Heroes Of The North

[Zephyr2011]

Tenibrus grinned when Selene mentioned how well their skills and stations meshed. It was true, their partnership would be a most profitable and efficient one, though there was one point he had to disagree with her on, "Ah, but my dear, you are mistaken. I have true power. For what is true power but freedom to wield it as you see fit? My influence reaches farther than most could imagine, or suspect and yet I am still not saddled by petty bureaucrats and the finer points of nobility and class yet I retain their strong points. The Emperor does not wield true power, he is cursed by tradition, precedent and the elder council, not to mention the fact that if enough people disagree with him he will face the repercussions. I have no such responsibilities nor do I have the public face, I operate in the shadows, pulling strings where I see fit. That is true power." During his little monologue, Tenibrus's eyes glowed brightly. He had always had a lust for power and a taste for ambition, he was clearly very passionate about how he maneuvered himself in the world.

 

When the duo entered the main hall and spotted Eykthain and the mage, Tenibrus hastily cast an illusionary spell over himself to hide his sharp teeth. He had planned on holding off on this measure but necessity dictated otherwise. He spotted the Triarii signet ring on the mage's finger like Selene. He had little working knowledge of the Triarii, being quite out of touch with Cyrodiil, but he knew them to be an influential, powerful and military family. He overheard Eykthain discussing finance with him. Selene severely reprimanded their Dunmer acquaintance and Tenibrus nearly winced. This noble, powerful though he may be, knew very little of the two of them. Eykthain, on the other hand had spent some time with them, he was clearly very capable and ready to seize the initiative. Tenibrus didn't want the ex-scout on his trail if he could help it. Defending a noble was one thing, but not at the cost of alerting someone who would have otherwise left them be. This Triarii gentleman might have more resources than Eykthain but he lacked the latter's information and initiative on the matter. "Now, now my dear, don't be so harsh on Eykthain, he is not being disrespectful. I'm sure this Triarii gentleman is most certainly a military man and would happily do all he can to aid the Empire. A mage I see, rare in the family if I'm not mistaken, I studied at the college what seems like an age ago. A good day to you." Tenibrus smiled broadly, hoping to sooth any wounds that may have been created by Selene.

 

When the vampire and his companion were out of earshot he enlightened her on his feelings about her conduct, "In my experience, it is far better to be disinteresting to those you do not wish to deal with than venomous. Eykthain would likely not have proven an asset for us but he was also not likely to make himself a nuisance or an enemy. I fear that now he might investigate us more fully which could complicate matters. Rest assured, I have no fear as to our ability to deal with him, but it is better to avoid the fight altogether methinks." Tenibrus was becoming more business like all the time, his initial lust now fully in check. Cordiality was a tool for him and it would be so now.

 

When they arrived at the Blue Palace and found Tullius, the marshal was quite shocked to see Tenibrus, "Tenibrus? What brings you to Solitude?"

 

"Well marshal, unfortunately it was an errant letter that brought me here, seeing as how you are so surprised at my arrival. A parcel with your seal was delivered to me no more than three days ago. I fear that someone may be taking advantage of you. As to their intentions behind the matter I have no idea. Happily though, no misfortune has befallen me and I shall soon be spending more time in proximity of Solitude thanks to your Chief Adviser. I will let her tell you of her plans and intentions herself." Tenibrus finished eloquently. He had also suspected that Tullius might now view him as a threat and tried to lure him to his death but the fact that he wasn't immediately decried as a vampire spoke volumes. He would have to work hard to get to the bottom of this all, but if nothing bad arose from it he would leave it lie. He was a curious individual but he knew full well the price of curiosity. His 'affliction' served as a daily reminder.

[mythicdawnmaster]

Selene listened to what Tenibrus said, and warned quietly "Then make sure none but me hear that... ever. Trust me when i tell you this, if the Brethren knew the full extent of your influence, you would be hanging in the main hall of Understone keep right now. They, like most of Skyrim, beleive you simply to be the Overseer of the mines, a rich man who has a large ego. That is what you want my friend, if nothing else, take my word on it." The rest of the Brethren thought that Tenibrus was choking on their leash, much the reason as to why he still stood. if they caught wind of his real power, his True power, they would take it for themselves. She had seen it before many a time with her fellows, The Brethren wanted power for them and them only, and despite Tenibrus's assistance in their affairs, he was not fully inducted. With a great and active knowledge into the inner workings of the Vampiric family, Selene was well to warn him. The Brethren's lack of knowledge into his power was a boon for both him and Selene. "You do not give the Emperor enough credit my dear, as pitiful as his current state is, being bound by tradition is not as restrictive as you may think, but you know him not on a personal level... despite the white gold concordat, the Thalmor pull no strings in the palace, If there is one thing tradition grants, it is an unbreakable stubbornness, and loyalty to ones people."

 

Selene put on a smile as Tenibrus voiced his words, and said softly "Apologies for my outburst." Mostly under her breath. She hated having to be polite to the lower classes, despite the belief that position meant nothing, it did, in so many vital ways. If the poor were meant to have the same respect and authority as the rich, then where would society be? Without the ruling classes, everyone would be equal, and in such a state, the empire would crumble. The poor, uneducated rabble of the common folk needed Nobility, and they needed to stay put in their stations.

 

Selene was silent as Tenibrus gave her advice on how to deal with the common folk, but was quick to retort. "Different approaches work for different individuals my dear. Your experience has not always been in the highest echelon of this world, hmm? Mine has. And in my experience, the best way to deal with those who step beyond their station is to firmly place them back into it. Should we have been in Cyrodiil, i would have beaten him into submission, fear and pain are by far the most useful tools. one way to stop rebellion is to give in to the common folks desires. The other is to cut their pay and stop their food, and once they surrender, a severe beating puts them back in line. And if the Dunmer does decide to poke his nose into further business, i shall see it removed." Her final sentence was dark, and not completely a lie. She had survived for so long by brutality, clearly shown in her tortuous methods- If Eykthain was expecting a polite response to him pestering a Noble, then he had clearly not take her sadistic nature into account.

 

Selene looked at the Marhsall and his legates with disdain, she disliked them all immensely. Tullius, Rikke, all of them. They saw not the bigger picture, they understood not the intense political machine that worked behind the scenes... Still, she was polite and respectful.

 

After quite some time explaining to Tullius her plans, she finally made him stand down on trying to keep her in Solitude by throwing in the Emperors name. She would not be told what to do by a man like Tullius, and despite his narrow view, politics would be a huge factor in winning the war- Her new position would be detrimental in securing bonds with the nobles of Skyrim. Tullius though taking the Embassy would cause problems with the Thalmor, but Selene explained how it was initially built to be the home of an Imperial noble, the land deeds in Imperial name. The Thalmor were effectively squatters in the lavish complex.

 

Stepping out of Blue Palace, Selene bore a large smile. Everything was coming along nicely.

Edited February 7, 2013 by mythicdawnmaster

[Niborino9409]

Eykthain hired a room at the Skeever, but he did not sleep yet, he unpacked and sat down on the bed. Thinking about what he were about to do. Re-joining the Legion, for what reason? Selene´s sudden rage had gotten to him, it hurt, he felt it. Even if he managed to beat Aldis, what would he do after that? Take yet another mission from Tullius? Run another errand? No, never again. Get revenge on Selene? Revenge for what? It was all very confusing. He had been quite forward when talking to the Triarii, Sophos.

Sophos, unlike other nobles were not overly noble, he were rich and had influence, but he were still on the same level as Eykthain, he could talk to him, understand him, they understood each other. Sophos said that he were not offended in any way, be that as it may, Selene still had no right talking like that to him. Or had she? Such a mess he had gotten himself into.

 

Suddenly it knocked on the door. Eykthain opened the door with his dagger ready, but he needed not use it, for it was Aldis.

 

"Aldis, what do you want at this hour?”

Aldis took a seat in a nearby chair.

" I want to talk about your sudden change of mind. You retired from the Legion, and now you return to us all of a sudden. Why?"

"I have come to mind about several things. I am growing older by each day that passes, I am not as good a warrior like I were in the past, I want to change that.”

Aldis smiled a broad smile.”Old? That´s the reason? And you think that the Legion can help you? They´ll just send you on another mission, you kill some Stormcloaks and thats it. We both know that is not what we actually do, but do you really wish to return to us? Re-joining will not make you younger. And besides, you are not that old yet. You are only 50.”

”50 years old. Half my life has passed.”

”Yes half your life has passed, but does it matter? Look at what those years have given you; a wife, a daughter, friends, connections and opportunities.”

”My wife is angry most of time, but you are right about the other things.” Eykthain said, smiling.”Re-joining won´t make me younger, neither will retirement. But I see your point, what matters is what I do during my retirement. The Legion will only hinder than help.”

”Exactly! Shall we cancel the fight then?”

”Yes. Cancel it. And Aldis?”

”Yes?”

”Do you have any tips on how to deal with vampires?”

Edited February 7, 2013 by Niborino9409

[Macman253]

Geralt watched in horror at the burnt remains of Dawnstar, the Stormcloaks and werewolves cutting down the civilians, he was too late to save the city. Geralt roared in anger, he felt his skin rip and tear as his Vampiric lord form came out. His wings burst from his shoulders, long talons formed at his fingertips and large fangs slid from his mouth. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, his blood boiling with rage as he saw these beasts tear apart the city. He stretched his wings and took to the skies. Flying high above the city, his vision was intense. He could hear the heartbeats off every living thing down there, a purple haze surrounded them all. He could see them through the many buildings and make out the tiniest of details even at great distance. He smirked and dived towards the city, his wings folding back on his shoulders as he descended towards the earth.

 

"CURSE YOU ALL TO OBLIVION!" He roared as he descended, he dropped upon the shoulders of an unsuspecting Stormcloak. Rending him with his foot-talons. He looked to the nearest Stormcloak, the Nord-Lad looked only seventeen winters. Him and his allies watched in horror at the beast in front of them. Geralt hissed and bared his fangs, he dug his toes into the earth and pushed off, raising his taloned hand high and bringing it down on the nearest Stormcloak. The claws ripped through his armor and flesh like paper, covering Geralt in arterial blood. He could feel the power this new form offered him, he could feel his heart calm itself in the heat of battle. He did not have to fight his nature when the tingle of battle flowed through his veins. He gracefully dodged the wild swipe of a Stormcloaks two-handed axe, and countered with a slash of his claws. Another Stormcloak aimed a crossbow at Geralt and fired, Geralts lighting quick reflexes kicked in and his grasped the bolt right out of the air and snapped it between his fingers. He reached out with his taloned hand and grasped the air, the stormcloak rose from the earth as if some invisible force was lifting him. His face turned red as he began to gurgle and cough, he swatted at the invisible hand that grasped his throat. With a slight beckon he drew the soldier to him, the Nord's eyes were white with fear as the Beast smiled evilly and bent his head back and sank its fangs into his neck. Blood poured down his hauberk and covered the beast.

 

Geralt drank of the soldiers blood greedily, its sweet taste filling his mouth. It had been forever since he drank live and he savored every drop. When the Nord was finished his caste the corpse aside and glanced around. The citizens were dead but the stench of the wolves was ripe in the air. The Stormcloaks had fled but left the wolves behind. Geralt reached up for the hilts of his swords and drew them, he flipped them in his grip and held them inversed. He could see their glowing auras, four of them resided in ambush places. He watched as they moved into the open, one howled the command to attack and they all descended on him. Geralt grinned and flapped his wings as he charged the nearest Wolf, he hit the wolf with a Dual Fang strike that rended the beasts head from its shoulders, the second wolf dived atop him but Geralts superior speed moved him out of the Wolves grasp, he countered with a Choking-Grasp that stopped the wolf mid-air. The wolf struggled for breath but did not have to worry long, Geralt finished the animal with a deft strike to the beasts heart with his silver blade.

 

The remaining two charged Geralt at the same time, Geralt flung the corpse of the werewolf at them and struck one wholly with the animal. He yelped in pain as they fell into a pile on the snowy and frozen earth. The other wolf continued to charge, Geralt stood straight and his the blades behind his back. The wolf sensed the weakness and ran faster. Geralt wrapped his wings around him and took a spinning side-step. As he did the two points of the silvered-steel blades impacted with the exposed chest of the wolf and ran deep into the wolfs heart. Geralt kicked the dead wolf off his blades and walked calmly over to the now human werewolf that was pinned under the corpse of his dead ally, Geralt returned to his normal form. He smiled wickedly, the blood of the nord he drained still dripping from his jaws. He bent down to look the animal in the eyes and laughed in his face.

 

"See you in Oblivion..." He said as he put the tips of each sword on either side of his neck and crossed them, the blades cutting through the nords neck effortlessly as he cried out for mercy, cries that were silenced quickly and viciously. Geralt returned to Solitude, strapped to his horse were four werewolf heads. He rode Spot up to the palace, he saw Selene and the other vampire, the arrogant one. He drew his dagger and cut at the ropes holding the heads of the werewolves onto his saddle. The heads dropped to the ground and rolled down to their feet.

 

"Tell Tullius that his stormcloak threat is handled, take the credit for it or whatever you choose I care not." He said coldly, he turned Spot around and made for The Order's headquarters.

Edited February 8, 2013 by Macman253

[Niborino9409]

Since Eykthain got attacked by a vampire when he first came to Solitude, the day before, he wanted extra protection, and knowledge of how to defeat them. Vampire sightings were common nowadays, the citizens of Solitude ate garlic every single day to keep the children of night at bay. Even though there were many vampire sightings not many knew how to kill one. They only knew how to repel them, or so they thought.

 

Aldis had said that fire and silver could hurt vampires. Armed with this knowledge Eykthain returned home to order several things:

 

• Chainmail made of silver links, silver buckles and silver thread from the Silversmiths of Markarth
  
• Thick, black fabric from Radiant Raiment in Solitude
  
• Dyed leather from The Drunken Huntsman in Whiterun
  

Eykthain pieced together his armor almost by himself. Eireen and Jordis helped him sew, because he had to face it, he were completely useless at it, he knew how to smith, but not how to sew. With the help of Eireen and Jordis the making of Eykthains new armor went fairly quickly.

 

Eykthain now had armor that should keep vampires at bay, while protecting him. Finally it was also very lightweight granting him more movement than his original leather armor. He decided to carry less weapons and misc items. Lightweight worked in the past and it should work now. His steel sword and his special dagger + his elven bow and enough arrows to keep him supplied for a while. He had fire already, his spells. He realised that his sword wasn´t special in any way, it was just an ordinary sword. It had worked before, but the whole idea with the new armor was to give him an edge against vampires, having the same sword would not accomplish what he intended. So he decided to ask the local smith if he could help him.

 

Eykthain had spent almost all of his savings on this piece armor, by Mara did he hope it worked.

Edited February 7, 2013 by Niborino9409

[Zephyr2011]

"Believe me dear Selene, I have not gotten where I am without discretion and prudence." Tenibrus replied to her warning. "I will concede that you know far more of the emperor than I. He is probably kept in check more by ambition than ability."

 

Tenibrus continued slightly on his earlier message about Eykthain, "Class certainly means something but here, in the wilderness, in this age, determination and will power can make the lowliest peasant a force to be reckoned with." Tenibrus had a slight twinkle in his eye, recalling his early days stealing food to survive in Riften before the Theives Guild found him. "I have not always been among the nobility. I was born a poor farmer's son. The farm was burnt to a crisp when I was quite young and I survived as a street urchin. Through hard work, diligence and a knack for making the right connections, I made my poverty a moot point. After I turned I further elevated my status through the same machinations before entering the College of Winterhold. I exhausted the resources of that place and made a niche for myself. A man who could influence any court, sway any individual and deliver a city on a silver platter to the Brethren. Brutality works excellently in keeping the weak in their place. But the strong, or rather, the strong-willed. They are galvanized by it and I know better than most what a peasant can make of themself. Let Eykthain be kept in check by others, but not us. Let us not have his rage on our heads."

 

Upon exiting the Palace Tenibrus inquired, "Shall we bring troops with us to clear out the old Thalmor imbeciles? They have never impressed me. The Thalmor, like the Brethren, have intelligence networks everywhere. But neither of the two groups uses these to their full potential. They have almost complete knowledge of both Stormcloak and Imperial supplies yet nothing befalls them. No scouting parties are ambushed and never heard from again. No subtle pulls at the morale of men from lack of quality suplies. Spy networks are invaluable but they are useless if not used to further yourself. Sitting on information that you could use to better yourself and your position is folly not impressive."

 

Tenibrus spotted Geralt riding up with the werewolf heads. He chuckled slightly, the half-breed wreaked of blood and was clearly flush with it. So much for morality. The heads dropped and Geralt's words hung in the air. Tenibrus commented to Selene, "I see no reason to bother the marshal with this triviality. That one has changed though. You can smell it on him. He has a real taste for blood now. We should be careful with him, he's more powerful now."

Edited February 8, 2013 by Zephyr Kronos

[Brutii]

Sophos awakened, sitting bolt upright as the door of his room swung open, hitting the wall with a crash, voices came through

"By the gods, Gaius, you want the whole of solitude to hear?"

"Peace, Corvo, it wasn't that loud I'm sure." With that two people came into the room, wearing imperial officer armour. Sophos sighed with relief when he saw their faces

"Brothers, I did not know you two were in solitude! What of Proculus, Regillus and Aquilinus?" Sophos asked, the two glanced at each other, before Corvo answered

"Proculus is leading a detachment to thin the numbers of Forsworn down near markath. The brethren are becoming more troublesome by the day. Regillus is readying a force near Morthal, we need to take somewhere back or we will be ousted from skyrim completely." he paused "Aquilinus... Aquilinus is injured, one of those stormcloak scum got him. They are not sure if he'll make it through" he said quitly, lowering his head

"This is grave news indeed." Sohpos said, shaking his head, standing and pouring some wine into three glasses "I can safely say that home is faring much better, Lepida is getting married and father has recovered from his illness. We can only hope that soon skyrim will fare better also" Sophos handed his brother their glasses, before taking up his own "To the Empire"

"To the empire." His brothers repeated, and drank from their glasses

"Oh, Sophos, your'll be given a position soon, tommorow in fact. Welcome home, Triarii" Gaius said, grinning

[Niborino9409]

Eykthain felt that fire would be a better option than silver, considering it would be cheaper too, he had spent much gold on the armor itself. The local smith, Balimund, did not know how to enchant a sword to do fire damage, but he knew an alternate way. Not through magic, but through an old smithing technique he had learned in his youth. He took a bowl of Fire salts and put it on his workbench. He then asked Eykthain to go buy some Dwarven oil from the nearby Alchemist but also Frost salts to counter the effect. When Eykthain had bought the ingredients Balimund mixed them carefully. The Dwarven oil made the blade catch fire, mixing in some Frost salts helped stop the effect but also protect the blade. Everything turned into a sluggish paste.

 

Balimund started to heat Eykthains sword until it glowed strongly. Now he had to cool it, but not entirely. He cooled the blade until a point where Eykthain could apply the paste to the blade. The blade now had to cool by itself. Eykthain could return during the twilight the same day.

 

When the twilight dawned Eykthain went to check on his sword. Balimund were waiting for him.

"There you are. Here."

Eykthain accepted his sword and wanted to give Balimund gold, but Balimund wanted him to try it before buying. Eykthain held the sword in his right hand and readied a Flame spell. He carefully directed a weak flame towards the blade and it catched fire just as Balimund had said. The blade shone like a torch. Not handy for stealth but it would come in handy when dealing with vampires. To stop it all he had to do was pour water on it or chill it with a frost spell. He paid Balimund and returned home, utterly satisfied with his newly aquired tool. The whole process made the sword less durable but very dangerous to the unlucky soul that were on the wrong end of it.

Edited February 9, 2013 by Niborino9409

[mythicdawnmaster]

Selene listened to Tenibrus's tale with interest- whatever his common beginnings, he has certainly forsaken them, and his past mattered little to her- Hers was so long winded that she had forgotten much of it, and in actual fact, the Vampiress did not even know her age, she knew she was old but... how old she could not say. All she knew is that there was no Imperial Empire, no Empire at all, in fact. And... well that was it, that was the extent of her knowledge on her past.

 

She too saw folly in the Thalmors actions, but they always had something up their sleeves- perhaps they siphoned the information they possessed, and used only the most potent secrets to their advantage, while there was so much they could do, they chose only the most critical targets to assault- so perhaps it was not folly on their part, merely careful action?

 

She could smell the change on Geralt as he dumped the heads, the blood on his body not many days old, still, his asking of informing Tullius interested her not- she had been a lap dog to the Marshall long enough, the sooner she cut her close ties to him the better, they would meet for simple reports and in dire circumstances now- and he could do nothing to stop the Torture.

 

"Come then, Tenibrus, my carriage shall take us to the Embassy. As for the guards... i doubt there will be many of them left, and i promise, our abilities are more than enough."

[Macman253]

Geralt returned to the Order's headquarters, he was tired from travel but he needed information about what he became. He wanted to understand how he changed into that thing back in Dawnstar. The best place for this information was from The Justicar himself. Geralt marched through the halls of The Order, The Dawnguard practiced combat routines with silver blades and crossbow marksmanship, many hurling bright bolts of sun-fire at target dummies while their instructors aided them in their pursuits. Before the Volkihar clan fell they terrorized the citizens of skyrim and this led to many massacres. The victims and relatives of those that were affected came to The Dawnguard, increasing its numbers tenfold but it wasn't until the Justicar and The Order Of The Virtuous Blood appeared in Skyrim was The Dawnguard and The Order able to defeat the Volkihar Clan, after that The Brethren rose to power and laid claim to Markarth. With the lesser threat gone the greatest still remains, The Order and The Dawnguard joined forces. The Order providing technology and knowledge while the Dawnguard were the hunters and soldiers, many of them are remnants of The Vigilants Of Stendarr and they act as the Order's priests.

 

Geralt was born into this world, a world of zealotry and violence and he relished it. It was here he had a home, the Order's headquarters was small but fortified, there were many deadfall traps and Sun-Portals that helped to reveal any vampire infiltrators. Physically a vampire could not enter these grounds without the Justicar's permission, and even then they were usually prisoners. Despite these traps there were nearly two hundred Dawnguard in the underground Fort that was constructed centuries ago as one of Potema's security measures, she built this as a place to live if her city was ever sacked. The main entrance was built into a solid rock-face that now is The Temple Of The Divines, it contains laboratories, dungeons, training rooms, Troll-Pens for the Armored Trolls, Barracks, Interrogation rooms and the Archives. Geralt was interested only in the Justicar's private quarters.

 

He marched quickly through the hallways, pushing past priests and Dawnguard, moving around apprentices and others in his way as he trudged towards the large ornately carved door at the end of the massive hallway that formed the backbone of the entire facility. The doors were carved with the Dawnguard's and the Order's symbols in unison, to symbolize their permanent pact to aid one another. The doors spanned from the floor to the ceiling and stood at around twelve feet high, capable of withstanding a Giants fury for many days it was the last defense if they were ever breached. Geralt pulled up his sleeve to reveal the Dawnguards symbol branded on his wrist. The soldier standing guard at the door nodded, his face hidden behind a full-plate helmet. He reached up and pulled on a lever, the doors began to slowly creek and moan as they opened. Geralt slipped inside and approached the desk, behind it sat a man. He wore simple but fine clothing and he was hunched over the desk reading a scroll.

 

As Geralt approached the man raised his hand to silence his questions until he had finished reading, after several arduous seconds he looked up. His right eye was covered in an strip of cloth and the skin around it was heavily scarred, a gift after he slaughtered a vampire that took out his eye. The Justicar stood, his eye fixed on Geralt. "Geralt, you have come with questions of your heritage...as you did so many years ago." He said, much to Geralts astonishment. He knew Valerius was a powerful mage aswell as an accomplished warrior but he did not expect him knowing his reasons for being here.

 

Valerius smiled, he walked around behind his chair to the wall of books he had collected over the centuries. He idly searched them to find an old leather-bound tome and gave it to Geralt. "This is the journal of your father, he wrote it and told me that when you had seen your bloodlines true power that you were to read it." Explained Valerius, Geralts questions were gone, the ones he had of Valerius' pre-cognitive powers were another thing entirely. Geralt nodded silently and bowed, showing the proper respect one does show the Justicar and left his chambers. He returned to his quarters within the Barracks, as an officer he was allowed larger barracks but he preferred to be in the wilds then sleeping on silken sheets from Stros M'Kai. His desk was cluttered with maps from various ages, most of Skyrim but others were of Cyrodiil and Morrowind. The staff regularly kept it clean but knew not to handle his scrolls and books, he did notice that his bed was disturbed. He turned to see Sophie standing behind him, donned in apprentice Dawnguard armor. She smiled and saluted, Geralt chuckled and returned the salute.

 

"Sorry about leaving the room untidy, I am told that you are to be my Instructor and since you weren't using the bed Father Storm-Hammer thought it okay for me to sleep here." She said, a smile on her face. Something he had not expected of a girl that just lost her entire family. Geralt chuckled and nodded, "How are you doing with your studies?" He asked as he sat down at his desk and placed the journal on top of the desk. Sophie shrugged and moved over to the bed. "It's okay, I like the sword stuff but they still say I am too little to go on real hunts..." She said as she sat down, her armor was heavy and it made her feel uncomfortable but she knew she had to wear it to get used to it. Geralt chuckled as he skimmed the journal, "Trust me, when I was your age I was hunting vampires.... Work hard and you will succeed." He said, giving her a sly but supportive glance. "Nevertheless I have research... Why don't you go get us some food and we can talk while I work." He said, in a strange twist of kindness. The girls eyes beamed and she quickly dashed out of the room, heading for the Mess Hall.

 

Geralt smiled and shook his head while he returned his attention to the journal, he flipped through the pages that detailed various killing and tracking techniques his mentor had tried until he came to a strange entry that was written hastily as if he has scribbled it with a nervous hand.

 

The Lord Form, a form only vampires of pure-blood could achieve. Or so we thought, Geralt is young but his blood gives him great power...far greater then most ordinary men. I have taken a sample of his blood and studied it, my findings tell me that his vampiric blood is Pure. The vampire that sired him was a pure-blood. Of whom I do not know but from our knowledge only three pure-blood males existed, Lord Harkon, The Master and Sanguinis. I personally slew Sanguinis many years before Geralts birthing and Harkon wouldn't defile a mortal woman so the only logical choice is the vampire known as The Master. I will look further into this... The secret is in the blood, the blood is the salvation.

 

He read these words aloud, astonished at what they meant. What intrigued him more was the end words, "The secret is in the blood..." He said as he flipped the page for the next entry, but only found another blank page. He continued to flip pages but the rest of the journal was blank. Geralt leaned back in his chair and brooded, his mind processing the information, he knew there was a reason his mentor wrote those words. "Were they words of warning, or were they meant to tell me something..." He thought as he re-read the entry again.

Edited February 10, 2013 by Macman253