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<\/p>\nWhen they reached Helgen, Dardeh had to stop for a moment to look around and smile. There were banners.\u00a0 Stormcloak banners, several of them on tall posts in strategic areas placed in such a way that nobody could miss who was in control. \u00a0He could see several soldiers in the familiar blue-draped armor moving about the keep\u2019s yard and out into what was left of the town proper.<\/p>\n
\u201cUlfric came through for us,\u201d Dardeh called back over his shoulder.<\/p>\n
The sound of pickaxes connecting with stone carried across the open yard. Dardeh looked for the workers and found them breaking apart rubble that had fallen in front of the door into the central tower.\u00a0 He stopped for a moment and shuddered.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d Roggi said, coming to stand beside him.<\/p>\n
Dardeh pointed.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In front of the tower, still dark from the blood of its previous victims, the headsman\u2019s block sat exactly where it had been the day Alduin returned.\u00a0 Dardeh stared at it and found bile rising up into his throat.<\/p>\n
\u201cI \u2026 had my head in that depression.\u00a0 The headsman had his axe raised<\/em>, Roggi. That\u2019s how close it was.\u201d<\/p>\n Roggi slipped an arm around him and gave him a quick squeeze.<\/p>\n \u201cBut you survived. And you destroyed Alduin.\u00a0 So there\u2019s no need to worry about that anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh nodded. \u201cIt\u2019ll never completely go away, though. You know what I\u2019m talking about. Maybe we can convince Marcus and Valerius to get rid of the thing. It\u2019s just a reminder of bad times.\u201d<\/p>\n They continued into the keep itself.\u00a0 There was a woman sweeping the entryway, and a soldier watching her do it.\u00a0 Voices from the lower level became clearer as they approached the kitchen room.<\/p>\n \u201cHa! It\u2019s good to see you three old soldiers again!\u201d\u00a0 That was definitely Shadrick Oaken-Heart\u2019s voice. \u201cI never dreamed we would all be here in Skyrim.\u201d<\/p>\n There had been some work done in the mess area since Dardeh and Roggi had last been there.\u00a0 It had been cleaned, for one thing; damaged items had been removed, and Stormcloak banners hung from the walls.\u00a0 Korst, Valerius, Marcus, and Shadrick stood in a circle in the center of the room.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Shadrick, it\u2019s good to see you too, old friend,\u201d Marcus said. \u201cNow, tell me. Is there anything else you need to get settled in?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, Korst and I will need to meet, to discuss the guards\u2019 schedules. But there is one thing, if you could help me, Korst.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCertainly,\u201d Korst rumbled. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n He certainly looks better than he did the last time I saw him, Dardeh thought. The steel plate armor Korst and Valerius both wore was painted with the hammer and anvil of the Keepers of Hattu. Interesting that they should have fought with the Redguards, while I fought with the Nords. Different times, different war, I suppose.<\/em><\/p>\n Shadrick sighed and crossed his arms. \u201cMy men have become bored and restless after being in that camp for so long. They\u2019re itching to get in some field time. Practicing on targets is one thing, but there\u2019s nothing to get your blood pumping and sharpen the senses like real <\/em>combat. I\u2019d like for them to get into the field somehow.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus nodded. \u201cWell, there are these reports we\u2019ve been getting. Korst?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes. \u00a0We\u2019ve been getting reports for some time now of trouble all over Skyrim.\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh couldn\u2019t help it; he chuckled. \u201cThis does not surprise me.\u201d<\/p>\n Korst nodded. \u201cI\u2019ve been too busy to do anything about them. But\u2026 maybe our friends here can help us out.\u201d<\/p>\n Behind him, Dardeh heard Marcus say \u201cShadrick? Valerius? How does that sound to you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I guess that would work, if they\u2019re willing to help,\u201d Shadrick replied.<\/p>\n Dardeh looked at Roggi, but couldn\u2019t read anything in his expression.\u00a0 He looked around the room at the others.\u00a0 It annoyed him that they would simply assume he and Roggi would do \u2026 anything at all.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it will depend on what you need. We\u2019ve been putting out fires all over Skyrim for people, for ages now. And we do still have our own obligations.\u201d<\/p>\n Out of his peripheral vision he saw Roggi nod.\u00a0 That was it, I guess. Don\u2019t just agree. Don\u2019t be too full of myself, but don\u2019t be a pushover, either.<\/em><\/p>\n Shadrick nodded. \u201cI understand, but it would be a great help for the morale of my men. It would also allow me to start their individual training.\u201d<\/p>\n Yes. I need to remember that Shadrick is not some escaped Imperial prisoner from the Great War, he\u2019s a Stormcloak officer who was reassigned directly by Ulfric.\u00a0 Ulfric has no love for me but I know he must see the wisdom of their plan, and must trust Shadrick. Shadrick wouldn\u2019t waste the kind of talent he knows that Roggi and I have. And he recognized Roggi. He must realize Roggi could train his men. That\u2019s why they didn\u2019t put us to chipping away at rubble.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cVal, what do you think?\u201d Shadrick asked.<\/p>\n Valerius looked to Dardeh for his answer. Dardeh glanced at Roggi and saw him smile slightly; then he turned to Valerius and nodded.\u00a0 Valerius smiled before he spoke.<\/p>\n \u201cIf our friends can help, it wouldn\u2019t interfere with the soldiers\u2019 schedules much, so it should be fine. Korst, please coordinate with them on the reports and schedule the guards for a little field time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll be glad to see what we can do,\u201d Roggi said from the far side of the room.<\/p>\n Dardeh smiled at him. This is so much better. Everything works better if we rely on each other\u2019s strengths. Roggi\u2019s the soldier. That\u2019s what I need to remember. And he defers to me when they start dragging out the Dragonborn title for things. <\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThen it\u2019s settled!\u201d Marcus said, his voice cheerful as it always seemed to be. \u201cExcellent! Shadrick, please don\u2019t hesitate to ask if there\u2019s anything else you need. Now I need to get back to work on those drawings for the town.\u201d\u00a0 He left the group.<\/p>\n Dardeh turned to get Korst\u2019s attention. The big man looked at him and shook his head. \u201cHow is it that you can absorb the soul of a dragon?\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh laughed. Well that didn\u2019t take long, did it? <\/em>\u201cI really don\u2019t know, Korst. It just happens.\u00a0 I never have understood it. Roggi helps me kill them, and it just\u2026 happens. So what is it that we can do for you?\u201d<\/p>\n Korst pulled a journal out of his armor and looked at it. \u201cOk, let\u2019s see. This says that vampires have taken over an old ruin near the lake west of here, and have been abducting travelers along the roads. See what you can find and report back to me. And no matter what you do, don\u2019t let them touch you!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cVampires, eh?\u201d Roggi asked. \u201cIt won\u2019t be the first time. You\u2019re in luck, Korst, we have experience.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd we\u2019re familiar with the area,\u201d Dardeh added after looking at the spot Korst marked on his map. It was an old barrow high on a hillside not far from the town of Falkreath, a place they passed every time they travelled the road to their home. Dardeh thought he knew of entrances on both the south and north sides of the mountain and was already planning their route to the northern entrance when Korst spoke up again.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s good,\u201d he said. \u201cTake Toralf with you for training. He\u2019ll be able to handle vampires.\u201d<\/p>\n Korst made for the stairs out, and Roggi turned to Dardeh.<\/p>\n \u201cVampires, Dar? Will you be alright?\u201d<\/p>\n What?<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cSure, why wouldn\u2019t I be?\u201d<\/p>\n Roggi frowned. \u201cThey\u2019ve seemed very anxious to make your acquaintance the last few times we\u2019ve run across them, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh grinned. \u201cWell, they can try. I won\u2019t let them get close, Roggi, don\u2019t worry. Besides, I\u2019ll have you with me, right?\u201d<\/p>\n Roggi grabbed his hand and squeezed it. \u201cYou know you will. Now and forever, Dar.\u201d<\/p>\n They made their way out into the brilliant day, stopping to say hello to Balfring on the way by.<\/p>\n \u201cWhich one is Toralf?\u201d<\/p>\n Balfring pointed to a dark-haired, bearded Nord practicing his sword techniques on a dummy in the yard.<\/p>\n \u201cThanks.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot one of the old guard,\u201d Roggi whispered as they made for him. \u201cI hope he won\u2019t be a liability.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, I\u2019m not either, and you don\u2019t seem to find me a problem, do you?\u201d<\/p>\n Roggi laughed. \u201cGood point.\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh tapped Toralf on the arm.\u00a0 \u201cI have a special assignment for you from Korst. You\u2019re to come with us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh! Uh, what? Where are we going?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTo kill some vampires. Sound like fun?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes it does,\u201d Toralf said, grinning broadly. \u201cI hate filthy vampires! Let\u2019s go!\u201d<\/p>\n It was a simply beautiful day, very like the day on which Alduin had returned to Skyrim. The oddness of it didn\u2019t escape Dardeh as he led the way west from Helgen. It was so incongruous, yet again; this time they were travelling in the brilliant sun to face creatures of the dark.<\/p>\n Vampires. Why is it always vampires? Why is it that everyone always thinks of them as ravenous, bloodthirsty and incapable of controlling their impulses? In the time that I was acquainted with him, Andante never even hinted that he might harm any of us. He was a bit strange, that\u2019s true, but even on the day he died it was Brynjolf, not Andante, who threatened to drain someone. And I can\u2019t believe he would have done it. He was just angry. <\/em><\/p>\n Maybe there are different types of vampire, and I just don\u2019t know about it.<\/em><\/p>\n Their trip west from Helgen was completely uneventful, all three of them keeping their thoughts to themselves.\u00a0 Dardeh led them across the hill next to the home known as Pinewatch, around to the northern face of the mountain, and before long they were facing the old barrow in question.<\/p>\n \u201cShriekwind.\u201d Roggi said. \u201cThis is a dangerous place. We\u2019ll have to be extra careful.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAren\u2019t we always?\u201d Dardeh grinned at him.<\/p>\n Roggi didn\u2019t laugh. \u201cNo. You\u2019re not always extra careful, Dar. But you will be this time.\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh held up his hands in mock surrender and grinned at Toralf. \u201cBy all means! Don\u2019t cross this guy, Toralf, he\u2019s dangerous.\u201d\u00a0 He lowered his hands, then, and shook his head. \u201cSeriously. We may both have fought in Ulfric\u2019s war recently but I\u2019m a rank amateur compared with Roggi. He\u2019s been on the front and he\u2019s worked behind the scenes as well, and you could do a lot worse than to take instruction from him. I\u2019m just the loud one.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd that\u2019s the gods\u2019 own honest truth,\u201d Roggi said, flipping his helmet up over his hair as Toralf chuckled. \u201cThe loud part, I mean. Let\u2019s go.\u201d<\/p>\n It only took a few moments after entering the barrow before the first vampires attacked. One was leaning against the wall halfway down the corridor. She straightened up as Roggi rushed ahead and began casting spells at him, both the life-draining spell and ice spikes. Dardeh and Toralf ran to join him in the attack, which for just a few moments was a breathtaking mass of confusion. Dardeh noted that Toralf really did hate vampires as he caught the look of almost animal rage on Toralf\u2019s face.<\/p>\n The vampire didn\u2019t last long at all; but they had no chance to rest as a second was casting at them from within a room just off the end of the corridor. They couldn\u2019t all fit through the doorway at once, so Dardeh hung back for a moment. In the next moment he saw both Roggi and Toralf being pierced by ice spikes and pushed past them, enraged, barreling into the vampire. Dardeh was angry enough to take the vampire down with little help from the others, slowed as they were by the frost magic.<\/p>\n \u201cOdd,\u201d Roggi said, staring down at the remains.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBoth female, again.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell they are all standing out on the narrow end of a completely wrong limb,\u201d Dardeh grumbled.\u00a0 Toralf looked at him, one eyebrow raised. \u201cHeh. Roggi and I are married, that\u2019s what I\u2019m getting at.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh! I didn\u2019t realize.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDoesn\u2019t matter. Let\u2019s keep going. If this was the welcoming committee I can only imagine what\u2019s behind those doors.\u201d<\/p>\n The doors were locked, as it happened, and Dardeh was determined to pick the lock himself. He fussed with it, not quite finding the position half a dozen times and yet not breaking the pick.<\/p>\n \u201cWant me to do that?\u201d Roggi asked.<\/p>\n Dardeh grimaced. \u201cNo. I need practice. I\u2019ll never be as good as you are, but there\u2019s no time like the present.\u201d<\/p>\n Another female vampire and her raised thrall held the chamber just beyond the doors.\u00a0 The thrall ran past Dardeh to attack Roggi and Toralf. The vampire, a Dunmer, licked her lips and murmured \u201cSoon your blood will be mine.\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh sneered. The space between him and the vampire was clear. Almost without effort he leaned forward and filled the space with a fireball.\u00a0 She crumpled in on herself, bent over in agony; and as Dardeh worked on finishing her with his swords he heard the others\u2019 swords slicing through the thrall. \u201cFree\u2026 again,\u201d the thrall murmured as she died.<\/p>\n Yet another vampire rushed out from the next room, shouting \u201cI\u2019ll drink you dry, mortal!\u201d\u00a0 She focused on Roggi, aiming the sickly red life-draining spell at him. Dardeh stepped around Roggi and struck her with an enraged, backhanded sword blow that knocked her off her feet, and then sliced her to bits.<\/p>\n \u201cDamn, Dar,\u201d Roggi said, coming to stand beside him. \u201cRemind me not to make you angry.\u201d<\/p>\n A moment later an arrow clattered to the floor at their feet.\u00a0 All three men swiveled around, trying to find its source. As a second arrow narrowly missed his head Dardeh found the enemy: a skeleton appeared in the doorway at the top of a narrow flight of stairs.<\/p>\n Skeletons were nearly nothing to Dardeh at this point of his life.\u00a0 He ran up the stairs and took the creature apart with a nonchalant chop at it. A second stood just behind, and Dardeh used the off-hand sword to dispatch it, as well.\u00a0 He was about to sheathe his weapons when a third appeared from around the corner. He ruined that one as well.<\/p>\n It was a typical barrow they were in. Each chamber held a finite number of dead, and when it was full a passage to the next chamber had been dug. Some, like the one before them, were up a flight of stairs, or around corners.\u00a0 Neither of the next two areas they entered held any adversaries, but when they emerged into a larger chamber a single skeleton met them. Roggi shouted \u201cLook out!\u201d but Dardeh laughed and broke the skeleton with one blow.<\/p>\n Getting pretty cocky, aren\u2019t I. Well at this point if I can\u2019t wreck a skeleton I might as well hang up my swords for good.<\/em><\/p>\n The skeleton had been guarding an odd, almost well-like chamber. A dead tree in its center overlooked a grated hole that doubtless held some grisly death trap or other.\u00a0 Dardeh kept well clear of the grate and hugged the walls, heading for the stairwell opposite them.\u00a0 He looked up.<\/p>\n The interior of this place was vast, not in circumference but in height.\u00a0 He followed the path up with his eyes; the stairs led to a ledge hugging the wall, thence to a doorway. The pattern repeated time and again, all the way up.\u00a0 Most impressive was that this was not a natural cavern.\u00a0 The walls, steps and ledges were all man-made, lined with carefully placed stonework.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t help but shake his head in awe before heading up to the first ledge. As he reached the level he heard the unmistakable creaking of a skeleton somewhere far above him.<\/p>\n So it\u2019s going to be like this. Fair enough.<\/em><\/p>\n The first doorway back into the barrow proper was blocked by heavy iron doors. \u00a0As soon as he pushed them open a distinctly elven male voice said, \u201cI love it when dinner walks right into my arms.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou think so?\u201d Dardeh snapped. He followed that up with a Fire Breath Shout. The vampire went down on one knee, giving Roggi and Toralf an opening to attack. They had him nearly down when Dardeh joined the battle and finished him with a flurry of strikes.<\/p>\n As it had been at the very bottom of the barrow, a side room held another female vampire. Dardeh was pulling his swords out of the vampire he\u2019d just killed when he heard the others fighting her. He ran to the doorway and saw Toralf riddled with ice spikes and Roggi backing up the stairwell behind her; he pushed Toralf out of the way and attacked with everything he had, growling as he went.<\/p>\n A few moments later, Roggi poked the body with a foot. \u201cShe was a strong one, Dar. Be careful with these. They all want a taste of you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, well they can\u2019t have one.\u201d<\/p>\n There was a small cylindrical landing at the top of the stairs, a closed iron gate on its far side.\u00a0 A skeleton stood on the other side of the gate, waving his sword and shield in the way. Toralf snorted.\u00a0 Dardeh found a chain pulley near them and activated it; Toralf stepped forward as the gate rose and cut down the skeleton almost as easily as Dardeh had the others.\u00a0 And then the familiar sickening red aura of a life-draining spell flowed around him. Toralf cried out and backpedaled; Dardeh rushed into the room and sliced the vampire to ribbons. He was about to ponder how it was that he could have gotten so much better with his swords so quickly when a sword crashed down onto his shoulder. He swung right and dismantled the skeleton that had been wielding it with a single blow.<\/p>\n \u201cOw.\u201d\u00a0 He cast healing on himself, frowning as he noted again how much more powerful Hermaeus Mora\u2019s influence had made his spellcasting.<\/p>\n It\u2019s hard to argue with how useful this is. But I hate that he gave me the ability.<\/em><\/p>\n The room they were in was interesting. Two lowered metal gates held back angry-looking skeletons. Two other oddly shaped stones looked as though they could be doors waiting to be opened.\u00a0 And in the center of the room was a circular disc made of three layers of stone, with three pull handles mounted on the top. \u00a0Dardeh pulled the one nearest him and heard the grinding of stone being raised, his hunch about it being a door having been confirmed.\u00a0 He reached for the pulley to his left and watched as Roggi dashed into the chamber behind one of the gates, knocking down the skeletons that waited there. There was a chest there, with three chain pulls on the wall above it.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t pull the middle one,\u201d Toralf said, coming into the room behind them.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMiddle one is always a trap. Well, almost always. Often enough. Don\u2019t pull that one.\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh chuckled. \u201cOk. How about the left one, then?\u201d\u00a0 He tugged on it and heard the mechanism release, then turned in time to see the other two men rushing back into the center chamber toward the second, now raised, iron gate.<\/p>\n \u201cYeeearrgh!\u201d Roggi snarled, bringing his greatsword down onto a skeleton and disintegrating it.<\/p>\n The skeleton had been at the foot of another short flight of stairs, which led to a long, circular tunnel.\u00a0 Dardeh admired the beautiful stonework of this passageway as he pulled out his bow to dispatch the skeleton at its far end, perfectly highlighted against the light coming from beyond it. One arrow was all it needed.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s got to be the center again, do you think?\u201d Dardeh asked.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m certain of it,\u201d Roggi said.<\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s go,\u201d Toralf added.\u00a0 Dardeh wondered for a moment why it had been that Shadrick was so concerned about this man having training. He might well have been cold and bored up near Winterhold, but he was far from unseasoned or ineffective.<\/p>\n The corridor did open onto the central well of the barrow, to a ledge leading roughly a third of the way around its perimeter and into another corridor. The skeleton guarding that ledge was finished before it could draw its bow. Dardeh crept down the hall and to the left, where a doorway led to a small chamber and more stairs. He hesitated at the doorway, for pools of blood lay in the uneven stones of its floor.\u00a0 He peered left, catching a glimpse of a very bloody torture rack before movement to his right had him on alert.<\/p>\n A man wearing a horned iron helmet and bearing a full body shield rose from the throne tucked into a niche. \u201cHey!\u201d he yelled, readying himself to attack Dardeh. Inexplicably, the man swiveled to the right instead of using his shield, leaving himself completely exposed.\u00a0 Dardeh attacked with both swords and was startled when the man went down almost instantly.<\/p>\n \u201cDid you hear something?\u201d Roggi asked, moments before an ice spike pierced Dardeh\u2019s chest plate. He groaned, trying to turn to face the enemy; Toralf had already made for the ascending stairwell with Roggi right behind.\u00a0 Dardeh heard a female voice taunting them from above.<\/p>\n Dardeh had a couple of weak frost resistance potions in his pack and maneuvered one out, swallowing the bottle\u2019s contents before running up the stairs.\u00a0 The vampire fired an ice spike at Roggi, who fell back a few steps, groaning. Dardeh pushed past him and once more quietly watched himself turn into a veritable machine, slicing the vampire apart in a fury.<\/p>\n This is what I must have done on Solstheim. I don\u2019t know what it means that I\u2019m aware of doing it, now. I certainly don\u2019t seem to have any more control over it than I did then.<\/em><\/p>\n He didn\u2019t have time to ponder it further.\u00a0 There were two more female vampires in the larger stairway leading up from the next chamber and for a few moments all three men were completely occupied in trying to survive.<\/p>\n After the final enemy was down they stood catching their breath, casting healing spells and drinking potions as needed.\u00a0 Dardeh looked at Toralf and smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cYou didn\u2019t need more training,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Toralf snickered. \u201cI always<\/em> need more training, but what I needed more was an excuse to do something besides put dents in a practice dummy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve been doing well,\u201d Roggi said. \u201cI\u2019m glad you\u2019re here.\u201d\u00a0 He looked around and loosened his shoulders. \u201cIt\u2019s strange to think that some of my own ancestors might be buried in here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot mine,\u201d Dardeh said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you mean? I thought you were half Nord.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI am. But they were from the Reach and eastern High Rock. And the other half \u2013 well, I don\u2019t know where most of them are but Sayma and I laid one of them to rest in Hammerfell not long ago.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHmm,\u201d Roggi said. \u201cYou never said much about that trip. So who did you find? Dadarh?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJine. He\u2019s now in a coffin northwest of the town of Ben Erai.\u00a0 That trip was really something, Roggi. I needed to do that.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled and then moved forward, up a staircase and into a tunnel.<\/p>\n This higher-up portion of the barrow was rougher, the tunnels partially collapsed or not well finished to begin with.\u00a0 For whatever reason \u2013 pressures of war, dropping population or maybe even one of the great plagues that had swept Tamriel – the people who had built the barrow had stopped giving it the kind of exquisite care that lower areas showed.\u00a0 Still, it was impressive; the rough tunnel they moved through led to another doorway with finely chiseled brazier pedestals on either side.\u00a0 The passage beyond that door turned right, overlooking the great central well of Shriekwind.\u00a0 Once again, a skeleton stood sentry before the opening. Once again it crumbled with a single blow.<\/p>\n It was only a short ledge hugging the wall at this level. In fact, there were three short flights of stairs only a few paces away, leading left and up to yet another grand entryway.\u00a0 Dardeh was listening carefully for a skeleton while at the same time taking in the grand expanse of the central chamber, and so did not hear the male vampire silently waiting for him at the entryway. He nearly bumped into the man.<\/p>\n This vampire had shock magic and wasted no time striking Dardeh with it.\u00a0 The air rushed out of his chest and a wave of nausea rushed over him even as he attempted a sword strike, and he was forced to roll aside to let Roggi and Toralf attack. He was once more grateful to have both of them with him, as they made short work of the enemy.<\/p>\n \u201cYou ok, Dar?\u201d<\/p>\n Dardeh nodded. \u201cYeah. That\u2019ll teach me to pay attention to where I\u2019m walking, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n The vampire had been guarding a short corridor, well-illuminated with large braziers atop stylized dragon-head sconces. There was a closed iron gate at the far end. In the center, just beyond the nearest braziers and between two stone obelisks, was a lectern-like pedestal with a pull handle mounted in the top.<\/p>\n \u201cThis has got to be some kind of trap,\u201d Dardeh said quietly. \u201cStay here for a moment.\u201d\u00a0 He dropped into a crouch and crept forward, trying to keep low enough to avoid poisoned arrows or swinging log traps or whatever might await his arrival. He pulled the handle, giving it the requisite half-turn, expecting a trap.\u00a0 He was not disappointed.<\/p>\n From at least eight locations along the length of the hall, flame jets began spewing.\u00a0 In the increased light afforded by the fire Dardeh could see the horribly burned corpses of several people who had clearly not waited to see whether the handle triggered a trap.\u00a0 Dardeh noticed that the angle of the flames was not consistent.\u00a0 Several of the jets, for whatever reason, were pointed toward the ceiling where they could pose no threat whatsoever.\u00a0 If he stayed low, and took a careful path beneath the highest point of the flames that were properly aimed, it should be possible to cross without major damage.<\/p>\n He worked his way slowly under the jets of fire.\u00a0 He got a bit too close to one of the two mounted in the floor and scorched his left arm, crying out in spite of all good intentions to stay silent; but eventually he stood at the far end, safe. He turned and watched Roggi and Toralf follow his path and arrive unharmed.<\/p>\n The instant Dardeh opened the wooden doors beyond the flames, a voice shouted \u201cWhat was that?\u201d and a male vampire drew red magical energy into his hands.<\/p>\n This guy is going to be a bastard, isn\u2019t he? Good enough.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cYOL \u2013 TOOR SHUL!\u201d<\/p>\n The vampire bent in pain, and Dardeh hissed as Toralf ran past him and into the trail of dragon fire that lingered on the floor in front of him.\u00a0 He heard Toralf grunt, but the massive blow he dealt the vampire said that he hadn\u2019t been injured badly by the flames. All three men converged on the enemy and struck him, over and over.\u00a0 Even when he fell to the floor the vampire refused to die immediately, trying to rise and cast his draining spell at the same time. Finally, Dardeh caught a lucky backhanded swing with his enchanted sword and grinned as the vampire groaned and fell back for the last time.<\/p>\n They were almost at the top of Shriekwind.\u00a0 The vampire had been patrolling the entrance to a chamber resembling many of the smaller barrows dotting Skyrim\u2019s landscape: an outer ring filled with what had clearly been offerings for the dead surrounded a central cylinder holding a spiral staircase up. Dardeh mounted the steps and gasped in surprise as he reached the top of it.<\/p>\n At the top of Shriekwind was a grand chamber.\u00a0 Dardeh was reminded once more of Skuldafn: great height, magnificent stonework, and at least eight of the roaring dragon-head sculptures that dated back to the earliest civilizations of Tamriel.\u00a0 A tattered blue runner that must once have been stunning stretched down the length of the hall and ended just before a raised platform and a large coffin. Behind all of it was a familiar curved wall.\u00a0 Dardeh could feel its energy calling to him even from the far side of the space.<\/p>\n He whispered \u201cDraugr. Or Dragon Priest. I\u2019m not sure which. But be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n He rushed forward, swords held high, and watched the cover burst from the coffin as he had expected.\u00a0 From it rose a draugr. The ancient man\u2019s red hair and beard were still remarkably intact and his muscles only slightly shrunken.\u00a0 Dardeh almost stopped, startled by how vital the draugr looked after who knew how many eons; but the call of the word wall drew him on. The draugr managed to stand, and reach for his weapon; but it was only halfway out of its sheath when Dardeh whirled into it with both swords.\u00a0 To his complete amazement the creature growled once and collapsed.<\/p>\n Dardeh stepped around the coffin, reaching out toward the wall and running his hands over its carvings as the word of power embedded itself in his mind.\u00a0 DUN. Grace. This one will do nothing much on its own but added to others\u2026 I can feel it. My sword would move through the air in battle with grace and speed.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWell there,\u201d Roggi said from behind him. \u201cI wasn\u2019t expecting that.\u00a0 Is that it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not sure.\u201d<\/p>\n Toralf shook his head. \u201cI don\u2019t think so. I didn\u2019t see any prisoners and we only saw that one thrall way down at the bottom. I feel more of the filthy creatures are here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAlright,\u201d Dardeh said. \u201cI\u2019ll trust you on that. Let\u2019s retrace our steps and see what we find.\u201d<\/p>\n They took a few moment to nibble on a bit of food and sip some water, and prepared for the long trek back through Shriekwind Bastion.<\/p>\n When they reached Helgen, Dardeh had to stop for a moment to look around and smile. There were banners.\u00a0 Stormcloak banners, several of them on tall posts in strategic areas placed in such a way that nobody could miss who was in control. \u00a0He could see several soldiers in the familiar blue-draped armor moving about … <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/baakay.com\/FanFic\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/5-1-11-2.png\")
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<\/p>\nPart I: Modulation<\/a><\/div>\nPrevious<\/a> \/ Next<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"