The Choice

[AN]: Sorry for missing not posting last week. My wife threw out her back and couldn't hardly move for about a week. Combine that with having to do more reports at work, and I didn't have enough time to actually write anything.

Well, enough about me. Let's get to what people really care about. The story.

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Valerica's study was covered in dust as it had laid untouched for a long time. Pathways through the dust indicated where Alucard had traveled while he searched through it. Despite all of this, it was still clear how much time and effort were placed into organizing and cleaning the study. Books were still alphabetically sorted; candles were placed in perfect symmetry and other little details spoke of the ancient vampire's meticulous nature.

Serana looked with wide eyes at her mother's secret area as she quickly walked around.

"Look at this place. This is definitely my mother's place. I knew she was deep into necromancy. I mean, she taught me everything I know. But I had no idea she had a setup like this. Look at all this. She must have spent years collecting these components."

Rictus looked impressed, despite not really knowing much about the importance of the components. He was curious about Serana's knowledge of necromancy though. He remembered her being able to reanimate the undead, but that was about the extent. Could she do more than that spell? It was something to consider asking her in the future.

"Your mother kept quite the laboratory that's for certain."

She didn't even look back at him as she kept exploring.

"I had no idea that her laboratory even existed. She had an alchemy setup in her drawing room, but nothing that even comes close to what's here. Looking at the equipment and materials, it seems she was trying to advance her necromancy."

Serana came back towards the middle of the room and stood near the large circle taking up much of the floor space.

"And what's this thing? It's obviously... something. I would hazard a guess it is the portal you mentioned Alucard."

The nerd turned vampire lord gave her a slight bow.

"Indeed, it is my lady. I also have this journal which I believe you will find most interesting. It is how I knew what ingredients to prepare for our trip to the Soul Cairn."

He pulled out a small red journal from his robes and handed it to her. She quickly flipped through the book before she turned a guarded gaze back towards Alucard.

"What do you know about the Soul Cairn?"

He straightened up while placing a hand on his chin as he entered lecture mode.

"The Soul Cairn is a plan of Oblivion inhabited by souls and undead. It is controlled by beings referred to as the Ideal Masters, who it is believed were powerful necromancers many ages ago. When a soul is trapped in a black soul gem and its energy used to power an enchantment or something similar, the remnant of that soul is sent to the Soul Cairn. Many necromancers desire the powerful undead which inhabit it, so they try and make deals with the Ideal Masters, but such things can be quite treacherous."

Serana nodded her head along with his explanation. It lined up a lot with the theories her mother had.

"My mother spent a lot of time trying to contact them directly. Based off the circle in the center of the room, her notes, and your words, it should provide us safe passage. The reason you mentioned my blood must be because my mother used her blood originally, and I am of her bloodline. It should be good enough for our purposes."

Instead of giving her blood to Alucard, Serana worked on completing the ritual herself. She reviewed the circle a few times while referencing the journal before moving up some stairs onto the balcony overlooking the room. All the ingredients, beside her blood, were placed in an ornate vessel by the railing. She tripled checked everything since trusting Alucard to have done everything correctly seemed like a bad idea. Once satisfied with all the preparations, she turned towards Rictus who had been silently waiting this whole time.

"The rest is up to me. Are you ready to go? I'm not entirely sure what this thing is going to do when I add my blood."

Rictus smiled at her confidently.

"The 'thing' will open a portal to the Soul Cairn once your blood is added. I do not doubt that one bit. Before we start there is something I'd like to ask you."

She turned an inquisitive eye towards him.

"Of course. What is it?"

"What will you do when we find your mother?"

The question made her pause as she tried voicing her opinion.

"I've been asking myself the same thing ever since we came back to the castle. She was so sure of what we did to my father, I couldn't help but go along with her. I never thought of the cost."

Rictus had a contemplative look before he spoke again.

"I don't really know what she was thinking, but it does seem like she may have done everything for your sake."

No words were immediately spoken in reply as Serana had a faraway look in her eyes. Eventually quite words spilled from her mouth.

"I also don't know what she was thinking. She always seemed happy, before we heard the prophecy. Then it all changed as she became a different person. They both did. Still, I guess even a vampire mother is still a mother. She worried about me. About all of us. But she wanted to get me as far away from my father as possible before he really went over the edge."

A comforting pat on her shoulder pulled her from any more lingering depressing thoughts.

"Well, we won't know until we find her. Then you can ask her whatever you want."

Her face broke out in a smile at his words as she looked away shyly.

"Yes…yes, you're right. I'm sorry. I just didn't expect anyone to care how I felt about her. Thank you."

Alucard chose this moment to clear his throat.

"I don't mean to interrupt your moment, but are we ready? I do believe the faster we can reunite you with your mother, the better."

Adopting a more serious attitude, Serana nodded at the two of them.

"All right. Here it goes."

Taking a knife from her side, she made a small cut on the tip of her index finger. A single drop of blood pooled on her finger before slowly dropping down into the rest of the ingredients. As soon as it did, the entire room began shaking. Brilliant purple light shined upwards from the ritual circle as the stones started shifting. The stones floated into the air as they rotated around until they formed a walkway connecting the balcony to a dark purple portal in the floor. Power pulsed from the portal as all three of them stared in wonder at it.

"By the blood of my ancestors… She actually did it… created a portal to the Soul Cairn. Incredible. Simply Incredible."

Rictus agreed with Serana's words. It was incredible. He had many experiences with teleportation, but this portal was on a different level. Opening a portal to a plane of Oblivion was much more impressive than what his rituals did. Summoning creatures from Oblivion didn't really count for much but sending people from here to there with a viable and stable means of return was much more impressive.

He had made sure to commit everything he had seen to memory as well as all the ingredients used. Rictus didn't think he would ever want to return to the Soul Cairn, but it was still good knowledge to possess. Maybe with some alterations, he could travel to other planes of Oblivion, maybe even carve out his own piece like the Ideal Masters had done so long ago. 'I know it's a bit farfetched, but a man can dream.'

Knowing what would likely happen but deciding he needed to try for himself anyways, Rictus steeled walked towards the portal. At first there was no pain as he started descending, but that quickly changed the further he went. It started off slightly discomfortable after going a third the way down, then progressed to little pin pricks all over his skin after getting about two thirds the way, finally, as he stood right at the entrance, it felt like someone was actively skinning him alive. During the whole thing, there was an inexplicable feeling of being observed.

Rictus was panting as sweat dripped down the side of his face as he quickly made his way back up. Serana approached him with concern while Alucard was giving him an incredulous look.

"Are you alright? That looked painful."

"Are you serious? That was stupid."

The simultaneous responses got Rictus to smile despite the way he was feeling. He agreed with both of them, but he had to make sure his theory was correct. His magic resistances didn't count for much in this situation. The Soul Cairn targeted his life essence and while he theorized his resistances may have helped some since he had gotten very close to the portal, it didn't make a difference. There was a moment while he was feeling watched he felt almost like something had called out to him. It didn't really speak any words, but he knew what it wanted.

Souls.

Rictus somehow knew one of the Ideal Masters was asking for payment for entering the Soul Cairn. 'Like I would really deliver 250 black soul gems just for entry into this place. While I do have some, it is nowhere near that much. I wonder if the power of someone's soul directly affects how much they are willing to trade. The games not allowing the dragonborn such a choice would make sense then because the soul of the last dragonborn is so much more powerful than any normal mortal's soul, especially after they start absorbing dragon souls.' Still, he wasn't left much a choice if he wanted to enter the portal.

"That was more painful than I hoped. Turns out magic resistance does not allow someone to easily force their way into the Soul Cairn."

Alucard only shook his head at his actions and spoke before Serana could voice her concern.

"You should have already known such things. Your willingness to take risks is a bit worrying."

Serana gave him a withering look before turning back towards Rictus.

"I should have expected that and told you about it. Sorry. The Soul Cairn is…well, hungry, for lack of a better word. It was trying to take your life essence as payment."

She looked him over before hesitantly speaking again.

"There may be a way for you to enter, but I don't think you're going to like it. Vampires aren't counted among the living. We could probably go through there without a problem."

Seeing his raised eyebrow, she quickly kept talking before he could respond.

"We could also just 'pay the toll' another way. It wants a soul, so we give it a soul. Yours."

Rictus shook his head at that option.

"I am not trading my soul to the Ideal Masters."

Serana waved her hands defensively.

"That isn't what would really happen. My mother taught me a trick or two. I could partially soul trap you and offer that gem to the Ideal Masters. It might be enough to satisfy them. It would make you a bit weaker when we travel through the Soul Cairn, but we might be able to fix it once we're inside….maybe."

Her confidence in that option did not encourage Rictus in the slightest. If anything, it made him even more against it. Seeing his disappointment, Serana spoke in a quiet yet comforting voice.

"I'm sorry. I wish I knew a better way, something that would be easier for you. Just know that… whatever path you choose, I won't think any less of you. Sometimes things just must be done. I know that better than anybody."

Serana's final words had been spoken under her breath, but Rictus still heard the pain in her words. He couldn't help but sigh at the entire situation.

Despite knowing this could happen and even fantasizing about storming the Soul Cairn to rescue Korir's family after they had been soul trapped, Rictus had no clever solution to entering the portal. There was no sudden MC magic that gave him the exact knowledge he needed or some special offscreen training he had done, or item he found, which would get him into the Soul Cairn. Sometimes the most obvious solution was the only one.

"I don't really see or know another way. I'll become a vampire."

Serana looked a little surprised at how fast he came to a decision.

"Are you sure? I'm willing to turn you, but you need to think it through. You'd become the very thing your people are trying to destroy. I don't know how your Restored, the Dawnguard, or the Vigilants of Stendarr will react."

Rictus smiled at her concern for his wellbeing. It was appreciated, but not needed. He actually had a pretty good idea how they all would react. The Dawnguard would try and hunt him down. The Vigilants would probably do the same, although Dante may do it reluctantly. The Restored wouldn't really care. They followed him because of who he was. Him changing into a vampire would not sway their loyalty.

"I understand the risks. Your concern is noted and welcome. I'm ready."

The serious atmosphere was completely broken by Alucard raising his hand in a silent high five behind Serana's back while mouthing 'Team Vampire.' Rictus had to try really hard not to roll his eyes at that. Serana meanwhile had an almost embarrassed look on her face.

"Turning someone is a very…personal thing for vampires. It's intimate. For us. I don't want you to feel like I'm forcing you into this."

He couldn't help smiling at her acting so bashful.

"In that case, I'm honored you're the one doing it."

His smile turned sly as he narrowed his eyes and wiggled his eyebrows while looking at Alucard.

"So, turning is intimate huh? That means Alucard and Harkon got intimate while everyone was watching right? I suppose Harkon is quite handsome with his fierce goatee, manly features, and strong physique. I'll go ahead and let you know I am not interested in men so don't get any funny ideas in your head Alucard."

Alucard started stuttering as his eyes widened in disbelief while Serana chuckled at his reaction. Rictus also couldn't help laughing at the other man getting so flustered over his little joke. Alucard let out a huff as he rolled his eyes and turned around while blushing. The laughter soon died out though as Serana approached Rictus.

"I promise to try and make this as painless as possible. Hold Still."

Rictus tiled his head to the side as she approached him. Next thing he knew, her fangs were biting down into his exposed neck. He could feel something coursing through his veins and throughout his entire body. All his muscles tensed up as a burning sensation assaulted him. Time lost all meaning for a moment as it was just the strange, slightly painful, sensations filling his entire being as Serana's fangs were still clamped on him.

Eventually, it all came to an end as Serana took a step back. She looked at him with an indescribable expression while Rictus was taking catalogue of his new body. Things were…different. The vampire virus had infected ever cell of his being while he could tell there was a slight void inside him. It didn't necessarily feel bad, just different. He could tell that his body had been enhanced even beyond what he had already done to himself. For a split second, Rictus swore he heard laughter, but brushed it off.

Strength filled his body while he also felt closer to his magic, as if it was easier to grasp. He flexed his muscles and did some stretches as he got used to his new body. The enhancements would be quite useful while in the Soul Cairn. He still wasn't certain he would stay this way, but that was a worry for later. Once he returned from this trip, he would get Serana to further explain his powers. Maybe he could even figure out what the virus did that so dramatically increased someone's strength. If he could, it would prove a massive boon to the Restored. 'Hmm perhaps I will need to sample the Werewolf after this as well…'

Without waiting any longer and risking getting lost in in thoughts, Rictus confidently walked towards the portal. It was finally time to enter the Soul Cairn.

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[AN]: I decided just to go with the classic vampire option for a couple reasons. The biggest one was that choosing the soul trapping option in a realistic setting just seemed stupid to me. Not a big deal in game, but splitting your soul is never really a good idea in my opinion. Also, I didn't/couldn't come up with something clever that would be able to circumvent the rules of entering the Soul Cairn.

So, I just left it with the same options the game gave the dragonborn, and Rictus chose the best option available to him. He could have let Serana and Alucard go alone, but that would have just been boring for the story. Let me know what you think or if you have any cool ideas on how it could have been done better.