sunhallowed

[sunhallowed]

𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐒 ,.., there's no way that harkon named two death hounds. that was serana's doing. she noticed them first, the way they'd hover at her door, linger outside her room as dark protectors while she slept, eat at her feet with hums of contentment. death hounds are common amongst her coven. summoned first by valerica as she grew in her necromatic powers, the undead dogs served as guardians to anyone adventuring in the wilds of atmora and skyrim. while they are in various states of decay, they're texture is surprisingly more like snakes, rather smooth to the touch without any residue that lingers on ones skin. when they are stalking their prey they can temporarily turn invisible, moving between planes of existence before appearing to strike, but many prefer brute force and the thrills of the hunt so they'll simply chase what they're hunting.

when she returns to the castle, its garan who tells her cusith and garmr hadn't left the castle walls, in fact they outright refused to once serana was locked away. which dwindled their supply of hounds since valerica nor serana were there anymore to summon them. it was serana that summoned these two as her first venture into learning necromancy from her mother. there wasn't necessarily intent to bond with them, but as she became lonelier and lonelier it was natural for her to offer them a quick pet on the head, toss a piece of carrion to them and then the bone once they brought it back. they bother were integral parts of keeping serana sane while she stayed at the castle alone. they would be at her hips while she explored the undercroft of the castle, would silently guard her from the balcony when she needed to sit alone on the beach, would listen to her as she read aloud the same old tome for the hundredth time, would sleep with her on her bed when the coffin became too suffocating. it wasn't the same as mortal contact, but it was something, and serana grew strongly attached to them.

in modern verses or period threads, they are glamoured as two doberman hounds who shadow serana nearly everywhere she goes. nearly everything about them seems normal, but if someone touches them and they haven't fed in some time, they will notice the dogs are strangely cooler than they should be. their leather collars are always shined as are the iron studs on them. they are hardly leashed and very well-behaved. so much so, that they make very little noise, even when they perceive a potential threat to serana. their growl is low, and hard to hear by normal ears but make no mistake they are always watching and will strike the moment her life is in danger.

[sunhallowed]

just thinking about serana's powers and how powerful she is. yes being a vampire lord helps , but even prior to being changed , i think she was on her way to be a powerful caster. the family structure strikes me as harkon being a fighter-type while valerica serves as more of a wizard-type , and with a closer relationship in general with valerica there was likely expectation she'd follow in her steps. she was studying under her mother , in addition to any normal tutelage under personal educators within the lordship.

she had a natural affinity for necromancy , as her mother did and she had interest in learning destruction magic but never got to do so because the focus of the family began to shift more towards gaining molag bal's attention. only when they're gifted vampirism is she able to practice her casting again , and leans in to a more ice-focused destruction. obviously the rest of her powers were supplemented by her new undead state. most of the specifics below are inspired by this mod - however something to keep in mind is how powerful vampire lords are but unless provoked , serana typically isn't pulling out all the stops. in fact , it will likely be rarely seen until her final battle with her father because she knows that he has the same strength as she does.

magical powers

ice magic ,.., her preferred form of spellcasting , serana is usually seen in battle surrounded by ice and snow in one way or another. most typically she'll form a dagger of ice and use it in close combat since she can be very mobile on a battlefield with her vampirism. however , if she's told control a crowd , then her spells take a form of storms or barriers of sharp ice. if she has the time , she'll also create shields of ice if a companion seems like they're about to get hit. in rare cases , she'll get a little creative by creating forms of transportation with it ( like bridges or inclines ) so that her friends can move around easily or get to places they couldn't've otherwise. a visual of this would be how sypha casts from castlevania.

necromancy ,.., thanks to her mother and her vampirism , serana is very skilled in the undead or anything in passing death. most often she'll raise corpses to aid her in fights. she can also drain life from someone via touch and replenish her own well , or just spread death with her touch. this will usually just look like accelerated aging until someone is no more than dust. again , used very often in combat and she's highly skilled at it. serana can raise lesser creatures with ease , like animals or people , and given a few additional seconds of time and effort on her part she can also raise larger creatures and beasts. after meeting durnehviir , she does have the goal to eventually be able to raise a dragon from the dead should the need arise and visits him often to learn.

vampiric powers

blood magic ,.., a very similar type of magic to her necromancy , serana does have a close relationship with blood itself. she doesn't use it as much , but if she's close to starving ( or if an enemy is particularly frustrating ) and if someone is wounded or actively bleeding , serana can pull that life force from its source and take it on herself , drinking it to gain strength. if she doesn't need it to feed , she can create a spike or dagger from it and use it to impale her enemies.

bats ,.., a simple term , but not only can serana take on the form of a flying fox bat , she also has close relationships with bat creatures. she can call them in a time of need in order to blind opponents , to confuse them or to protect her if she's mortally injured. her own bat form is usually used for reconnaissance and stealth. if she needs to see a situation and assess its danger level. in some instances , she will also transform into a bat if she's injured and tired , this way the smaller body can heal a bit quicker than her mortal form.

mist form ,.., most often used as a means of teleporting , serana's body can turn into formless mist. she not only can take no injury ( and cause no harm ) like this , she can also use it similarly to the above bat form in a stealth manner. when she is shifting across a fight , it will look to most mortals as a misty , dark form. one moment she's there , the next she's somewhere else.

enthrall ,.., vampire lords have a natural 'charm' to them in order to lower defenses of mortal creatures and potential prey. this is more subtle than a full on 'enthrall' which is more akin to "charm person" where the vampire is actively utilizing their powers of the mind and making someone more malleable to suggestion. many vampire lords use this as a way to keep a thrall with them at all times in order to feed , others can use it to rise to power and more with some creativity. serana is most often utilizing this as a way to get information or to ease someone's emotions if she feels she needs to. when it comes to her natural 'charm' , the closer she gets to someone , the more likely she'll mention it to them , understanding the risk of them being turned off by it or becoming potentially angry. understand that this isn't necessarily something she can control , it's almost like a natural pheromone that allows a predator to feed more easily. if you've read salem's lot , it's exactly that. something that neither predator nor prey can control or control their reaction to.

domination ,.., this is a mix of telekinesis and a stronger form of the above. domination doesn't allow for any control of the mind other than what the vampire lord wants. they own every part of you. where enthrall can leave someone numb and unresponsive or have no feeling whatsoever ( because it was more of a suggestion or making someone placate to demands ) this particular power they are completely aware but can't do anything about it. there is a voice in their head and they become simply a receiver and speaker of that voice. with that control , a vampire can lift the mortal and manipulate them as they see fit. their body is not their own nor is their mind. this is something entirely gifted by molag bal , the prince of domination. as far as serana and how she uses it , she will never think of using it on people she is close to. this is only for fighting purposes , usually on lesser beings. many times , and most simply , she's getting into the mind of someone and telling them to end their own lives.

vampiric lord form ,.., when things are looking rough , or if she needs to move in a way that her speed/mist form won't allow for , serana will transform into a bi-pedal beastly bat. standing at about 8 feet tall , with leathery wings , a bat-like face with a collar of fur around her neck , this form can take on many creatures , especially ones airborne. she also will use it in dire times of need where maybe someone is falling or to fly them to safety from a rather precarious situation. this form can teleport in a cloud of smaller bats. in most storylines , serana doesn't use this form until it's clear who and what she is amongst the people she's traveling with , in order not to scare them. she's in full control in this form , it is still her , and she can change at will.

flames of coldharbour ,.., gifted from the plane of coldharbour itself , these flames are not ordinary fire , but those of where serana was reborn. blue and purple in color , these flames burn hotter and melt most things almost instantly. serana has to call to the prince himself for these flames , and most often is gifted them without question. this very often has the volkihar clan thinking that she is favored amongst the others who have been christened by their god.either these flames will be used as many other fire-based powers are with a ball being shot at her enemy , or if she's surrounded , serana can have them shoot out from her at the center in a large sphere or wall of brilliant blue.

[sunhallowed]

small note that the power vacuum left behind by the nighthollow clan being severely reduced is the exact reason why harkon was able to come in and build the volkihar clan up to what it was. i think he knew rada and king styriche through vampiric politics and allowed them to move through skyrim during eso because of that bond but wouldn't have helped if he knew the nighthollow clan was involved in any way because that would mean needing to fight for territory again. it's one thing to help out the grey host so they can go back to hammerfell, it's another to allow the previous ruling clan to get a step up again (despite the fact that they don't need blood to live). i think he just sat back and waited to see if anything would happen and cleaned up any remaining feral coven members once all was said and done, ultimately wiping them out.

[sunhallowed]

when i tell you i have a mix of perfumes that is EXACTLY how i imagine serana smells which is elizabeth and james both the french grey and the rose perfumes blended together. they're super earthy and floral and when you combine them its genuinely like how i imagine a romanticized graveyard smells? there's rose and geranium, lavender, musk, with woodsy, earthy and citrus undertones. it's so fucking intoxicating i can't properly explain how happy i was to just accidentally mix them together and--- ffffffff

[sunhallowed]

so let me ramble about how awful the logistics are at the end battle, way more specifically about getting to the castle. while i hate the location and just overall pathetic excuse for an island concept of the castle, there is one major advantage that we just gloss over and that's it's near inability to be snuck up on. being in the middle of the ocean forces anyone getting there to take boats and we've established when you bring serana home that there are guards at the gate. it is also so stupid to assume that once serana leaves the castle again and you start getting attacked by spawn that not only does harkon know what you're doing, but that he wouldn't up patrol outside on the battlements and beaches. granted, you have that mini fight at the very beginning when you get there but that's not what i'm talking about. if patrols are increased, there's no way and no reason they wouldn't a) see you coming and b) sink those fucking ships are you kidding me? that solves eVERTHING????? harkon is supposed to practically be a warlord. he should be skilled in planning battles and that one fucking thing keeps the entire fight from happening, even if he still has to deal with getting his daughter or wife.

then i ask. . . why didn't he?

because he was distracted. serana staying at the castle once dropped off meant not only that she could check in and see if the plan to get the prophecy started was still underway, but that she could start lobbying some of the court to move against her father. looking at who she has to choose from, i think garan, feran and rargal are pretty good choices. garan just for his standing as being harkon's immediate advisor (and to me it's clear he has some softness towards serana, even if it's little), rargal would have issue with supply chains once the sun was blotted out, so appealing to that should be easy, and feran really doesn't care about internal politics, just studying his alchemy so suggesting the prophecy puts that at risk is the angle to take (and it automatically has ronthil at your side as well). so if they're on her side, it's easy enough at that point to have them weaving within the court while serana is out of the castle (be it in skyrim, bg3, dragon age, etc).

getting information back to them is as simple as sending rargal out to collect thralls with his lackeys and meeting up with serana. to that end, when the entire group is ready to make a move on the castle, it's up to the three court members to stage a distraction so they can get in without the risk of boats sinking or anyone getting killed prior to being shoreside.

[sunhallowed]

serana does sleep. granted, she doesn't need much, maybe a few hours at most. when she has settled into a rhythm, it's normally during midday, often from the hours of around 10am-4pm. but when she's adventuring, she'll take what she can get and sleep when it's convenient for everyone else. so long as she's covered, the sun doesn't harm her as much as it may harm younger vampires - though it still isn't advised that she walk around in shorts and a blouse when there isn't a cloud in the sky. (i'll have to do another little baby meta about the sun and it's affects on her since skyrim really said "sun? what sun?").

in the beginning of her vampirism, she slept in coffins the same as everyone else, but as time went on she began to miss the freedom of a bed. this lack of desire to be in enclosed spaces only worsens once she's released from her tomb. so much so, she develops claustrophobia and outright refuses to be in a coffin ever again. and yes, her king bed is covered in silks and soft fabrics, bountiful with pillows.

[sunhallowed]

𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒 ,.., no but you don't understand. like can you even conceptualize how inherently LONELY serana was? can you imagine having what was a normal family, becoming immortal and then watching your family begin to drift apart as their goals become so different? and you have to spend hundreds of years like that.

Ever since he decided to make that prophecy his calling, we drifted apart.

It may have driven my family apart, but I’m still here and I’m alive. I won’t give this up. (about vampirism)

ever since they became vampires, serana had to just sit and take it. she wasn't about to abandon the only family she knew. the only support system she knew (even if it was flawed). so what does she do? everything alone. everyone in that coven is working for her father, has her father's interests in mind. to be frank, they don't care about what serana needs or wants, not until they realize it could be the end of the coven if they don't support her. while harkon is still around, they are more worried about catering to him and impressing him so that they may climb and gain that ephemeral political position in the clan. so she has no one to even sit together silently in a room and share space. (there's some moments in time where she can learn from valerica but i'll get into that relationship another time because it's . . . a lot.) this all means that means finding your own entertainment. she can't leave the castle (her parents won't allow it), she can't explore, so you escape into storybooks. read about the world around you rather than experiencing it. you escape into hidden doors and crannies within the castle. find places that comfort you out on the beach, listen to the ocean's songs, annoy the birds and beasts the visit. you do everything alone.

I liked to explore. My parents almost never let me off the island so yeah, I poked around down here a lot.

and to a degree i think she was used to it. as an only child, even if your parents are there to love you and guide you, it's still a lonely life to live. you get used to doing everything alone. eating, reading, playing. . . existing. then it only gets worse. in the beginning she was fine with having a bit of alone time but when it was clear that her parents were more interested in ruining each other than spending time with their daughter, that loneliness became heavy. it ached. it's one thing to be a child and not have too many friends but to be able to turn to your parents for nightly dinners and parties and events. it's entirely another to be in an entire castle of immortal beings and not have a single one of them care enough to spend time with you, practically ignore you. to see you only as an extension of your father and not want to disrupt him in any way, so it's best to avoid his daughter all together.

I know how that feels. . . well it isn’t the same thing but I was a pretty lonely child myself.

and she doesn't blame the coven at all. she understands her father's wrath more than anyone, understands that they left her to her own devices more out of self preservation than actively not wanting to join her during quiet moments within the castle. it doesn't mean that it didn't hurt, though. that she didn't carry that every day thinking she was some unwanted woman who had nothing to offer her own family. it's a different rendition of the vampiric loneliness that we see in different medias. it's one thing to be alone in eternity, searching for someone to spend time with. another to be trapped in a castle with people who don't see you for all of your immortality - ignored by the ones who should see you.

'there is one thing about being a vampire that i fear above all else. and that is loneliness. you can't imagine the emptiness. the void. stretching out for decades at a time.'' and then i was alone. i cried. i called to god. i didn't want this.' - lestat, iwtv

[sunhallowed]

𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃 ,.., i like thinking about vampires and their relationship to blood, at least in my interpretation. like the main thing to remember is that, like all creatures, blood is the life force that drives vampires. they need it to survive, but they need to take it from others in order to do so. as far as general feeding, for serana, that's not very hard. find a bandit, find a burglar or some lowlife, and drink until they're dead. no side effects, nothing to manage. but someone who offers it? a friend who needs to be kept alive? well they become a part of each other now. bonded eternally. she's alive because their blood is keeping her body animated. they feel pain, serana will feel it. they feel pleasure, she'll feel it. while she's respectful about it, if she wanted to, she could clue into their thoughts and emotions. (mind you, she will typically not unless given express permission to do so, she does have manners after all !)

now, when she shares her blood? specifically with another mortal? a small portion of it without them being close to death in the way of making new vampires? not only does vampires blood heal wounds quicker when applied to the skin, it also has minor hallucinogenic effects when ingested by a mortal due to being in a supernatural body for some time. it's rare that serana will share her blood that way. to heal someone, that's a no brainer. she'll do anything to help her loved ones, of course sacrificing some blood means nothing to her. but typically sharing her own blood only comes from a desire to have that level of intimacy with a person, to be bonded together by having each other's blood in your veins.

[sunhallowed]

𝐆𝐎𝐃𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐃 ,.., but you guys don't understand - as far as vampire lord's are concerned, turning someone is not just your run of the mill "i'm going to be turned by a vampire" moment. this is sacred. this is communion. you are looking at a creature that is near god-like. something that lives forever and has powers no mortal can quite comprehend. they are looking at you and deciding that you should also be gifted this power. god is holding out it's hand so that you may take it and walk along with it.part of this kind of interpretation for me is derived just from the fact that the volkihar's themselves were chosen by a god (deadra) and given this gift. they weren't changed by another lord. they weren't changed by just a vampire. they were brought into this eternal life by a god.

and what does god create? angels maybe? other beings of intense power? granted, i'm not here to really make the 'vampires are angels' argument. not today. because i do view vampire lords and sharing their powers more as gods creating other gods. viewing someone else as worthy. it's like in bg3 when ascended gale is willing to make you a god with him. to use his power to bless you and take you with him. every vampire lord in the volkihar castle is important, they were not chosen on a whim. most, i'd argue, were members of the court when the group of them were still human. but it was serana, harkon and valerica who were blessed, god-touched, and given the right to pass the same thing to others they saw as worthy.

and i'll draw that kind of ritual and mindset from midnight mass, specifically episode v, beth's monologue

"we know it from his own word, don't we sturge?" "whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life." "and i will raise them up on the last day, for my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink, and whomever eats my flesh and drinks my blood will REMAIN IN ME and i in them. and it's PRETTY SPECIFIC, isn't it? i mean he's not really mincing words, is he?" [riley referencing his wound from the sun: and this? is this Gospel?] "That's Revelation. The fourth Angel poured his bowl upon the sun and it was allowed to scorch men with fire. That is the thing about Jesus coming back to us, they told us from the start that it wouldn't be pretty. Monsignor Pruitt was shaken. Even him. But it's all right there in the book, Riley. The seven bowls of Gods wrath poured out on the second coming, the end of days. The fourth bowl upon the sun, the fifth bowl, since you asked, the fifth bowl of God's wrath plunges the world into darkness, which won't be an issue for you or for Monsignor, will it? Why, it is almost as if he is PREPARING YOU FOR THAT. You sit there BLESSED AMONG MEN smirking when I say 'God's will'."

and pruitt's thereafter to riley:

"but whoever you CHOOSE to enter communion with, whoever SERVES GOD'S PURPOSE for you, as you give of yourself for them to drink, as they eat of your body and drink of your blood and YOU OF THEIRS, and you are in the COMMUNION OF THE SAINTS remember. . . THAT IT IS A GIFT."

this. this is why we get the line from serana when she is the one who turns us where she says "this isn't like picking out a new outfit. turning someone is a very personal thing for us. it's intimate." because you're committing a very sacred act. you, as the vampire lord, have the power to give someone of your choice not just eternal life (even harkon can't help but say to you: "i offer you my blood, take it and walk a lion amongst sheep. it is but one gift-") but powers beyond their wildest dreams. you. who has that kind of ability outside of a literal god? no one. so you take part in ritual, in communion. a moment where consecrated blood and flesh is shared with another (which on it's own, is as sacred as having sex with someone) so that they may also be blessed.

i see this as how most "higher" vampires conduct themselves. looking specifically at vampires like actual high vampires in the witcher (not the how, the thought process), or elder/ancient/ascended vampires in baldur's gate, or others where they're not just your average 'vampire'. you don't just hand this out or create haphazardly and without regard. you treat this as the most sacrosanct moment. i'd even go so far as to say, most vampire lords would look at acts like what cazador did as the most sacrilegious thing you could do amongst their kind. you were using your power to create cattle. that is something baser vampires do. that is expected of lower level creatures, not of gods. and i do think harkon skirts the edge of that when he turns you as a dragonborn. on one hand he is still putting a high value on it, you are not only bringing his daughter back to him but also something he has been looking for, for ages and will bring him closer to his goal. while not to us, it's a very high price to him. on the other hand, it isn't an intimate moment at all. he just rips into you in front of the court, of who will never say anything against their lord. the intimacy is lost, that intimacy that serana clings to. and it's done very quickly, a decision made without much thought or time to process. it's another acknowledgement of how far gone he is, focusing on this prophecy instead of the tenets of his kind and of the very god he serves.

all this to say, serana is not this way. she views this the way the rest of vampire lordship views it. it is her gift of godhood. you will not have it upon a whim. it is only given to those that want it (maybe in moments of desperation only for someone she is extremely bonded to) and those who she has the intention of spending eternity with. while they'd have the choice to leave, she always wants to give someone a choice, she is usually giving it to someone who is either her close friend or lover who she'd be with often. she will always view it as a gift, not a curse.

[sunhallowed]

𝐓𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄 ,.., while i don't believe vampires have to eat at all, and most prefer not to, i don't think it excludes some ability to discern taste. the difference being that mortal food becomes muted. exactly like when you're sick. the intricacies of a flavor profile are lost to them. they wouldn't be able to pick up on the differences between, say, an ipa or a lager. a chowder versus a stew. they're left with this vague sense of something salty, something sweet, etc. spiciness barely flickers a candle, sweetness hides away, salt loses it's bite, bitterness it's depth. but they are all there. it's lost because there's no need for it anymore and that sense, instead, picks up on the bouquets and flavors of their actual meals.

serana can tell a lot about someone when she drinks their blood. completely outside of the memories that it holds. on flavor alone she can understand what kind of life they lead. is it thin and light of someone who spends a lot of time indoors? or is it the robustness and earthiness of a traveler? there can be floral notes, maybe some nuttiness. some drinks are dry, some have a juiciness to them. all of these comparisons remnants of a past life and of things she can no longer indulge in, except through someone else.

that isn't to say she won't, on occasion, eat or drink. of course there's the camouflage of it all. needing to blend in to morality. if a meal is handed to her, she will eat it so it doesn't go to waste.

a sweetroll will still taste sweet. meats will still taste gamey and savory (don't ask her to discern what animal it came from once cooked) - she'll take it raw. salty meals still taste salty. spicy foods still burn at her tongue. flavors have just retreated. they're forever behind a veil that only blood can open.