Chapter 43 -- The Friendly Vampire
*****
My time with Aela and Mirabelle lasted only a matter of days before the College received a visitor and not one I was expecting. I was in the courtyard, going through some practice drills to keep me sharp, Aela and Mirabelle sitting together, watching me work, when a stranger walked through the gates. Mirabelle rose to her feet to greet them and both soon approached me.
"Ragnar the Dragonborn?" the man asked.
"Aye. Who are you?"
"Vigilant Tolan. You would have seen me at the Dawnguard fortress when you arrived a while back."
I shook his hand. "I remember. Isran gave you a rough ride."
"You get used to his demeanour but his heart is usually in the right place."
Gesturing for us to get warm, we headed to Mirabelle's quarters, Aela also following us inside. Once sat at a table with mug of ale in hand, Tolan explained what he was there for. It wasn't a particular surprise. "But why come all this way?" I wondered, "Lydia and Delphine..."
"Are currently engaged with another mission. And Isran wanted the Dragonborn to handle this. Something has the vampires searching the length and breadth of Skyrim, and the fact they are so focused on this place has him concerned. He wants us to head there immediately and find out what has their interest."
"Okay, not a problem. Where are we headed?" Finding a map, he indicated where it was. It would be quite the journey without any real direct route. "I'll need time to prepare."
"That won't be a problem. I can meet you there. When can you leave?"
"I'll leave at dawn tomorrow. Do you wish to stay here?"
"Thank you but no. I will visit the old hall and pay my respects to the dead before heading to the cave. There should be a spot or two around to make camp."
He departed almost immediately and I started to put some things together as I knew the region. It was nothing but mountains, deep snow and bitterly cold winds. Add to that the fact wherever we were heading would likely be infested with vampires, I went so far as to make sure all my weapons and armour were still enchanted. Mirabelle giggled at my concern and assured me everything was fine.
I slept early that night in preparation for departure at dawn, sharing a bed with my two loves but all we did was snuggle, chat and eventually go to sleep. I woke before first light, trying not to wake either of them, though both did, and I gave both of them a kiss and told both how much I loved them before I wandered outside.
It was a bitterly cold morning. Most were this far north in Skyrim, ensuring my furs were wrapped tightly to my body over my armour. It was at times like this that you were thankful horses in Skyrim were such hardy beasts. While man would suffer in the cold, a horse could keep riding all day if you didn't push it too hard.
For once I headed south then west in the direction of Dawnstar, though eventually turned south again. The route did take me close to the Hall of the Vigilant, so rode past it to inspect the damage. There was little left of it, and bodies still lay frozen in the snow, Vigilants and vampires alike. Finding the path that led up the mountainside, I checked the map and knew I was in the right place when I found signs of a camp, but no Tolan.
"Where is he?" I muttered to myself, "Hope he hasn't decided to head in alone."
After dismounting and securing my horse to one of the only trees around, I unsheathed my sword and headed inside. My fears were soon realised as I found Tolan dead after I'd killed a couple of vampires on patrol. Checking his body, I found nothing on him except a Necklace of Stendarr, a couple of potion bottles, and his sword at his side. He'd gone down swinging, as there were at least three other vampire bodies around. I rested a hand on his chest and said a short prayer to the gods.
Heading further in, it became apparent that this was no cave but possibly an ancient crypt. The only difference is that there were no draugr about so I had no idea to who it would be for. I found more vampires within, and as I passed through a graveyard, a few skeletons decided to wake up as well. Killing them was easy, the vampires not so much, always careful not to take wounds lest I be infected, though I wasn't sure if the beast-blood still flowing through my veins would prevent that.
I'd been through enough crypts and ruins to know what to expect, and not to stumble into any traps, my eyes always alert to danger. I ran into a few more skeletons and far stronger vampires, the sort that wouldn't go down without me nearly requiring hacking them to death. No idea how many of the bastards I'd killed already but it was obvious to me that they'd come in force, so whatever they were searching for must have been of vital importance. I had listened into conversations but had learned little so far.
Entering a new chamber, this one was quite simply enormous, the architecture completely different to anything I'd seen before. A few more vampires were about, so I took care of them first, finding the body of another Vigilant. Checking him as well, it was obvious he'd been tortured before his death, closing his eyes with two fingers and whispering a short prayer again.
Heading into the main feature of the grand chamber, it wasn't too difficult to figure out the mechanism to unlock whatever was hidden, with a giant stone monolith eventually appearing out of the floor beneath my feet. Opening the lid was quite easy, and I was awestruck when... She was absolutely gorgeous and appeared to be fast asleep. I also knew she was a vampire immediately but when she fell forward, I couldn't help but catch her, hearing her surprise as she woke up.
"Oh..."
"Um..."
I let her go, feeling slightly embarrassed for both of us, as she gently pushed herself back. I looked at her face and I knew, then and there, I was in trouble. If she knew I was gazing at her, she ignored it as she simply asked, "Who sent you here?"
"Who were you expecting?" I wondered.
"I was expecting someone like me, at least."
"No, I was sent here by another group, called the Dawnguard."
"And they are?"
The question made me uncomfortable. "Um..."
"Vampire hunters?"
"Aye..."
"So what will you do with me then?"
"I won't kill you. Though I do wonder why I found you in there? I was expecting... Well, to be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect."
"It's... complicated. And I'm not entirely sure I can trust you yet. But if you want to know the whole story, help me get back to my family's home."
I can't believe I was about to agree to helping a vampire get home, but I probably wasn't thinking straight. She might have known that and immediately taken advantage of it, but remembering what Mirabelle had told me a few days before, I guess I'd just found a third. I didn't even know her name, but she was beautiful, obviously friendly, considering what she was, and her voice was silk.
"My family used to live on an island to the west of Solitude. I guess they probably still do."
"Bit of a long ride but it's doable."
