After the Battle

Rictus lounged on a stone throne reading a book and glancing at the others discussing what would come next. He could have been part of the discussion but didn't really feel up for it. So he was taking a little quiet time before things picked back up.

It took some time, but Mirajane had composed herself with a fiery determination. He found it a little strange how no one bothered them while she was sad, but as soon as she seemed in control, everyone showed up. What kind of convenient timing was that?

Paarthurnax showed up first as he moved his massive dragon bulk over and began talking about the previous battle and some of his regret. Pretty standard stuff which Rictus felt a little bored by. Sure, the old dragon helped, but when it really came down to the wire, he wasn't a factor at all. Not only Paarthurnax, but the Greybeards also arrived on the summit. They were a strange group of old men, that was for sure. These men were some of the most powerful people in all the land, and they just isolated themselves on top of this frigid mountain all by themselves. The fact they hid away in their little temple while the end of the world was happening right next door instantly made Rictus dislike them. If they had been normal old men, it would be different, but these guys could knock down city walls with their voice. They would have been a big help in the fight against Alduin.

As he propped his feet up, Rictus detected three other people hurrying this way. Mirajane and the others were still caught up in their discussion and didn't even notice their arrival. The three slowly approached where Rictus was sitting and casually flipping through a book. A tall and powerfully built Nord woman was the first to speak.

"We were too late, weren't we?"

Rictus didn't even glance away from his book as he replied to Mjoll the Lioness.

"Yup."

His simple response dampened all their spirits as they drooped in disappointment. An Imperial mage wearing robes spat in disgust, Rictus figured this must be Marcurio.

"I told you both we should have pressed harder and not stopped for a rest. We could have made it here if we tried harder. The amount of money would could get saying we helped defeat Alduin would have been immense."

"IF we had done that, we would have been exhausted and a liability. Not to mention killing our mounts. Can't get paid if you're dead."

Marcurio and Mjoll continued arguing back and forth about what they should have done. Rictus couldn't help sighing in exasperation. He couldn't understand why they were doing it beside him and not running towards Mirajane. They didn't even know him. Maybe they were intimidated by Paarthurnax? The third member of the team spoke up this time.

"I am wondering what book you are reading with such intensity. Is it so good you can ignore the annoying pre sexual ritual of these two? If so, please lend me a copy."

Rictus chuckled as he looked over and saw a Khajiit with bluish fur with white war paint and a scar on his face. Rictus couldn't help smiling as he saw one of his favorite companions from the game.

"Well Inigo, this book is one of a kind, so I don't have any copies for you. Maybe once I am done, Mirajane will let you read it."

Inigo nodded in understanding without making a comment. Marcurio and Mjoll reacted loudly to Inigo's accusation. Rictus let out another sigh as his brow twitched in annoyance at the constant bickering. He just wanted to finish reading his book without distraction. Was that too much to ask for? Sensing his annoyance, Inigo gave him a look over before posing a question.

"So, have you ever just gone berserk and rip someone's head off? You look like you could do it."

His lips curved upward in a large smile at the question.

"Actually, I have done that a couple times before. It was a lot easier than I had previously imagined, and it definitely left an impact on those who witnessed it. Well, the ones who still lived. Thankfully, I have a lot of patience and don't get annoyed easily by the useless bickering of strangers standing right beside me."

Inigo chuckled at that while the others grew a little pale as they took a better look at him. The interest on Inigo's face was clear to see, but before he could ask about it, Rictus shewed them all away.

"While I do so LOVE the company, I don't think a chat with me is why you are here. Maybe once this is over, we can share a drink. Don't worry about the dragon. He is friendly for the most part. I am sure Mirajane would want you by her side right now."

The three quickly grew more serious as they nodded their heads and moved away from him. Rictus watched them for a moment longer before turning back to his book. It was probably a good thing the three weren't here for the battle. While they were all accomplished and powerful warriors, fighting Alduin was something else entirely. Not giving them another thought, he looked back down at his book.

'While most consider the first summoning the most difficult, persuading a dremora lord that exploding is a good thing is much more difficult the second time…'

Rictus continued browsing Solomon's old Grimoire looking for spells and other things of interest. He had been pleasantly surprised the book had survived the fight and final confrontation. Part of him had thought the grimoire would have disappeared after Solomon died, but that was not the case. It was not as magically potent as it was before, but there were still some traces of magic left in the book. For the most part though, it was basically just a normal book though. Still, there were many interesting things written in it.

All the spells Solomon had known were recorded in it with tips and tricks for casting them. This book was basically a Conjuration training manual on steroids. Following its instructions could easily train up any wanna be Conjurer. What Rictus found even more attention grabbing than the spells were the notes towards the back of the book. It was Solomon's diary.

From what Rictus could gather, Solomon had actually been the original Skilled of Conjuration. It was a little more complicated than that though. At a young age, Solomon had found this book and started having strange dreams not long after. In his dreams, he followed the POV of someone, who was obviously the dragonborn, along various quests. They were extremely vivid and there were additional dreams of a strange world filled with a strange type of metal magic similar to the ancient Dwemer. The things he described made Rictus think the dreams were about Earth. While Rictus had been the primary consciousness, it seemed Solomon only had some unconscious memories from his life before entering the Elder Scrolls world.

Another fascinating thing about Solomon was that he was part of the Thalmor. His proficiency for conjuration magics had drawn their attention early on, and he was recruited into their ranks. He had told his superiors a partial truth about his 'prophetic' dreams and was sent on assignment here in Skyrim. That was how he had ended up meeting Mirajane in Helgen. Periodic reports were sent back as he traveled with the dragonborn and assessed the threat she represented. If she proved too dangerous, he would dispose of her at the most opportune time.

Things changed though in a cliché way. As Solomon traveled along with Mirajane, his feelings got more complicated and confusing. It wasn't long until he started falling in love with her. He was initially conflicted about his feelings as he couldn't tell if his dreams were affecting him or if the feelings were genuine. Eventually, he accepted his feelings for her though and committed himself fully. False reports were given until he heard about what Rictus had done against the Thalmor Embassy and how they retreated back into themselves. Then he stopped reporting in entirely and did everything he could to avoid Thalmor attention or getting too close to the Embassy.

Solomon had also confessed his background and his feelings to Mirajane. She had initially been furious, but she quickly understood his circumstances. The two had grown even closer after his confession, but they both agreed now was not the best time for them to further explore their relationship. Rictus personally didn't agree with that standpoint, but he could understand it. He also found out that part of the reason Solomon was so antagonistic towards him was because Rictus was perceived as a threat and an unknown by the Thalmor. This changed after Solomon defected though.

Rictus hadn't read such an interesting book in a long time. It was almost like some random cliched love story he could have read back on Earth. A rumbling noise drew his attention away from it though as he looked up to see Paarthurnax's giant maw in front of him.

"Hello there Paarthurnax. How can I help you?"

Seeing he wasn't intimidated in the slightest, Paarthurnax let out a slight huff.

"You are bold, wunduniik (traveller). You dare enter and alter a Dovah's home without permission."

Rictus scoffed at that. He motioned around at all the destruction from the battle.

"I am surprised you noticed amid all these other alterations. Don't worry though, I will remove it once I leave."

A giant eye was turned towards him and stared unblinking for a few moments.

"You look like the other joorre (mortals), but you do not act or smell quite right. As if something is just barely off."

Paarthurnax gave him another long look before turning around and moving away without another word. Rictus really wanted to go confront him on what was said and even stood up before reminding himself this was not the time. Mirajane and Falla coming over with their companions behind them also helped distract him from pursuing the ancient dragon. Falla quickly spoke up when she neared.

"Sorry about all that. Papa Paarth was being really weird for some reason. We do have a plan now though and would love your help."

Rictus raised his eyebrows at finding it was Paarthurnax who didn't want to speak to him as well as her calling him Papa Paarth again. Mirajane misunderstood his confusion and explained the plan instead of what he really wanted to know.

"We are going to trap a dragon in Dragonsreach in Whiterun. I believe having you there when we petition the Jarl would be beneficial. Once we capture the dragon, I will force it to take me wherever Alduin fled."

She spoke with pure determination and malice tinged her tone when she spoke Alduin's name. Rictus could understand where she was coming from. He would act similar if someone killed his Minion like that.

"I can do that, but I do have a question. Well, more like a concern really."

He then stared into Mirajane's eyes.

"Do you think you are prepared to fight Alduin again so quickly?"

It looked like she was going to lash out at him for asking that, but Mirajane reigned herself in and thought about the question. A few moments later, she let out a slightly defeated sigh.

"No. I don't."

Before any once could speak words of encouragement or rebuff her, she spoke again.

"I doubt I will ever truly be prepared for fighting Alduin. One cannot easily prepare for such a fearsome opponent. That does not mean I am helpless though. I am giving myself two days to scour the surrounding countryside over the next couple days for dragons. They will die, and I will absorb their souls and powers into myself. I do not dare take any more time than that though."

Rictus nodded in thought at the plan. It wasn't a terrible one. She would need ever speck of power she could amass before facing Alduin yet again. The battles against other dragons would also bolster her confidence and release some of her pent up anger before facing her true target.

"I think that is a great plan, but there is something I would change."

This piqued their interest as they waited for him to continue.

"I think it better I just show you. No time holding back since we are on a time crunch. I am trusting you all with a secret and will personally kill any who betray my trust. If you follow me, I can guarantee it will be worth your time."

Mirajane gave him a simple nod. She would take whatever help she could get if it meant defeating Alduin, and she would make sure none of her team would betray Rictus's trust. That much she could handle. They expected him to talk or move, but seeing Rictus just standing there without moving or speaking made them all think something may be wrong though. As they were getting ready to ask a question, Rictus smiled and winked at them.

"I hope none of you get nauseous easy."

Mirajane was just about to ask what he meant when she felt a tug of magic on her. The suddenness of it surprised her and caused her not to fight it. She stared back at Rictus wondering what he had just done, but he just smiled back at her. Being toyed with wasn't her favorite thing and the constant movement of people running around was distracting.

That stopped her in her tracks as she took a good look around. They were no longer outside at the Throat of the World.

"What just happened?"

Seeing their shocked expression, Rictus couldn't help chuckling. It was Marcurio who first figured it out.

"How? I thought only the Psijic Order knew how to teleport?"

Rictus just smiled conspiratorially while tapping the side of his nose.

"Everyone has their secrets. Maybe once you are done running around with Mirajane here, I could show you a thing or two. The Restored have many magical secrets after all. This is but one of them."

He then turned and looked back at Mirajane.

"Now, this all depends on how hard you are wanting to work. I have teleporters set up in various locations around Skyrim. With this, there is no reason to waste time traveling and searching for dragons. My people can locate them quick enough, then you can teleport to the closest location. This way, you can defeat the most dragons in the shortest period of time."

A fierce look appeared on her face at the thought of rapidly killing dragons.

"What are we waiting for?"

-----

Rictus let out a bit stretch as he moved away from the teleporter in the Vale. The first hunt had been an easy success, so much so he almost felt a little bad for the poor brutalized dragon, just almost though. Instead of staying with the dragonborn the entire time, he had Reysera watching over them and teleporting them around. There were other things he could be doing instead of playing chauffeur.

"Now, where were we?"

Gnashing of teeth, growls, threats, begging and whimpers could all be heard as he posed the question. Looking around at the menagerie of creatures arrayed before him, Rictus couldn't help but wonder if maybe he wasn't a nice a guy as he thought.

"Maybe, but people do animal testing all the time, and I'd classify everything here as an animal."

Hearing someone clear their throat, Rictus turned and looked back.

"Ah, Moira. You are already here, excellent. We only got two days. While normally I prefer quality work, the time crunch may mean we use quantity instead as a way to overcome that limitation. Please keep careful notes as we begin."

Turning back to a thoroughly chained table, Rictus began dictating.

"Experiment SV Number 23. Effects of a Briarheart during Sanguine Vampiric Transition for Minotaurs."

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[AN]: Sorry for the delay. Got extra busy at work this week. Also, writing a chapter after releasing a really big chapter like last week is always a bit more difficult for me. Next chapter will have some more experiments and other house keeping stuff. If you have anything in particular you want to see, let me know. No promises it will be used, but stranger things have happened.