Igrid IV

Igrid thought about the vampire's reasoning before nodding in understanding.

"I understand what you mean. But, what about the visions? Were they real?" the Nord asked, needing to confirm if such things were viable.

"Perhaps he did have visions, I don't know. But I do know that he never wavered in his conviction for a moment. That I know now and knew then the night he left my room aggrieved and insensed, he never wavered in his beliefs for an instant...."

Before Igrid could ask another question, the vampire spoke barely above a whisper...

"....and within minutes of our argument, he was dead."

Igrid's eyes widened before he asked in surprise..." how!?"

The vampire looked into Igrid's eyes before continuing on...

"He simply walked out onto the balcony of his room and then fell. He was dead when I reached the ground, his neck broken..." his voice was firm and his eyes serene, but it was obvious the words hurt him deeply.

"Did you see him fall?..."

"No, but two of my workers saw him. Based on their accounts, he simply looked up into the air dazedly before saying something the two couldn't hear. He then walked off the balcony with his head raised as if trying to follow something he saw in the sky..."

Igrid didn't know what to say or how to console someone that had obviously grieved for hundreds if not thousands of years. He only watched as the vampire stared at the wooden table as if committing the lines to memory...

"I could not forgive myself..." the vampire continued.

"....and neither could my sister Valerica. She blamed me for my brother's death, as I was the one to argue with him right before his.....accident. Nothing I could say would convince her....it wasn't long after that dreadful event I became the......... 'thing' I am today."

Igrid listened closely as this was the most interesting thing he's experienced since coming to Skyrim. He wondered if vampires would become commonplace in Dome City or Altissia after people gain exposure, and perhaps he himself would become a Son of The Night.

"Suffice it to say that it took months of recovery before I regained a glimmer of my former self, but by that time Valerica had already run away. I had lost my mother, my father, and my brother...thus I swore to never lose my sister as well..."

"After months of tracking and investigations, I arrived at a mysterious location on the northern shore of Skyrim. In the distance, I saw Castle Volkihar, the home of the vampiric royal family and thus, the Vampire Lords."

"What I didn't know at the time was the entire castle and surrounding grounds are covered in Blood Wards: A type of runic blood magic that Vampire Royals specialize in. Only those who share the blood of the vampiric royal family or those who call the castle home can even glimpse the structure..."

Igrid put two-and-two together and asked tentatively..." so your sister was taken and enslaved by the vampires in the castle?"

*chuckle*

"Oh, if only she could've been so lucky. No, she became one of them.....the wife of Harkon, Lord of Castle Volkihar. He didn't like that his new love had a human brother, so after I visited the vampires in their home, I was captured and my sister was offered a choice. Either I die, or become a vampire like her...."

Igrid looked at the vampire, knowing his choice obviously. He waited for more but just as the man was about to speak, the vampire hissed while showcasing his fangs with eyes shining brightly.

"....they've found me." the vampire said resolutely as he stood up and perched on the banister while sniffing the air.

"Who found you?..."

"My dear brother-in-law's loyal dogs, they've been chasing me for countless years. A petty man that Harkon...I'm sorry we have to cut our meeting short. Please, take this ring and head into the Inn, you will know the importance of it in time. If the hunters find out you're with me, they'll gut you..."

In the distance, a few shadowed silhouettes were jumping down the nearby cliff draped in royal vampire attire.

"GO!..." the vampire snarled before he burst into a group of bats that rushed toward the incoming attackers.

Igrid quickly hid from the approaching vampires and slunk his way into the Inn, those within the warm building were unaware of the happenings outside. The children of the night are having a bloody battle just outside their peaceful tavern...

After shutting the door behind him, Igrid lifted the black ring given by the old vampire but when he saw the familiar engravings, the memory of that mysterious man floated to his mind. The man's warning accompanied the memory and without thinking at all, Igrid threw the black ring into the hearth fire...walking calmly to the bartender.