermaeus Mora, promises to you Dragonborn." Upon hearing that, the Dragonborn stayed silent for a moment, contemplating what to do when Serana spoke up.
"So, let me get this straight." Said Serana as she looked upon Hermaeus Mora with her usual dulled voice. "We go get you some stuff that you want from this realm that Brelyna's adopted child is originally from. We also need protect him from harm because you're going to send him back there for some reason and because he's the child of our friend from whatever you want him to do as well as anything else that wants to harm him, like that wizard that killed his birth mother. All in exchange for you letting the people of Winterhold have good sleep again. Is that all?"
"*Chuckles* Perhaps." Said Hermaeus Mora. "But I suspect neither of you will deny this deal. Your hearts will not allow it as do your minds for you know that I can bring so much worse to the people of Winterhold and force the child to follow his obligations." The Dragonborn and Serana looked at each other, realizing the Daedric Prince was right. No matter what they did, Hermaeus Mora will do whatever he can to make them accept his offer. And his partnership, if it can be called that, with Vaermina all but proved what lengths he'll go to in order to obtain what he wanted. After some thought, the Dragonborn looked upon Hermaeus Mora and nodded.
Upon seeing that, Hermaeus Mora laughed before telling the Dragonborn what else he needed to know. About his part of the deal and some other important things.
