Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1 - Looking Down

            Mundus and Earth are much closer than you’d think. It’s easy to think of fiction as only that and nothing more. We look left and we look right, never being able to unify the two, and separate them. With this limitation, none of us know where the Hidden Paths lay. Until they open up beneath our feet and propel us upwards.

• Septimus Signus, probably

            This, as it turned out, was true. Which is not to say that the Divines or the Daedra had anything to do with the Universe and Earth itself. The making and the turn of time, the universe and everything was doings of another power, more mysterious and elusive than the forces that govern and watch over Arubis. Yet, there is still a path between.

“Awaken” a voice commanded, and he did. Slowly opening his eyes, the feel of damp ground under his hands, the moisture seeping into the cloth of his pants, seeping through, staining, and wetting his skin. The room he was in, or rather the cavern chamber, smelled of moss and mud and… something else. Smell of salt and iron permeated the air, and he could feel saliva forming in his mouth. The feeling was akin to thirsting to the point of pain, and starving, and the sensations mingled and intertwined until they were one and completely and utterly inseparable and unique. He looked up, and his eyes widened as he could see as clear as in daylight in a huge cavern that had no visible source of light. In front of him there was a body of a man dressed in what looked like leather armour straight out of a fantasy game, or a movie or something. The man’s chest was caved in and bore singe marks. Nearby, lay the body of a woman with her head smashed, and singed in a similar way. A short distance away, a man in blue-and-brown robes sat propped up against the stones, breathing heavily, clutching a heavily bleeding wound at his side.

“Damn vampires… By Stendarr this… hurts.” his whispers reached the man who had just regain his consciousness. Weird. At this distance, mutters under the breath should not be as audible. Resolving himself, he shakily started approaching the wounded man, all the while desperately trying to ignore the scent of blood which, for some reason, was appetising.

“Are you… alright?” he breathed as approached with his hand held up in a reconciliatory gesture.

“I am injured…” the wounded man responded. “How did you get here?”

“Beats me.” the other man shrugged. “How… how bad is it?”

“Probably… looks worse than it is.” the man grunted.

“Let me take a look…” the newcomer said, kneeling down next to him. He paused at the sound of his own voice. It sounded strange, deeper, raspier and… metallic? No, metallic wasn’t the right word. Nevermind.

“It’s fine… I…” the wounded man started coughing.

“Hey! Hey! Stay with me. Tell me, what’s your name?”

“I… I am Vigilant Tolan... of the Vigil of Stendarr. I…” Tolan began and then coughed again, this time spitting out a substantial amount of blood.

“Hey, look at me!” the newcomer shook him. “Look at me. You’ll be fine.”

Wearily, Vigilant Tolan looked up and his eyes went as wide as saucers. What little color remained in his face drained away.

“Stendarr’s mercy… what are you? No, back! Stay back!” the dying man almost screamed the words and then went very still. His heart let out one last thump and was silent.

“Well, that was rude… Now, where am I? Dammit Theo, what kind of mess did you get yourself into this time?” he smacked his own forehead. Alright, alright. There had to be something he could do and then…

His eyes automatically dropped to the still oozing wound at Vigilant Tolan’s side, and the world shifted out of focus, any rational thought consumed by the sickly feeling between hunger and thirst.

When he came to, Theo was aware that he had his very sharp teeth buried deep into the corpse’s jugular and was vigorously sucking out what blood remained. Willing himself to calm down and detaching from Vigilant Tolan’s neck it took Theo a few moments to realize what happened. What he was doing. His breathing increased, and he backed away from the body, tumbling over and back away on his elbows until his back hit a rock. He stayed there for a while, just staring. Then, the sensations overcame him. He could smell blood. He could taste it, and the taste was intoxicating. Unlike anything he’d ever tried before. Theo brought up a trembling hand to his face and he started to hurriedly feel and prod at it. Everything felt fine and normal, except his senses were different, sharper. He could see in the dark, he could hear the faintest sound in his surroundings, he could smell the cavern, the bodies, the sweet (he shuddered at the thought forming in his mind) scent of blood, and… There was something funny about the bodies surrounding the unfortunate Vigilant Tolan. They smelled… odd. He couldn’t place his finger on it, but he knew by instinct alone that there was something wrong with these people. Were they people? He gingerly approached the body of the man with a burned wound on his chest. The man appeared normal at first glance but then he noticed it. His eyes were red, and his features misshapen, with skin like melted wax, very pronounced cheekbones and a nose that resembled a bat’s. He swallowed and parted the man’s lips, revealing the gums of the upper jaw. His incisors were elongated and sharp. Theo laughed and continued to laugh until the laugher just… stopped.

“Holy shit… That’s an actual vampire.” Theo whispered to himself.

“Indeed. And you have work to do.” The voice at the back of his head prodded him.

“…and now I’m hearing voices. Great.” Theo shuddered. That explains it! He’d gone crazy. Or no, this is a dream. Definitely a dream. It must be.

“No such luck, mortal. You know… what you are, yes?” the voice continued.

“I’m just… Theo. A 24-year-old intern at…” Theo whimpered.

“No. Not anymore.” the voice chuckled. “You feel in-between the cracks. Seek the raven-haired woman. Follow your instincts. Do your best, Theo. That is all any of us can do for you now.” The voice sounded fainter by the second.

“No! Wait! You can’t just leave me here!” Theo yelled out loud.

“I’m sorry, child.”

And the voice was silent.

After a brief pause, Theo saw a passage that probably led deeper into the cave. Taking a heavy silver mace off Tolan’s body, he drew in a deep breath and started walking to the passage.

Walking through what looked like a gate with a miniscule portcullis and into what looked like an underground crypt or dungeon, Theo could feel every hair on his body stand up straight. What was he doing walking straight into this den of creepy? The place was odd, alright. Norse architectural styles and reliefs mixed with odd details that refused to be identified. He stopped and looked at the mummified body that was laid out in one of the horizontal alcoves along the wall to his left. This was definitely odd – he couldn’t remember that the Norse ever practiced mumification burial rites, or, at the very least, in this form. He shook his head. A lot of good that damned Master’s in archeology did him now. Furthermore, he’d never had to fear the occasional skeletal body or mummified remains that he would encounter in his (hypothetical) future employment. Now the very sight made him feel uneasy. If vampires were suddenly a reality, what guarantee did he have that the draugr weren’t real as well?

The first thing Theo noticed after a few minutes of moving cautiously onward was how lighter his body felt. His movements were almost entirely silent, and precise. His footing and steps were sure. Furthermore, his vision was crystal clear and remarkably suited for the darkness of the cave. With the grace of a predator Theo crept along the pathways and narrow passages in stone. He heard it before he saw it, a raspy sound akin to a dog’s panting – the exception being that this particular dog sounded large, hungry, and mean. The creature that made the jading sound appeared from around the corner and Theo stopped. The thing was canine in form, but its face looked unlike any dog he’d ever seen. It had glowing red eyes, and a skeletal face that mixed features of a dog and a bat, the taut skin hugging the bones of the skull tightly.

“What the…” Theo began as the hound leapt at him. And then it seemed it was barely moving.

Theo blinked. Why was its movement so slow? Everything looked fine just a moment ago. He sidestepped the leap with little effort, shifted his weight, and pivoted to face the fiend. Only then did Theo become aware of his heartbeat – it was slow, yes, but it felt powerful. Theo brought down the mace hard upon the thing’s head. His stomach lurched as the skull gave way to the mace-head and splintered into hundreds of shards, showering Theo in the beast’s putrid blood, bone and brains. Then everything sped up again and moved at a normal pace leaving a very shaken Theo to stand there slack jawed and blinking.

“Oh, come on… OH COME ON!” Theo screamed. “I liked this shirt, you piece of…!” his tirade was cut short by a feral scream in the direction from which the dog-like monster had come.

“NO! YOU MORTAL SCUM! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!” a woman with burning red eyes and bat-like features screamed in his direction and… dissolved into a cloud of bats and red mist.

Theo yelped and jumped out of the way of the torrent of bloodsucking rodents and, he was sure, death.

“If your mutt hadn’t tried to eat me, it would’ve been just fine, lady! Jeez!” he screamed back.

The woman reformed in front of him and in her hand, he saw a long, mean-looking dagger, and he felt a burning sensation in his left shoulder as she drove the blade in it.

His eyes went wide, and he could feel a new set of teeth extending inside of his mouth and protrude out of it, cutting his lips in the process, drawing blood. And it was blood that made him do something previously unimaginable. Without so much as a yelp he grabbed the shocked vampires by the neck with his good arm and lifted her without any effort at all, it seemed.

In a voice that sounded foreign to his own ears he growled.

“That was a mistake, rodent-blood.” He hissed and drove his newly extended teeth into her neck, ripped and drank deeply. He almost gagged – the undead creature’s blood was absolutely vile. Yet he forced himself to keep it down. Once he’d felt satisfied, he broke away from her and was amazed that he could no longer feel the wound in his left shoulder. In fact, it wasn’t there anymore – the skin was healthy and whole, even though there was a hole in his shirt and a substantial amount of blood that had seeped into the cloth.

Slowly moving his shoulder and flexing his fingers his attention was brought back to the still-struggling vampire in his vice-like grip. She was desperately trying to break free, to no avail.

Without a second thought, he plunged his fist into her chest and took out her blackened vampiric heart. The body collapsed into fine ash in his grip.

Theo blinked and remembered where he was.

“Holy shit…” he whispered for himself, unable to keep his voice from shaking and cracking. “What’s wrong with me…” he fell on his knees.

What had he become? How had he even become it? He was just walking down the street, minding his own business, and then the world just wasn’t there anymore. What happened later denied logic and the human experience. He felt himself get stretched and compressed and dragged before he was finally dropped in this cavern. He knew it was real, it had happened. But it didn’t feel real. His still-human mind was struggling to reconcile the new sensations, heightened senses, rationalize them and normalize them. The brain, though, was leagues ahead. The brain accepted the situation where the mind couldn’t. The brain, Theo noticed, was working faster, taking control without any issue, suppressing any semblance of free will, morality, or restraint as soon as it deemed it necessary for its continued survival. It was, Theo decided, afraid of something other than death. Theo swallowed hard. Was he even on Earth at this point? He knew the answer, of course, no matter how hard he tried to deny it, no matter how much it terrified him. His vision started turning dark and blissful unawareness enveloped him.

He found himself and the mace he was holding covered in even more of the disgusting blood and gore. In front of him there was another, larger gate with a portcullis, and behind it he could see an enormous spider-like creature fighting another of the vampires… and this vampire was winning with ease. Theo noticed that the vampire was unarmed, wailing at his opponent with his fists in unbridled fury. And he was winning. With the last couple of blows he’d beaten the giant spider thing to the ground and with a final, wet crunch the monster lay quite still. Then it turned to face Theo. This one didn’t look like the others – his face wasn’t misshapen, and his eyes didn’t glow that unsettling deep red. Instead, they were an even more unsettling amber. Somehow Theo could tell that this one was old. Very old.

“What are you supposed to be?” he asked Theo and inhaled deeply.

“You do not smell like prey. No, you are something altogether different.” the ancient vampire’s face remained passive.

“No matter.” he extended a clawed hand towards Theo. “Come. Serve.” he commanded.

Theo’s eyes went wide at the red glow forming around the vampire’s hands and fingers. He flinched as the red miasma hit him. And then nothing happened.

Theo cocked his head at the sight of a befuddled vampire pouring his all into whatever it is that he was doing. Was he casting a spell? A curse? Well, whatever he was doing, it clearly wasn’t working.

Theo yawned, and then flinched as his extending teeth cut his lips yet again. Theo’s gaze met the ancient vampire’s and before he could process what was happening, the ancient vampire went slack jawed, his entire body relaxed before he stood up at attention, as rigid and as straight as an arrow. He just stood there, seemingly waiting for something.

Theo scratched his head.

“Um… What are you doing?”

“Awaiting your command, master.” The vampire replied in a monotone, dream-like voice.

“Ooook… Can you give me some information?” Theo asked cautiously.

“Of course, master. What would you like to know?” the vampire responded in the same monotone.

“Alright, first question. What are you?” Theo asked.

“I am a vampire of Clan Volkihar. I was turned by Orthjolf, one of the members of the court. That makes me a quarter-pure vampire.” the vampire replied.

“Ok, I have no idea what that means, but it’s fine. What is Clan Volkihar?” Theo pressed on.

“Clan Volkihar is the most powerful vampire clan in all of Skyrim.”

“Who is your leader?” Theo asked.

“Lord Harkon Volkihar, a powerful vampire lord.” the drowsy monotone response came almost instantaneously.

“You mentioned… Skyrim? Where is that?” Theo prodded.

“Skyrim is on the continent of Tamriel, master.”

“What planet is Tamriel on?” Theo pressed him for more.

“It’s on Nirn, master.”

“Have you ever heard of a planet called Earth?” Theo asked, almost pleading.

“No master. I apologize.”

The last, drowsy response tightened up the cold clump that Theo could feel building up in his stomach. This was far from home. But how? The situation was maddening, to be certain.

Theo took in a deep breath.

“How do I open the gate?” he asked the dazed vampire.

“The lever to your right, master.”

Right. The lever. Theo grabbed the handle and pulled it. He turned to the vampire.

“Stay here and make sure I am not followed.”

The group of vampires that he encountered were sadists, pure and simple. Jeering and taunting an older, scholarly fellow that was blindfolded and bound between them. Theo had to hand it to the old timer – his conviction was strong, responding to insults and torture by repeating his oath to Stendarr – Theo guessed that was his god. Finally, the leader of the trio, seemingly grew bored and just broke the old-timer’s neck and tore out his heart, which he proceeded to stuff his face with, all the while laughing at the still twitching body.

This was more than enough and Theo, seeing a massive staircase leading down, moved towards them with his newly acquired grace and stealth. He’d been fighting these things for what felt like hours. Would it really be so bad to smack a few more of them back to whatever hell they crawled out of?

And smack them he did!

The silver head of the mace he carried easily found its first target and caught it straight on the crown of its head, and with a sickening crack and smoldering flesh, the creature went down.

The second vampire caught the mace into the gut and then into its exposed back as it doubled over. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Theo was still marveling at the speed he could move at. Before, when he was taking part in historic reenactments or practicing HEMA, he was never the quickest. Sure, he kept in decent enough fighting shape, but speed was never one of his stronger points. Now, he seemed supercharged – easily flowing between the confused enemies. And then reality, or, rather, something very hard punched him straight in the face and sent him reeling backwards.

The leader of the group recovered from Theo’s sudden and brutal attack rather quickly, and seeing as he was wholly uninjured, decided to pay back in kind.

“You mortals never learn!” he sneered! “No gods will come to your aid. You will die here, and I shall feast on your entrails!”

The threat would have chilled Theo to the bone not two hours ago.

Now he was seeing red. Readying the mace that was already starting to feel like a part of him. Theo and the vampire big-shot kept circling each other, both ignoring the whimpering of the vampire crawling injured on the ground.

“Lokil, please!” she pleaded.

“Silence, Ronja. You have had your chance. I’ll take care of you once I’ve dealt with the mortal.”

“So, Lokil, was it? They’re supposed to be your comrades, your colleagues, and yet you treat them as if they’re a little more than dirt. Why?” Theo was interested.

“Silence, you mortal fool! You talk to one who was turned by Lord Harkon himself!” Lokil bellowed.

“Is that supposed to mean something?” Theo laughed.

“You show your ignorance, mortal.” Lokil grinned, showing his fangs. “I shall teach you proper respect soon enough.”

“You can try, you vampiric asshole.” Theo growled.

The taunt was met with a furious attack from Lokil, and while surprisingly strong, the vampire was too used to using his overwhelming speed and strength against opponents who had very little chance of fighting back. Theo, as it turned out, was a hard nut to crack for the vampire.

Theo could feel his heartbeat quickening and becoming more powerful. The rhythmic thumping in his ears turned into something akin to the beating of war drums. Theo realized he was starving again and could feel his teeth doing the same thing where they all seemed to extend from his jaws. His brain had decided; it would stomach the stinking vampire blood one more time, because there was no other solution.

In a move that he’d practiced hundreds of times before, Theo went for a faint and then turned the mace at the very last moment to land an attack that would break the opponents footing, or, if the opponent was unlucky, shatter their knee – well this time, it did neither, instead it took the vampire’s leg below the knee clean off. Theo reached out with his free hand, yanked Lokil towards him, and plunged his sharpened teeth into his neck, drinking deeply and finally, when done, he smashed the head of his silver mace straight into the vampire’s face. The silver burned through flesh and bone, and the half-blood vampire was no more. Theo didn’t even bother with the last remaining vampire, opting to just ignore her, as he moved towards the place that the vampires were seemingly exploring. Where they had taunted, tortured, and finally killed the old man. He walked over to the body of the old man they had killed, removed the bindings and the blindfold, readjusted his broken neck the best he could and finally closed his eyes. Seeing a necklace with something that looked like a religious symbol among the fallen man’s discarded things, he took it and placed it upon the man’s chest.

“I hope you’ve found peace with your god, old man.” Theo mouthed. For what it was worth, Theo did consider himself a spiritual being, and not taking a minute to at least pray for the old timer’s soul would have left a bad taste in his mouth. Trying to respect everyone’s beliefs was a virtue, Theo had decided a long time ago. Sure, there were priests and zealots telling him he was wrong in his practices, and wrong in the way he worshipped, but he didn’t really care. Afterall how could mere mortals

What brought him back from his ponderings on the nature of existence was a faint scent of blood emanating from the dais surrounded by four braziers and an intricate pattern of carvings on the floor. The half-sphere on top of the dais was marred by the outline of a hand carved in stone. His curiosity getting the better of him, Theo placed his hand atop the outline. For a second nothing happened, and then a jolt of sudden, sharp pain as a spike extended from the stone and pierced his hand so quickly, he couldn’t move it in time. After a few moments of absolute agony, the spike retracted, and purple flames went up around the plateau he was standing on, crawling along the pattern on the floor. Theo gritted his teeth as he looked at his bleeding hand. To his surprise the wound was closing rapidly, skin and flesh knitting back together. Within a minute or so, the wound was gone without a trace.

“Now what?” Theo ground his teeth in annoyance, the pain still fresh in his mind. He looked at the purple flames that were, for some weird reason, cold to the touch. The flames-that-were-not-flames served some purpose, he was sure of it. Then he noticed one of the braziers was lit up now. After a short while of playing a puzzle game of some sort, Theo had all the braziers lit and the middle of the dais started to react and rumble. Soon enough a heptahedron shaped sarcophagus slid its way upwards, to stand right in front of Theo. Gingerly, he held out a hand and touched the smooth, pitch-black surface and the lid slid right open.

Theo’s breath stopped. Inside of the sarcophagus, seemingly in a deep sleep was a raven-haired woman. Theo swallowed hard. She was so beautiful it hurt.

Chapter Text

The woman slowly opened her eyes, and then took a deep breath. She took a tentative step outside of the sarcophagus and her eyes, finally focused and aware fell on a very slack-jawed Theo.

“Who are you? Who sent you here?” she asked, confused.

Something in the back of Theo’s mind reminded him of a weary lioness who’s about to pounce.  

“Bleghwahaha…” Theo’s tongue refused to work.

“What… language is that?” her eyes narrowed; her words intended more for herself than the oaf in front of her. Look at him! Gaping at her like a newborn.

“Aghahaha…” Theo tried again. Dammit

“Never heard of it.” She deadpanned. The she blinked, actually looking at Theo properly for the first time.

“Wait… What are you?” she whispered. She sniffed. He smelled… odd. Not unpleasant. But odd. Not a mortal, not a human, not a vampire. Not entirely. Not of any bloodline she knew of. She sighed. It’s no use. This one won’t be able to understand her anyway.

“…Theo. I’m Theo.” he replied in a surprisingly gentle voice.

“Oh, so you can speak.” she offered the smallest of smiles. Theo visibly swallowed.

“Right. It seems so.” he offered one back.

“Now… Theo, was it?” she asked as her hand slid to the handle of the black-and-red dagger that hung from her belt. Her smile evaporated. “Who sent you?” she restated.

“Nobody.” Theo’s response came out quicker than he intended.

“Someone must have. Was it my father?” she urged him.

“I don’t think I’ve met your father miss… um…” Theo raised his hands in a gesture of appeasement.

She blinked.

“Miss…? Ah. My name is Serana. Good to meet you, I think.”  she offered another small smile. Her hand, however, never left the dagger at her side. “Still, I find it hard to believe that you got here by pure chance.” she continued.

“I’m afraid that’s truth mi… I mean, Serana.” Theo never returned his hands to his side.

“Uhuh…” she wasn’t having it. “And why, pray tell, are you covered in vampire AND human blood? You reek of it. And there’s more… What are you?”

“The last time I checked, I’m human. But since I woke up in this cave, everything’s been, well, weird.” Theo began.

“How so?” she pressed him.

“Well, I’ve had vampires try to kill me multiple times, along with their vampiric dogs. I saw a vampire pummel a spider the size of an SUV to death, and then I found an enchanted beauty in a magic coffin. I am, honestly, overwhelmed.” Theo explained. He kept his rising lust for blood and his newfound strength and speed to himself.

“Alright, how did you survive all of that, then?” she asked. This man clearly knew more than he was letting on, and, for some reason, this was infinitely frustrating.

Pretending not to notice the slight tug at the corners of her lips at the words “enchanted beauty”, Theo inclined his head towards the bloodied mace that lay discarded a few paces away.

“I see.” Serana briefly eyed the discarded weapon. “But you do know you’re not human, right?”

“What am I, then?” Theo protested. “Also, how can you tell?”

“Can’t you… can’t you tell just by looking at me?” she raised an eyebrow.

“What…? Wait, are you also…” Theo’s eyebrows shot up.

“A vampire. Yes.” she finished the thought for him.

“Yeah… I… still can’t get over the fact that vampires are real.” Theo rubbed at his eyes.

“Have you never heard of one?” Serana asked with barely contained curiosity.

“Well, yes. But also… I’ve spent my entire life thinking that vampires are just legends, stories. You know, fiction.” Theo explained.

“Interesting…” Serana had more questions, but she caught herself. There were more pressing matters to attend to.

“What year is it, um, Theo?” she asked.

“It’s 2022.” he replied. He did not like where this was going.

“Which era?” she asked again.

“Uh… The common era.” He answered.

The silence between them lingered on.

“That… makes no sense.” she shook her head. Has it really been that long? Have the people of Tamriel stopped counting time in the way they had when she was locked away? Was this even the same kalpa? Questions flooded her mind. She stopped herself again and looked at Theo again.

“Who is Skyrim’s current high king?” she asked.

“I have no idea. I’m not even sure what this Skyrim even is.” Theo admitted.

Ah. That’s why. Things finally fell in place for Serana.

“Theo, where are you from?” she asked carefully.

“Originally? I was born in Massachusetts, close to Boston. My family is of Eastern European descent. Why?” Theo told her.

“Ah. See, I’ve never heard of any of these places. Might not mean anything, but… could it be you’re not from here?” she asked.

“Right… I talked to another vampire. He told me a lot of stuff that I did not understand. This place… really isn’t my world, huh?” Theo said with a controlled, neutral expression. His eyes went wide as reality sank in. Theo knew, of course, but refused to admit the possibility, and by extent, his new reality. The same reality he was trying so hard to ignore crashed into him like a tidal wave.

“Oh god… What the actual fuck. How is this even possible?” Theo’s face was a mask of sheer despair.

Serana stood a little way off, observing as the… being… in front of her experience and show altogether human emotions. Was he telling the truth about himself? Was he one of the wanderers she read about a long time ago? And why was he claiming he’s human when he clearly wasn’t?

Her attention was brought back to the situation at hand at the sound of a loud smack. Theo was smacking his face, begging himself, she guessed, to wake up. A few minutes later, he sighed heavily and looked at her.

“Alright miss… I mean, Serana. This is not Earth. Got it.” his voice was now firmer, filled with bravado that spoke volumes to Serana. He was young. Very young. So, whatever it is that he’d become, the transformation was very recent.

“So… I have seen vampires do… things with their hands. Light shooting out of their palms and stuff. What is that, exactly?” Theo asked.

“It’s magic.” Serana informed him. “Wait, are you saying your world doesn’t have magic?” she was puzzled. A world without magic. How curious.

“No. No magic, no vampires, no mythical or magical creatures.” he confirmed. “Magic only exists in stories and fiction.”

“That’s bizarre. So, it isn’t one of the realms of Oblivion. You are not a daedra, then.” Serana spoke up, a bit too quickly.

“A daedra?” Theo asked.

Again, with these questions He really didn’t know anything about the fabric of reality. Well, this reality, she corrected herself.

“Yeah, they’re… beings that exist outside of this plane. Some are outright hostile to life on Nirn. Others are indifferent. Dealing with them is usually a bad idea for anyone - mortal, or vampirem unless you’re prepared to pay the price.” Serana explained.

Looking at her while she explained daedra (which, to him, really sounded like demons, plain and simple) he saw clear hints of deeply rooted sorrow and fear. He would not pry, he decided, as it was none of his business.

“Alright, alright! Enough of that. I’ll learn more about all of this later. I feel like my brain is going to explode or something…” Theo said. “Anyway, Serana, do you know a way out of here?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” she responded, scanning the chamber they were standing in. “This place looked very different when I was locked in.”

“How long ago was that?” he asked.

“I have no idea.” Serana responded simply.

“Well, let’s go that way, shall we?” he pointed to a massive stone arch and bridge leading to the back of the cave. Theo picked up the silver mace and the unlikely duo pressed forward.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE THESE THINGS, SERANA?!” Theo screamed as the massive creature made from animated rock launched its tremendous weight at him. While the blows of the silver mace seemed to take out small chunks of rock out of the creature, they did nothing to slow it down or stop it – the creature bellowed a loud roar at Theo and took another swipe at him, the taloned hand missing its mark by mere inches.

“Gargoyles! They’re tough, but also very stupid. Just outsmart them!” Serana yelled back.

At least she’s having a good time, Theo thought bitterly as he weaved and bobbed around the stone monstrosity. The worst part? Theo noticed that the damn thing was too fast for its size and weight. If it managed to hit, it’s game over, man. Game over!

An electric buzz and the beast let out a large shriek as a stream of what looked like lighting hit it from behind and the thing simply toppled over.

Theo’s eyes fell on Serana who was standing over the toppled gargoyle, nudging it almost gingerly with the heel of her boot. The other gargoyle had been dealt with brutally and efficiently as well.

“It should stay down.” She met Theo with a leveled gaze.

“Uh-uh.” Theo managed. “What was that?”

“What was what? Oh, right – no magic where you’re from. That was a lighting bolt.” Serana explained. “It’s a powerful spell.”

“So… these things are vulnerable to electricity?” Theo asked.

“Yes. It disrupts the flows of magicka that animate them and power them. It’s useful against mages, too.” Serana continued.

“I bet. Can we please find an exit now? I’ve had enough of creepy caves, things, and… gargoyles, trying to kill me.” Theo got to his feet.

Serana grinned at his words, showing her fangs properly for the first time, the humor of the grin, however, never reaching her eyes.

“Get used to it. I have a feeling this is only the beginning.” She almost sighed.

“Oh, that’s a comforting thought.” Theo rolled his eyes.

Draugr, as it turned out, were a very real threat. They refused to stay down until they had their heads violently removed from their bodies (which was tougher than it seemed) and placed between their mummified butt cheeks. Theo would have laughed at this – the old Norse beliefs and folklore got some things right, it seems. And then there was a particularly tough one who refused to go down or get decapitated, and who also had a nasty habit of shouting something in a foreign language that would make them drop their weapons or send them flying into the nearest wall. Through what felt like Herculean effort, Theo managed to knock it down and force its dried-out flesh onto a fire that was burning hot in the middle of a chamber that could only be described as an arena. Despite its best efforts, the Draugr caught fire and was soon ash. After the place had grown quiet save for the crackling of the flames, the scholar in Theo reared its head. Strange, isn’t it? Did these Draugr tend to the flames? What was the significance of the flame? Was this arena a sacrificial ground or was it there to serve as a proving ground, or a sacred locale for the local variant of holmgång as practiced by the old Norse peoples? So many questions…

Theo’s curiosity all but evaporated as his attention was drawn to a peculiar wall that sat some distance away, position to almost… overlook the arena. He could swear he could see swirling lights and shapes shoot out from the wall, and his ears were filled with chanting. In a haze, Theo walked over to the wall and his field of vision was filled with the same swirling shapes and bright lights. The wall was filled with carvings that had a passing resemblance to cuneiform script. And his mind filled with one word, one meaning – GAAN – stamina, essence, life-energy.

Someone shook his shoulder. As if from a great distance a voice reached his ears.

“…re you alright?” the voice asked. “Hey! Answer me.”

Theo blinked in confusion as Serana was right next to him, seemingly unaware of the wall or its effects.

“Serana… what happened?” he asked.

“You tell me,”The response was quick. “You just walked over to the fall and stared at it for what seemed like forever. I thought you had gone catatonic.”

“You couldn’t hear that?” he asked her.

“Hear what?”

“The chanting! And the weird lights and those carvings…” he mumbled.

“I didn’t hear nor see anything. And trust me, if there was a sound, I would have heard it.” she reassured him.

Theo’s mouth became a line.

“Great…” he grunted. “I’m going insane.”

About an hour later, with relatively little trouble, they found an exit, and upon exiting the cave were both hit with morning light, and a vista of a landscape utterly alien to Theo.

“That’s better…” Serana said, drawing a hood over her face. “Welcome to Skyrim, Theo.”

Chapter Text

Morthal was a gloomy, miserable hamlet. The very air in the place felt oppressive, the bog surrounding the town making one feel forlorn, and perpetually looking over their shoulder. As if vampires and other ghouls would swarm from the fog and into the town at any given moment. Theo shivered. He’d read stories of cursed places back on Earth. All of them were just a fun distraction, a bit of folklore surviving into the information age and giving those interested in such stories glimpses into the lives and beliefs of their ancestors, a world and a worldview that was almost extinct now. Here, however, the notion of a haunted place was altogether different and dammit, was Morthal haunted. The smoldering ruin of a house right next to the inn they were staying in did not help, either. Serana’s demeanor, unchanging as it was, was an odd source of comfort. The vampiress was all warm smiles and pleasant conversation with the locals, seemingly enjoying hearing about the war (yes, this place was involved in a war of succession), recent events, and anything, and everything, really. Theo wished he could read the odd alphabet used in Skyrim. He’d have to learn it, eventually, he thought. He sighed, stretching on his cot. Sleep did not want to come. It was days, he was sure. And after that first view of Skyrim’s landscape, he became painfully aware of the fact that the light was overwhelming his sight now, and the sunlight prickled and irritated his skin. Sprawled over on the bed nearby, Serana was very still, the rise and fall of her chest being the only movement present. Theo got up and silently left the room they had rented. He needed something to do. Anything.
The cool night air outside was oddly comforting. And the night sky was spectacular. With very little light pollution present, and the air clear, the view was unlike anything that could be seen on Earth. The stars shone brightly, and the different astronomical structures could be seen with the naked eye. This was not Earth, Theo thought. With a sigh he removed his gaze from the alien sky above. The very next moment, he wished he hadn’t. Roaming through the ruined house, searching for something was a small spectral figure. Theo swallowed and slunk back inside the inn. He numbly sat on his cot, only to meet Serana’s amber eyes seemingly peering into his very soul.

“You… look like you’ve seen something.” She stated.
“I… I think I just saw a ghost.” Theo stammered.
“Oh? Where?” Serana almost rolled her eyes at his revelation.
“The burned down house.” Theo was painfully aware of his rapid breathing and uncontrollable shaking. Serana’s very casual reaction making him question his reaction didn’t help either.
“Did it see you? Or attack you?” Serana asked.
“No. It was just… looking for something.” Theo answered.
“Then why are you so scared? It’s only a harmless ghost.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Where I come from, we don’t have lonely ghosts rummaging through haunted places.” Theo hissed.
“Right, no magic, no ghosts” Serana yawned. “Still, this doesn’t seem to be a cause for concern.”
Theo closed his eyes. Why? Why was she treating this as something… normal?
“Well, I’m glad you’re taking this with grace and stoicism.” Theo snapped.
“I am the very definition of grace.” she grinned. Theo swallowed. Why, just why did she have to give such genuine, charming smiles despite being a thousand-year-old bloodsucking creature of the night? The person staring at him was a young woman, close to his age, not a timeless seductress that would charm and drain any mortal foolish enough to meet her gaze. ‘Not that I’m normal, either’ Theo reminded himself of the rampage in the ancient crypt. ‘I sucked people... and vampires dry and liked it.’ He shut his eyes, trying not to think about the taste of copper and salt on his tongue and the rush that followed. Trying not to think about the pink elephant was proving to be less than effective. He opened his eyes to see Serana staring at him, unblinking. Waiting. He returned the gaze and was lost in it. For all her dark and mysterious vampire-ness, Serana hadn’t tried to attack him or feed on him. In fact, despite all her teasing, she was rather pleasant to be around.

Serana suddenly perked up.
“Hey, do you wanna go and see if the ghost is still around?” she asked, mischief clearly dancing in the deep amber of her eyes. Theo scratched behind his ear absentmindedly.
“Do we have to?” he asked.
“Oh come on! Where’s your sense of adventure!” Serana giggled and grabbed him by the wrist in an attempt to get him to follow her.
For a moment he struggled, and then curiosity got the better of him. After all, this was something unheard of back on Earth – a chance to see and perhaps even talk to a real ghost.
The ruins of the house were a sad sight indeed. The walls and the roof were rubble and fine ash now, with the supporting beams barely standing. Still, among the chaos wandered a tiny, spectral figure. A girl that was no older than ten roamed the house over and over again, searching, calling for her mamma and poppa, anyone. Seeing Serana and Theo, the tiny specter flinched and ran behind one of the still intact support columns. She peered out from her hiding spot.
“Who are you?” her voice echoed, as if it came from a great distance.
Theo’s heart sank. For this little one to be so scared and so alone. This world was a cruel place indeed.
“We are but simple travelers, little one.” Serana smiled at the little ghost. “We mean you no harm.”
“Ok…” the little girl came out from behind her hiding place and walked a few unsure steps towards Serana and Theo.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Just looking around.” Serana told her patiently. “Do you know what happened here?” she asked the girl.
“I remember that it was so hot. I couldn’t breathe. And then… and then everything went cold and I fell asleep.” the child told them.
“What happened to your parents?” Theo heard his own voice, trembling with emotion..
“I… I don’t know. Papa isn’t here with me. Mama went ahead of me to make sure it’s safe. I’m all alone here.” She informed them. Suddenly, a look of pure terror crossed the ghostly child’s face.
“Oh no, she’s coming. She found me. Please, I have to go. Find me!” the ghost begged and then evaporated.
Theo was about to say something, but Serana quickly clasped a cool hand over his mouth.
“Quiet.” She mouthed.
At first, the only sound was an oddly mournful whistling of the wind, and then he heard it – footsteps made by someone desperate to remain unheard and unseen. Before he could even react, Serana had already taken off, her footsteps making no discernable sound and her very form became transparent, invisible but for a shimmer as she moved. A few brief moments later, there was a surprised grunt and a hiss.
“Theo, you might want to see this…” he heard Serana’s voice call him from the darkness.

Serana was holding a woman up by her throat. No, not a woman. A vampire who was struggling to wring herself free. Theo could see that the vampiress’ claws tracing deep red lines in Serana’s porcelain skin where they caught her. Serana, on her part, was unmoved, showing no sign of pain or concern.
“What are you doing here, weak-blood?” she demanded.
“Let… me… go…” the caught vampiress managed to croak out.
“No dice. Tell me. What are you doing here?” Serana repeated.
“Go… fuck… yourself you wh…” the caught vampire yelped as Serana strengthened her grip.
“Tsk. So uncouth. See my friend over there? He’s stronger than he looks. And hungry. If you don’t cooperate, he may… eat you up.” Serana gave her prey a feral grin. “And trust me, you do not want him to eat you up.”
“Um… Serana?”
“Shush, Theo. I’m working.”
“Fine… Let… me go.” the vampiress managed.
“Don’t try to run now.” Serana reminded her in a sing-song voice.
“So… Who are you?”
“I’m Lealette.” the other woman croaked, while holding her throat.
“Wait, the wife of one of the villagers?” Theo chimed in.
“Yes…” the woman responded.
“What were you doing here, Lealette?” Serana asked.
“I have tried to turn the child.” she admitted.
“Why?”

“Because… Alva forced me to burn down the house. I tried to save the girl by turning her, but it was too late…” Lealette’s voice almost broke. “...she was innocent.”
“Alva?” Serana asked.
“Alva… The one who turned me.” Lealette answered.
Serana shifted her gaze to Theo.
“Looks like this town has a vampire problem.”

Chapter Text

"So Theo…" Serana began.

"Yeah?" Theo looked down from the ceiling he was staring at.

"How did you know that Lealette was the missing wife of one of the townspeople?" she asked.

"I heard it as we were entering the town. Some people were arguing with some important looking du… I mean man. One of them mentioned 'his Lealette'. Wait, you couldn't hear it?" Theo sat up.
"No." Serana furrowed her brow. "We were far away and the wind was strong. But how did you manage to hear that far away?"
"Dunno." Theo shrugged. "Heard 'em just fine."
"Well that sure is something." Serana mumbled to herself.
"Huh. You said it." Theo mumbled for himself. "Well, I'll try to get some sleep… if I can".
And of course, he couldn't.

The gloom of the next morning came quicker than expected. Morrhal, it seemed, was a lonely place, constantly surrounded by thick fog and haunted by eerie sounds from the surrounding marsh.

"So who is this Alva person again?" Theo asked for what it seemed like the hundredth time.
"I am guessing that she is the master vampire." Serana answered, rolling her eyes.
"And what happens when we kill her? Do all of her victims turn back?"
"What? No. No, of course they don't. What a ridiculous notion." Serana chuckled. "You have some weird ideas, Theo."
"That's what they usually do in the movies." Theo grumbled defensively.
"What are these… movies… again?" She asked, this time genuinely curious.
"You know what? Never mind." Theo stuck his tongue out at her. "Anyway, where can we even start? It'll take a few days to check every house in this place, as small as it is."
"Fair point and asking around might alert her." Serana agreed.
"Well that's just fan-fucking-tastic." Theo said dryly.
Serana gave him a puzzled look and then burst out laughing.
"What?" Theo demanded.
"Oh nothing. That tone of voice. That turn of phrase…" Serana told him while trying to hold in laughter.
"Is it really that funny?" Theo was now sulking.
"Oh yeah, it is." Serana continued laughing. "And now the sulking… like an offended puppy…" she let out a high pitched giggle.
"Well, that's the most fun you've had in the last thousand years or so." Theo offered.
"Yes, to be sure." Serana graced him with another radiant smile.
Deep down, Theo felt pleased with himself that this time the smile did in fact reach and paint over the amber of her eyes.
—
"Ugh." Serana exclaimed when they had settled in their room that evening. "Nothing. Not a bloody thing."
"Yet blood is everything… It's all around us…" Theo whispered and absentmindedly licked his lips.
Serana looked at him and stiffened.
"Are… are you OK?" She asked him cautiously.
Silence. Theo kept staring at a point in front of him. He didn't move. Suddenly his lips parted and she could see two rows of sharp teeth filling his mouth. What made matters worse was that his face became distorted. It morphed between a human face and a mixture of a bat and a wolf. His eyes had turned bloodshot, and the soft brown of his irises was replaced with the color of burnished gold. He hungered.
An eerie, growling voice came from his mouth.
"Blood. Hungry. Feed." He rasped. Then his eyes fell on her, zoned in. A predatory creature was staring at her, and for the first time in untold centuries Serana felt like she was prey.
He moved faster than she could follow. He closed the distance between them and stopped mere inches in front of her face. There was a low growl in his throat as his eyes moved from her neck to her eyes and back again.
"Theo…?" She let out in a small voice. "Are you still there?"
The monster in front of her blinked and looked into her eyes again. He blinked once. Twice. He sucked in a deep breath and slowly, for a time that felt like eternity, his eyes turned back to their normal brown, his fangs receded and… morphed into his normal teeth (and the sharp incisors) again, and finally his features smoothed over, becoming more human with each passing heartbeat. Finally, he blinked in confusion.
"Serana?" He asked in his normal voice.
"What…? Why am I so close to you? What did I do?"
Serana only now realized that she was holding her breath. Absolute terror at the sight of the monster in front of her gripped her very being. Something she hadn't felt in a very long time.
"You… changed." She managed, still shocked.
"Can you move away? Please?"
"Oh, right, sorry." He hurriedly backed away from her. He sat back on his own bed.
"So what happened?"
And she told him, describing everything that happened in detail. His expression went from attentive blankness to absolute shock. He grabbed his head.
"No, no, no… that can't be true. Shit, shit, shit." He kept saying to himself.
"Theo? You wanna fill me in?" Serana's worried voice reached him.
"I… yes." He took another deep breath and straightened himself and faced the woman in front of him.
"Serana… I'm a vampire."
—--
"What do you mean you're a vampire?" She demanded. "If you are one you are not from any bloodline I am aware of."
"I'd be surprised if you were." He grunted.
"Are you sure you're a vampire?" She asked again.
"Yupp. One hundred percent." He replied in a hollow voice.
"How? If you are one you sure weren't made by… him." She omitted the name of the Lord of Domination.
"Him?" Theo asked. Then he decided to brush it off and ask later.
"Look, I told you that vampires are just a myth in my world, right?" He asked, continuing when she nodded.
"Well, in a certain mythology from my world, vampires are created through a curse that can affect entire families or bloodlines. People become vampires after death and haunt, for a lack of a better world, their hometown, village or even family." Theo explained.
"My family is descended from a culture that had, shall we say, strong beliefs regarding that. I remember that my grandma warned me that all of the men in my family carry this… curse or whatever. I never took her seriously, though." He stammered.
"The part that is confusing is my strength and transformation you described. The stories and legends have become almost extinct by the time I was born. We only got fragments and those were dismissed, and yet… everything fits, sort of." Theo took a deep breath and kept quiet.
"Right… I have no idea what to tell you. When you shifted, I… I thought you were going to attack me." Serana admitted.
“I am… terribly hungry.” Theo admitted.
“Oh… Let’s go get something to eat. I saw a bounty for some bandits nearby. Nobody will mind if we, y’know…” Serana stood up. “Come on, let’s go.”
—
They returned a few hours later, covered in blood and satiated. Looking back at the entire… ordeal, Theo had to admit he had his reservations, but after drinking his fill, the beast within subsided and he was just himself again. Just your regular old Theo. Serana seemed chipper and satisfied as well.
“Well, it was junk, but by the Gods was that filling.” Serana exhaled as she sat down on her bed.
“Yeah… I mean, what do you mean?” Theo asked.
“Blood tastes different. Some blood is just delicious and nurturing. This was… lower tier. Barely passable as food. But, y’know, when you’re hungry...”
“Huh.” Theo mumbled. “It all tasted the same to me.”
“Yeah, but you’re a fledgling. You’ll learn to appreciate… the finer things in life.” Serana laughed. “Gods, I need a bath.”
—
Alva came to them. She barged into the inn the very next evening with the father of the little ghost in tow. Serana mentioned to Theo that the man was enthralled to her, and as such, had lost any semblance of free will.
“So how did she get her proverbial claws in him?” Theo asked Serana, curious.
“With how she’s behaving with him? I’d say it was a few sessions in bed.” Serana whispered to him.
“So vampires here can have sex?” Theo raised an eyebrow.
“Yes. Why wouldn’t we?” Serama’s mouth became a line.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to offend you.” Theo put up his hands.
“Don’t worry. You didn’t.” Serana looked away “Look, they’re leaving.”
“Should we follow them?” Theo asked.
“No. Let’s wait until morning. Lesser vampires have to rest during the day. We’ll catch her when she’s sleeping. Literally.” Serana responded. “For now, we should turn in.”
“Um, how are we going to find her lair?”
“Well simple, I’ve put a tracking spell on her. She shouldn’t be able to figure out that she’s being tracked for a while.” Serana explained.
“You sure about that?”
“Not entirely, but she doesn’t seem like a mage, so… just trust me on this.” Serana replied with a wink.
“Alright, I’ll follow your lead, then.” Theo shrugged. He knew next to nothing of practices in this world, and was therefore content with leaving the planning of their course or action with her.
—
Alva’s house was too… normal. It didn’t stand out in the least, yet Theo could smell her scent leading right to this place. Alva and blood. A lot of blood.
“Yeah, she’s definitely here.” Theo rasped.
“Probably asleep, too. “ Serana whispered. “I suppose we could… knock.” Serana made a face.
“Is this really the best course of action?” Theo asked.
“Well obviously not” Serana giggled “We need to get in, though. Do you know how to pick locks?”
“Um… No.” Theo admitted. “Now what?”
“Nothing a little alteration magic won’t fix.” Serana rolled her eyes. She made a small gesture and the lock made an audible click.
“Well that’s handy. But what about the person on the other side of the door?” Theo whispered.
“Well, we’ll overpower him. No eating him, though.” she gave Theo a stern look. “I’m very serious about that one.”
“Got it.” Theo nodded vigorously.
—
The house was, as expected, guarded by the man, 'the father' Theo thought. While the man fought with the fervor of a zealot, there was only so much a human could do against two vampires.
Finally, Theo lifted him up by the neck, even though the man kept up his valiant efforts.
Annoyed, Thoe caught the man's eye and uttered a single word.
"Obey."
The man went slack, all of the fight seemingly leaving his body in an instant.
Seeing this, Theo put him down.
"Command me, master." The man said slowly.
"Wait!" Serana's outburst startled Theo. "Did you just enthrall him?!"
"I… don't know?" Theo gave a shy smile.
"You don't know?" Serana hissed. "It's impossible to take another vampire's thrall and control them without their previous master's permission. How did you do it?"
"And again, I don't know." Theo shrugged "None of this makes sense to me, Serana. I'm lost and just in the dark as you are."
Serana returned an icy stare and commented no further.
“Just ask him what we need to know.”
“Right. Where is Alva?” Theo turned to his new… thrall?
“She is sleeping in the cellar. Just take those stairs.” the man pointed to a door in the back of the room.
“Right. I have two more commands for you. You will go to the Jarl and confess to your crime. Then when you are thrown into a dungeon cell are you to be set free of your bond with me.” Theo noticed his voice came out commanding, authoritative and demanding. Is this what being a fu%£mothering vampire was like? Would he grow more powerful the more souls he absorbed?
He was brought back to the present moment by someone shaking his shoulder.
“Theo, are you with me, buddy?” Serana was by his side. Deep down, Theo felt grateful for her presence, and even a gesture as simple as grabbing his shoulder made his heart skip a beat.
“Yeah, I’m… here. Let’s go pay Alva a visit, shall we?”
The enthralled man had already left.