Chapter Text
Serana
I was awoken by a deafening crack. A thunderous noise that echoed through the cavern. I heard it again and again until there was silence. What was that? It didn’t sound like a spell, nor any weapon I was familiar with.
I was pulled out of my thoughts by the sound of a metal spike piercing flesh and bone. It must’ve been painful, yet I never heard a cry of pain. Only the sound of footsteps told me that someone was around. Who was that? They didn’t smell like a vampire. In fact, nothing about their scent was familiar.
Luckily, I didn't have to wait long for an answer. My sarcophagus was opened by a woman dressed like a classy mage. She had honey-colored eyes and long brown hair that covered the right side of her face. She wore a gray collage robe with a large, reddish fur mantle; the bodice dyed with bright blue stripes. She also wore brown mage gloves on her hands.
At first glance, her weapon seemed to be an oddly proportioned crossbow. However its levers were more extensive, there were no signs of bolts, and it ended in a long tube. It had the likeness of a Dwemer device, making me wonder where she found it. In any case, it must be the source of the noise I heard earlier.
I slowly raised my hands as I stepped out of my sarcophagus. “I don't want to fight,” I told her. “However, I will defend myself if I have to.”
The mage considered my words for a bit. She soon nodded and lowered her strange weapon. Then a soft voice echoed in my head. Alright then.
A small gleam of light drew my attention to the golden bauble on her left ear. It was an elaborately detailed earring fashioned in the shape of a siren. It started at the bottom of the ear with a tentacle-haired siren holding a single large pearl. It then curved around the ear with the tail resting at the top.
Upon further inspection, I realized it was a Siren’s Pearl, a Direnni-crafted earring for people with mutism. It was enchanted with a telepathy spell that allowed its wearer to converse with others through mind magic. Whenever the wearer “spoke”, the earring’s namesake pearl shimmered like a tiny ball of moonlight. It was an ingenious way to enable those with mutism to “speak” with the ease of someone who can vocalize their thoughts.
So, this woman was mute. To the casual eye, she’d be a Breton. However, any vampire or lycanthrope who got a whiff of her scent would know otherwise. This mage was something else. Question is, what was she?
I eyed her carefully. “Who sent you here?”
No one, she sent. I heard there was something valuable in Dimhollow Crypt. Valuable enough for a group of vampires to raze the Hall of the Vigilant. So I decided to investigate.
“I see.” I rubbed my chin thoughtfully. “Perhaps they were after my Elder Scroll.” If that was the case, those vampires must’ve been sent here by my father.
She glanced at the scroll on my back. Huh. So that’s what an Elder Scroll looks like. She looked back at me. Why were you locked away like this?
“That’s… complicated. And I’m not sure if I can trust you.”
Fair enough. I’m Marla, by the way.
“Serana. Good to meet you.”
Likewise. Marla frowned. How long were you in there?
“That’s a good question.” I sighed. “It’s hard to say. Long enough to starve me, that’s for sure. “
She sighed. In that case, you can have some of my blood. I’d feel more comfortable if your hunger was sated.
I blinked. “You’re offering me your blood?”
I am. So try not to go overboard, alright?
“I’ll do my best to control myself, I promise.”
With that, I closed the distance between us, then bit into Marla’s neck. I started to drink her blood, though I was unprepared for its taste. Her blood was flush with magicka. So much so that drinking it was intense. The searing heat of Marla’s blood made it burn in my throat. It felt like I was drinking liquid fire.
Her blood was painful to drink. Yet, it tasted incredible. Nothing could compare to how this felt. Every nerve in my body sizzled as raw power pulsed through my veins. It made me feel indomitable.
Suddenly, it hit me. This wasn’t just blood. It was dragon blood. Marla had dragon blood pumping through her veins. However, that could only mean one thing.
Marla was Dragonborn.
With that realization, I forced myself to stop once my thirst was sated. I licked the bite marks on her neck so it wouldn’t bleed, then I backed away. “Molag’s balls, you didn’t tell me you were Dragonborn.”
Her eyes widened. How did you…?
“You have Dragon blood in your veins,” I explained. “That stuff is like a narcotic for my kind.” I sighed. “Marla, you are extremely lucky that I’m a pureblood. A lesser vampire wouldn’t have been able to stop themself.”
She looked at her feet. I’m sorry, Serana. I didn’t know.
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” I looked around. “This place looks pretty different from when I was locked away.” I turned back to Marla. “Which reminds me, what is today’s date?”
It’s the 3rd of Hearthfire, 4E 201.
I was shocked. “It’s been almost a millennium…” That was far longer than Mother and I had planned. “Marla, if you want to know what’s going on, then help me get back to my family's home. I have to find out what’s happened.”
She considered it for a bit, then nodded. Where do you live?
“My family used to live on an island to the west of Solitude. I would guess they still do.” I looked around. “Any idea how to get out of here? This place looks pretty different from when I was locked away.”
Marla shrugged. Your guess is as good as mine.
—
Marla
As we looked for a way out, we fought sentient gargoyles, reanimated skeletons, and draugr. Before long, we came across a Word Wall. The wall was etched with an inscription in the Dragon Language.
Here lies the body of Svolo, I read. Who possessed strength to kill a Dragon but not the stamina to kill many.
“Impressive,” Serana remarked. “Not many people can read Dovahzul with such ease.”
Not many people are Dragonborn.
“Touche.”
As I approached the Word Wall, voices chanted in my head. There was a sizzling sound that got louder as I got closer to the highlighted Word of Power. Soon, I felt something within me stir. Then, I heard the word echo in my head.
Gaan. Stamina.
I stumbled backward. Serana caught me before I could fall. Thanks. I’ll never get used to that part.
Serana helped me up. “You learned a new Word of Power, didn’t you?”
We continued to look for a way out. I learned Gaan, meaning Stamina. Though I’ll need to meditate on it to figure out what the Shout is.
She raised an eyebrow. “You can meditate on the meaning of a new Word of Power?”
I nodded. Master Arngeir said I must hear the Word within myself before I can project it into a Thu’um. Admittedly, it does help that I’ve absorbed a few dragon souls.
The vampiress frowned. “How did you become mute?”
I looked away. I-I’m not ready to share that story yet. Mostly because it would sound utterly insane. Suffice to say, it happened before I came to Skyrim.
Serana nodded and dropped the subject. Which I was grateful for. After all, how do you tell someone you’re from another universe?
—
Flashback
I used to be an engineer at Aperture Laboratories. Part of the reason I got the job was so I could spend more time with my friend Chell. My job was quite enjoyable, though half of my coworkers were batshit crazy. Then again, perhaps you needed to be somewhat insane to work for this company.
Things were going well until GLaDOS was finished. With every activation, she’d try to kill everyone. Problem is, she got closer to succeeding with every attempt. So we tried to make her behave using Personality Cores. Alas, that didn’t work out as well as we hoped.
Eventually, GLaDOS won. On the annual “Bring Your Cat to Work Day” she finally seized control of the Enrichment Center. The homicidal AI locked down the entire facility and flooded it with neurotoxin. Those of us who survived were trapped in the facility.
Since GLaDOS had initiated a permanent cycle of testing, we did our best to evade her. We used twenty-year-old equipment to continue working. However, our numbers diminished as time went by. Before long, only a few of us remained.
In a rare instance of actual collaboration, we teamed up. We took measures to hide the location of the Extended Relaxation Annex, then implanted a system so it would only unlock upon gestures humans typically perform. After that, we parted ways. I put myself in cryostasis using a prototype stasis chamber I found tucked away in R&D. Alas, I underestimated how insane Dr. Alma was.
Dr. Alma was the director of Aperture’s Research & Development department. She was a brilliant woman who absolutely earned that position. Though I always thought she was on the crazier side of the “Aperture Science Insanity Spectrum.” Dr. Alma used to talk about uploading herself to a personality core. However, I never thought she’d actually do it.
Evidently, I was very, very wrong.
After many years of stasis, Dr. Alma found me. Unfortunately for me, she immediately told GLaDOS. So when I awakened, I found myself in a test chamber. “I was surprised when Dr. Alma told me about your stasis chamber,” GLaDOS remarked. “Even so, I was hoping you were alive. It would’ve been a shame if the neurotoxin had killed you.”
I glared at the nearest camera. “If you want me to be your test subject, then forget it,” I snapped. “I won’t be the guinea pig of a homicidal calculator.”
A dark laugh filled the room. “It’s adorable that you think you have a choice. You will test for me whether you like it or not. Otherwise, I’ll be forced to drag your lunatic friend back to the Enrichment Center.”
My eyes widened. “Chell’s alive?!”
“Indeed.” I could hear the sneer in her voice. “Your friend killed me a few months after my takeover. I had to relive my own death for what felt like an eternity. When she escaped me yet again, that lunatic put the moron you created in charge of my facility.”
“Wheatley was the central core?”
“Briefly. That moron had the nerve to put me in a potato battery? You know, if he had done that to someone else, they would probably devote their existence to exacting revenge on his creator.”
I gulped. My blood chilled at the tone in her voice. I really didn’t like where GLaDOS was going with this.
“Tell you what, I’ll put this all behind us as long as you cooperate. If you don’t, I will be forced to kill you and resume testing on your friend.”
“Leave her out of this!” I snarled. “I don’t know why you’d let Chell escape, but leave my cousin alone. You can do anything you want to me, just let my cousin be.”
A dark laugh filled the chamber. “You are a fool for defending that lunatic. Very well, I’ll leave your cousin alone. However, in exchange, you’re going to suffer for creating the idiot who’s now floating around in space.”
Another dark chuckle filled the chamber. Don’t worry about the physical injuries you’ll sustain. I’m going to prolong your life as much as I can. After all, I want you to suffer as much as humanly possible.”
That’s when my current predicament fully sunk in. I was trapped in Aperture. GLaDOS had me in her clutches and hated me for creating Wheatley. In addition, the homicidal calculator planned on keeping me alive for as long as she could.
In other words, I was never getting out of here.