A Contract, A Bind

Sigh.

Relaxing.

Doing nothing but tending the room every day.

Since when he was given such privilege and how long, he wonders. The home he used to stop being home, other than a shelter to rest his weary back. Dark and dreary, which was ironic it was the same as his current home but he knew something will be different this time.

He was by no means a hard-worker, his ethics changed by the time he landed how harsh it was, stranded in the middle of nowhere in the fast lane of adulthood. Curses are a school, nothing that teaches him how to greet, how to please people's, other than a few sheets of papers that basically pretty useless when he needs a job.

With the last touch, a sprinkle of mana it was done. It was the last piece of furniture in his humble abode below the ground, in the sewers of the city. A table that gave green supernatural glows, etched with ritual marking and glyphs, also the symbols that represent the 5 primary magic schools. It was an enchanting table, at least it should be. New candles waxes were placed on a row in the top edge of the tables as a red orb fitted snuggly in the center of the said edges.

Granted it was harder than he expected, even with some memories of the Dragonborn helping him. He needs to get a few special ingredients and rituals so the table could work as intended. So far, he only needs to redo the rituals twice before succeeding. Which reasonably frustrating as he didn't have the necessary tools to create the green balls or orbs that appeared in the game enchanting tables, as it was made of glass and he needs to replace it with another material namely Sigil Stone that he acquired throughout his journey in Skyrim.

The shape was rather similar he thought, and the function is practically the same that is being the catalyst and conductor to perform enchanting. Sigil stone originally came from the realm of the Daedra, notoriously used by the Prince of Destruction, Mehrunes Dagon to open the Oblivion gate that poured his invasion forces to Tamriel at then end of the Third Era.

The room was fairly furnished, with his self-made shelves, a row of baskets, scrolls already taking up the spaces, plant pots, and another table at the other side of the room, Alchemist table. The stone wall was now coated with wooden planks, and so is, the floor. There are now 6 rooms, with three addition he broke and dig the wall. A bedroom lined up with a kitchen and small dining tables, in the left is the door to his study that housed the enchanting and alchemy tables, in the further end a small trapdoor leading to his blacksmithing workshop. The other three were the pantry for cold storage and boiler room that powered up the entire houses, and also bathroom.

The enchanting school was rather the best school he ever had, with a few glyph and mana he can create a working freezer, granted he needs to constantly power it. That's where the boiler room comes in. He initially wanted to use the Sigil Stone to act as a power battery but shelved the idea due to fear of malfunction that can cause perhaps, an accidental portal to oblivion or tear the entire room and sucked them into it. In the end, he uses a few Welkynd stones to act as the battery that could draw ambient power instead.

Short story short, Welkynd stone was supposedly to crumble after one-time use due to the faulty method extracting the energy inside. It turns out, he installed a mod that brings back Cyroodil province and unlocks the secret of Welkynd stone after finishing a few chain quests that involving long-term expedition to one of the great ruins of the Ayleid.

Back to the beginning, he tested the enchanting table. Turns out it perform flawlessly as he managed to enchant an iron dagger with fire elements. Interesting, he thought. What is the limit of Enchanting school anyways? as Dragonborn memories provided him, the memory only included knowledge that the game provided and limited. And then with the game rules gone, can he enchant a sword with gravitational enchantment to disorient enemies, or simply raising the temperature of the sword until it hot enough to cut steel easily. Heck, he was interested in whether he can apply a mage light spell so the sword could glow in the dark.

Or maybe, he can simply enchant a hilt of the sword with electric enchantment, and WHOOSH, a crackling sound of lightning from the magical lightsaber.

He ought to try that for real later as his ears perked up upon the sound of moaning from the other side of the room.

"Ughh…." The woman clutched her head in pain, no doubt the repercussion of her sorrow drinking last night. "Where… where am I?"

"Here take this."

A hand offered to her, a vial in its paw. Paw, she widened his eyes until she saw his face.

"Kya!" She slightly jolted back to the bed, upon the appearances of him that's basically a cat in humanoid form.

It soon regressed to wariness, until she met with his eyes. A yellow colored iris, with a black slit as any stray feline she came across in the city. No ill intent, only honesty as she slowly took the red vial in his hand.

"It's for your headache, good for a hangover." He said, before grabbing a chair near the bed.

She promptly eyed the red ichor that dwelled inside the small container, before turning the corks and drinks the rest of the content. The constant headache soon regressed back, only a few phantom pains before it too, gone. It was rather refreshing, like someone who just had a goodnight's sleep after a long time of tiring works.

"This one surprised, too many counts he tried to make contact with the city dwellers, and too many times he got a cry for help, and a hail of swords and magic. But you, it's not what he expected."

She raised an eyebrow with the way he talks, granted she has hazily memorized the man she drank with last night and didn't mind particular detail at the time. But it was rather quirky, and mildly annoying at the same time.

"Name."

"What is it, this one can't hear."

"What's your name, it's rather annoying to hear this one, that one."

Instead of scowling, he gave a mirthful chuckle. "Haha, this one name is Dro'zah, and may Dro'zah had a privilege to the fair lady name he had saved?"

"Ereshkigal, I thank you for your help last night. If not…" the word left and gone, the occupant of the room knew what would happen. It was the thing that best left unsaid but always kept in mind as a lesson.

Dro'zah's eyes widened slightly in recognition of her names, a sign which she didn't miss. "Hmm, you're rather an intriguing one here, not many peoples know my name in the Gekai. Only them whose souls just got elevated and strayed to my realm."

"In my land, many gods have been left forgotten but their names etched for thousands of years, preserved as precious knowledge to draw upon. You can say, Dro'zah has a penchant to learn a few gods that intrigued him."

"Whoa, that sounds amazing. But I'm sure you won't be here in the first place, if not for that."

"True, Dro'zah lost, Dro'zah has been drifted away, far from his warm home to this foreign, yet familiar land."

"But your appearances, is there more of you?"

"Dro'zah doubt that apparently, he was the last of his kind, hopefully not."

"I see."

She eyed the room, granting a better detail of the furnishing inside. The bed she sat on was made with comfortable cotton wrapped in animal skins, as what she recognized as a kitchen in the left corner, and a shelf with a small dining table on the right corner as three doors placed respectively on each side of the walls.

But what makes her intrigued was the thing that lighting the entire room, bluish-white orbs that hovered on the ceiling and corners, blanketing the entire room with low dim light. It was again, reminded of her room back then in the Tenkai.

"Dro'zah almost left his question yet unanswered, again, why are you not afraid of me?" She blinked, gazing to that yellow feline eyes.

Eyes were the window of the soul. The mouth will deceive, but the eyes can't. Those eyes, who speak harsh rejection and loneliness. Years of weariness has also prevailed behind the veil of the slit.

She was the goddess of the underworld, dealing with million souls that seek a judgment in her realm. Many tell her stories of their life, tragic, heroic, idyllic, so many stories she started took fascinated into and archived for each she has heard.

Many also told deceit, trying to fooling her so they can easily be granted a peaceful afterlife. Unlike many goddesses and gods, she works with principles and just rules. The wicked will be granted salvation, and appropriate punishment, and the good, the pure souls will have her blessing to pass or inhabit her realms as their resting place.

God and the goddess may have an instinctive ability to spot lies, but she tends to read. That the feline of man she was faced, was an honest soul. That's why she easily lowered her guard in front of him. There's simply no ill intent, nothing only a spark of intrigue. A trait she beloved the most.

"Dro'zah understands your reasonings. Dro'zah is a monster they said, with an arrow notched and verbal abused. The divines are the same as their children, hating the monster deep to their cores. Dro'zah understands they're simply afraid."

"Hmph, don't lump me with those geezers."

"Is it because you're new to this world?"

She involuntarily jolted to his question. A hit to the heels.

"Y-yes. I finally permitted to descend as I got curious about life down here in Gekai. But one mistake I failed to account, the result as you know, was last night."

"Ah, the so-called goddess of the underworld, the one who governs the essence of the death, was ensnared by a bunch of hormonal thugs. Dro'zah wonders what they'll do once hear this news."

Her face promptly turned red, of her mark of shame.

"Th-that's because I was not the right mind at the time! and… and I was rather desperate anyway."

Cute. That was his thought, at such sudden burst but soon receded into a mere timid whisper as she glanced her face downwards.

"Why they won't let you ascend back, anyway."

"There's a rule, a cooldown to be exact before I can ascend back. They said it was 2 years. I can't possible to survive that long, and many people rejected my plea even my sister after I groveled between her feet to be granted a night lodging."

She was the goddess that related to death, with her name unknown in Gekai many gave a wary and stink in their eyes. Such authority was useless in Gekai with her arcanum sealed, only a burden. God that related to death was always associated with evil and malice. No wonder, they won't even reconsider to help her, as she branded to bring misfortune instead.

"So, instead, you wasting all your remaining Valis to drinking."

"What should I do then? My arcanum was sealed, even with my bits of knowledge I didn't have the proper relation to do so. I even considered going to the babel tower after that."

"So what? jump?"

I was surprised at her nod.

"Ehm, it was rather a shame way to do." She quietly said. "The body is frail, so is the mind. I know there would be a penalty, but it was better there than here."

"He sees, it was a hard thing to do, even with Dro'zah. What he can do, jumping will only make him stand between his legs and survived anyway."

She gave him a rather stink in her eyes, "That's a lame joke."

"Dro'zah a cat, remember?"

"Yeah, that's still lame."

"Better than a certain attempt of a certain goddess."

She ignored his words, "You're strong."

"Dro'zah always strong."

"Make familia with me."

She stated with a firm resolution.

"He doesn't know. Dro'zah is not ready to make his litter batch, and they said, goddess, can't procreate."

There's a beat pause in the air before she realized his words, the bad pun and consequently turns red at such proclamation.

"No! It's familia, not family."

"U-huh, and you'll only be my burden."

"Of course not, I'll help a fair share of it too. But with my arcanum locked, I still need to search what is it."

He shrugged, rolling his eyes. "See, a burden."

"Then teach me. I'll do anything, so teach me. Be a better person so I can survive in this little rock." She glared to him with her crimson orb of eyes. Even with her being a god that prevailed over the governance aspect of death, he can't help but trying hard to not peered off her soft breath lest she would be aware of his embarrassment.

"Are you sure, Dro'zah is not exactly welcomed. You'll be scorned much more, be dragged to my conflict that yet to come, and hunted down as perhaps heretical goddess that liege with the likes of monster."

"Then take this as my vow of gratitude. Even if this gratitude is a burden to you now, hear then in the future and from now on, I shall help you with every fiber of this fragile body."

She proclaimed. With resolution that as couldn't be broken, and corroded.

He closed his eyes before grunting in acceptance.

"Fine. Promise."

"Promise." She nodded. "If you do not still rest assured. Then let us bind a contract." A slip of paper was to appear in her hands, "I at least still had this as assurance before descending."

She promptly standing up, her gentle hand offered to me. The world descended into the darkness between us. It was like our existence was only the one that could fit inside the confines of the space. The paper glowed bluish in front of her, as she reciting in a gentle yet authoritative command.

"Our vow will be tied, a contract we shall bind.

Thine problem is mine to burden, and mine problem is thy to shoulders.

Hear! our destiny shall intertwine, in time of joy, in time of sorrows, and in time of death.

Listen! our vow that death won't separate!"

Her eyes glow in red, as she offered me her other hand. Is it the destiny they spoke of? Finally, a hand that will guide, and held firm. Is it true?

"Fight shall occur. discord and hate shall seed the way to our hearts.

Fragile bonds maybe, but know ours is everlasting,

Take mine hand, and shall thou see the destiny in front of us."

I wonder. Despite that I found myself wanting, the room was too big for me anyway. I took her hands as our consciousness traveled back to the dreary room.

The paper was now glowing in gold before it dissipated into two floating orbs and each traveled to our bodies.

She relieved a sigh, "Sigh, with that the contracts done. Now, time to give you my blessing."

She happily plopped back again to the bed, patting the surface as her eyes motioned me towards it.

"Are you sure that was not a proposal?"

I can never get enough of her beet cherry of a face. At least, the room is not very gloomy anymore.

And thus, was the beginning, the first mark of the Ereshkigal Familia.