The group descended the well under the dungeons beneath Windhelm and found themselves in a long cistern that branched off in multiple directions. The scent of blood worsened with each forward step and the water beneath them was stale and fetid. Black mould grew wild along the walls and ceiling. An unfit environment for even the most dastardly of undead.
Immediately, they were faced with an Imperial Vigilant of Stendarr wearing different Apprentice robes from what they were used to seeing. They were more armoured and had a leather belt crossing the chest diagonally holding throwing knives. He spoke without looking at them at first. "Gwaji, have you finally come to your senses? Aredhel has calmed down now. We can go back."
As soon as Carcette saw these robes she gasped. "No... that can't be right. Those are Cyrodiilic Vigilant Armours... from decades ago!" She had only known a couple of Vigilants who wore that uniform, having seen them a small handful of times during her period as a greenhorn in the Vigil. "That's not Vigilant Jacob..." she muttered silently to herself.
Lucien found it suspicious himself. If what she said were a fact, then they would have been down here since he was a little kid. He tried to be cordial with the Vigilant. "Are you alright?"
The Vigilant stared at them silently as he began to process what he was seeing before him. Inigo, Lucien, Carcette, Serana, and Mjoll were all foreign faces.
"You... you're not Gwaji! Who are you? Where is Gwaji? What did you do to him?" the Vigilant stammered anxiously as the realization set in that they may have killed his ally.
Carcette's breath cut out for a brief second upon hearing that name, as if it were something she'd heard before.
She was known for a few things, but her memory was very underpraised. The former Keeper had the memory of an elephant. It was both a blessing and a curse at times.
"Was this 'Gwaji' chap a nasty Vampiric Orc fellow?" Lucien asked nervously. If it were the case, then they just killed him.
Serana grit her teeth. "He's one of them too! A Blood Knight." She gestured towards the Vigilant before them, who, without another word, began to make a break for the tunnels to escape.
"Follow after him!" Inigo declared as he dashed in the same direction. The group hurried with him and found themselves in a more open area with dirty old pillars where two moe Vampire Scions emerged and began to try and drain their life away.
Inigo ducked under the draining light and called out to Carcette. "Carcette, now! Quick!"
The former Keeper channeled Stendarr's Aura again, burning the scions and the Vigilant as well.
"Gah! Stendarr, why?!" the Vigilant cried out as he ran further into the darkness, his body flaking with the flames of light. More of the fiends emerged from the shadows of where he was running to. Some were vampiric Stormcloak soldiers accompanying the scions.
While Carcette, Mjoll and Lucien kept the oncoming vampires busy, Inigo and Serana pursued the fleeing Vigilant, dashing past the minions.
"Hey! Get back here, you Bat Brain!" Inigo shouted after him.
The Vigilant cast an Invisibility spell on himself and disappeared from sight. Serana rolled her eyes and cast Detect Dead, revealing his aura regardless. She fired an Ice Spike at him and it met its mark in his leg, revealing his location to Inigo.
Inigo fired a couple of Ebony Arrows into him, and he hit against the wall in response to the shock.
The Vigilant grunted and pulled the arrows out of his flesh, and then quickly began to transform into the form of a Blood Knight.
With a savage roar he lunged forward and clawed at Inigo, causing the Khajiit to fall backwards and drop his bow.
A second swipe met his armour, and the claws tore deep cracks into the metal. Inigo staggered back again and ducked and rolled under the next swipe.
Serana cast a Paralysis Rune on the ground near the fiend and Inigo leapt up and tackled him into the Rune.
The beast was paralyzed and Serana began to rain Firebolts onto him. Inigo scurried to his bow and grabbed hold of it. He rolled a couple of feet away and nocked a final Ebony Arrow and fired it between the vampire's chest, where it buried itself deep and pierced his heart.
The large beast roared one final time and clutched at the arrow with his large, clawed hands, unable to pull it out. He slowly began to either away and collapsed into dust on the floor.
When the Vigilant was defeated, a key glistened under the torchlight, leading to a door to the ancient Slums beneath Windhelm.
"Excellent work, Serana!" Inigo exclaimed as he reached for the key.
The Vampiress was more impressed by his initiative. "You're not half bad yourself, kitty cat."
Carcette examined the corpse sadly and parted a blessing onto him. She felt a great wave of pity for the fallen Vigilant. As she stood up she recounted something she'd heard of long ago. "They must be the troop of Vigilants who mysteriously disappeared in Skyrim. Vigilant Jacob. I recall him. Vaguely. He was a prodigious champion of Stendarr and vanished once he reached Skyrim. Originally Moric Sidrey was shipped out to Skyrim to locate him, but he was nowhere to be found. Neither was his platoon."
"Who were they? I mean, their names." Mjoll inquired.
"Jacob, Gwaji, Jericho, Aredhel and Paolo... and there was one more, but his name eludes me..." Carcette tapped herself on the forehead as she tried to recall, but it was no use. "Anyway, we wrote them off as dead. Who would have thought it was in a winding city underneath Windhelm where they vanished?"
"You don't have across-the-board correspondence?" Lucien asked with great surprise.
"No, we don't." Carcette admitted. "...Didn't. We only corresponded within our respective territories and sent progress reports to the High Vigil in Chorrol. What Vigilants do from Cyrodiil or High Rock are not my business. Only Skyrim. Er... weren't my business. Gods, it's going to be difficult to get used to this."
As soon as Inigo dared to venture forward, dizziness grew over him once more. His legs grew heavy and his sight blurred. He knew what this was immediately as the world changed around him and he seemed lost in his own head.
Inigo was having a vision again. "No... no... stop..." the Khajiit muttered to himself silently, like one being disturbed immediately after waking up in the morning.
The blonde woman in the white wedding gown appeared before him again and reached out to him. "You're so close now, my love! Just a little more! Please, don't abandon me!" she pleaded as she rushed towards him. Without realizing it, her foot was caught on the root of the tree nearby and she tripped.
Inigo found himself reaching forward to catch the maiden before she could hit the ground. Instead, she landed in his arms against his chest. They were still for a few moments before she looked up into his eyes. A gentle breeze wafted through her hair and gown and through Inigo's rich threads and fur. She reached a hand to his face and stroked the tuft of fur on his left cheek with the back of her right hand softly.
Inigo was entranced. He gently held her in his arms and leaned forward for the kiss. In that moment when their lips locked, he felt enchanted. A warm, gentle feeling caressed his heart as it fluttered beneath the surface. He gave in to the feelings of tender love that threatened to tear him apart.
It was only him, and it was only her.
They were one; not two. Two halves of a whole, in that instant. Locked together in a picturesque embrace of tender light.
A nymph; an enchantress; and she had Inigo under her spell.
Her touch was gentle and her face soft and round. Her blue eyes reflected the beautiful sky above them and her short, golden hair absorbed and reflected the warm light of the sun. She smelled of roses and snowberries. Inigo opened his eyes as he slowly released her from his sweet embrace.
Though, he regretted letting her go. He wanted to hold her closer now that they were apart. The world seemed that much colder without her touch.
"That was... incredible." Inigo remarked with awe. "You really know your way around a kiss. I almost feel cheated on and we are not even a couple."
The woman giggled. "I'm sorry, was that too forward of me?"
Inigo smiled back. "No... well, maybe a little. But I do not mind."
The woman giggled and gave him a playful peck on the nose. "There. Is that better?"
Inigo giggled back in response and touched the tip of his nose where she'd kissed him warmly. "You had it right the first time, but that was not bad."
The woman gently stepped back from him and began to walk into the fields. "Please, come to me, my love. You are so close, so close to being mine forever."
She stepped into a large wall of fog as it crept in closer and thicker, and vanished, leaving a confused, and saddened Inigo behind.
Serana saw his vacant expression. "It's happening again. Inigo? Inigo!"
The blue Khajiit snapped out of it. "Huh? Oh... you did not hear me, right?"
The group was confused.
"I think we may need to take you to a doctor, friend." Mjoll aired her concern.
"Maybe once the madness in Skyrim is forged out. I do not want to stop the Doom Strider by wheeling on a medical carriage towards it. It would be most ineffective." Inigo laughed it off.
"Inigo, are you okay, buddy?" Lucien asked, growing uneasy himself. "I think it might be the air down here - or the lack thereof."
"No... it was that woman again..." Inigo confessed. "We need to get to the bottom of this."
"I second that." Serana showed her concern. "Because if I'm right, then we're potentially walking into great danger."
The group opened the dark door at the end of the hall, and found themselves in the Ruins of Old Windhelm, in its slums district.
Long since collapsed from the conflict during the original Oblivion Crisis, what buildings remained intact resembled the taller, more cubic stone buildings and gothic railings and stairs of the old world.
Along the ramparts were old, dirty plaques naming the Kings of Skyrim, starting with King Harald.
There were also tapestries depicting vampiric imagery; the sharp, gnarled face of Molag Bal, but distorted greatly on torn red and white fabric.
The orange glow of fires illuminated the darkness and the group immediately located a massive nest of Vampires.
Jyggalag was not joking.
And the corpses of dead Vigilants in familiar uniforms lay torn about under the ominous glow.
Carcette shuddered as she looked at the scene. The dead Vigilants, the Vampires, the fire, the rubble... it was all too familiar.
Sensing, her discomfort, Inigo gave Carcette a friendly pat on the shoulder. He knew her unease, and understood her plight greatly. He'd seen the aftermath of the Hall's destruction with Cura. "You can stay in the back if it makes you more comfortable. I will not judge you."
Lucien seconded the motion. "Yes; you've dealt with enough of these disgusting, horrible, blood-sucking things. No offense, Serana."
"None taken. I just hope I'll forget you said that the next time I get thirsty." Serana snarled. Lucien's uncomfortable reaction made her chuckle.
"Not funny."
Carcette gripped her Warhammer tightly. "I am such a hypocrite. For all the sheltering I've done of Cura, I'd also told her that the only way to overcome fear is to face it with assurance." she looked at Inigo. "You've enabled her to do just that, Inigo. Now, do the same for me. I don't need a shelter - I need a firm rock to stand on."
Inigo nodded enthusiastically. "All right - just do not step too hard; this rock is not the hardest: it can crumble if too much pressure is put in it." he drew his crossbow and nocked an Exploding bolt of Fire.
"Duly noted."
Though her first impressions of Inigo weren't exactly the best; having heard of his imprisonment and shady past, after their time in Morthal, and travelling to Harkon's castle and the battle against clan Volkihar, she grew to like and respect the Khajiit. He was a prodigal son of sorts; a man seeking redemption for his past wrongdoings, and as far as she was concerned, in helping Cura so much, he's succeeded.
His crestfallen expression when he carried her lifeless body cradled into Stendarr's Beacon said everything. It spoke of a true friend in a state of grave devastation.
Inigo may have a shady look about him; rough, rugged, criminal; but he was the most trustworthy partner anyone could ever ask for. She would gladly put her life in his hands. And preserve his in her own, as well.
She might not be Cura, and could certainly never come close to substituting for her, but she hoped her Restorative abilities would lend the group strength just the same.
After all, early on, Cura learned it from someone.
In the narrow streets, the Blood Scions and Blood Liches seemed to be conversing before the group entered the fray. They immediately dropped what they were doing and readied themselves to hunt.
"You bloodsuckers made a huge mistake in calling the Vigil's attention!" Inigo laughed. Ironically, that was what brought them there.
Mjoll stood by him, covering the left flank. "I'll sleep better at night knowing you're all dead!"
The group proceeded to tear their way through the dark settlement, smashing, cleaving, praying, and preying upon the creatures of darkness as they traversed the rubble.
Inigo sustained a few injuries from claws and swords, but it was nothing Carcette couldn't mend.
Mjoll took the brunt of the counterattack and found herself nearly unconscious from blood loss, but Lucien picked her up with a Healing spell, himself.
Lucien's and Serana's spells cracked and tore the foes to pieces, messing the walls and casting blood into fire. Deep crimson tongues of flame licked the air in a weaving dance of chaos.
They eventually meandered through a collapsed chunk of building and came across a giant Bloodknight; horrible and lumbering, guarding a gate that led to the old Asylum. It was clearly important, for him to be guarding it.
When Inigo engaged in combat, the beast lunged towards him, shrugging off his crossbow bolt and flinging him across the rubble and through a gate.
Serana quickly cast a Drop Zone on the gate, and Inigo hit through it, but mitigating his harm.
The beast cast Drain Life and it hit Carcette and Mjoll, causing them to stagger backwards. The fiend leapt forward to hire them, but Lucien met it with a series of Firebolts. "Now!" he shouted.
Carcette lunged for the beast and smashed its right kneecap with her Warhammer and Mjoll's Grimsever met the back of the knee, causing it to slice in two.
Lucien quickly cast Unbound Fire on the wound, cauterizing it to prevent regeneration.
Inigo saw the corpses of Blood Scions and a skeleton laying in rubble, wearing a foreign black coat and tricorn hat of sorts with what looked like an advanced projectile weapon of sorts discarded beside him and a saw like weapon gripped tightly in his hand.
It was unlike anything he'd ever seen in Tamriel before, and he was decently travelled.
His head was ringing and he was dizzy, so he reached out for it to make sure he wasn't simply hallucinating from head trauma.
He scrambled for the cool tricorn hat and the odd gun. It reminded him of a crossbow, but without the head. He clicked it and it made a responding noise.
A mischievous smile crept onto his face when he realized that it was loaded. Inigo jumped over the collapsed gate and ran around the rubble and took aim at the beast and pulled the trigger.
Chk, chk,
BLAM!
A bullet formed of magical energy fired from the gun and tore through the right elbow of the Giant Bloodknight.
"I feel like a child on Saturalia!" Inigo exclaimed with glee as he pulled the trigger again.
Chk, chk,
BLAM!
The next bullet tore through the monster's skull and it dropped to the floor. A key fell off its waist, and a necklace of sorts fell off its neck when it hit the ground.
"What on Nirn is that?" Mjoll asked as she looked at the gun. "Some sort of Dwemer machination?"
"No, I think it's from High Rock." Lucien mused. "It's a... uh... Blunderbuss, I think?"
Carcette nodded. "Yes, I think they're a recent phenomenon in Glenmoril, but I'm not entirely certain."
"A skeleton fellow had it on him. I love it! And I hope he does not mind me taking his hat." Inigo wondered as he gestured towards the broken gate and wall.
"Anyway, I think this key leads to that... asylum." Lucien looked at the sign next to the iron gate and tested the key in the hole.
Mjoll looked to Carcette. "I don't know what we're going to find in there, friend. Could be more dead Vigilants, so you ought to brace yourself."
Carcette nodded. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me. Let's just go in."
Inigo touched the entrance door, and he saw the lovely maiden in white for a brief moment. Was she being held captive by the vampires?
He had to help her!
The feelings welled up in his chest, granting him the strength to shove the heavy, tinted steel doors open. Their shriek echoed through the ruins.
Inside were cells lining the labyrinthine walls, and vampires and Stormcloaks were trapped within cells. Skeletons, as well. The sentient muttered to themselves, though nothing close to resembling any string of coherent thought.
"I shudder to think what they must have lived through in their last days..." Mjoll empathized.
Serana shot an ice spike into the darkness, killing a Blood Lich from behind after piercing his head.
Inigo lowered his gun.
"My way is more silent." Serana whispered.
After some meandering, and putting vampires out of their misery, the group came upon a small, enclosed room with five cells in it and two columns dividing up the space. It was dimly lit by the torches on the columns.
An orcish Vigilant with glowing eyes sat behind the bars utterly alone and looked up from his prayers to see Inigo and the others. His voice was dry and filled with despair and dread. "This is a bad time for you to be here. Jericho can return at any moment..."
"Jericho?" Inigo was confused.
The light dimmed as the torches blew themselves out and darkness consumed the room and hallway adjacent.
Sounds of hard footsteps came up from the hall and a heavily-muscled Bloodknight came thundering down the hall.
Carcette leapt in front of the fatigued group and thrust her Warhammer forward, catching the fiend in the chest. She felt no weariness, thanks to the Armour of the Bastion.
She continued to push the fiend backwards in the enclosed hallway. Due to the narrow nature of the area, she could not swing the Warhammer.
Thankfully Inigo could see in the darkness, and cocked the gun. He pulled the trigger and blew the upper half of Jericho's head off with it.
Carcette sidled against the wall so Lucien could again unleash his Unbound Fire, which luminated the darkness as it scorched the beast.
Carcette turned around and walked past the others and walked to the cells.
Serana cast a Magelight over the cell so the group could see, since the torches were out.
As soon as Carcette came closer she realized what this Vigilant was and her heart sunk. "No... oh, dear. You poor thing." She knew full well what he was and how he felt.
"What happened here?" Lucien asked the lucid paladin.
"It was her. She was here. The Blood Matron..." the caged Vigilant grunted.
If the estimate was correct, he'd been locked away, or fleeing from the vampires for two decades down here.
"Lamae Bal was here? The Blood Matron herself? Oh... this is not good." Serana's eyes widened with disbelief.
"We fought her, but we were powerless... We couldn't do anything. Those of us who survived were forced to drink her blood and were turned into vampires." the Vigilant choked as he explained.
So, he was locked here like this for twenty years. The thought was disheartening.
"Why are you imprisoned here?" Carcette asked. If they were all vampires, surely he wouldn't be the only one locked up. Surely they all would have tried to prevent themselves at any cost from consuming mortal blood. She knew, above all, how difficult it was, but it was not impossible.
The Vigilant continued. "All of those who refused her blood are imprisoned here. We will stay here until we give in... "
"You gave in! I can tell by looking at your eyes! Do not give me that 'I did not give in' shit! I see your eyes and your fangs." Inigo called him out himself.
"Perhaps he was turned, but refused to drink her blood directly." Mjoll proposed.
"Is there anything we can do for him?" Mjoll asked.
Carcette stepped closer to the bars and looked down at him sadly, knowing the answer before he could speak it.
"I want you to kill me. I want to die before I become a bloodthirsty monster." the Vigilant pleaded.
Inigo looked at Serana, who backed away. She wasn't going to add anything to it. it was uncomfortable enough for her as it was. Then he looked at Lucien, who felt uneasy about the whole thing, himself. Then he looked at Mjoll, who looked to him for guidance. She didn't like the idea, but could not argue against it. Lastly, he looked to Carcette for her input. Surely she would understand this man's plight the best.
Inigo felt uneasy about being tasked with such a decision, and he had nowhere else to turn for guidance on the matter.
The former Keeper walked around him, opening the cell door and effectively cutting in between them, taking the decision out of Inigo's hands, much to his relief. She slowly removed her helmet and looked to the fallen Vigilant. "I am Carcette, former Keeper of the Vigil chapter in Skyrim. Tell me your name."
The Vampiric Vigilant looked up at her and his demeanour changed from a tense one to one of relief. "Then he has sent you at last to come to grant me a peaceful death. I am Vigilant Thingol."
That was the last one. The last member of that group that disappeared that fateful year.
A warm feeling swept through them; the divine light of Stendarr shone upon the Vigilant; a sight unseen.
They knew what it meant. Stendarr wanted her to deliver him from his dark suffering.
Carcette never took her eyes off of him as she reached for her Warhammer. "Thingol. I will remember your name, I promise. I will honour your request and grant you Stendarr's mercy, but first I must know... have you consumed mortal blood?"
"No, I have not. Kill me... Please, just kill me..."
"Good; perhaps now that his influence has grown, Stendarr can save you in death." Carcette proposed as she lifted her warhammer.
"Thank you... do it quickly. I don't know how much longer I can resist the thirst..." Thingol closed his eyes and lowered his head, granting her a killing blow.
"Stendarr preserve you." Carcette brought her hammer down and cleaved his head from his shoulders with great force. In that instant, she saw herself, and then she saw Vigilant Fenrik. And then Thingol. She stood there, frozen for a moment before hanging the warhammer on her back. "The deed is done. Let's get out of this place."
This entire experience was eye-opening for her. For more than twenty years, she lived in service to this organization. It was a thankless job, and many of their number died in places like this, with graceless deaths, forgotten by the world, dead to all around them before even the killing blow met their hearts. Did Vigilant Thingol have a family? Did he have friends outside the Vigil? Or was he another orphan taken off the streets and raised in the order, much like Cura was? Many of their number consisted of those with nothing in their lives.
Tolan had no family, Adalvald either. Isran was alone even before he quit the Vigil.
She looked at the bodies of the dead vampires. They were all people once. The Stormcloak soldiers no doubt had families waiting for them in vain. But Thingol and the others had nobody. Nobody to care what happened to them.
Thingol. She gave him her word that she would remember his name. Someone had to.
"Are you okay?" Lucien asked.
"I will be." Carcette sighed.
She hoped that she really did the right thing. Though perhaps it was possible now for the Divines to perform some sort of small intervention after Cura released the energy Alduin had gathered.
Truly incredible.
At that moment, Inigo wobbled at the knees and fell backwards against the wall, and blacked out.
Inigo found himself sitting underneath the large Gildergreen tree with the blonde woman in the white dress again. He was softly playing music on his lute and appreciating the lovely breeze.
The maiden rested her head on his right shoulder, leaning onto him tenderly. When his song ended he gently touched her hand in the grass between them. "Did you like my song? I wrote it special for you." Inigo asked her softly.
"It was marvelous, my love." the woman responded happily. When she was with Inigo, she appeared to be at peace. "You really are just like him..."
She caressed his pointed ear. "Please, sing to me again... that one song, with the sad ending."
"Are you sure?" Inigo asked, perturbed. "I would rather see you happy, not crying." It was true; her sadness was profound; even the slightest gesture of dolor sunk into Inigo.
The woman's expression sombered and she scooched away from him. She turned away and looked off into the grassy fields beyond. "The song ends, but the dream doesn't."
"The dream?" Inigo asked and the woman stood up from the grass.
"You're so close now. We're almost together. Please, hurry, my love! I need you!" she begged him before disappearing into the fog once more as it creeped in.
Inigo snapped awake from the waving of Lucien's hand inches in front of his face. "Nirn to Inigo, Nirn to Inigo! Are you awake in there?"
"Yes!" Inigo exclaimed with all the enthusiasm of a student caught sleeping during class.
He realized that now they were in a small dining area with a blue carpet on the floor, a long table, and dark stone walls around it reminiscent of the main hall in the Palace of Kings. Apparently his legs had carried him by themselves and the group had followed him. Inigo shuddered at the realization that he was being lured forward by this mysterious force.
Though, it could be benign. Maybe the woman he kept seeing was really a prisoner held here by Lamae Bal and he needed to save her before she could be turned by that evil fiend!
Past the door was a vestibule, and the door beyond led to what was a very grotesque chapel; there was a Shrine of Mara, as if placed for a wedding, and behind it was a large bust of a female Vampire Lord wailing with her face contorted in sorrowful anguish.
A shadowed figure standing in a square made of candle holders before the shrine and past the pews wept. "I was too late... They are all dead... They are all lost..."
He was a dark-haired Altmer Vigilant of Stendarr in the old Cyrodiilic uniform stood facing this shrine with his back to the door. "Now there's only me and her left... and the monster before my eyes." He turned to see the group's approach and hit a switch as Inigo entered. He glared at the Khajiit hatefully.
A portcullis dropped down, covering the door and trapping Inigo in the chapel with him.
"Inigo!" Lucien cried out.
"Be careful, Inigo! You know what he is!" Carcette cried out a warning.
"Is that me? Am I the monster? Hah! This is rich, coming from you!" Inigo laughed ironically as he observed the fangs and glowing eyes. Deep down he was nervous to be alone in a room with a vicious Vigilant Vampire, but he wouldn't dare show it.
"Monster of Molag Bal, you will go no further! Let the souls of my friends find peace in your death!" the Vigilant yelled. He seemed to be entranced himself, and he saw Inigo as something else entirely. He immediately drew two unique-looking rapiers with sharp crossguards from the sheaths on his waist.
"Look, we got off on the wrong foot here. I am not your enemy." Inigo tried to reason with him.
Lucien elbowed Carcette to get her attention. "I thought Vigilants were supposed to use Maces and Warhammers!"
Carcette shook her head. "Not all of us. It's not mandated." Why was she talking like she was still one of them?
The Vigilant, Aredhel, turned invisible before his eyes.
"Hey, that's cheating!" Inigo spat. "You fight without honour!" He began to shift around as he tried to locate the fiend.
"Inigo, behind you!" Mjoll cried out.
Inigo performed a backwards flip and dodged a pair of horizontal strikes. He brought up his sword and swung it back, catching one of the blades. The Vigilant tried to tangle around his arm, but Inigo was quicker to the draw, pulling out his new blunderbuss.
"What sort of heathen brings a gun to a swordfight?" Aredhel grunted angrily as he kicked Inigo backwards, causing the Khajiit to stagger.
"What sort of moron brings swords to a gunfight?" Inigo laughed, feeling a great string of irony encroach upon him. He quickly pulled the trigger and blasted the Vampire's head off his shoulders.
"By the gods!" Mjoll exclaimed as the vampire's brains exploded from his skull and splattered all over the wall.
The body stood there for a few moments before dropping both swords and collapsing to its knees while blood continued to spit up from its exposed neck.
When the Vigilant dropped to the floor, dead, an old, decrepit note rolled out of his sleeve; the string binding it around his wrist now severed.
Inigo decided to carefully open the piece of withered paper.
"Jacob is dead. Joshua fled with fear. The rest of us had no choice but to surrender to the Blood Matron.
She accepted our surrender graciously. Not only that, she offered us her blood. But I was the only one who accepted it willingly.
The others could not abandon their faith in Stendarr and are still fighting their bloodthirst. I am afraid they will be disposed of if they do not change soon.
As if he was sympathetic to us, her butler Bal had given us reprieve. We have until her next awakening.
I will persuade the others to accept her blood until then. This power, this ecstasy, they will accept it. And we will have a drink together like in the old times."
Inigo's nose curled with disgust. This man effectively destroyed his platoon, and held them captive for two decades in this underground wreckage. How gracious of him.
Then... this meant the Blood Matron was awakening very soon!
Frightful. He had to get to that woman, and fast!
He used the key he found on Aredhel's person and unlocked the door next to him. He activated a pull chain on the wall, surmising that it was linked to the portcullis. He and Cura had gone through enough of these sort of dungeons to know that it was that simple.
Upon activation, the portcullis lifted itself and the group flooded into the room. Carcette hurried to Inigo and cast a Healing Spell on him.
Serana observed the wailing vampire with the Shrine of Mara in front of her, and felt distaste from it. It was a bitter sentiment for her, and she decided to walk past it, not bearing to see the imagery any longer.
After all, she knew full well what Lamae went through to become what she was.
The sight was overwhelming, to say the least.
"Serana?" Inigo looked at his friend with concern.
"I'm fine. I'm fine. Just keep walking." she tried to drive the attention away from herself as she sheepishly passed through the narrow hallway.
"That thing is very dangerous." Mjoll pointed to the gun in Inigo's left hand. "I swear you'll shoot your eye out if you're not careful."
Lucien observed the foreign weapon from up close. "When we have some downtime, I'd like to observe this thing. See what makes it tick and boom."
It was every bit the concern Jyggalag expressed it as. He sent Carcette here to liberate the Vigilants and help stop the vampires below. He truly was a trustworthy Daedra.
When she got out of her head, Carcette could see the undeniable tenseness in Serana. "Whatever lies ahead, we will stay together. All of us."
Serana nodded. "Yes. I'm not going anywhere. Let's just... let's get this over with." She could feel the dampening presence of a powerful dark entity some distance away. It was oppressive; it was evil. It felt exactly like Molag Bal. She would recognize that horror anywhere.
The group found themselves next in the dampest, gloomiest hallway in the entire underground city. There were more of those anguished Vampire Lady reliefs placed against the dark, mould-infested walls.
"Gods... is this where the vampires dump their refuse? Smells like rotten eggs!" Mjoll grunted with disgust.
"Brimstone." Serana said simply. She clenched both upper arms with her hands as anxiety built up inside of her.
They found a door on the west side from where they entered, and it was cast in black iron with ornate designs littered throughout the patterns on it.
"This must be her chamber..." Serana shuddered nervously. "The Blood Matron... be careful, everyone. Be very, very careful."
Lucien shivered. "I... I guess there's no turning back now, is there?"
Inigo heard a whisper call to him. "My love... my love... come... come to me... I am here..." He pushed the door open without hesitation, as if his body were moving on its own.
"Inigo!" Lucien cried out before Serana covered his mouth and gestured silence. The last thing they needed was to lose the element of surprise.
As soon as they entered the room, the first thing they saw was a throne with a bust of Molag Bal's head above it at the height of a long flight of stairs. A chandelier hung from the ceiling above, and ornate Dragon heads lined the black stone walls on either side of the room. The ceilings connected in gothic arches and the stones were covered in dry mould.
A dead Vigilant in Novice Robes lay face-down on the steps, reduced to bones.
At the center of the room was a statue of an Ancient Nordic styled dragon's head with its back to them, it seemed, and once Inigo moved around it, he saw her.
In the coffin at the center of the room lay the woman of his dreams: the woman with short blonde hair, in a white decorative wedding gown, with a carnation on the left side of her head. Her hands were crossed over her stomach and a dagger was sticking out of her bosom.
She was the woman on that statue they saw in the Prison!
Her coffin lay atop a bed of desiccated corpses in a rectangular pit. She was a vampire, but no ordinary vampire. She was the first of their kind: the Blood Matron. Lamae Beolfag - or rather - Lamae Bal.
"Inigo, don't!" Serana's words reached him too late, and the Khajiit approached the woman absent-mindedly. He was in awe at the sight of her.
She was real!
He remembered the soft touch of her hand, the tenderness of her voice, and the scent of roses and snowberries. He knelt down before her and gently touched her cheek. She was cold as ice.
That was when a spike trap activated from the coffin and shot up, impaling Inigo and suspending him in the air.
The group screamed in collective horror as his blood rode down the spikes and dripped onto the woman's cheek.
Inigo began to black out from the pain, and when he awoke, he felt a soft hand touch him on the cheek. He snapped out of it and found himself back in the grassy field, but away from the Gildergreen tree and palace. He was standing in tall autumn grass close to a cliffside that loomed above. He instinctively felt his chest and stomach for wounds, but there were none.
The woman stood before him again, smiling sweetly, though now he knew who and what she was.
Lamae Bal.
"My love, you are here." Lamae smiled as she leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek.
Inigo instinctively backed away, the illusion now broken. "Er - no, thanks."
She looked at him with concern. "What's wrong? Let's move on, the sun is setting." She tried to take his hand, but Inigo again backed away.
It was misty and gloomy, though still light outside.
"Who - who are you?" Inigo needed to make sure he wasn't simply paranoid. He wanted to hear it from her own mouth.
"I'm Lamae. Your Lamae. Have you forgotten?" she sounded so sad when she said it. Inigo almost felt guilty for asking.
"Where are we going?" Inigo needed to know. He did not trust her; he felt deceived. She played with his feelings, and now was luring him somewhere.
"Don't you remember? We're going to my father's castle." Lamae seemed genuine in her confusion. It was almost as if Inigo were the one deceiving her.
"Your father?" Inigo asked.
"Have you forgotten him, too? You've already met before..." Lamae said through him, as if she were speaking to someone else.
After some meandering through the fields, Inigo located a stronghold with architecture similar to the Palace of Kings. It truly was the ancient Nordic style, he supposed.
The portcullis opened on its own, allowing the pair entry. Though, Inigo did not see who pulled the chain. It seemed there was only himself and Lamae there.
Along the bridge were Gargoyles and more of those Anguished Vampire Lady busts laid about decoratively. They made Inigo feel incredibly uneasy. Especially shrouded in fog.
"You really have a strange taste in art, Lam-" He turned around, but Lamae was gone. All he saw was the open portcullis and bridge end. He was surrounded in mist. "Women. You turn around for one second and they are gone!"
He continued onward and a large door with a spiked gate opened itself above the stairs, reminding him eerily of Windhelm's city gate in its architecture. He could just remember throwing Mr. Dragonfly off the bridge and the fools leaping off after it.
He ascended the five steps and headed through to the main palace doors, where Molag Bal himself appeared to be leaning against the wall between the two doors to the palace interior. The fiend grinned maliciously with his draconic face, and seemed to be reduced to the size of an ordinary man - perhaps just for the occasion.
The stone walls surrounding the gate and entry doors were cramped, making Inigo feel as though he were trapped in a cell. The cages with burnt corpses littering the ground was not a comforting sight, to say the least.
Inigo shuddered when he saw the dark face of Molag Bal. He needed no introduction. He was every bit as horrible as Cura had described. He hoped he could conjure up a mental Cura to help him fight, but she never appeared.
The Daedric Prince, with his maligned horned face, smiled sinisterly when he saw Inigo approach. He did not move from his place. He just looked at the Khajiit. "Friend of the Vigilant Dragonborn. Molag Bal welcomes you."
"Well, Inigo does not welcome you!" Inigo snarled. "Begone, disgusting Daedra!"
"Don't you want to be with this girl forever? Her happiness is the will of Stendarr, too." Molag Bal pointed to Lamae, who's back was to them both. She stood forlorn in the courtyard, alone and sad.
Inigo turned around to look at Lamae, and he pitied her. He glared daggers at Molag Bal. "What you did to her - you ruined her. You evil bastard! The Vigil of Stendarr is right about you, you bull-faced liar! That is all you do! You kill, destroy and ruin everything you touch!"
"And you care for her wellbeing, it seems. Just take heart and go on. Nothing more is needed." Molag Bal said simply before disappearing from view.
Inigo frustratedly walked around to see Lamae once more. Her eyes were glowing red and her flesh was now pale as the snow. A dagger stuck out of her heart. Inigo nearly gasped, but managed to hold himself together.
"H-hi, Lamae..."
Though she had the eyes of a predator, she still had the voice of an angel. Lamae took Inigo's hand softly and smiled. "Come on, let's go. Everyone will be happy for us." A profound sorrow rested beyond the hungry eyes. Inigo could see the soul of a tortured woman who underwent great trauma. She looked as if tears were threatening to leak out at any moment. She trembled before him, but forced herself to smile.
Inigo felt terrible for her. He wanted to reach out his hand and comfort her, but he hesitated. His body would not move. He forced himself to smile, playing along. Then he remembered what she was, and what she could do to him. Or worse, what Molag Bal had planned for him. Inigo shouted into the air, directing his ire at the Daedric Prince. "No! I will not go! Begone, monster!"
Lamae's face fell and tears of blood ran down her cheeks. Her voice trembled from the harsh reality of her circumstances. "Your eyes... so cold. You're just like him." She looked down at the knife in her breast and looked back at Inigo with her tortured eyes and her voice broke out into a sad trail. "Will you answer my love with a dagger to the heart, too?"
Their eyes locked in that moment and he saw a flash of heartbreak and resignation. Inigo looked over his shoulder and saw the spiked gate was closed again. He was trapped like a mouse in a snare!
"You can't run from me. I won't let you. You will come with me even if I have to tear you to pieces first!" Lamae declared angrily.
Author's Note: "VIGILANT OST Lamae Bal Battle" for this one, of course.
"Can't we talk about this?!" Inigo screeched fearfully as he leapt over a sudden swarm of Bats and balls of dark energy that rushed at him collectively.
Lamae's voice resounded through Inigo's mind - though it were just a sad memory from a time long past. Lamae was wailing with great desperation. "Arkay! Answer me! I am your priestess! Answer!"
Inigo dodged an onslaught of red balls of vampiric energy as swiftly as his feet could carry him. He heard Lamae's cries further. She vanished and reappeared in several directions, confusing Inigo as he tried to keep up.
She wept as she cried out to Arkay - but these were, again, mere memories.
"Molag Bal said you would not come."
"He said you turned your light away from me."
"Arkay! Do you hear me? You are false! I reject you!"
Inigo lunged forward and drew his sword. He had to fight for his life. He wondered if Carcette would have gone down a similar road if Cura weren't in her life. But this was no time for hypotheticals!
He leapt over a blast of red energy and cartwheeled away from a set of claws belonging to a Blood knight, which she'd just summoned. "Can you relax?! Sheesh!" he drew his blunderbuss and blasted the beast's head off.
"When I saw what I had done, I called out to my god, Arkay. I prayed that he would rid me of Molag Bal's curse. But Arkay did not answer."
A whirlwind of movement went around him and he spun around. He had the gun pressed against Lamae's forehead. In that brief moment, he could have ended it with the push of the trigger, but the maiden's face kept him from doing so.
He remembered her gentle smile and kind face. "No." He withheld the gun. "No, I... I cannot do this."
Lamae was about to attack him, as well, but hesitated. "You... you will not do it?"
Inigo shook his head. "No."
Lamae roared and lunged for him, claws striking him in the chest. Inigo quickly leapt backwards, but was not fast enough. She then grabbed his arm and tossed him against one of the cages with a burnt corpse in it. He bounced off of it and knocked it out of its place in the ground.
Inigo slid a little and pulled himself back up. He drew his sword and quickly swung it, catching Lamae in the chest before she could grab him. He leapt over her energy blast and bounced off the wall with a push of his catlike legs.
"I did not want to fight you! Why are you attacking me? After all the memories we shared?" Inigo sounded almost hurt.
Lamae paused for a second and leaned against the wall. She choked down a sob. "I... I have no choice but to." she summoned a large swarm of bats and sent them at Inigo.
The flying rodents hit him one after the next, biting, clawing and snapping at him.
Inigo swung his sword forward repeatedly, hacking through the swarming river, and lunged forward, catching Lamae with his blade in her left shoulder.
Her white dress was now stained red with blood.
The Blood Matron teleported around him for one last chance to bite his neck and his eyes fixed onto the dagger sticking out of her chest.
He performed a cartwheel and leapt over the Blood Matron when she rematerialized. He spun around and pulled the dagger out of her chest.
"Eeek!" Lamae screamed as darkness and blood began to spill out of the gaping hole. She shrieked and stumbled as she tried to cover it.
"I did not want this, Lamae!"
Inigo grit his teeth and turned his head. The sight was grizzly.
She stumbled backwards and clamped her fingers around the bleeding fabric over her chest. The blood began to spill outwards onto the floor, creating a trail as she thrashed about like a woman possessed.
"I am sorry, but you left me no choice." Inigo said. If she were willing to compromise he would have found another way out of there for both of them.
The more Lamae screamed, the less human she sounded, eventually roaring like a monstrosity as she collapsed to the floor with a dying swarm of bats surrounding her.
Inigo closed his eyes, and when he reopened them, he was back in the chamber with his allies.
Mjoll helped him up. He was lethargic from blood loss. "Are you all right, friend? That was a nasty spill."
Inigo grinned in his catlike way. "'Twas just a scratch." He looked down at the withered body of Lamae in the coffin. "Sigh... I am sorry it ended the way that it did."
Carcette hurried over to his side and carefully began to heal him.
Serana shuddered. "He's... he's here... somewhere." She looked around fearfully. In that instant, years of progress were undoing themselves.
She felt his presence. The Lord of Domination. He was close; so very close.
A great unease gripped her heart as the overshadowing presence loomed closely, casting thick darkness over them all.
Though the others didn't seem to notice, she would never forget that sinister aura.
It was the beast who violated and killed her and her mother on the same night, transforming them into what they were.
Lucien furrowed his brow. "No one is here but us, Serana. Let's get back to Windhelm - I for one can't wait to leave this horrible place behind." He proceeded towards the entrance door, and Serana called out to him before yanking him backwards.
"No, Lucien! Get away from there!"
Author's Note: "Castlevania Netflix Season 3 - Against the Demons OST" for this part ;)
The mocking voice of Molag Bal surrounded the room as flames engulfed the entrance door and the perimeter of the wall and up the stairs, trailing up towards the bust of his demonic face above the throne. The room was lit up orange with the ghastly, hellish flames. "Rise, Lamae! Rise, and sink your fangs into the flesh of this mortal, and I will let you dream again."
Inigo's heart skipped a beat. Again?!
Serana nearly shrieked when she heard the voice of the Daedric Prince, and tried to flee from the scene. Unfortunately, the fire made such a getaway impossible.
For the first time in her immortal life, Serana felt hopeless as the ravaging vision of the dark lord loomed above her, and his blood corrupted her again. The hot flames reminded her of the pain, the agonizing and twisted throes of pleasure. The regret. The dread. The despair.
She closed her eyes tightly and held her head in her hands as a loud screech filled the air. What appeared to be a dark light entered the room and wrapped itself around Lamae's now-mortified corpse. She no longer resembled the beautiful blonde maiden she was before; she was now rotted and cursed, looking much akin to a Draugr. Withered was the carnation in her falling hair, which turned to dust upon hitting the floor. Mere strands remained where her short golden mane once was.
Her eyes hollow and black, her fangs long and pronounced. Her fingernails black and cracking, but gnarled like a Hagraven's.
Serana shouted outwards reflexively. "YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A MONSTER! DO YOU HEAR ME, MOLAG BAL? A MONSTER!"
"Ahhh... the Volkihar girl. I'd nearly forgotten you existed. Welcome, my daughter, welcome. Your slaying of your father was quite impressive." Molag Bal smiled at her with a malicious grin as he sat atop the throne at the apex of the room in a phantomesque form.
"Hmph. So powerful and yet you hide as a spirit?" Carcette spat out at him. "For what you've done to Nirn, for what you've done to Cura and my Vigilants, and for what you've done to Serana, I'm coming for you, Bal. Do you understand?"
Molag Bal laughed. "You are welcome to try, Child of Stendarr. A shame you no longer have my mark. I would love to have made you mine, as well, to watch the Dragonborn suffer."
Carcette hissed angrily between gritted teeth when she heard him say it.
Lamae howled in anguish as she raised once more, and red mist surrounded her, pouring out of her hollow eyes.
Carcette flinched backwards. In all her years as a Vigilant of Stendarr, she'd never seen such a thing before. This was no ordinary curse. This was special. Calculated.
Lucien howled in horror. "No way!"
The dagger that sat in her chest was now left in the coffin, and Inigo felt it calling to him amidst the horror.
"You are weak. Like all mortals. Your efforts will fail, just like Jacob's." Molag Bal pointed at the dead Vigilant slumped on the stairs. "He gave up right here. For life, he sacrificed his most precious thing, to me. You will do the same."
Inigo fired a bullet at him. "Shut your ugly face!"
Chk, chk,
BLAM!
The bullet travelled through the air and went through Molag Bal like he was the wind. It ricochet'd off the throne and then off the wall and vanished on contact with the floor.
"Talk about an ugly makeover!" Mjoll shouted as she drove Grimsever into Lamae's chest. The vampiress pulled backwards and flung Mjoll across the floor with a great swipe. Claws scraped the Lioness across the collarbone.
Serana began to cast Flames at the undead, but Lamae teleported to the other side of the room, swiftly evading the fire. She was caught by a Fire Rune that Lucien set up, and stumbled as the embers engulfed her.
Molag Bal watched from his safe perch, enjoying the show.
Carcette leapt forward and drove her warhammer down, smashing Lamae's skull from behind and killing her.
"Good, but not nearly good enough." Molag Bal's smile could be heard from even down below. He clapped his hands together, and with a burst of hellfire, Lamae was resurrected. She immediately smacked Carcette with her supernatural strength, sending her flying across the room and fumbling up the stairs.
"What?!" Lucien exclaimed with shock and protest. "That's bull-huckey!" He quickly fired Firebolts her way, but the fiend kept out of their way, transforming her body into a mist and travelling to the other side of the room.
When she rematerialized, Mjoll hacked at her chest, causing black, rotted blood to ooze out. The vampiress ignored the pain and grabbed the Lioness by her armoured collar and aimed right for her neck.
A bullet from Inigo blew her backwards, and Mjoll hopped back, rubbing her neck instinctively. Thankfully, there was no bite. She spun around and stuck the Blood Matron in her side.
Serana saw visions of that dark ceremony. It was so long ago, and yet so fresh in her memory.
Lucien cast a great Fireball at Lamae, incinerating her body. When the flames subsided, the charred corpse laid on the floor. "There, that should keep her down... right?"
"Wrong."
Molag Bal clapped his hands again and Lamae resurrected once more with an agonized scream. Her soul would ever undergo this torment.
She locked eyes with Inigo, and even in her monstrous state, he could see the weary, hopeless eyes of the gentle maiden he'd encountered. She was twisted and cursed, but she was still that person.
He understood, now.
When he'd seen Serana's reaction, and the discomfort she had the entire time. He knew now, that Molag Bal had done the same thing to her that he did to Lamae. He was nothing more than a vile, defiling beast.
He grabbed the dagger that once was socketed in her heart and made a dash up the stairs, avoiding falling debris and the fires of perdition. As Lamae unwillingly fought his allies, Carcette cast Stendarr's Aura, pushing her back with its burning light.
Inigo was protected from a piece of falling rock by an icicle fired by Serana. She shouted after him. "Strike his heart, Inigo! Strike the heart!" she understood the situation well enough.
Inigo took heart and rushed directly at Molag Bal with the dagger. Lamae teleported in front of the fiend and swatted Inigo down the stairs with one swing. As the Khajiit collapsed to the ground he found himself beside the skeletal remains of Vigilant Jacob.
He was not going to meet that fate. His fate was his own!
Inigo pulled himself up, and blood began to run down from his forehead. Serana rushed forward and fired an Ice Spike into Lamae's stomach. "Get up, Inigo! Get up! Kill him! Come on!" she panicked.
"You think to defy your god?" Molag Bal's eyes began to glow red, and Serana's, as well. She blacked out, but her body began to act on its own. She unsheathed her elven dagger and immediately stuck it in Inigo's side. She pulled it out and attempted to plunge again, when Mjoll tackled her backwards with a roar.
"Snap out of it, Serana! You are not his plaything!" Mjoll shouted.
"You are all my playthings." Molag Bal opened a portal from the ceiling and odd, filthy Leeches began to rain down on the room.
Chaos. It was utter chaos.
Lucien shouted. "Kill them with fire! Kill them with fire!" and cast Unbound Flames on the slithering gastropods.
Lamae roared as she tangled with Carcette, flinging the Breton into the air and pressing her up against the ceiling. She hissed loudly and tore off Carcette's helmet, and immediately sunk her fangs into her neck.
"Gah!"
No. Never again.
Before she could take it further, Carcette chopped the sides of her withered neck with her hands, causing the fiend to release her, and she plummeted to the ground below, hitting the hard stone. Thankfully the armour cushioned her impact. She rolled over and touched the bleeding holes in her neck. She could see the blood on her gauntlet.
Lamae descended over her and attempted to lower herself to finish the job, but Mjoll was diligent, and beheaded her from behind.
Carcette was gasping for air and quickly cast a Healing Spell on herself. Mjoll helped her back up and handed her back the gray helmet.
Lucien continued to cast a trail of fire and incinerated the disgusting leeches everywhere he saw them, effectively becoming a blowtorch until he ran out of Magicka Potions. "Oh, dear..."
Molag Bal clapped his hands again, and Lamae was forcefully revived in agony once again.
"Fight him! You have to fight him!" Inigo yelled at Serana as she grabbed him firmly and tossed him against Lamae's coffin. He dragged it out of the corpse pit due to the force of momentum and slid across the blood on the floor before landing in the fire.
He quickly scrambled out, but Serana was faster. She lunged at Inigo and grabbed him by the collar. She had the special dagger in her left hand and him in her right. A familiar glint shone in her eye as she forced the dagger into his grip. She struggled for a few moments. "C-can't... stop him... can't... need... help..."
Inigo looked into her eyes and then looked upwards. "MARA! HELP YOUR CHILDREN! DO I NEED TO TANTRUM?!" He called out with great fright to the goddess who had favoured Serana before.
As if from nowhere, a bright light shone in Serana and she dropped Inigo to the ground. In the air, she began to toss and turn as a light attempted to pry out the black snares of Molag Bal from within her.
Molag stood up from his seat in disbelief. Someone dared to challenge his power! "Mara!? What is this?" He yelled. "She is mine! Not yours!" He began to channel his power furiously, refusing to relinquish control.
Carcette looked up at the pushing and pulling happening to Serana in the air. She recalled Jyggalag's words: "What is it to you that defines a Daedra as opposed to an Aedra? What is it that makes us seem so distantly different in your eyes? Are we not both Et'Ada?"
Light and darkness. Love and hatred. Order and Chaos. They were two sides of a coin.
She looked at Lamae, who now seemed to be sitting in a pained fetal position, and at Serana, who had been trying to do the right thing for years. Neither of them appeared truly evil; just in the snares of a malignant entity.
Mara's voice reverberated through the room; gentle and feminine, soft-spoken, yet stern. "She no longer belongs to you, Molag Bal. Her family's error has been repented. She belongs to me." A vision of a golden, shining maternal figure wearing a long veil and robes as bright as the sun apparated over Serana, embracing the now-unconscious vampiress.
Every single living person in that room gasped in awe at the sight.
It was Mara.
The Divine actually appeared before them in splendor!
"THAT'S MARA!" Lucien cried out with amazement. "By her - it's her! It's ACTUALLY HER! NO WAY!"
Carcette's jaw nearly unhinged itself from shock. The Divine of Love made herself manifest; then Cura was telling the truth about Stendarr in Sovngarde! She exchanged a glance with Inigo, and then nodded to him.
Inigo looked at Lamae, who was despondent, and then at Molag Bal, who was continuing to wrestle with Mara for control again. The Brave Khajiit looked at the Dagger, realizing that it must have belonged to the Bard who he substituted for in those dreams. He looked at Molag Bal once more, and made a dash up the stairs, and drove it right into the Daedric Phantom's chest.
With a resounding gasp, Molag Bal exploded into smoke, and Lamae collapsed into dust on the floor.
"Thank you..." she whispered to Inigo before she was vanquished for good.
The fire subsided, and the room grew dark, and still.
Mjoll leaned against the wall and gasped for air. Lucien sat on the charred steps and threw his head back with exhaustion.
Inigo tried to relax, himself, and sat on the top of the stairs. He watched as Mara slowly lowered Serana to the floor and laid her gently onto the carpet beside him.
"Child, do not be alarmed. This is a Divine war. We Aedra will help you, however we can, thanks to the efforts of the Dragonborn, whom we love." Mara warned Inigo as she gently touched Serana's cheek.
Mjoll and the others came up the stairs, as well. She spoke first. "How did... how did Cura's efforts affect the Gods?"
Carcette answered. "When she defeated Alduin."
"Yes. Alduin, the dark spawn of Akatosh, had consumed much life and power from Skyrim and from Sovngarde. When Cura defeated the fell wyrm, this power was to us released. We may now help mortals in the way we'd desired for so long." Mara smiled as she levitated into the air. "Our power is not fully restored, and as such, we are still weak. 'Twas not the true Molag Bal you encountered, but his curse upon Lamae Bal."
Carcette took off her helmet and lowered herself respectfully to the goddess. "Lady Mara - I must ask, for I am joining Jyggalag. What will I encounter in Coldharbour?"
Mara was beginning to fade away, as her power was limited, but she spoke words of comfort. "You will encounter untold horrors, but be not afraid. All will end well." and with that, she disappeared completely, but not before parting a Healing Spell upon the entire group.
They felt great warmth wash over them and felt their energy return.
Serana slowly began to stir again. When she awoke, she looked around at the others quickly. "Is... is everyone all right?"
"Speak for yourself." Mjoll stated. "That evil bastard had his claws in you. How do you feel?"
Serana massaged her forehead. "A... a little shaken. I didn't hurt anyone, did I...? Inigo?"
Inigo shook his head. "A little, but it was nothing I cannot recover from."
Serana looked relieved. "Good." She slowly stood up. "By the gods... that was a face I was hoping I'd never see again."
Carcette held a hand to the bottom of her neck to feel the bite mark. She quickly took a drink of the Cure Disease potion. Thankfully Lamae hadn't drunk her for too long.
Inigo looked at the ashen corpse of Lamae Bal sadly. "She was just an ordinary woman. She was so sweet. I went into her dreams and... we were close."
"Uhh... buddy? That could have just been manipulation." Lucien warned him.
"No! It was real!" Inigo insisted. "I was living in her memories. They felt too real to be manipulation."
"A skilled manipulator would make it that way." Lucien stated.
Inigo knelt down and took the withered, black carnation from the floor. "Rest in peace now, sweet Lamae. I know you are now free from that menace."
Mjoll felt the warmth slowly returning to the area, with the evil presence vanquished. "The hive is clear. We can return triumphantly now."
It really was incredible, how Inigo could look past such a monster and still see the beautiful woman underneath.
Serana gently hugged him from behind. This was why she counted him one of her greatest friends. And no doubt, what Cura and Mjoll and Lucien saw in him, too. he
Inigo always saw the good in people - regardless of their actions. He was the sort of man to try and find whatever good remained.
Carcette placed a comforting hand on him, as well. "You have a kind heart, Inigo. Don't let the world strip it from you."
Inigo nodded in response and regained his smile. "You are right. The world is getting cold again, so we must share our warmth with it. Let us go."
"That's the spirit!" Lucien exclaimed as he headed out first.