//------------------------------// // 23: A Prince's Best Friend // Story: Sunset's Adventure in Skyrim // by Blackdrag-rose //------------------------------// Sunset insisted on camping outside the cave that Sinding had been killed in, not wanting to sleep in the same area that held the bodies of so many of Hircine's hunters, all slain by the newest addition to Tirek's minions. Lydia, Bjorn, and Raja were still inside the cave, gathering the valuable weapons, arrows, armor, and whatever else they could find before they returned to the camp. Fiona, Cicero, and Barbas sat around the campfire, waiting for the rest of the group to return, while Sunset stared off into the distance, watching the day give way to the night. It gave her the opportunity the reflect on everything that had happened over the last week or two, the good and the bad. Sunset was quite pleased to have already found five of the fifteen artifacts that she had been hunting for, to keep out of Tirek's hands so he didn't obtain his full devastating power. Barbas would lead her and her friends to Clavicus Vile, which would allow her to find out what the Prince wanted in exchange for his artifact, which would then be added to her chest. "You know that you were never in any danger of transforming into a werewolf right?" Fiona asked, appearing behind Sunset and causing her to turn towards the vampire, "What? You read my journal and knew what notes I made about each artifact." "And you never thought to tell me that I didn't need to hurry so I could avoid becoming a beast?" Sunset inquired, wondering why her friend didn't stop her in the beginning, though she knew that if they hadn't hurried then Sinding would have been dead long before they arrived at the cave. "You were set in your desire to get it done," Fiona replied, shrugging her shoulders a bit as she replied, "and we not only saved another artifact, but we also eliminated another enemy from Tirek's ranks." "Yet he's still out there," Sunset commented, silently wondering what it would take for her to find where Tirek was hiding and then, if she found him, how much power she'd have to have in order to defeat him, "Tirek will keep coming until we either send him back to Tartarus, or he gains his full power and destroys Nirn completely." "We'll beat him," Fiona replied, patting Sunset on the shoulder for a moment, "Come on, the others are coming out of the cave and everyone could use some sleep before we find out what Barbas needs us to do before we can reach Clavicus Vile." Sunset nodded and followed Fiona back to their campsite, finding that her friends were all glad to have the business that Hircine gave them gone and over with. Though she could also see the look on their faces that made them wonder what the next Daedric Lord would ask of them, which Sunset was also wondering. While they were all sitting around the fire they shared the evening meal with each other, which Bjorn look pleasure in making for them all as Raja comforted Cicero. Lydia was the only one that wasn't looking at the fire, keeping to her training to be on the lookout for danger as they sat around their campfire. Sunset knew that she was lucky to have such good friends in this world, which was much more than she was expecting when she had first found herself in Nirn for the first time. -------------------------------------------------------- Morning eventually arrived for Sunset and her friends and, once they were wide awake and ate a quick breakfast, they got on the road and began the journey towards their next destination. Sunset originally thought that it had to be somewhere near Falkreath, as that was where they found Barbas, but once the dog spoke to them she had to wonder where the shrine was actually located. "Now, since he banished me, Vile's been rather weak." Barbas told them as they walked back to Falkreath, which they would pass as he was going to be leading the way the entire time, "He can't manifest very far from one of his shrines. I know there's a cult that worships him at Haemar's Shame. We should be able to talk to him there. If this works out, I'll make sure you're rewarded. Just don't trust any offer he makes you... okay?" That was what Sunset was expecting from the true Prince of Bargains, something that was so true that you knew that you shouldn't take it, but she also knew that the people of Nirn were susceptible to Tirek's offerings. It was unsettling that he seemed to be able to corrupt anyone, if he gave them the right motivation to betray what they actually knew, and get them to offer themselves to him the moment they died. "You know something, I've been thinking about this Tirek since we met yesterday," Barbas commented, leading them towards an area that they had passed the previous day, where they had fought one of the bandit groups, "He seems to be more like someone who corrupts people, instead of the type that makes bargains that they'll come to regret. The Prince of Corruption one might say." Sunset had no idea if the dog could read her mind and was merely echoing her thoughts out loud, or if he was actually speaking his mind and happened to be thinking the same thing that she had been thinking. Either way, she didn't think that giving Tirek a title, other than calling him a demon all the time, was really going to help them gather the Daedric Artifacts. She worried that, by calling him a Daedric Prince, that it would make people flock to his side and offer themselves to him, just like she was seeing with the other Princes she had interacted with so far. She seriously didn't need him suddenly acquiring the force of an army, otherwise she was sure that she would never be able to finish her quest to gather the Daedric Artifacts without having to kill so many innocent people in the process. Barbas eventually led them to Helgen, where Sunset was surprised to find that a host of bandits had moved into the area and were ready to do battle with them. She wasn't too surprised when the bandits poured out of their hiding spots and challenged her and her friends, to which Lydia gladly stepped forward. Lydia pulled out her battleaxe and charged at the coming wave of enemies, hacking into their defenses as Bjorn provided support by taking out whatever archers happened to be around them. Cicero also joined the fun, disappearing behind their enemies before reappearing, where he immediately sank his daggers into one foe before moving onto the next. Once the bandits were all dead, and their loot was collected, the group pressed onward, passing through the gateway that Sunset remembered her and Bjorn entering the town through. It was hard to imagine that she was going to be on the chopping block when she had entered this world, only to be saved by a dragon that was now one of her allies in her fight against Tirek. As they walked up the hill that Barbas continued to say would lead them towards their destination, Sunset also noticed that there happened to be a military camp near the ruined city. Upon further inspection as they passed she noted that the Stormcloaks didn't want them getting any closer to their camp, which was perfectly fine as they continued on their merry way. It took them another hour to navigate the path that Barbas took them on, but they eventually reached the cave that was supposed to house the shrine of Clavicus Vile. As they entered the cave, however, Fiona took a moment to note that the person watching the entrance was a vampire, a young one at that, before Cicero appeared behind the nord and took his head clean off. The group then proceeded to fight their way through the cave, thanks to Barbas continuing to bark every now and then and giving their position away to everyone that was in the cave. As they fought through the waves of vampires Sunset had to note that many of them didn't go down easily, as the further they went into the cave the stronger the vampires seemed to get. It was almost as if the eldest vampires were before the shrine and all the younger ones rested on the path leading to the end, leaving the youngest vampires at the beginning to test themselves. It only supported her theory as they found a wooden walkway to take them down to the next area of the cave, only to find a powerful vampire sitting at a table and reading a book. Instead of wasting time Sunset merely ignited her hands and threw a barrage of fireballs at the vampire's back, easily hitting him several times as he got up to face them. He barely had time to react as Sunset appeared before him, implanting the Dawnbreaker into his chest before burning his entire body to ashes. Once that was taken care of they moved deeper into the cave, using Cicero's ability to sneak to their advantage as he separated from the group once and took the head of one of the vampires, causing them to bicker among each other. What happened next, from what Sunset could tell from the noise, was that the vampires began to insist that one of the others killed their companion, to which the accused would roar that he or she did no such thing. Then, when the anger really began to boil, Sunset could hear them literally tearing each other apart, saving them the trouble of having to fight them, before the noise died down and they could no longer hear the vampires. "They're like a stack of cards," Cicero said, with a smile on his face as he dropped the vampire's head on the ground, "Just remove one of the supporting pillars and the entire thing comes crashing down." Sunset nodded and beckoned for them to enter what she hoped was the final chamber of the cave, though she had to admit that she was amazed that Cicero's plan had worked as well as it had. They entered the chamber and Sunset was pleased to find the large stone statue of who she knew to be Clavicus Vile, as there was no way that Barbas would dare bring them to one of his master's enemies. She took a deep breath, as was her custom before speaking with one of the Daedric Princes, and approached the shrine, ready to see what this one wanted for his artifact. "Lord Clavicus Vile," Sunset said, hoping that Barbas was right and that this wasn't a waste of their time, "I have a request..." "By all means, let's hear it." a voice said, this one speaking around her, just like when she finished Malacath's quest, "It's the least I could do, since you already helped me grant one final wish for my last worshippers... They were suffering so from vampirism, and begged me for a cure. Then you came and ended their misery! I couldn't have planned it better myself. So, what's your heart's desire? What kind of deal can we strike?" "I'm just here to reunite you with Barbas," Sunset explained, fully prepared to chew the Prince out for letting the dog, who apparently held some of his power, roam the land of Skyrim while Tirek was on the loose. "Ugh. That insufferable pup?" Clavicus asked her, apparently not even considering the idea that there might be someone dangerous on the loose that could very well drain the dog of his power, and making it impossible for the Prince to regain his full strength, "Forget it. Request denied. No deal. I'm glad to be rid of him. Even if it does mean I'm stuck in this pitiful shrine, in the back end of... nowhere. Well... perhaps there is a way he could earn his place back at my side. Maybe. But no promises." "And what would you have me do?" Sunset asked, curious as to what she had to do or who she had to kill this time around. "There's an axe." Clavicus replied, almost too quickly, which made Sunset wonder if he had been planning on something like this the entire time Barbas was gone, "An incredibly powerful axe. An axe powerful enough for me to have quite a bit of fun, indeed. If you bring it to me, I'll grant you my boon. No strings attached. No messy surprises. At least, not for you. As I recall, it's resting in Rimerock Burrow. Barbas can lead you right to it. The little mutt might even earn his place back at my side." Sunset nodded her understanding and beckoned for her friends to follow her, choosing to use the back entrance to the cave instead of running through the mess once more. It was then that she discovered that the cave that contained Clavicus' shrine was at the base of the Throat of the World, telling her that they had some walking to do before they reached a carriage. -------------------------------------------------------- It took them another two to three hours to reach Whiterun, which had only been a shortened version of the trip thanks to Barbas showing them a path that allowed them to cut right across from Iverstead to Whiterun, without having to go all the way around. Seeing how it was evening, and that they had their camping gear, Sunset decided that they could take the carriage now, arrive at Solitude when it was dark, and then camp before getting up in the morning to fine Rimerock Barrow. Once they had spoken to the carriage driver, and were all sitting in the back, Sunset allowed herself to relax just a bit as she stared at the evening sky. "So, um... who do you guys worship?" Barbas asked, as if it was a common question to ask, while at the same time trying to pass the time as they traveled towards their destination, "Not that its important... I'm just curious." "Oh, mine is very easy to answer," Cicero said, excitement filling his face as he looked at the dog, "I, Cicero, named Laughter by the Listener of the Dark Brotherhood, serve Sithis, the Dread-Father. It is my hope that my old friends, who were so brutally slain by the demon known as Tirek, are serving him now, in the Void." "I pray to Talos before every battle," Lydia commented, pulling out an axe shaped necklace, "not the god version of him, that the Thalmor continue to seek to tear down, but to the hero himself. He was a brave warrior that built an empire, though I pray to have the strength to protect my friends from any harm that might befall them. The same strength that he had when he was fighting beside his own friends on the field of battle." "I mostly choose to worship the Divines themselves," Bjorn replied, picking up where Lydia left off, "though I have, from time to time, sent a prayer Hircine's way. Mostly so I can pray for a good hunt, which is what the majority of the hunters do these days... though they may not pray to a Daedra for a good hunt." Sunset had the feeling that he may have left something out, but seeing as she was new to the whole Divine and Daedric Prince worship she decided that he had his reasons for leaving whatever it was out... if something had been left out. "The Divines are who I follow," Fiona commented, a light smile appearing on her face, as if she was remembering something, "I remember the first time me and my sisters met; we had been run out of a small settlement because we had the appearance of being vampires. Well there was that, and then there was the day before when one of the girls, I believe her name was Alva, came out of the swamp and told the citizens that the three of us were vampires that worshiped Molag Bal. Truthfully we were lucky to have escaped when we did, because a day or two later, when I dared to return to my place to gather some supplies for the three of us, I spotted a heavily armed group of soldiers, the Vigilants of Stendarr I later discovered, asking around for me and my sister. None of us have even been back to our home, just in case the Vigilants set up a permanent residence there, and continued to wander around Skryim... until the Caller captured us and locked us away in Fellglow Keep. The rest of the story you all know by now." Sunset had no idea that Fiona had been holding such a terrible memory in her mind, though she suspected that, now that the story had been revealed, she would finally overcome it. "I might as well come clean then," Raja said, sighing for a brief moment, "I serve Nocturnal, the Patron to Thieves everywhere, the Prince of Darkness and the Night. There's not much more I can say without divulging everything I learned over the last couple of days, but suffice to say that I am... happy... to have her at my back." "And what about you Sunset?" Bjorn asked, knowing that she had studied under Princess Celestia, but what he and the others didn't know was if she worshiped anyone besides her former mentor, "Who do you worship?" "I'd be lying if I didn't say that I worshiped by former mentor, Princess Celestia the Dawnbringer," Sunset eventually replied, sighing as she wondered how best to answer such a difficult question, while turning her head towards the setting sun, "I mean, she raised and lowered both the Sun and the Moon for a thousand years, defeated numerous foes that threatened Equestria, and even took the time to personally teach me about magic. It makes me wonder what she would think of me these days, if she knew just how far I have come since the last time I saw her... on the day I disappointed the both of us." "Do not feel bad about the past," Raja told her, patting her shoulder for a moment, "I am positive that your mentor would be proud of you... once she hears about all the good deeds you've been doing for the people of Nirn." Sunset nodded and they got to talking about other things, though they mostly talked about what they would do next, once they had the artifact of Clavicus Vile safely secured. -------------------------------------------------------- Getting to Solitude and camping not far away had been easy, but when morning arrived Barbas, apparently knowing where Rimerock Barrow was located, offered to led them once more. Sunset, deciding that it was better to save time, beckoned for the dog to head off and the group followed after him, heading into the mountains once more. Instead of turning to the right, which would lead them to the ruins of the Thalmor's Embassy, they turned to the left and headed down a path that brought them to a ruined tower. The moment they reached the tower Barbas slowed down and walked around the structure, revealing a dirt path that appeared to take them down to the coast line. Sunset then discovered, not a few moments later, that the path they had taken led right to a cave in the side of the mountain, which Barbas continued to say was their destination. Once inside the group discovered two people that inhabited the area, though upon further inspection Sunset quickly discovered that one of them was actually a flame atronach, while the other was an breton that appeared to be in his fifties. She held her hand to stop her friends, and Barbas, from going any further, before extending her right hand and engulfing the atronach in her magical aura. Then, to be sure that the breton didn't hear them, she crushed the atronach and sent it back to Oblivion, before she stood up and approached the breton. Once she was standing behind the breton she discovered an axe that was sitting on the table in front of him, almost as if he was studying the artifact. "Hehehe, the master said that you'd be coming for the axe," the breton said, turning around to face Sunset with a wild look in his eyes, "He promised me many things, including the resurrection of my beloved daughter, in exchange for this simple axe. Yet I know that, if I were to hand over the axe, then disaster would surely follow." "You don't have to serve Tirek any longer," Sunset replied, holding her hand to her side, fully prepared to fight if the breton decided to follow through with Tirek's orders, "He's just a demon, one that's manipulating you into furthering the end of this world. Let me take the axe and bring it back to its true master, so that way Tirek doesn't gain any more power than he already has." "No, you're trying to trick me," the breton said, his magic surrounding the axe and spinning it around, arming himself for the fight to come, "I will destroy you... and then I will see my daughter again." Sunset sighed and summoned the Staff of Magnus, raising it to block to incoming attack as the breton swung the axe at her, all while she began to gather magic into the stone. She allowed the breton to attack her, dodging his attacks and returning some weak jabs with the base of the staff, but she was devastated inside. Tirek had turned a heartbroken father into a monster that wanted to see the end of the world, in exchange for getting his daughter back, regardless of how long she's been gone. It just furthered her desire to combat the madness the demon brought to Nirn, so that she could finally rid this world of him once and for all. Once the stone atop the staff was fully charged, and her mind was set on her path, she quickly disarmed the breton and pointed the stone at his chest, blasting him into the back of the cave with the full force of the staff and ending his life in an instant. "I'm sorry it had to be this way," Sunset said, looking towards the breton's corpse as Lydia collected the Rueful Axe, "may you find peace in whatever afterlife you find yourself in." -------------------------------------------------------- "Okay, we're back," Sunset said, finally reaching the shrine to Clavicus Vile, for the second time. They had traversed the trek they had taken to reach Rimerock Barrow, returned to Solitude, got a carriage ride back to Whiterun, and then retraced their steps to the shrine. Sunset had remained silent for the majority of the journey, annoyed that Tirek would strike at someone like Sebastian Lort, a name provided by Barbas. She knew that she should have seen it coming, considering what she already knew about the demon, but he was continuing to surprise her with every step she took. Still, she was slightly pleased to have recovered the axe that Clavicus Vile asked for, which meant that they could finish this transaction and she could move on, hopefully to find another Prince. "Ah, you've got the axe! And my dog. Splendid." Clavicus replied, sounding pleased, again making Sunset wonder if he had a secret agenda, "Excellent work. A hero, her friends, and her faithful companion, retrieving the ancient artifact for the prince. It's almost... storybook. Ah, but it almost seems a shame to give a weapon like that away, doesn't it? I suppose I could be persuaded to let you keep it... But only if you use the axe to kill Barbas. Simple as that." "Not going to happen," Sunset snapped back, beckoning to Lydia, who pulled the Rueful Axe out of her pack and placed it on the shrine, "Take the axe and Barbas. I'm not about to leave a trace of your magic, or Barbas' for that matter, for the demon Tirek to feel and somehow take for his own. So, take them away and save yourself from having him suddenly appear one day and drain you of all your power." "Hrmph. You're no fun at all." Clavicus replied, apparently ignoring the majority of what she had told him, "Guess I'll have to make my own fun elsewhere. And with the pup back, I'll be restored to my full power. There's a whole world just waiting for me!" Barbas came by Sunset and expressed his gratitude for not killing him, while Clavicus complained the entire time as both Barbas and the axe disappeared, only for an iron mask of sorts to appear before Sunset. "Ah, that feels so much better!" Clavicus said, just as a stone dog appeared on the statue, "You forget how nice supreme power feels until you've been stuck in a cave for a few years. It's a shame you wished for something so dull as me taking back the mutt. Quite the lack of imagination on your part. A lack of ambition like that really ought to be punished. Perhaps by turning you into a worm, or maybe a few decades of... Oh, fine. Have my boon and be done with it. I've got more interesting deals to make, anyway." Sunset felt the presence of the Prince fade from the room, sighing as she sealed the mask into her chest and beckoned to her friends to leave the area with her. She was ready to deal with someone, or something else, that would aid her in defeating Tirek, but what she really had no idea until she discovered it. -------------------------------------------------------- Tirek stood before the giant shrine of the Daedric Prince known as Azura, feeling the lingering power of his last two minions enter his body and strengthening him even further. One had been sent to recover the artifact of Hircine, which had caused her to spend the last two weeks hunting the bearer down, until she had caught up with the werewolf and was destroyed by Sunset Shimmer. The other, the breton who had been standing over the artifact of Clavicus Vile, he had twisted into his minion, but in the end he had failed to deliver either the axe or slay his enemy. Sunset was beginning to be a thorn in his side, one that he wondered if he should remove now, or wait until she had completed her collection of Daedric Artifacts. "Soon I will be rid of her," Tirek commented, staring up at the statue for a moment, magic pulsing around his right hand, "and then I will shatter this world." As he turned to leave the alter he spun around and hit the air in front of the statue, cracking the air in front of him and all around him before it touched the statue. With the deed done he walked down the stairs, just as the entire structure, and the statue it was supporting, collapsed until the shaking of the earth. It brought a smile to his face, as he destroyed the symbol of one of the Daedric Princes that the people of Skyrim, allowing the statue to fracture and fall down the side of the mountain. He was sure that some pieces would find their way into the water the surrounded where Winterhold used to reside, but in the end that really didn't matter to him. Soon he'd have the power to shatter this world, and there was nothing that the Divines, the Daedric Princes, or even Sunset Shimmer herself could do to stop her.