Dark Waters

Sigrid
..::~^~::..
My encounter with Vitrin had left me a little shaken up. Not because it was Vitrin, but mostly because we were standing on the bodies of our family. It occurred to me I hadn’t known what was going on with her at all, and she hadn’t known anything that was going on with me. It had been shocking news that the Stormcloaks would commit such atrocities. I really hoped the best for Vitrin, after all, I found her to be a lot like me. We seemed to always avenge people, and to kill others. I could have seen us as really good friends.
Now that Alduin ceased to exist, I had to find Delphine and tell her that the era of Dragons would not come. Then, I needed to find who had set Riverwood on fire. I hoped after that, I could have a peaceful life, maybe with Brynjolf even. My heart dropped through my stomach; he was gone again. Somewhere out there in Skyrim. I didn’t know if I would ever see him again, or if he was okay. What if he was already dead? I stopped thinking about it for a moment, laughing at my own irony. Is this how he had thought of me this whole time? It must have been treacherous. I wandered through Riften until I was at the Bee and Barb. I had not made eye contact with anybody as I walked through the first floor and too the staircase. After walking up the stairs, I turned left and walked to the end of the hall, opening the last door. Delphine was on her bed, writing stuff in a journal.
“I’m out there fighting dragons and this is what you’re doing, huh?” I scoffed. She looked up and a little taken aback.
“Your eyes….they’re….changing?” she said with admonishment. Changing? She turned me by my shoulders so I was looking into the vanity mirror in the room. It was true. The irises were enlarging, and slowly turning into a deep shade of red. For some reason, this felt right, and true. It felt like who I was. Upon calming down a little from what I had found in the guild, I saw my eyes start going back to their normal sized, green color. Delphine’s tongue clicked as realization hit her, “You deafeated Alduin,” she said. Alduin cannot be defeated. I quickly shook the thought.
“I took his head off of his body,” I snarled, and I could see my eyes returning to the red-like state momentarily.
“Sigrid, you absorbed his soul,” she said, he eyes wide with fear. This short sentence caused all of the hair on my body to stand at attention. Could this be true? Yes, it could.
“And so what if I did,” I turned at her, anger rising. I had taken the souls of many dragons, and I was proud of this one in particular. Proud to have Alduin as a part of me.
“I believe his soul might be stronger than your body,” she whispered. This flared my anger.
“I am the Dovahkiin. I’m strong enough for anything. I cannot be defeated,” I mirrored what my mind seemed to have told me about Alduin, and then I understood. Alduin and I were one now. I seemed to tower over Delphine, and feeling a twinge of guilt, I backed up, “I apologize.”
She straightened herself up, and then seemed to go back to normal after clearing her throat, “I’m glad you came, Sigrid. I actually had something to tell you, something that I saw,” she eyed me carefully, trying to examine my mood. She was correct to.
“Go on,” I urged. I knew Delphine well enough to know she didn’t just gossip, so this must have been important.
“I was in the forest hunting for jackrabbits outside of Riverwood at the time it was set on fire,” she explained.
“Did you see who had done it?” I asked immediately, and she nodded.
“I barely caught eyesight of them as it was dawn, and they moved swiftly through the shadows. They had-“
“Red and black light armor,” I finished the sentence for her. I had an idea of who had done this, but I wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt. Is this the revenge they had been waiting for? To kill Nev when they knew he could barely even move. My heart lurched. Or was their intent to kill me as well, unknowing that I was not in the small village. My anger rose like bile, and I could not control it, “I have somewhere to be,” I growled, and she nodded. I could see understanding in her eyes, and a sense of relief. I stormed through the Bee and Barb, and wasted no time as I walked through Riften. I tried my best to keep my eyes focused on the ground, so that nobody could see their transformation. I nearly kicked the gates to Riften open, and then I started running. Shadowmere emerged from the shadows, running alongside me, until I jumped so that I was riding her. It was good this was my next order of business, either way, so I rode hastily to Falkreath, where I would meet the Brotherhood at their door.
I wasted no time as I started my journey across Skyrim. This deed would not go unpunished, and I would have the proper revenge. I started this journey to avenge Nev, and that’s how I would end it. First, I killed that dragon, Alduin, plus many more. Now our souls were one. Now, I would take out the Brotherhood. I would show no mercy on those I once called family, because I had no more mercy to give.
They showed no mercy on Nevaris, a voice hissed from within me.
I know.
They wanted to hurt you closest to your heart, the voice prompted, continuing to fuel my anger.
I know.
Brynjolf could be next, the voice demanded my attention.
“I KNOW,” I shouted at nothing. I shut off my thoughts as an attempt to not let them get to me. I needed to make a plan…
..::~^~::..
Eventually, I found myself passing Falkreath. I was getting closer to the Sanctuary, and my stomach was tied in knots. Myself against the entirety of the Dark Brotherhood seemed like an impossible task, but I would not have peace of mine until they were all dead, or I died myself. That was the first time the thought had come to me. I would be content with either.
As I entered what I once considered home, I dismounted Shadowmere. By now, I would usually be tired and hungry after a long journey, but I was on a mission. The Brotherhood would know I was after them as soon as I entered the door. They could even be waiting for me now.
Upon entrance to the Sanctuary, I crept silently through the hallway, until I saw movement in the open office which belonged to Astrid. I crouched, drawing my bow and arrow. Veezara and Gabriella hovered over the table, and I let one loose into each of their skulls, both of them dropping swiftly and silently in the hall.
“TRESSPASSER,” I head Babette scream. She came to run from the room, but I was waiting for her. One arrow went through her heart, and the other through her eye, and out through the back of her head. Three down, four more to go…
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Brynjolf
..::~^~::..
I didn’t have a horse to take me to Falkreath. I only had legs, a nearly broken heart, and a glimmer of hope that it could be mended. I only found one last option, and that was to find Sigrid. Oh, how I hoped she was still alive. She would be the last person I had, besides Vitrin. Honestly, she could have even gotten herself killed since the last I saw her. My heart sunk. The Guild…
As I stumbled into Falkreath, I headed to the Inn. I had not stopped on this journey, not once. It was dark, and I was unwilling to face the Dark Brotherhood in the state. It was my last option of finding Sigrid, and I hoped they still considered her family enough to find her…or maybe if she was there, I could convince her to come away with me. We could try to start a new life. We were both heavily damaged. We both deserved a new life.
But I couldn’t go now, not like this…
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Sigrid
..::~^~::..
“So this is how you want it to end?” Astrid breathed as we stared each other down. It was her, she was the last one. I had easily killed everybody else, as if they meant nothing. That’s just not true, though. They were everything, until they took one of the people I loved away. One of the people they loved. How does family do that to another? Eventually, my needing to take their lives, bleed them dry, and take away what they love most – each other – overgrew what they had once meant to me. I stared at her intently before I brought myself to give her an answer. I nodded slowly before words could escape me.
“This is what I want,” I breathed back. I had cuts and bruises all over my body. I could feel each and every one of them. They gave me power, “Why did you do it?” I had to know, before I killed her. I had to know why they killed Nevaris.
“Do what, exactly? I do believe there are many things you hate me for,” she said easily. She wasn’t wrong.
“You killed Nev. Why?” I tried my hardest not to let my bearing escape me now. I would not let her see me fall beneath her eyes. I couldn’t break.
“That’s simple. Because of you,” she said, her eyes flickering to my sword and back up to meet my gaze, “You left. You betrayed us, the Brotherhood, me,” she said finally, and my anger flared.
“You betrayed me, Astrid. You’re a liar, you’ve always been,” I said, needing to tell her how much I hated her.
“Sigrid, you’ve always been so weak,” she said, clicking her tongue. The comment threw me off slightly. Slightly enough to be caught off guard as she pounced on to me, her sword digging into my skin.
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Brynjolf
..::~^~::..
I walked through the woods the next day. The sun was out, which was a dramatic difference from what Skyrim had seen lately. I sighed, searching for the hidden door to the brotherhood. I’ve been to the Sanctuary once, and I thought they were going to kill me then. I remembered there was a phrase you had to answer back with. I didn’t know it off the top of my head, but I did know that I would once I saw the door.
And when I did see the door, I knew I would not need to say any words at all. It was burned down, giving sight into the dark and turning hallway that was behind it. I knew that Sigrid had been here, immediately. I cautiously walked through the doorway, nervous at what I was find. I don’t ever recall my heart racing this fast. The first thing I noticed was the bodies. As soon as I walked in, they were lifeless at my feet. I double checked each of them to assure myself that none of them had been Sigrid. I walked deeper into the Sanctuary, into the big atrium that seemed to have a large roof overcasting the large room. In the middle, lay Sigrid. My heart froze for a moment, but she let out a cough, and I ran to her. Astrid was a few feet away from her, lifeless.
I pulled Sigrid into my eyes and her large eyes opened to look at me. It looked like the light was dimming in them, and it pulled at my heart strings.
“Brynjolf…” she managed a smile as she brought her hand to cup my jaw. I leaned my head into her palm, undone by her touch.
“Sigrid, my love. Don’t leave,” I begged softly, tears springing to her eyes.
“Don’t,” she said quietly, “I don’t have the energy to cry.”
“I love you, Sigrid,” I didn’t know how much time I had left with her, but I needed her to know.
“And I love you, Brynjolf,” the tears now rolled freely down my face, and falling off at the ending of my jawline. Using her thumb, she wiped away all of the tears, “You were going to be a father,” her voice is almost a whisper, but it was if she’d yelled the words into my ear.
“What do you mean?” I almost hesitated to ask, even though I knew exactly what she meant. She was with child. My child. Slowly, her eyes started to close, “Sigrid, no!” I called.
“Bryn…” she tried to say my whole name, but the word was lost, and her hand fell from my face, landing on her side.
“No,” I cried again, pulling her into a tighter grip. I nuzzled my face in her hair, almost comforted by her presence, still not coming to terms with the fact that she was gone. Everybody was gone.
I had lost everybody.
©Shannon