Nathan crept forward, inching toward a stone balcony. Through the gasps of the railing, he saw two vampires standing on a lower balcony with Tolan. Tolan had been stripped of his robes and his hands were tied behind his back. All over his chest were deep cuts and there were a few bites along his neck. His face was even red and cut up a bit. Shivering a little in his underwear, Tolan glared up at the male vampire standing before him with a beautiful ebony dagger in his hand. The other female vampire that stood behind Tolan glanced between them, before saying lightly. "Lokil, maybe we should try-" Lokil moved fast, grabbing Tolan by his jaw. Forcing him to look into his eyes, Lokil sneered into Tolan's face. "I should turn you and watch your god turn his back on you... but I wouldn't want to waste immortality on the likes of you! So, if you love your god so much... you can JOIN HIM!" Nate flinched as Lokil slit Tolan's throat faster then Nate could see. Staring into his eyes, Lokil purred out as Tolan bleed out. "Take a good look, Vigilant. I'm the last fucking thing you are ever going to see. You died for nothing."

Lokil shoved Tolan's lifeless body to the floor, then wiped his lips with the back of his hand as he grumbled out. "Stupid cattle. They should all be in cages." The female vampire glared at Lokil, snapping out bitterly. "Are you sure that was wise, Lokil? He might have told us something eventually. We could have tried charming him at the very least! We haven't gotten anywhere ourselves... and Lord Harkon is-" Lokil straightened up to his full height, cutting her off to say in a predatory tone. "He knew nothing. He served his purpose by being our little rat. Leading us to this place. He got greedy and he paid for it. Now it is up to us to bring Lord Harkon the prize on our own." Lokil started to make his way toward a narrow stone bridge, continuing a bit pridefully. "I don't care how long it takes. We will not be leaving here without it. Vingalmo and Orthijolf will make way for me after this. With this prize... I tremble at the thought of surpassing even Escher's place. To whisper in Lord Harkon's ear... What an advantage that is. I'm so close that I can taste it!" Nathan glanced back at Dumbuk, who met his eyes with a guarded look. Nate knew Escher was pretty close to Lord Harkon physically... but not that close to him politically.

The female vampire followed Lokil over the bridge of the dark chamber, their voices echoing in the large expanse of space. "Yes, of course. But do not forget who brought you news of the Vigilants' discovery. Who captured you that rat that you so easily disposed of." Lokil stopped in the center of the bridge to face her and said in a rather sinister tone of voice. "I never forget who my friends are. Or my enemies. But it won't matter if we don't find it. A task that should have been easy if you had gotten Tarin and NOT Tolan." The female vampire stood up straighter, retorting icily. "I told you that I tried! But YOU failed to tell me that he was a descendant of the Dawnguard! His mind was in no way weak enough for me to manipulate! Be thankful that I got Tolan to keep an eye on him and report on his family! Otherwise, Tarin would have come for YOU and not Movarth. Just imagine how Lord Harkon would have rewarded you, if Escher hadn't killed Movarth before he spilled the blood on your allegiance with him. You set HIM up to draw out Tarin. But I will not be the next step up on your ladder, Lokil!"

Lokil started to walk the rest of the way over the bridge as he told her calmly. "Yes... Well, I was sure he was withholding Tarin's journal from me. Now I know he wasn't. Besides, if I'm going to take over the covens of Skyrim. I would have had to kill him off eventually. That is why it is important to know where you stand. And you, darling, are in my good graces as long as you know your place. At my SIDE." Nathan could barely breathe as he took all this in. While beside him, Dumbuk whispered discreetly to him. "Oh, shit... That dirty rat." Nathan nodded, replying just as softly. "My dad was right. But did Tolan tell them about me?" Dumbuk flashed Nate a dark grin, telling him seriously. "Only one way to find out." Nathan nodded, staying low as they creeped down a set of large stone balcony stairs to the floor below. Nathan moved passed the statues on Gargoyles mounted around the railings like sentries. Dumbuk tapped them on the nose with his hammer as he passed though, causing Nathan to tense a bit. He had forgotten that Dumbuk had said something about Gargoyles. Dumbuk gave him the thumbs up though and gestured him on.

Coming up on Tolan's body, Nathan wanted to spit or kick him, but it would only give him away. However, he did give Tolan's body the finger as he passed by. Creeping up to the bridge, they got a better view of the area as their eyes adjusted more to the dark, now that any smoldering braziers were behind them. If the place was a castle, this was an odd layout. The bridge went to a large circular area with interesting archways and grooves along its floor. In the very center, sat what looked like a slender short pillar. While all around the circular structure was deep dark water that filtered in from somewhere under the bridge. Observing the vampires a moment, Nathan watched Lokil look over the slender short pillar with interest. While the female vampire looked over a set of gorgeous unlit braziers that were set along the grooved floor. Drawing his bow, he managed to impale a third vampire lady that was crossing the bridge on the other side to meet up with the other two. With a soft scream, she burst into ash, alerting Lokil and the other vampire lady to their presence. Standing up, the female ran toward them with her long black nails at the ready. Dumbuk raised his hammer, but Nate struck her with a Fury spell. Nathan then grabbed Dumbuk and pulled him back down into a crouch to hide. The female bent over, clutching her stomach where the spell had hit her and she started to growl inhumanly like she was in pain.

As Lokil reached the bridge, the vampire woman looked up at him and went still. Lokil skidded to a halt, asking sourly. "Why are you looking at me like that?! GET THEM! I order you-!" With a loud hiss, she lunged forward at Lokil. Her claws slashing at Lokil and Lokil struggled to fend them off. The more he blocked her arms, the angrier she got, until she suddenly changed her fighting style. She slashed at him with one hand from the side, but her other hand shot up to pierce her nails up under his jaw. Lokil cried out, until she ripped his jaw off and tossed it over the rail. Lokil staggered back in complete horror, before she tackled him and started tearing limbs off like a wild animal. Nathan then released Dumbuk and told him. "Ok. She's all yours." Dumbuk grunted but stormed off to fight her. Getting up to his feet, he walked slowly over to Lokil. Despite being so torn apart. He was still alive. Slowly crouching down to look him in the eyes, Nathan removed one of his arrows to twirl between his fingers a minute. Lokil's eyes stared at him like he'd seen a ghost. Taking a deep breath, Nathan told him in a calm but menacing tone of voice. "How does it feel to know your place now?" Turning the arrow over, Nathan slowly pushed the arrow into his chest to pierce his heart. He did it so slowly that Lokil's body burned slow before every body part scattered around burst into ash.

Nathan then blew the ash off his arrow and put in back into his quiver. When he stood up, he saw Dumbuk standing nearby with a concerned look. Nathan licked his dry lips, telling him under his breath. "You good?" Dumbuk eyed him, asking gently. "Yes. Are you?" Nathan nodded, but didn't want to say more. Moving to the slender pillar, he cleared his throat and told Dumbuk more relaxed. "What do you think? Does this look familiar to you?" Dumbuk walked around it, shaking his head as he said. "No. Maybe it needs a key?" Nathan removed his Daedric wine to sip it as he kneeled to try and read the faded symbols. The symbols were so old that he couldn't read them and were so faded that it was almost impossible to know what they used to say anyway. Dumbuk pointed to a skeleton body that was by the other bridge, asking curiously. "How long would you say he has been down here?" Nathan turned his head to look it over at a distance. Seeing the light cobwebs on it, he shrugged out carelessly. "I don't know. A long time. Why?" Dumbuk looked around, then said cautiously. "Why would a skeleton that is dressed in armor be here and not in the tomb we passed?"

Nathan stopped touching the side of the pillar to say with slight suspicion himself. "He could have been an explorer and got hurt." Dumbuk looked over the skeleton, rubbing at his rusted over armor. Removing the helmet, he held it up and said coolly. "Maybe. Or he was guarding it. He's wearing an old Dawnguard helmet. Very old." Nathan lowered his Daedric wine, uttering out to himself as he looked at the pillar. "That's interesting... Why would the Dawnguard be guarding an Elder Scroll in an old Vampire castle? Why wouldn't they move it somewhere else?" Dumbuk moved to one of the many tall and fancy braziers, answering casually. "Maybe they hoped to keep it hidden by hiding it under their nose?" Nathan nodded, replying openly. "Ya. Ok. I can see that. But they clearly sealed up the tunnel and turned it into a Vigilant tomb. So... why volunteer to stay here and die?" Nate put a hand on top of the pillar to help himself stand back up. Only as he applied pressure to the slightly rounded top, he heard things click before an iron spike shot up through his hand! Nathan screamed as pain made his legs buckle. Dumbuk whirled around to help him but stopped short.

As Nathan's blood poured down from his hand into the grooves along the top of the pillar, it absorbed it and started to make the large grooves in the floor around Nathan shine with rippling low walls of purple flames. When the spike retracted back into the pillar, Nate removed his hand and hugged it to his chest. Healing his hand in small bursts, he strained out. "Oh, fuck that hurt!" Dumbuk waved a hand through the purple flames in the circle grooves around Nathan without getting hurt. Moving around it, he told Nathan in awe. "Blood magic. No wonder the vampires couldn't get it. They don't have warm blood. This is old magic... ancient. The Shamans used to talk about it..." Nathan straightened up, still favoring his hand as he healed it and bitterly snapped out. "Great. What is it for?" Dumbuk stopped to point at a section of purple flame that spanned out from the circle into a straight line. Approaching the brazier that was only halfway down the flames, he pushed it out to the end of the line as he said aloud. "Well... maybe if we move this out..." The second the fancy brazier reached the end of the flames, it locked into place and Nathan winced as little balls of blue light were drawn out of him. The balls went to the brazier and ignited it with roaring flames.

From the brazier, a new wall of purple flames rose from the grooves until it reached the next brazier. Dumbuk rushed to line it up and the same strange light was drawn from Nathan. Dumbuk watched the brazier roar to life, before telling him. "Fascinating." Nathan glared at him, snapping out. "Will you slow down! It's draining a lot of my mana to do that! I'm getting dizzy." Dumbuk waved a dismissive hand, telling him seriously. "You'll be fine. It's almost finished." Despite Nathan's weakening state, Dumbuk went on to do three more braziers, causing the lines of flame to eventually meet back up with the center circle. It was like one giant key lock. Nathan dropped to the floor, feeling sick. He'd been drained of mana before, but this felt worse. It was like his very life was tied to it. This screamed high level necromancy. All around them the flames rippled violently, then were sucked into the grooves. The ground trembled and Nathan yelped as the center where he sat lowered down. The grooves became rounded auditorium seats that surrounded the lowest platform and the now large pillar in the center. Dumbuk fell as the floor changed but regained his balance as everything stopped moving.

Nathan stared at the stone Monolith in awe. He had to admit that it was a clever hiding place for a scroll. Dumbuk stomped down the steps, moving to the monolith as he said excitedly. "This has to be it! There should be a way to open it." Nathan's head felt fuzzy, but he staggered to his feet. His eyes finding the old Dawnguard skeleton. Suddenly the hair along Nathan's arm rose as he turned to look at the monolith. He could feel something powerful and his instincts were screaming at him to run. Whirling around, he screamed out as Dumbuk pulled down a corner of the Monolith. "NO! DON'T!" Dumbuk took his hands off the monolith, but the corner continued to fall into the ground. The seam hissed as air entered the monolith and revealed a woman around her early twenties with long black raven hair. As the wall disappeared, she fell out across the ground but didn't land face first. She landed on all fours. Nathan stepped back with wide eyes and Dumbuk uttered out in horror. "Oh no..." Nathan saw the Elder Scroll was slung over her back and she was dressed in royal looking clothing of red with a black cloak. The woman jerked her head up, sniffing the air with bright red eyes and fangs bared.

Dumbuk removed his hammer from his back, but he was too slow. She burst into a swarm of bats and attacked Dumbuk! Dumbuk screamed as she reformed on top of him and sank her fangs into him. Nathan fumbled to draw his bow, taking aim and firing it into her back. The woman jerked, arching her back as the arrow entered her. Nathan waited for her to turn to ash, but she didn't. Instead, she slowly looked over her shoulder at him with fresh blood leaking down her chin as her fangs dripped. From her back, her cloak moved, and the arrow fell before large leathery grey wings stretched out. She slowly rose off Dumbuk's still body, turning to face him with wild eyes. A low deep inhuman purr rumbled out from her as she slowly walked toward him with her fangs and claws ready for an attack. Nathan didn't know if it was the Daedric wine, the mana drain, or her presence that overwhelmed him... but he felt suddenly exhausted and fell backward unconscious. By the time his body came around back to consciousness, Nathan jerked upright, and his hands went right to his throat. He didn't feel any fresh bits or pains from where a bite might be. Panting hard, he scanned the area to find the woman, but he didn't see her. He only saw Dumbuk laying by the monolith.

Rolling over, he called out Dumbuk's name and raced over to him. Only as he got closer, he dropped to his knees in defeat. Dumbuk wasn't breathing. Putting a hand to his throat, he felt the bite and mumbled out. "Damn it... She drained you dry." Nate closed Dumbuk's eyes and let out a sigh, when a soft voice told him from somewhere close. "I'm so sorry... I didn't mean too... I was just so thirsty... and you both smelled so..." Nathan rose to his feet cautiously as he noticed a slender hand on the monolith. She was hiding from him, but he felt like the one that should be hiding. His body was tense, but he tried to keep a level head. From behind the monolith, she asked him nervously. "Where is... Who sent you here?" Nathan kept his eyes on her hand, asking in return. "Who were you expecting?" The woman leaned against the monolith as she peeked around it, answering in a sweeter voice. "I was expecting someone... like me, at least." Nathan couldn't help asking a little uneasily. "Are you a...? Because my shot was dead on and you..." She pressed her temple to the monolith, answering a bit grimly. "A vampire? Yes. But I'm... special. Much older. Much stronger. Different from the weaker strain of Vampirism that I'm sure you're used to."

Nathan took a single step to the left to see her better, but she moved to keep the monolith between them. Gesturing to the monolith, Nathan questioned her firmly. "Why were you locked away like this? And with the Elder Scroll." The woman tensed now but told him in a guarded voice. "That's... complicated. And I'm not totally sure if I can trust you." Nathan folded his arms over his chest, prompting her to add in. "But if you want to know the whole story... Help me get back to my family's home." Nathan huffed, stating out flatly. "Why would I do that? Don't you know where you are going? Or did you want a snack along the way?" The woman stepped away from the monolith now, replying in a hurt tone of voice. "No! Look, I said I was sorry. I don't know what came over me. I've NEVER lost control like that before, I swear! And I know where my family used to live... but... they might have moved. I don't know. I don't even know how to get out of here. This place... it looks pretty different from when I was locked away." Nathan blinked with slight confusion, before asking bluntly. "How long have you been in there?" The woman began fiddling with her hands, upon saying openly. "Good question. It's hard to say. I... I can't really tell. I feel like it was a long. Oh, wait! Who is Skyrim's High King?"

Nathan snorted with slight distaste but answered abruptly. "That's actually a matter of debate right now. The Empire supports Elisif, but there are many in Skyrim loyal to Ulfric. Before them, the High King was Torygg." The woman's eyes widened a bit when she said a bit worried. "The Empire? What...? What Empire?" Nathan gestured off, watching her closely as he said dryly. "The Empire from Cyrodiil. Run by the Emperor. Emperor Titus Mede the second." The woman chuckled softly to herself, blurting out in shock. "Cyrodiil is the seat of an Empire?" Turning away from Nathan a little, she mumbled out to herself a bit fearfully. "I must have been gone much longer than I thought. Definitely, longer than we planned. Oh... no." She nibbled her thumb a little, then whirled around to face him again and blurted out. "Please, I need you to help me get home so I can figure out what has happened." Nathan looked at Dumbuk's body, before looking at her with guarded eyes as he said. "Where do you need to go?" The woman lifted her chin a little, answering honestly. "My family used to live on an island to the west of Solitude. I would guess that they still do. By the way... My name is Serana." To Be Continued...