Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Everything belongs to their creators, and I am only playing in their sandboxes.
The next day after Johnathon got done explaining to Ashton about the shadow clone he would be leaving and what that entailed,as well as asking him to have a smelter built behind the house,him,his brothers and Lydia set out.
They headed north before stopping at Morthal for the night. While his brothers and Lydia slept at the inn,James went out to hunt bandits, easily snapping their necks when they tried to rob him with but a tightening of his fist. After putting stasis charms on the bodies and throwing the ten corpses in his expanded bag he headed back to the inn to get some sleep.
The next morning after eating they started heading east till they reached the shrine of mehrunes dagon. "Do you have business with the hall of the vigilant my thanes" asks Lydia as they set around the fire pit eating, in the camp they set up for the night. After considering what to say for a moment James responds"no but I do want to see if someone who lives in a crypt near them would like to join us". "Who is it my thane and why would they want to live in a place like that" she asks. "Her name is Serana and I don't think she had a choice in if she wanted to be there and Lydia i want you to stay open minded when you see her and know that what ever happens you will be safe with us" Johnathon says seriously. Lydia a little confused and weary just nods before going to lay down for the night. The brothers share a look before deciding who has first watch.
The next morning after heading out and being careful to avoid the followers of Stendarr they heading up a worn path to the entrance to dimhollow crypt.
They entered the cave into a large empty cavern before continuing on up the tower at the other side, looting everything as they went. They came upon the chain to open the closed gate on the other side of the room near where they entered.
After Johnathon pulled the chain,they heard something hit the floor at the bottom of the tower. As they walk back down they see a dragur getting out of it's coffin. Before it has a chance to see them Desmon takes his new crossbow that he had made in Pridehold of his back, firing a bolt through it's head killing it.
After going through the now open gate they head down into the crypt. After walking for about ten minutes they come upon another open cavern with a stream going through it with more coffins.
Once they fully enter the room they hear the coffin lids sliding open as different types of dragur emerge from them. A few of the dragur summon atronachs and ready spells while the rest pull their weapons.
As a dragur overlord uses unrelenting force, Johnathon's eye's change to the rinnegan as he raises his hand using almighty push to stop the shout from reaching them.
James raced forward engaging multiple dragur with his sword,dispatching them quickly with a flashy show of twirls with his sword utilizing makashi with precision and grace, while Johnathon takes out the archers using a combination of universal pull and a black receiver rod through their head and Desmon was watching Lydia's back, making sure none of the dragur sneak up on her and dispatching the one's that try.
After another five minutes of fighting, all the dragur were dead so they continued further in. They continued through the rest of the crypt,killing the dragur as they went until they entered the section were Serena was housed.
They had Lydia stand behind Desmon in the back after finishing the puzzle as a stone casket rose in the middle of the platform. When the lid fell off reveling a beautiful woman seemingly asleep, James pulled out a couple of the dead bandits he stored in his bag and slit the throats cuasing a small amount of blood to run down the necks of the bodies before tossing them between the woman and them. After that James called upon the darkside turning his eye's yellow as he waited to see if she would turn out hostle.
POV CHANGE SERANA
As I slowly came to from what felt like an eternity of sleep I heard people moving around the outside of my casket before it opened and I smelled blood comming from the corpes at my feet. As I fed from them I sensed fear from the other woman and apprehension from a couple of the men except the one wearing plate armor with a robe,his emotions I was sensing were admiration, a small amount of love,most likely a crush she thought amused, but what caught her interest was the huge amount of dark power surrounding him that she has never sensed before. It seems he will get my attention after all, as my curiosity is peaked.
LYDIA POV
As my thanes solved the puzzle cuasing a casket to rise i felt my anxiety rise also,wondering who my thanes wanted to join us that would be locked away inside that. When the woman started to feed on the bodies i felt fear,I realized who my thanes wanted to ask to join us, a Vampire.
NORMAL POV
After she finished feeding Serana stood up before asking if her father sent them. "No and i don't think you would want to meet him again would you"? asks James. "Of course not, with what he made me and my mother go through for power. Of course i have a feeling you already know about it,though I don't know how". Serrena says looking at him and the others curiously."We have are ways" he responds while Serana just hums back looking thoughtful.
"You can join us if you want, because your father will come for you sooner or later" says Johnathon. Serana looks at Johnathon than to James before responding "I'll take you up on the offer, because while I should be stronger than my father,he has had most likely centuries to surpass me further while I've been stuck here even if my blood is stronger".
"We'll head out in a day because i want to raise the dragur and set them to attack any Vampire's, as well as leave a present for them in your coffin" says James with a grin before setting off to raise the dragur again.
After about twelve hours with everyone resting and Serana feeding on another dead bandit,James walked back while dragging a dragur deathlord behind him. He then went about raising the dragur and having it step into the coffin before closing it and unsolving the puzzle cuasing it to sink back into the platform.
Desmon looked thoughtful for a moment, his eye's widening before looking to the rest of the group and saying they needed to make a detour back the way they came and up to Wolfskull cave. His brothers eye's widen before they nod, then explaining why going their was important to Lydia and Serana.
"My thanes who would be crazy anough to summon Potema" asks a worried Lydia. "Thats the thing Lydia some people are arrogant enough to believe they could bind and control her easily" says Desmon. "Who is this Potema" asks Serana. "One if not the best necromancer to live five hundred years ago, while also being related to the septim bloodline who tried to take the throne of the emperor by force which ended in her death" replies James before telling Serena that she could use their library that he constantly ordered books for to learn what she missed by being asleep here.
After resting the rest of the day during which James brothers were amused,as when he would try to meditate,Serana would watch him trying to find out what kind of power he was using which would make James flustered. Serana lips would twitch upwards before going back to her indifferent look because of the way he would react to her watching him.
They stopped at Morthal again but the brothers took the time to pick up supplies and a few other things. Desmon stopped by the blacksmith to buy more bolts for his crossbow while Johnathon went into the swamp and summoned six more shadow clones with the rinnegan active to try and get used to the shared vision ability. While his brothers went about their business James,Lydia and Serana entered the bookshop to look for anything that might interests them.
A perfect drink,a werewolf hunters advice, a world of corpses,alters of bone,ancient tome,anchorite's note,appointments for the thane,cult screed,enchanting made easy,guide to better thieving,guide: research and learning,julianos firebelly,liminal bridges,living with lycanthropy,manual of spellcraft,on necromancy, and on the interrogations of witches were the books they found and bought before James put them in his pouch.
After spending a night at the inn they headed up to solitude to speak with the jarl. When they arrived at the blue palace, James went to talk to Falk firebeard while Serana went towards the court wizard.
James asked Falk firebeard if there were anything going on at Wolfskull cave and he replied that yesterday someone from Dragons bridge had brought concerns up about strange happenings but had brushed it off as bandits with the war going on and told James he could check it out if he was worried it might be something more and to report back when he finds out.
As James was talking to the steward,Serana walked up to the court wizard Sybille stentor."Hello little fledgling" greets Serana." What are you"? Sybille asks a little fearfully, backing up a few steps. "Don't worry about that little fledgling, do you have anything I can help with? asks Serana. After calming down but still weary Sybille says there's some vampires cuasing trouble at pine moon cave."Don't worry I'll take care of the troublesome fledglings for you" Serana says before walking away leaving a relieved court wizard behind.
As the group left the blue palace they decided to head to Wolfskull cave right away. Within a few hours they reached the cave but before they entered James gave Serana the five extra pouches he made in their last stay at Morthal. Serana gave him a odd look so he explained what they are and how they worked and she put them on with a thoughtful look while giving James side glances.
After entering Wolfskull cave they hurry through it along with Wolfskull ruins killing dragur and necromancers alike until they hear the chanting to summon and bind Potema the wolf queen, they come upon a overlook were they see the necromancers panicking which causes the brothers to look at each other confused before they hear something that chills them "I AM RISEN" shouts who they assume to be Potema.
As they hurry through the ruins and up the stairs to the top of the tower were the ritual took place they passed necromancers who looked like the were struck down trying to flee.
When they make it to the top they see a woman standing in the ritual circle. She had flowing brown locks of hair with a circlet made to look like flowers worn on her forehead to keep her hair out of her face. She had a face a nobles daughter would be envious of and was wearing a Gothic black robe type dress that hugged her curves with a open black cloak that's inside is colored red held together by a chain link. Upon her head she wore a pelt hood made from a wolf to look like her head was in it's mouth. Her green eye's turned towards them.
"Can we talk things out, maybe you would like to join us" asks Johnathon quickly hoping to stop things from escalating. "I would only follow you if you were stronger than me, now DIE" she yells the last word casting blizzard and with a wave of her other hand raised the necromancers she killed as her thralls.
Unlike the game there was near a hundred necromancers for her to raise as thralls and she was able to raise all of them in the ruins with a casual wave of her hand.
Johnathon rose a stone wall to stop the rest from coming up the stairs before he and Desmon ran down the side of the tower to deal with the eighty that weren't on the tower. Johnathon filled the area below the top of the tower with mist while using what he was able to recreate of the silent killing technique to kill them with his sword without using his eye's while Desmon did the same using his thermal vision and claws.
After the blizzard spell ended Serana and Lydia engaged the remaining twenty necromancers, with Lydia making good use of the training she went through back in Pridehold. At the same time James drew his sword and went to engage Potema.
As Potema and James circle each other each holding their chosen weapons. James his sword and Potema a wicked looking ritual dagger decorated with wolves.
"Why don't you serve me,we could rule all of nirn with me as queen" offers Potema. "And where would I fit in in all this" asks James. Potema looks him over before replying that he could rule by her side since she's sure he's handsome enough and more importantly powerful. "sorry to disappoint but that's just too much paperwork" says James. "A pity, then all of you must die so i can take my rightful place as queen" she responds. "Not if we stop you" he says. "I'm sure you'll try" she responds before summoning a dremora and firing a hail of ice Sickles.
James sets himself in the stance of soresu or form three he had been practicing in his spare time to destroy the ice Sickles only getting a few scratches before raising his left hand to grasp the dremora coming towards him with the force.
James pulled the dremora off it's feet before throwing it back towards Potema causing her to roll out of the way as it went flying past were she was, smashing through the stone railing to fall to it's death below, before running towards her to ingage in melee.
As they danced around each other with sparks flying from metal slashing metal,Potema over extended her next strike allowing James to knock her dagger out of her hand before spinning half a circle to kick her skidding across the roof of the tower.
In her anger Potema used the last of her magika to summon forth a hail of ice spikes to rain down on him but as they were forming she noticed him concentrating on a small flame held between his hands.
When she sent the deadly pieces of ice towards their target she heard him say one word that caused her to feel fear for the first time since she died when she saw the results of him saying the name of his spell.
A FEW MINUTES EARLIER
As Potema summoned the vast array of ice spikes, James tried to think of a way out of this, because he new there were too many to deflect. After thinking up and dismissing a few ideas that wouldn't work he thought of one while extremely risky would stop him from being impaled and with out causing the spikes to fly off accidentally hitting either Lydia or Serana.
He held his hands close together while focusing his rage and hatred into his spell and willing it to ignite cuasing a small spark of flame to form cuasing him to sweat. He looked up to see hundreds of pecies of ice coming towards him and spoke one word Feindfrye.
After uttering the spell the flame roared to life taking the shape of a twenty foot long serpent made of semi sentient hell fire easily melting and evaporating all the pieces of ice.
Potema snapping out of her shock retreated behind the rubble of were the dremora fell then ordered her remaining thralls to attack James who she saw as a bigger threat. As the remaining seven thralls charged, the fiery serpent uncoiled itself from around James before tearing through them leaving nothing, not even ash.
James sweating fell to one knee while trying to mentally will the flames to cease to exist. The serpent as if sensing his thoughts turned and lunged towards him before he was able to smother the flames and stop the spell mere ten feet from him.
As James was panting and regaining energy,Potema was just about to grab her dagger before Serana kicked it away drawing her own to hold against the wolf queens throat. That's when she noticed Desmon,Johnathon and Lydia behind Serana, the mist below the tower dissipating with most of the rest of the necromancers in pieces.
"Now are you willing to talk" asks Johnathon more than a little irritated. "what do you want" Potema asked wearily after witnessing what just one of the brothers could do. "We want to know if you'll tag along with us or do you not honor your words" he replies, referring to what she said before she attacked.
"Will i be able to gather power while with you" asks Potema,taking a quick glance at the recovering James before looking back at the others. "Of course but we need a way to know you wont betray us" Desmon speaks up after a moment.
"I may know of a way but it might not work because of the difference in the magic" says James walking up to the group still a little tired. "How" she asks. "A unbreakable vow" he responds.
After explaining what it entailed, Johnathon and a reluctant Potema clasped their right hands together while James pointed his finger at their hands.
"Do you Potema septim swear to never knowingly betray me and my alies" asked Johnathon. "I do" responds Potema causing a cord of red flame starting from her wrist to wrap around their clasped hands before she asks if they promise to help her to gain power like them. "We do" he replies,causing a cord of flame starting from his wrist to wrap around their hands. "so mote be" says James cuasing the flames to glow before disappearing. "Well welcome to the group" says Desmon before going to get some rest, the others not far behind.