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<\/p>\nThe place called Darkfall was nothing if not that \u2013 dark. As with many of the deep crevices in the mountains, water from above had infiltrated through cracks in the rocks over time, had hollowed spaces out, and in this place was roaring down falls and along in a substantial stream beneath them. He crept along the narrow tunnel, sword raised high, feeling his way by instinct even though he might just as easily have used his abilities as a vampire to sense the walls and the life around him.\u00a0 But it didn\u2019t matter.\u00a0 His mind was elsewhere.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Vitus. I know that\u2019s my name. It feels right. But where am I from? Cyrodiil, yes, that much is obvious; but what part of Cyrodiil? Who sent me to Skyrim? What did I do before that day when the Thalmor took me down?<\/em><\/p>\n Who am I?<\/em><\/p>\n It was maddening. He finally knew his name; he knew how he had been captured and that he\u2019d been tortured. The details of that were fuzzy; he remembered seeing tools, he remembered pain, and beatings, but mercifully he didn\u2019t remember specific moments of the torture.\u00a0 The important details, though, the facts he most wanted to know, those still eluded him. Only two things were certain.\u00a0 One was that he felt cold inside, and hard, and angry; but mostly cold — and empty. The good humor and warmth he\u2019d known for as long as he\u2019d been aware of himself seemed to have vanished.\u00a0 That was the first thing.<\/p>\n The second thing was that he could hear Brynjolf breathing quietly as he moved along behind him; and that thing put a fierce, possessive, fiery joy in him. It was the one thing he was certain of.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know you, Vitus, not any more. All I know is Andante and I don\u2019t know where he has gone. But I do know that Brynjolf is with me and that\u2019s enough for now.<\/em><\/p>\n I sound crazy. There\u2019s only one of me; I just haven\u2019t sorted it all out yet.<\/em><\/p>\n He was so preoccupied with these thoughts that he wasn\u2019t paying attention to the condition of the plank-and-rope bridge he had just crossed to check the small encampment on its far side.\u00a0 It stretched high above the rushing water, drenched in the constant, fine mist that rose from the base of the waterfall. Over time it had absorbed that moisture, and begun to rot; and it was not prepared to hold the combined weight of three people moving across it simultaneously.\u00a0 Andante shrugged when he found nothing interesting in the encampment, and turned back for the entrance; and as he reached the midpoint of the bridge its ropes gave way, dumping them all down into the rushing waters below.<\/p>\n All thoughts he might have been having vanished as the icy water sucked the air from his lungs.\u00a0 He fought to hold on as the force washed him into and under the stream, to the brink of another drop.\u00a0 He had just a moment to gasp for air, to realize that he wouldn\u2019t die, there was water at the bottom of the drop, and to see frostbite spiders dropping from the ceiling as they passed.\u00a0 He heard Brynjolf and Serana splash down into the pool behind him as the torrent washed him farther down, over a short lip of rock and onto the rocky floor of the cavern. It had also washed the spiders along with them, so for several minutes there was nothing but fighting for survival.\u00a0 Andante wasn\u2019t very skilled with a greatsword, but somehow it felt good to take his frustrations out in a single, powerful down stroke that sliced a spider in two. Some of the spiders took two or three hits to slay. It didn\u2019t matter. He was angry, and he wanted to kill things, and the spiders made excellent targets.<\/p>\n The path wound its way alongside the stream and across it, where it was blocked by a mass of spider egg sacs and webbing.\u00a0 Andante peered through the webs and listened closely, and saw the outlines of an enormous spider brood mother.\u00a0 It was time to stop experimenting with a new weapon. He drew his bow and fired an ebony arrow at her to draw her out, then froze her with a Shout.\u00a0 Brynjolf and Serana took care of the rest.<\/p>\n Andante stumbled ahead through a damp passage lit only by a few patches of glowing mushrooms clinging to its sides, and then emerged into a tunnel that, strangely enough, had glowing braziers and torches mounted high up along its walls.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople?\u201d he whispered back to Brynjolf and Serana.<\/p>\n \u201cLooks like it,\u201d Serana agreed.<\/p>\n Indeed, the tunnel ended at a clearing that held, in this most unlikely of places, a campsite. There was a substantial fire, a bedroll, a lean-to set up against what looked as though it might be another drop, and a chest. There was also a dead woman, clutching a note about trolls.<\/p>\n \u201cTrolls ahead,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n Brynjolf stood over the dead woman for a few moments, staring down at her.<\/p>\n \u201cBy the Eight, I hate to do this,\u201d he murmured.\u00a0 \u201cBut there\u2019s no help for it.\u201d<\/p>\n He knelt and drained what blood was left in the woman, then stood making a face.<\/p>\n \u201cShor\u2019s bones but that is awful,\u201d he said, shaking his head.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to do what you have to do,\u201d Andante said. \u201cShe didn\u2019t need the blood any longer. You did. I told you it would come in handy some day.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know, but\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve all been there, Brynjolf,\u201d Serana murmured.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s no shame in keeping yourself alive.\u201d<\/p>\n The tunnel finally emerged into what otherwise might have been a lovely scene if not for the danger they knew was ahead. The water that had carried them all down into this place spread out into a lake in a large cavern, its roof upheld by a number of massive stone pillars that had somehow outlasted the water flowing around them. A few torches were mounted on those pillars near the center of the cavern, keeping it from being completely dark.\u00a0 And on one of the dirt bridges that crisscrossed the area, Andante could make out the familiar shape of a troll patrolling its territory.\u00a0 He pulled his bow and fitted an arrow to it.<\/p>\n \u201cI think we need to prepare for the worst,\u201d Brynjolf said quietly, his blade scraping against its sheath as he drew it.<\/p>\n \u201cAye, lad,\u201d Andante murmured, earning himself a snicker from Serana.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you making fun of me?\u201d Brynjolf muttered.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, of course I am.\u201d\u00a0 Maybe if I keep pretending, my humor will return to me. Maybe I will return to me.<\/em><\/p>\n Even as he let loose the arrow, Andante saw that it was not just one but at least two trolls barreling toward them as fast as they could lurch along.\u00a0 He swapped his bow out in favor of his axe, and conjured a Dremora churl once more, backing up from the oncoming trolls as he did so. The Dremora attacked, but so did Brynjolf; one powerful blow from his sword took out the first troll, and Andante ran forward to hack the other apart with a backhanded swipe.<\/p>\n There was clear evidence that the rest of the unfortunate woman\u2019s party had been here, probably searching for ore to mine.\u00a0 Chests placed around the cavern had skeletons nearby them, partial or complete, dry or still bloody.\u00a0 It was a grisly place even to someone used to feasting on human blood, and Andante was not sorry to see a bright light coming from the far side of the cavern.\u00a0 He made for it, eagerly.<\/p>\n What he was not prepared to see, however, was what they encountered.\u00a0 The light had been emanating from brightly-glowing candle stands in a small side cavern.\u00a0 There were ruins there, that much he could tell, and in the center of them a short, oddly-shaped dome with what appeared to be an altar nearby. Most surprising, though, was that a person stood at the altar, his arms upraised in a gesture of supplication.\u00a0 Andante stopped short and stared for a moment, wondering how it was that there was a live person here when all others in the larger cavern had been killed and consumed.<\/p>\n He approached, slowly, and realized that the person he was looking at was unlike anyone he had ever seen before. Judging by the long ears, it was a Mer, an elf of some sort, but of which race Andante could not tell.\u00a0 His hair and brows were white, his eyes nearly so, he wore white and grey armor, and his skin was paler than that of any vampire Andante had ever met.<\/p>\n \u201cCome forward,\u201d he said, turning to face them. \u201cYou have nothing to fear here. I am Knight-Paladin Gelebor. Welcome to the Great Chantry of Auri-El.\u201d His voice was smooth, cultured, with accents Andante did not recognize but which seemed ancient.<\/p>\n Auriel.\u00a0 The Bow. Is this the place?<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThis place is a temple to Auriel?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAuriel, Auri-El, Alkosh, Akatosh. So many names for the sovereign of the Snow Elves.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSnow Elves?\u00a0 You\u2019re\u2026 a Falmer?\u201d<\/p>\n Behind him, Andante heard Brynjolf snort, and mumble \u201cDoes that look like any Falmer you\u2019ve ever seen, lad? Doesn\u2019t to me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPardon me, sir,\u201d Andante said. \u201cI meant no offense. I\u2019m just very surprised.\u201d<\/p>\n Gelebor shook his head and smiled, a small smile, clearly meant to signify that he was not offended. \u201cI prefer snow elf. The name Falmer usually carries such negative connotations for most travelers. Those twisted creatures you call Falmer, I prefer to call the Betrayed.\u201d He put his hands on his hips and shifted his weight onto one leg. \u201cNow then. You\u2019re undoubtedly here for the Bow. I can help you get it, but first I must have your assistance. For all the thousands of years I have served as this Chantry\u2019s sentinel there hasn\u2019t been another reason for anyone to visit. I can\u2019t imagine this occasion is any different.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHmm. Do we have any other choice?\u201d<\/p>\n Gelebor smiled, grimly. \u201cCertainly. You may choose to return from whence you came, empty-handed.\u201d<\/p>\n Andante turned to share a wordless discussion with his companions.\u00a0 They both nodded at him.<\/p>\n \u201cAlright,\u201d he said, facing Gelebor again, \u201cwhat is it that you\u2019d like us to do?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI need you to kill Arch-Curate Vyrthur \u2013 my brother.\u201d<\/p>\n There was a moment of utter silence in the space as all of them digested Gelebor\u2019s words.\u00a0 Finally, Andante cleared his throat and spoke.<\/p>\n \u201cYou want us to… kill your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a bit harsh, even for me. And I have no siblings, so far as I am aware.\u201d<\/p>\n Gelebor went on to explain the situation to them. His brother, he said, had changed somehow, into something that he did not understand. There was no more kinship between them. He feared that the Betrayed, of whom, he warned, there were a great many in this place, had done something to Vyrthur to change him. A long while ago they had swept into the Chantry and begun killing people; and the small number of otherwise peaceful paladins Gelebor had led against them had been no match for their numbers.\u00a0 Vyrthur was still alive, that much Gelebor knew for a fact. He\u2019d seen his brother from a distance, not in any apparent distress. But he merely stood, and stared, as if waiting for something to happen.<\/p>\n Andante tried to take it all in, but it made no sense to him. I have never had a family that I am aware of, but those families I have seen don\u2019t let their members go missing without at least trying to do something about it.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cHaven\u2019t you tried going to the Inner Sanctum yourself? To find out what\u2019s wrong with him?\u201d<\/p>\n Gelebor shook his head. \u201cLeaving the Wayshrines unguarded would be violating my sacred duty as a Knight-Paladin of Auri-El. And an assault on the Betrayed guarding the inner sanctum would only result in my death.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMmm,\u201d Brynjolf murmured.\u00a0 \u201cOnly one of you. What\u2019s a Wayshrine?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, exactly. There is only one of me. As to what a Wayshrine is, let me show you.\u201d\u00a0 Gelebor turned to face the odd dome, raised one hand, and cast a spell.<\/p>\n The dome began to hum, almost to ring; and then, grinding and shuddering, it rose from the ground to reveal a structure the interior of which was twice their height, open only on the side facing them. In the center, on a raised platform, was an ornate basin.<\/p>\n \u201cSo this is Snow Elf magic,\u201d Serana said, walking up the steps toward the opening. \u201cAmazing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis structure is called a Wayshrine,\u201d Gelebor told her. \u201cThey were used for meditation, and for transport, when the Chantry was a place of enlightenment. Prelates of these shrines were charged with teaching the mantras of Auri-El to our initiates.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s the basin for?\u201d Serana asked.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, once the initiate completed his mantras, he\u2019d dip a ceremonial ewer in the basin at the Wayshrine\u2019s center and proceed to the next Wayshrine.\u201d<\/p>\n Serana snorted. \u201cSo they had to lug around a heavy pitcher of water. Lovely. How long did this last?\u201d<\/p>\n Andante was concerned that Serana might be annoying the one person who could help them get where they needed to go; but rather than being upset with her Gelebor looked merely amused.\u00a0 I suppose if I spent all my time alone, even Serana might seem a welcome diversion. Briefly.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWell, once the initiate\u2019s enlightenment was complete, he\u2019d bring the ewer to the Chantry\u2019s inner sanctum. Pouring the contents of the ewer into the sacred basin of the Sanctum would allow him to enter for an audience with the Arch-Curate himself.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYour brother,\u201d Brynjolf said.<\/p>\n \u201cAll that just to end up dumping it out?\u201d Serana blurted. \u201cIt makes no sense to me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes. It\u2019s all very symbolic. I wouldn\u2019t expect you to understand.\u201d<\/p>\n Serana made an impatient sound and frowned. \u201cSo let me get this straight. We have to do all this nonsense to get into the temple, so that we can kill your brother and claim the bow?\u201d<\/p>\n Gelebor sighed. \u201cYes. I know how it sounds. But if there were another way, I would have done it long ago. Now let me explain\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n And he did explain, at some length. It had been so very long since the Falmer had slaughtered his people that only he of the Prelates remained.\u00a0 All the others were spirits, specters, and were capable only of performing their duties to protect the Wayshrines.\u00a0 They all believed the Chantry to still be a place of active worship.<\/p>\n \u201cLike the Nightingale Sentinels,\u201d Brynjolf murmured.<\/p>\n Andante peered at him. \u201cThe what?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI never saw them, but Dagnell told me about them. My\u2026 the Guildmaster. She had to get past them to open the portal, where you saw\u2026 Never mind, lad. I\u2019ll tell you about it later.\u00a0 It\u2019s the same kind of thing as this, though.\u201d<\/p>\n Andante fought to keep his expression neutral.<\/p>\n Ah yes. Not only are you a Nightingale yourself but you\u2019re married to another of the three. My, my, Brynjolf. And what of her? I want to meet this woman. If it is in fact Sayma, then\u2026 what a concentration of power. Guildmaster, Nightingale, and Listener as well? <\/em><\/p>\n But here you are, Brynjolf, with me, and I want to keep it that way as long as I can. The only real power I have is that of the vampire. Yet another reason to take the castle, for you. I don\u2019t like being in competition with dead men and absent wives.<\/em><\/p>\n Gelebor told them more; about the history of his people, how they had once occupied a good portion of Skyrim but, with the arrival of the Nords, had feared extinction and had turned in part to the dwarves for help. How the dwarves had blinded them with a toxin as part of the process that created what were now known as Falmer. Gelebor\u2019s people, a tiny group living as they had been in a remote area, had been spared that fate, but had met their own much later at the Falmer\u2019s hands. He and his brother were, in fact, the last of the snow elves.<\/p>\n There were five Wayshrines in total, Gelebor told them, spread across the Chantry. They would need to visit each of the others in turn, and they should be prepared for it to take some time.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Chantry encompasses far more than a few caverns,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019ll discover this for yourselves shortly.\u00a0 But before you leave I must give you the Initiate\u2019s Ewer. Once you\u2019ve discovered a Wayshrine, there will be a spectral Prelate tending to it.\u00a0 They will allow you to draw the waters from the shrine\u2019s basin.\u201d He paused, and an odd look passed across his face. \u201cAs if you\u2019d been enlightened.\u201d<\/p>\n Do I look that obviously a heathen? An apostate? How droll. I suppose I\u2019m not surprised.<\/em><\/p>\n Andante found himself holding the ewer.\u00a0 It was large, and heavy, and awkward, and he knew he was going to hate every moment of dragging it about.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know how I\u2019m supposed to do anything else with my hands if I\u2019m carrying this, Bryn,\u201d he grumbled.<\/p>\n \u201cThat would definitely be tragic,\u201d Brynjolf said quietly, the corner of his mouth twitching upward just a bit.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you making fun of me, sir?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOf course I am,\u201d Brynjolf chuckled. \u201cWe\u2019ll figure something out, lad.\u00a0 Maybe we can make some sort of harness for it. Don\u2019t worry about it. Let\u2019s just get going.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRight.\u201d He stepped up to Gelebor and nodded. \u201cThank you for your help. I hope we\u2019ll see you once we\u2019ve recovered the Bow.\u201d<\/p>\n Gelebor smiled. \u201cAll I can do now is grant you my hopes for a safe journey. May Auri-El keep you free from harm.\u201d<\/p>\n Andante bowed, his customary half-bow, and then smiled internally.\u00a0 I guess Andante isn\u2019t completely gone after all, is he. That\u2019s become like breathing to me.<\/em><\/p>\n He stepped into the shrine and found that the back wall of it, opposite the opening where they had stood speaking with Gelebor, was shimmering. He sighed, and looked back at Brynjolf and Serana.<\/p>\n \u201cAnother portal.\u00a0 Well, let\u2019s see where it leads.\u201d He stepped through the darkened, shimmering surface.<\/p>\n The portal opened into another very dark passage. This one, though, contained glowing, purplish plants spaced apart just enough to give him a sense of direction.\u00a0 As he approached each of them, the purple flowers dimmed and retreated into thick stalks, plunging the immediate area into darkness made even more complete by the eye\u2019s delayed reaction to a change in light levels.<\/p>\n \u201cOk. Bryn, can you help me with this ewer? I don\u2019t want to be wandering around in the dark trying not to spill it.\u201d<\/p>\n Between the three of them, they managed enough fabric and leather ties to create a back sling for the ewer. It now hung between Andante\u2019s shoulder blades in an awkward position, but upright and at least partially protected from battle damage. He would have to leave the greatsword undrawn for the foreseeable future, but at least now his hands would be free.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s uncomfortable as Oblivion. But better there than in my hands, I suppose.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAye. Let\u2019s get going.\u201d<\/p>\n Farther along the tunnel he began to encounter patches of glowing mushrooms on the walls, and in one of these spots a chaurus hunter \u2013 the winged, adult version of the enormous crawling insects prized by the Falmer for their tough shells \u2013 burst from its cocoon.<\/p>\n Brynjolf rushed past Andante to attack.<\/p>\n \u201cBryn- \u201c<\/p>\n But the fight was on.\u00a0 Serana joined the fray with her lightning bolt spell.\u00a0 There was no room for Andante to do anything. He was loath to use his axe in such close quarters, unwilling to risk the grave harm even the slightest slip might cause. The best he could do was to conjure a Dremora churl once again and hope that it might help with its magic and its knife.<\/p>\n After what felt like an eternity Serana said \u201cDone, and done.\u201d\u00a0 He moved forward up the tunnel and tripped over not only the chaurus\u2019 carcass but two Falmer.<\/p>\n \u201cIs everyone alright?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, no problem here, lad. But it looks like we\u2019ll be playing with Falmer for a bit. Prepare yourself. It won\u2019t be as bad as Durnheviir but the stench of their living places is a powerful thing.\u201d<\/p>\n He moved past Serana, and caught up with Brynjolf.\u00a0 \u201cDo me a favor, loverboy. Don\u2019t rush past me like that again. This is my battle to fight. You\u2019re still in charge of the Guild.\u201d<\/p>\n Brynjolf grimaced at him.\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t remind me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI will remind you, and I\u2019ll keep reminding you. I\u2019m glad you\u2019re with me, Brynjolf, but you know as well as I do that you\u2019re the only one that rabble will listen to.\u00a0 Who will take over if you\u2019re harmed? Me? Don\u2019t make me laugh.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere is<\/em> a Guildmaster,\u201d Brynjolf grumbled.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd if anyone knew where she was you wouldn\u2019t be here. You know that\u2019s the truth. So just pretend I\u2019m the one in charge for this, yes?\u201d<\/p>\n He couldn\u2019t see Brynjolf\u2019s eyes, but he knew his words must have stung.\u00a0 I\u2019m sorry, Bryn. It has to be hard. You\u2019re trying so hard to be good to me while everything reminds you of the two people you have loved. Even I, your temporary diversion, won\u2019t let you forget. But you have to survive. Nocturnal won\u2019t take me.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cAlright.\u201d<\/p>\n He took point again, moving along the dimly-lit passageways, pondering Nocturnal\u2019s thorough rejection of him. He\u2019d belonged to Sithis for most of his life, she had told him.\u00a0 What did that mean, exactly?\u00a0 Sithis was associated with the Dark Brotherhood; and while he hadn\u2019t taken any particular vow when joining the group he knew that they, Cicero, in particular, were devoted to Night Mother and Sithis.\u00a0 What about before? Was Vitus in the Dark Brotherhood?<\/p>\n He laughed to himself.\u00a0 Vitus. Like he is someone different.\u00a0 Was I in the Brotherhood, before? Would that make sense? <\/em>He cast his mind backward, focusing hard. I don\u2019t remember. I know I was an assassin. I know that. I remember\u2026 notes. Like what Roggi was talking about. But I might have been a solo assassin. Right? Maybe?<\/em><\/p>\n He had the sensation that he was about to remember something, a tickling in the back of his brain. He was so focused on the idea that the light ahead of him, with a figure standing in it, barely registered in time for him to stop moving. He blinked, and peered ahead once again.\u00a0 It was a woman in mage\u2019s robes, holding a lighted torch aloft, scanning the spaces ahead of her.<\/p>\n Behind him, one of the others scuffed a foot against the path and a pebble went skittering away.<\/p>\n The figure turned.\u00a0 \u201cHa! I found you!\u201d<\/p>\n The next moments were a complete blur of flashing spells, blades, shouts, and pain.\u00a0\u00a0 The woman was a Vigilant of Stendarr, and her weapons were those silver-coated blades favored by the Vigilants and the Dawnguard.\u00a0 They hurt.\u00a0 Andante found himself hampered by those and by the heavy ewer strapped to his back, but he fought as best he could and tried to stay out of the others\u2019 way. When the woman finally fell, Andante ran to her body and stared.<\/p>\n \u201cHow did she get ahead of us?\u201d Serana asked.<\/p>\n \u201cNo idea at all,\u201d Andante said. \u201cI didn\u2019t see any other way to get past the portal, which means she must have come through after Gelebor opened it for us.\u00a0 Maybe she slipped past while we were fighting the chaurus?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know how she would have fit through. Or why she didn\u2019t take us on during that battle,\u201d Brynjolf replied. \u201cIt would have been the perfect time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA renegade looking for the bow herself?\u201d<\/p>\n Andante stared at Serana. \u201cMaybe.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know. Maybe she was afraid to take us on with the chaurus and the Falmer because there was too much going on. Maybe she was looking for a good ambush point.\u00a0 It\u2019s all done now, though.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAye, but keep an eye out for others,\u201d Brynjolf said. \u201cFrom your spot in the lead.\u201d<\/p>\n Andante laughed. \u201cDon\u2019t be bitter, loverboy. It doesn\u2019t suit you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m always bitter. You\u2019ve just never seen me any other way.\u201d<\/p>\n Andante snickered, but as he moved forward he realized the truth of it.\u00a0 He\u2019d seen brief glimpses of Brynjolf excited by battle, moved to real laughter, and even a few moments of what had felt like genuine tenderness on his part; but in general he truly was a dry, bitter, angry man.\u00a0 No wonder he suits me so well.<\/em><\/p>\n The path emptied onto another large chamber with a substantial waterfall in its center, this one full of conical structures and dirt pathways with dimly-backlit figures moving about.<\/p>\n \u201cMore Falmer,\u201d Brynjolf whispered.<\/p>\n \u201cYes and it looks like they\u2019ve set up to stay,\u201d Serana agreed.<\/p>\n Andante sighed and pulled out his bow.\u00a0 The first two were quick and easy shots for him; they had neither heard nor scented them, and were not expecting an attack. The third, though, was a spellcaster.\u00a0 Just as Andante froze it with a Shout, another chaurus hunter burst from its cocoon to attack him.\u00a0 He slashed at it, dodging Serana\u2019s lightning bolts, and took it down just as Brynjolf started laughing maniacally. He had run ahead and begun slashing the spellcaster.\u00a0 Andante\u2019s temper flared, and he was about to Shout again when he saw the creature fly backwards, sliced nearly in two by a backhanded swipe from Brynjolf\u2019s sword.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd that\u2019s that,\u201d he said, as Serana muttered \u201cDisgusting creatures. That\u2019ll teach you.\u201d<\/p>\n Andante lowered his axe back into position and sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI guess there\u2019s no keeping you two from doing what you\u2019re going to do, is there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNone,\u201d Brynjolf said, proudly it seemed to him. Andante grinned at him and pressed forward.<\/p>\n The Falmer chambers seemed to go on forever.\u00a0 The path wound past a waterfall, beneath a trap featuring two gigantic claws that would, if triggered, drop down and rip an unsuspecting victim to shreds, and through the middle of several circular clusters of Falmer tents.\u00a0 There weren\u2019t many of the beasts to dispose of, a fact that Andante found odd until they reached a larger cluster of dwellings that was clearly the center of power.\u00a0 A huge, spellcasting Falmer in heavy armor rose to face them, snarling and firing frost spells at them from a seemingly bottomless reservoir of power. It was joined in battle by two chaurus, whose poisons would not harm vampires but whose pincers would.\u00a0 The three of them, along with Andante\u2019s dremora, fought long and hard in the confusion of the dark to take down first the spellcaster and then the two chaurus.<\/p>\n Movement stopped; he heard Brynjolf and Serana panting, trying to recover.\u00a0 He took a deep breath. \u201cFinally. Let\u2019s go.\u201d<\/p>\n No sooner had the words left his mouth when a glancing blow struck him from behind, sending him stumbling forward. Two more Falmer had emerged from the darkness to attack them. Andante regained his balance, turned, and ended one of the creatures with a solid, angry, diagonal chop through its torso. It dropped like a stone just as the others finished with the second Falmer.<\/p>\n \u201cThere. I was useful rather than merely ornamental,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He heard Serana chuckle, and couldn\u2019t prevent himself from grinning, in the dark where she couldn\u2019t see it.<\/p>\n Beyond the waterfall were two passages, one of which had a nicely backlit tripwire stretched across it.\u00a0 He could see more Falmer dwellings beyond it.\u00a0 He shook his head and pointed to his left, toward the darker of the two paths, and slipped along its narrow, dark length as silently as they could.<\/p>\n They came to a well-lighted corner with two odd pulleys suspended from wall mounts. Each of them was more a pole than a chain, with the three torchbug lights on each adding to the illumination of the glowing mushrooms growing just above them.<\/p>\n \u201cHmm. Pull chains and traps,\u201d Serana said quietly. \u201cBe careful. Whatever\u2019s on the other side of this, the Falmer wanted to keep there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhich shall I pull?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI say the one on the left,\u201d Brynjolf offered.\u00a0 \u201cIt would be too obvious to have the one closer to the door do the job.\u201d<\/p>\n Andante nodded and selected the pulley nearer them in the hallway.\u00a0 A stone slab rasped its way into the ground, revealing a beautiful but clearly very hungry saber cat of a variety he had never seen. It leapt at him; he barely had time to pull his axe and fend off the enormous fangs. After whirling out of the way he caught it a solid blow to the back of the neck just as Serana struck it with an ice spike.\u00a0 It rolled to its side, dead.<\/p>\n And they emerged from the passage into a place unlike anything Andante had ever encountered.<\/p>\n Phosphorescent rocks and floating, glowing mushrooms gave the cavern an eerie but utterly beautiful light. Odd plants with brilliantly glowing purple leaves and bell-like flowers growing from tall stalks flanked the trail, which wound its way around the edges of the cavern and down, across the shallow lake formed by yet another waterfall.\u00a0 The lake itself was aquamarine, clear, and radiating warmth. Deer with vivid markings danced along the various pathways surrounding it.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is beautiful,\u201d he breathed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve never seen anything like it.\u201d<\/p>\n Serana harrumphed. Andante turned to smile at her, then caught Brynjolf\u2019s gaze and held it even while he addressed her.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are surprised, Serana? Don\u2019t be. I can appreciate beauty as much as the next fellow,\u201d he said, smiling the whole time.\u00a0 A slow, answering smile broke across Brynjolf\u2019s face.\u00a0 Good. You understand.<\/em>\u00a0 Andante didn\u2019t check to see whether Serana saw what was passing between her companions; he merely smiled again and turned back to the task at hand.<\/p>\n They made their way through the cavern, across the pool and up a ramp at its far side.\u00a0 There at the top was another Wayshrine. Standing before it, as Gelebor had told them, was a spectral figure.<\/p>\n \u201cWelcome, Initiate,\u201d it greeted Andante. \u201cThis is the Wayshrine of Illumination. Are you prepared to honor the mantras of Auri-El and fill your vessel with his enlightenment?\u201d<\/p>\n If it will get me out of this cave I\u2019ll honor any of the gods you care to name. <\/em><\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen behold Auri-El\u2019s gift, my child,\u201d the ghostly Prelate said. \u201cMay it light your path as you seek tranquility within the Inner Sanctum.\u201d<\/p>\n The Prelate turned and cast his spell. The Wayshrine rose, a tiny, ornate cathedral set in the eerie glow of phosphorescent plants and rocks.\u00a0 Andante stepped into the center, motioned for Brynjolf to help him wrestle the Ewer off his back, and then dipped it into the water.<\/p>\n They stepped through the Wayshrine\u2019s portal.\u00a0 Although they were still surrounded by stones, both normal and phosphorescent, the light was intense and Andante winced at its first touch.\u00a0 He heard birds twittering just past an opening in the rocks.\u00a0 He turned to find Brynjolf and Serana both shielding their eyes as well.<\/p>\n \u201cI do believe we\u2019re here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWherever \u2018here\u2019 may be,\u201d Serana agreed.<\/p>\n The place called Darkfall was nothing if not that \u2013 dark. As with many of the deep crevices in the mountains, water from above had infiltrated through cracks in the rocks over time, had hollowed spaces out, and in this place was roaring down falls and along in a substantial stream beneath them. He crept … <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/baakay.com\/FanFic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/3-2-6-2.png\")
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<\/p>\nPart II: Counterpoint<\/a><\/div>\nPrevious<\/a> \/ Next<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"