//------------------------------// // 32: The Dawnguard // Story: Sunset's Adventure in Skyrim // by Blackdrag-rose //------------------------------// Sunset yawned as she pulled herself out of her bed, stretching her arms as she took in the morning light that filled her chamber and walked over to the door. She remembered the previous evening quite well, as Delphine had shared countless stories about her days in the Blades, somehow without adding her initial anger to the mix. That was the great thing about the alliance, Sunset mentally reflected, it was driving away old hatreds that would have broken her chances at getting this to succeed and was building the bonds of friendship between factions. The Blades and the Thalmor, once the most hatred of enemies, were now beginning to become friends, much to the surprise of everyone else around them. Sunset, on the other hand, was amazed by it and knew that it spoke volumes on what Tirek was doing to this world; he was forcing enemies to work together and, as a consequence, they were forming bonds with each other. "Good morning Sunset," Fiona commented, watching her friend come out of her room and descend down the stairs, towards the tables the rest of their band was sitting around. "Good morning Fiona," Sunset replied, repeating her greeting to the others before taking a seat at the table, where she noticed that Bjorn was in the process of making the morning meal, "How's everyone doing?" "Elenwen's reporting that the home of the orcs is almost finished," Fiona answered, cracking open a vial of donated blood and draining it dry, before continuing down the list, "our warriors have been rated ready for battle, by both General Tullius and Jarl Ulfric. Our smithies are busy producing weapons and armor for our current soldiers, but are in the process of making more for spares and in the off chance we find some other force to add to our own. The guards also reported seeing the form of Revan appear on the outskirts of our fortress, but he's disappeared before anyone could get a lock on him. And, as everyone has previously mentioned, the Dawnguard are still asking for our aid, only this time they sent us one of their own to speak with you. He's an orc named Durak, and he's patiently waiting outside." "How long until breakfast is ready?" Sunset asked, wanting to know how much time she had to speak to the orc before Bjorn was finished with what he was doing. "About thirty minutes," Bjorn replied, beckoning to the door with the ladle, "Go ahead and talk with Durak, I'll let you know when I'm finished up here." Sunset nodded and walked outside, taking a moment to look around before she found the orc she was looking for, who happened to be talking with Orak at the moment. A few seconds later Orak went back to his duties, allowing Durak to turn around and find Sunset standing behind him, though a slight smile appeared on his face. "Ah, Archmage, thanks for taking the time to speak with me," the orc said, bowing his head a little bit, "Isran, the leader of the Dawnguard, has taken notice of your army and has sent me to ask you to consider joining forces against the vampire threat." "And what threat do they pose to Skyrim?" Sunset asked, wondering what damage they could cause that would be greater than what Tirek was already capable of, "There's a demon hiding somewhere in Skyrim, biding his time until he can gain his full power and break through the barrier that separates this world from Oblivion. Tell me, what can the vampires do that my current enemy cannot?" "I don't know all the details, but it seems that one vampire keeps appearing in all the operations that Isran has dismantled lately... a vampire by the name of Revan," Durak replied, though Sunset's eye twitched for a moment. She was surprised that the vampire she had seen in Falkreath, the same one that Fiona had pointed out and said was not an ally to everyone else, was already in trouble with another faction. She supposed that, if she was right about the vampire being allied with Tirek, it made sense that he'd already be in some sort of trouble with someone. She thought about what to do next for a moment, but the more she knew that she needed to hunt for Tirek she also had an entire army of followers who could do it in her stead. She could also pay a visit to Solstheim and find out who this Miraak that Hermaeus Mora wanted her to meet was, which left her with three more potential allies. If Isran, Lord Harkon, and Miraak were anything like the other faction leaders that she had already met, Elenwen, Delphine, and General Tullius to name a few, then they would make excellent additions to her forces. "Fine, I'll go speak to this Isran and find out what he wants of me," Sunset told the orc, who grinned in return, "but I'll tell you this right now, I guarantee nothing." "I understand Archmage," Durak said, pulling out a map and pointing to an area near Riften, "This is where Fort Dawnguard is, just so you don't get lost. I'll take my leave and inform Isran that you should be a few hours behind me." Sunset stared at the orc as he respectfully bowed to her and then, after a quick nod to the other orcs around him, quickly departed from the fortress. She had no idea why the Dawnguard continued to call for her to aid them, but she'd humor them now that she had sealed the Daedric Artifacts away. She sighed and returned to her friends, remembering that she had on other thing to take care of while they were heading to the Rift; she had to return the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller. "I've decided to humor Durak and speak with the leader of the Dawnguard," Sunset told her friends, while they ate the morning meal, "Apparently our friend Revan has been involved in several operations that Isran had destroyed, but I'm not certain whether he's using them as a cover or if he's working for someone else." "You think he's working for Tirek as well?" Fiona asked, though it was clear that she was thinking the same thing that Sunset was. "I'm willing to bet that he is," Sunset replied, sighing for a moment as she pulled the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller out of her bag, "but before we go to Fort Dawnguard I'm going to visit the Greybeards and return this to them... I've put this off long enough. We'll two birds with one stone and maybe learn what Revan's doing in the process." "Good plan," Bjorn commented, putting down his utensils before getting onto his feet, "We had better get going; if Revan is really in league with Tirek then its only a matter of time until he reveals whatever foul plan he's been building up to before we discovered his existence." --------------------------------------------- Sunset huffed and puffed as she and her friends traversed the Seven Thousand Steps for the third time since they started their adventure, only this time they were returning to give the Greybeards something that Sunset really should have given them a long time ago. As it turned out the moment they entered High Hrothgar she found the leader of the Greybeards, Arngeir, sitting in the direct center of the chamber, where she had been taught to blast objects with the Thu'um so long ago. She felt kind of terrible as she recalled the Thu'um, as all she had done was collect words and hadn't taken a moment to even consider what they could mean or how she could use them. She had been so occupied with stopping Tirek she hadn't learned any of the skills the Greybeards had taught her, which only made her feel bad. She took a moment to sigh before beckoning for her friends to stay back, to which she approached Arngeir and pulled out the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller. "Ah, Dovahkiin, you have returned to High Hrothgar," Arngeir said, getting onto his feet while she approached, though Sunset noticed that the other Greybeards appeared as well, "and I see you possess the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller." "I would like to apologize for not returning with it the moment I recovered it," Sunset replied, holding the horn out for Arngeir to take, "I've been busy trying to stop a demon from destroying Nirn." "All that matters is that you came back in the end," Arngeir said, taking the horn before directing her to the center of the square he had been sitting on, "now come Dovahkiin, it is time for us to formally recognize you for what you are. Stand in the center here and we will Speak to you." Sunset nodded and proceeded to the center of the square, where she waited as all four Greybeards gathered around her, at the intersections of two sides of the square. They waited a moment, clearly focusing their minds for what they were about to do, before they opened their mouths and began to Speak with her. "Lingrah krosis saraan Strundu'ul," the Greybeards Spoke, though all Sunset could feel was the air around her shaking, "voth nid balaan klov praan nau. Naal Thu'umu, mu ofan nii nu, Dovahkiin, naal suleyk do Kaan, naal suleyk do Shor, ahrk naal suleyk do Atmorasewuth. Meyz nu Ysmir, Dovahsebrom. Dahmaan daar rok." Sunset stood there for a moment, taking in what the Greybeards had said to her, before she sighed and took a breath, allowing herself to refocus on the area around her. The only other time she had heard such a lengthy speech in the Dragon Language was when she had heard Morokei speak to her in Labyrinthian, though she understood what they had told her. "One more thing Dovahkiin," Arngeir said before she could move, catching her attention for a moment, "I would gift you my knowledge of the final word of Unrelenting Force; Dah, which means Push." Sunset remembered that the last time she visited High Hrothgar she learned two Words of Power, so she recalled the sensation of feeling one of the Greybeards give her some of their knowledge. The good thing that came out of this was that she gave them the horn at long last, but now she was walking away with yet another Word added to her growing list. Though before she turned around and rejoined her friends there was on question she wanted Arngeir to answer, something that had been bothering her ever since she came to High Hrothgar the first time. "Is there only four of you Arngeir?" Sunset asked, watching the other three Greybeards return to what they had been doing before her arrival with the horn. "Five actually," Arngeir told her, causing her to raise an eyebrow in surprise, "Our leader Paarthurnax lives in seclusion at the top of the Throat of the World. He rarely speaks with us and almost never does to outsiders. If you wish to speak with him you must first train yourself, because only when you are ready will your Voice be able to open the way to him." Sunset nodded her understanding before returning to her friends, where they could plan their route to Riften and then find the road that would take them to Fort Dawnguard, where Isran would be waiting for her. As they walked down the path that would take them back to Iverstead Sunset had to wonder if the Greybeards realized that their leader was actually a dragon, as she had recognized the type of name that Arngeir had told her. She sighed for a moment and decided to let it go, knowing that she would have plenty of time to consider how to train herself before asking to see Paarthurnax. There were plenty of other people that required her attention and she was sure that she would be tearing another hole into whatever plan Tirek was using Revan to create. --------------------------------------------- When Sunset and her friends finally found the entrance to the area that Fort Dawnguard was resting in, which wasn't easy until they had spotted a set of lit braziers outside a cave entrance, they found that they weren't alone. There was a nord, dressed up in the same clothes as every other farmer they had seen, waiting near the road, as if he was afraid to go up to the fort alone. As Sunset and her friends passed by him, however, the young man seemed to gain some confidence, as he immediately fell in behind them and started speaking. "You guys here to join the Dawnguard, too?" the young man asked, before rubbing his arm as they approached the castle like fortress, "Truth is, I'm a little nervous. I've never done anything like this before. I hope you don't mind if I walk up with you. Just don't tell Isran I was afraid to meet him by myself. Not the best first impression for a new vampire hunter, I guess. You guys have probably killed lots of vampires, huh? I'm sure Isran will sign the lot of you right up. Not sure he'll take me. I hope so." "Look, we haven't killed any vampires," Sunset told the young man, slightly wondering what Fiona thought about the people they were about to meet, "I have a meeting with Isran, which is why we're even here to begin with." The young man seemed stunned by her statement, but then he sighed and continued after them, walking behind Cicero until they reached the front door, where they were welcomed by one of the watchmen. The man immediately recognized Sunset as the Archmage and beckoned for her to step inside, where she and her friends found two people arguing in the middle of the open room. The one on the left, dressed in the same armor that the watchmen had been wearing, Sunset immediately assumed was Isran, because he had the aura of someone that was in charge. The other man was no doubt a Vigilant of Stendarr, dressed in robes while wearing steel plate gloves and boots and carrying a massive two handed mace on his back. "Why are you here, Tolan?" Isran asked, staring right at the nord for a moment, "The Vigilants and I were finished long ago." "You know why I'm here Isran," the man, Tolan, replied, sighing as he spoke, "the Vigilants are under attack everywhere. The vampires are much more dangerous than we believed." "And now you want to come running to safety with the Dawnguard, is that it?" Isran angrily said, "I remember Keeper Carcette telling me repeatedly that Dawnguard is a crumbling ruin, not worth the expense and manpower to repair. And now that you've stirred up the vampires against you, you come begging for my protection?" "Isran, Carcette is dead." Tolan answered, sorrow filling his voice for a moment, "The Hall of Vigilants... everyone... they're all dead. You were right, we were wrong. Isn't that enough for you? And its not enough that we're being attacked by individual vampires... they seem to have someone leading them in a war against us." "Yes, well... I never wanted any of this to happen." Isran stated, the anger in his voice cooling down for a moment, "I tried to warn all of you... I am sorry, you know." Sunset assumed that she had walked in on something she shouldn't have heard, but the mere mention that someone was ordering attacks on people made her wonder if it was the mysterious Revan she had been told about. Before she could say anything Isran and Tolan finally took notice of the group that had entered the fort, to which Isran pointed at them all and beckoned them forward. Sunset was more than willing to follow along, as she had been called on by Isran multiple times and was finally giving him what he asked of her. "So who are you?" Isran asked, much to amazement of everyone around him, "What do you want?" "I am Sunset Shimmer, Archmage of the College of Winterhold and Leader of the Fellglow Alliance," Sunset told the redguard, wondering how he could have not realized who she was, as she was still wearing the robes of the Archmage that Tolfdir had given her so long ago, "You sent Durak to my base of operations with a message that said you wanted to talk to me about something... something to do with a vampire called Revan." "You're the Archmage?!" Isran asked, laughing for a moment as he tapped his knee, "That's a good one. Next you'll be telling me that one of your companions is the Dragonborn and that your on a divine mission to save the world from the none existent 'World-Eater'. Trust me on this one kid, you're way too young to be the Archmage... so why don't you take off those robes and give them back to the person you stole them from. I'm expecting the real Archmage to be here within the next day or two, so why don't you..." Sunset never let the man finish his sentence, as the moment he accused her of stealing the robes she was wearing she snapped her fingers, summoned the Staff of Magnus, and proceeded to 'Fus-Ro-Dah' him backwards. Everyone around her stared at her for a moment before looking at Isran, who was picking himself off the floor, before backing away from her in case she did it to someone else. Her friends had seen her anger at those who allied with Tirek, but they had never actually seen how angry she could actually get, though she was somewhat thankful her hair wasn't on fire yet. "What was that?" Isran asked, coughing as he pulled himself off the floor and stared at Sunset. "That was the Thu'um, something that only a few people, the Dragonborn among them, can harness," Sunset replied, walking across the chamber as she levitated a crate into the air, "You should feel honored that I didn't just blast you with the Staff of Magnus, otherwise I'd have to speak to someone else about Revan. Yes, I am the Archmage of the College of Winterhold, which was destroyed by the altmer that slew my predecessor, Archmage Savos Aren, in the name of his vile master. I am the one that painstakingly put together the alliance that now hunts for the monster that destroyed Winterhold and is currently threatening the rest of Nirn. Now, tell me why you decided to call for my aid, forcing me to leave my forces to meet with you, when I could be out hunting for a demon that wishes the end of Nirn." The truth seemed to dawn in Isran's eyes as Sunset spoke to him, as the moment she finished speaking he sighed and got onto his feet, but his eyes never left her. "Over the last few weeks I have disrupted a number of vampire operations," Isran explained, reaching into his pack and pulled out a small journal, which he tossed over to Sunset, "Every now and than I heard one of the bloodsuckers mention someone by the name of Revan, though it took me some time to find that journal. According to the vampire that wrote that journal his entire group had been receiving orders from this Revan, where they were supposed to be abducting people and turn them into vampires. Of course my companions and I broke up the operation and freed those that were still human from their bindings, after destroying the creatures that were lurking in the cave. About a week ago I found another mention to the mysterious Revan; it was a letter of some kind that detailed an attack on a major city that had to be evaluated because of an unknown force moving into a nearby fortress. Revan had mentioned the attack on Whiterun was going to be put on hold while he gathered more troops, but then the following message seemed to have a different order. Instead of attacking people this Revan is having them dig for a mysterious vampire artifact that could, theoretically, mean disaster for everyone on Nirn... excluding him and his forces." "So you basically want me to head to wherever this letter mentions and see what I can learn," Sunset summarized, already knowing that she'd want to derail whatever sinister plan Revan had in store, in the off chance that he was actually working for Tirek. "Dimhollow Crypt to be exact," Tolan spoke up, as if he knew what was coming next. "Brother Adalvald was also sure that it held some long-lost vampire artifact of some kind, exactly like how this Revan is so sure that its there. I'll meet you at Dimhollow. It's the least I can do to avenge my fallen comrades." "You might as well wait a moment Tolan," Sunset said, causing the Vigilant to stop moving for a moment, "If I'm heading there at the same time then we might as well travel together. Just tell me where Dimhollow Crypt is and we'll head off." "Does this mean that you'll help us?" Isran asked, hope filling his eyes for a moment. "Your convinced that Revan is involved, and I can see that he's left his mark," Sunset replied, sighing for a moment before really answering, "He's no doubt allied with the demon that I'm fighting, so by default that means that the Dawnguard and my alliance are allies to protect this world. I help you destroy Revan, and in return you help me find and destroy his foul master, the demon known as Tirek." As Isran eagerly agreed to what she said Sunset had to wonder what Tirek was doing at the moment, as his minions were constantly leading her to new allies to add to her alliance. She was starting to worry that there was something she had overlooked, something that might actually damage her chances at beating him in the end. --------------------------------------------- Tirek grinned in joy as he finished absorbing the power within Nocturnal's body, finally letting her drop to the floor in a heap as he felt his horns finally start to grow once more. He had been waiting for this moment, as it told him that he was getting closer to his full potential, but he knew he needed the power of additional Princes to reach one hundred percent. He cracked his knuckles as he felt his newfound power course through his body, fully intending to destroy something to prove that his enemy couldn't defeat him. "I thank you once more, Nocturnal," Tirek said, glancing down at the broken Prince, while a sinister idea formed in his mind, "Now, allow me to show you the power that I have obtained... by breaking you under my newfound power..." Before Nocturnal could say anything back, but before Tirek could grab her once more, one of the portals behind Tirek activated and someone entered the room. Tirek knew he had already sent his last underling out on what could be his last mission, so he wondered who could have found him as he turned to face the newcomer. What he found was a strange man wearing pure silver crystalline armor that covered the majority of his body, save for his head, and a similar greatsword on his back. Tirek was somewhat impressed that someone other than Revan had found them, but it also provided him with someone to test his new power on. "Jy...Jyggalag," Nocturnal coughed, realizing who had found her temple, though the thought of who stood in the room with them filled her with dread. "Another worm for me to crush," Tirek said, magic pulsing around his left hand as he approached the man, swinging his fist right into the heart of the man's armor. The wall behind the man cracked as the power surged into the earth behind him and traveled into the hold of Falkreath, cracking the ground and shattering the roads before reaching the town. The attack was short lived, though the effects of the attack shattered the ground below the town and opened a hole, forcing earth and buildings to fill the void. Tirek would have enjoyed the destruction, but as he stood before the man, with his fist in his chest, he found that his attack had caused no damage to the armor at all. He was shocked to find that there was something that could withstand the power of his attacks, which told him that the man would likely back quite the punch if he was hit. "What the...?" Tirek said, stepping back before the man could strike him back, "Just what are you?" The man stared at Tirek for a moment, studying him for some strange reason, before his right hand reached behind him and grabbed onto the handle of his greatsword. Tirek braced himself as he watched the man pull out his greatsword, wondering what power the man could wield that would have stopped his own power. Then the man swung his arm and a wave of power rushed towards Tirek, giving him enough time to throw his hands before him before the wave of power hit him. At the end of it Tirek lowered his hands and made sure that everything was still attached to him, but when he looked back he found a massive hole in the wall that was the size of the craters he made, blowing a chunk of the temple to pieces in a single instant. He turned his attention back to the man, but found that both he and Nocturnal were missing, as neither of them were in the broken room anymore. He had absolutely no idea what had just happened, but he still had the Skeleton Key and that meant he'd eventually have enough power to break whoever that man had been, if they had the pleasure to meet each other after today. He knew that one thing was for certain, Sunset was in deep trouble the moment he had his full power back... which meant that he needed to start absorbing the power of the remaining fifteen Daedric Princes. And he knew exactly which Prince he was going to start with... Meridia, the Daedric Prince of Life and Infinite Energies.