Chapter 122 A New Terror
Chapter 122 A New Terror
With two Northwatch guards and four prisoners aboard a boat heading toward Castle Volkihar
“So, we’ve been ordered to escort these prisoners to that castle huh, Senior Roy?” said a watchguard named Leaf.
“Yeah, that’s right. But you need to be careful Leaf” Roy replied in a serious tone. “I’ve heard rumors… that place is a stronghold of vampires who have been hiding for hundreds of years.”
Hearing those words, the prisoners could only feel a deep sense of despair. Their hands and feet were bound in chains, and their eyes were covered, leaving them helpless as the boat carried them toward an uncertain fate.
Then, driven by curiosity, Leaf spoke up.
“Senior… why do you think we’re cooperating with those vampires?” he asked, his voice uncertain.
Roy let out a quiet hum before answering, his expression turning thoughtful.
“Hm… I don’t know either. Ambassador Elenwen’s plans are impossible to predict. All she wants is for Skyrim to weaken so we can take control of it for ourselves.” He paused briefly, then continued, “She’s probably preparing as many backup plans as possible in case one fails… and forming an alliance with those monsters might be one of them.”
Leaf swallowed, looking slightly uneasy.
“Senior… earlier at the gate, I think I accidentally acted a bit disrespectfully toward Ambassador Elenwen… Do you think she’s angry?”
Roy burst into laughter.
“Hahaha! If she were angry, your head would’ve already been cut off. She’s one of the most arrogant and ruthless High Elves there is. So if your head is still attached to your body right now, you can say you’ll be just fine.”
As their conversation faded into the cold sea air, the boat continued gliding across the dark, restless waters. The waves gently struck the hull, echoing softly in the silence, while a chilling mist began to gather around them. In the distance, a shadow slowly emerged from the horizon at first barely visible, like a looming phantom rising from the sea.
As they drew closer, the shape revealed itself.
A vast, ancient island stood before them, crowned by a colossal castle that pierced the sky. Castle Volkihar rose like a monument to something long forgotten its towering spires jagged and uneven its stone walls darkened by age, wind, and time itself.
The sea around the island grew unnaturally still, as if even the water feared what lay ahead.
The castle was undeniably majestic its scale overwhelming, its architecture grand beyond imagination but there was something deeply unsettling about it. Cracks and weathered edges told stories of centuries past, while its looming presence carried an oppressive weight, as though it had been watching… waiting… for a very long time.
From afar, it looked less like a place of residence and more like the throne of something ancient and terrifying.
They made their way toward the castle gates, where a gatekeeper stood waiting.
“What business do you have here, meat?” the guard sneered.
Roy stepped forward and reported firmly, “We are here under Ambassador Elenwen’s orders, to deliver these prisoners to your king.”
The guard’s eyes glowed a deep crimson as he caught the scent of fresh blood.
“Ah… I see. Very well, you may enter.”
Moments later, the great gates of Castle Volkihar slowly rose open before them.
After the two of them finished their task, they turned to head back to the boat, but one of the guards suddenly blocked their path.
“Hey, why the rush? Come inside. Our king has a special reward for you,” the guard said with a sly grin.
Hearing that, Leaf hesitated and glanced at Roy, their eyes meeting.
“Hm… I don’t think there’s anything wrong with receiving a reward from a king, right?” Leaf said.
“Hey, these are vampires we’re talking about,” Roy replied cautiously. “Our job is just to deliver the prisoners and report back. Besides… I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
Then the guard tried again, this time with a friendly tone and a welcoming smile.
“There’s nothing to worry about,” he said. “Our food is only the prisoners you brought. The king simply wishes to reward you… as a way to repay the High Elves for everything.”
Even so, they remained suspicious. But the guard stood firm, clearly unwilling to let them leave. Left with no other choice, they reluctantly gave in.
“…Alright, maybe just for a moment. We’ll stop by briefly,” Leaf said.
The guard’s smile widened.
“Ahh, good… very good. Please, come in.”
They then entered together with the prisoners. As soon as they were inside, the guard’s expression twisted into a wicked grin, a line of drool slipping from his lips.
“Ah… I can’t wait to feast on all six of them.”
Inside, the castle revealed a grandeur that felt both magnificent and suffocating. The moment they stepped past the gates, a cold damp air wrapped around them, carrying with it the faint metallic scent of blood mixed with the decay of something long forgotten. The stone floors beneath their feet were dark and polished, reflecting the dim glow of flickering torches mounted along towering pillars that stretched endlessly upward.
The prisoners’ blindfolds were removed, and all six of them were forced forward. Their footsteps echoed through the vast hall, each sound swallowed by the overwhelming emptiness of the chamber. High above, the ceiling arched like a cathedral, supported by massive stone columns carved with ancient, worn designs symbols that seemed to whisper of power, death, and eternity. Tattered banners hung from the walls, their colors faded, barely moving in the still, lifeless air.
Despite the decay, everything about the place radiated authority and dominance as if the castle itself was alive, silently watching every movement within its domain.
Leaf and Roy couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe. The scale alone was beyond anything they had ever seen. But for the prisoners, there was no wonder left in their eyes. Their gazes were empty, hollow souls long since broken after enduring relentless torture at Fort Northwatch Keep. They walked like shadows of their former selves, bodies moving, but spirits already gone.
Leaf tilted his head back, his eyes widening as he took in the towering ceiling that seemed to disappear into darkness.
“Look at this Roy…” he murmured, his voice echoing faintly. “This place is enormous. I’ve never seen anything this vast before.”
Roy however kept his guard up his expression tense.
“Leaf, stay focused. We need to remain alert… we’re dealing with vampires and their king.”
They descended a short stone staircase. A sickening smell began to rise, sharp and metallic clinging to the back of their throats with every breath.
At the bottom, a long banquet table stretched across the hall, grand in size yet utterly grotesque in its display.
Upon it lay chunks of freshly carved flesh, unevenly cut, still glistening under the dim torchlight. Thick dark red blood dripped slowly from the edges, pooling onto the surface and trailing down like spilled wine. The plates and goblets were smeared and stained, as if this feast had never truly ended only paused between victims.
But the most horrifying sight was not the meat.
It was the “source.”
Scattered along the table were living beings humans, Argonians, Dark Elves, even High Elves laid out like livestock. Their bodies were restrained, some barely conscious, their chests rising weakly with shallow breaths. Their skin had turned pale, almost gray drained of life.
Some of them were still alive… and aware.
Their eyes twitched in silent terror, unable to scream, unable to move. Thin tubes and sharpened instruments were embedded into their veins along their arms, necks, even near their hearts slowly extracting their blood. The crimson liquid flowed steadily through the tubes into ornate goblets, still warm, still fresh.
At the center of the table, a vampire sat calmly as if this were nothing more than a refined dinner. He lifted a goblet filled with freshly drawn blood, swirling it slightly before taking a slow, satisfied sip. A faint smile curled on his lips savoring the taste, while one of the still-living victims beside him trembled faintly helpless, reduced to nothing more than a source of sustenance.
Soft, broken sounds filled the hall faint whimpers, shallow breaths, the quiet drip of blood hitting stone.
It was not a feast.
It was a nightmare made real.
Roy and Leaf stood frozen in shock, unable to move for a moment. Then it hit them they were in danger.
“Roy… let’s get out of here. Maybe we still have time,” Leaf said, his voice tense.
Roy tried to stay logical forcing himself to think.
“Wait, Leaf. We’re under the Thalmor’s authority… there’s no way we’d be turned into their meal.”
At the far end of the hall, seated at the center of the long table, was a Nord man. His eyes glowed a deep crimson, and his mere gaze carried an overwhelming, intimidating presence.
His attention shifted toward the two Altmer Leaf and Roy. Suddenly, his body dissolved into a swarm of bats that rushed toward them. The bats then gathered and merged once more, reforming into the Nord man right before their eyes.
“Ahh… aren’t these the guests we’ve been waiting for?” he said with a dark smile. “Look, my kin they’ve brought us fresh stock for our feast.”
Hearing that, Roy and Leaf felt a brief sense of relief. Despite the man’s terrifying presence, he seemed to be acknowledging their purpose.
“Ah… thank you for your kind words, my lord,” Roy said respectfully. “Lady Elenwen has sent these four prisoners as an offering for your grand feast.”
The man simply smiled, then began to introduce himself.
“Ah, forgive me. As your host, I have yet to introduce myself. I am Harkon the master of this castle… and the lord of all vampires here.”
Leaf and Roy immediately bowed their heads in respect.
“But… something is a little strange,” Harkon continued.
Roy and Leaf straightened slightly, looking back at him with confusion.
“What seems to be the matter, Your Grace?” Roy asked.
Harkon’s smile slowly twisted into something far more sinister. The faint curve of his lips deepened, his crimson eyes gleaming with a cold, predatory light as the entire hall seemed to fall into an unnatural silence. Even the faint sounds of feeding ceased, as if every creature present instinctively yielded to his presence.
“From what I recall…” he said softly, his voice calm yet carrying an overwhelming weight that pressed down on the air itself, “…I asked for six pieces of meat, did I not?”
The words echoed slow, deliberate like a quiet sentence of death.
Before either of them could react
Harkon moved.
There was no warning, no visible motion only a blur.
In the next instant, his hand was already buried deep within Leaf’s chest, piercing through flesh and bone as if they were nothing. The sickening sound of tearing echoed faintly, followed by a wet, choking gasp. Leaf’s body froze, his eyes widening in pure disbelief as blood spilled from his lips, his entire form trembling violently.
Harkon didn’t even look at him.
He simply stood there arm plunged into Leaf’s chest, his expression utterly calm as if what he had just done required no effort at all.
Roy’s mind went blank.
Shock consumed him completely. His heart pounded violently in his chest, his vision shaking as reality struggled to catch up with what had just happened.
“L–Leaf…?”
But there was no response.
Only the slow drip of blood hitting the stone floor.
Instinct took over.
With a sudden shout, Roy drew the sword from his waist in a single motion and lunged forward, swinging with everything he had. The blade cut through the air and struck Harkon’s chest cleanly a solid, desperate blow meant to kill.
The impact echoed sharply through the hall.
And yet…
Something felt terribly wrong.
Roy was confused he was certain that blow should have killed him. None of the surrounding vampires moved to help Harkon, which only made it stranger. But what shocked him even more… Harkon was still standing there, completely unfazed.
“W-what…?” Roy stammered.
Slowly, the deep slash across Harkon’s chest began to heal at an unnatural speed. The wound closed before Roy’s eyes, leaving no trace behind. Terror gripped him, and he stumbled backward, falling to the ground.
“M… mo… monster…”
He kept retreating, his legs trembling uncontrollably as he crawled backward. Harkon approached him at a slow, deliberate pace, a low laugh escaping his lips.
“Ahh… how pitiful. A soldier abandoned by his superiors.”
In the next instant, Harkon moved.
There was no buildup, no shift in posture one moment he stood a few steps away, and the next, he was already in front of Roy. The air itself seemed to distort around him, his form blurring like a shadow slipping through reality. It felt less like movement… and more like the world failing to keep up with him.
Roy’s eyes widened in pure terror. His body tried to react his muscles tensed, his hand instinctively tightening around the sword but it was far too late.
A cold presence loomed right before him.
Harkon’s hand rose with effortless grace, his expression unchanged calm, almost bored. There was no anger, no excitement… only absolute dominance. For a brief, horrifying moment, their eyes met Roy’s filled with panic and disbelief, Harkon’s with nothing but cold superiority.
“Too slow,” Harkon whispered.
Then
A single, swift motion.
His hand cut through the air with unnatural precision.
There was no resistance. No struggle.
Roy’s vision spun violently as the world tilted his body no longer responding, his thoughts shattering into confusion. For a fleeting second, he didn’t even understand what had happened… until everything went dark.
Silence followed.
Harkon stood still, lowering his hand as if he had merely brushed something aside. Not a single drop of effort showed on his face. Slowly, he turned his gaze toward the two lifeless bodies now lying on the cold stone floor one collapsed, the other headless.
He let out a faint scoff, his lips curling into a cold, arrogant smirk.
“Heh… nothing but livestock,” he muttered. “You should feel honored you died by my own hand. Be grateful in the afterlife.”
Around him, the hall seemed to breathe once more. The vampires resumed their feast as if nothing had happened, the soft sounds of feeding and quiet murmurs filling the air again. Blood continued to drip, echoing faintly like a ticking clock in a place where life held no meaning.
And somewhere beyond those ancient walls…
Skyrim stood unaware.
Unaware that a new terror had begun to rise one that no longer hid in the shadows, but was ready to step into the light.