That Part Chapter 34: The More That They Take

This is a Skyrim/Alan Wake 2 fic. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

This chapter has been edited due to content. If you want to see the unedited version GO HERE.

ALEX

I was glad that Bright Falls was a small town. I was glad that it was night so no one was out. I was glad that there was no one to see me leaning on Jash like a crutch. ******* Jash had taken nearly all my energy.

It was a stupid thing to have done. But if I were able to go back in time, I would have done it again. Jash had been right in these possibly being our last hours together. I didn’t want to think like that but my mind had a habit of going down the most depressing routes.

I tried to break away from my husband once I saw the police station but then promptly stumbled. Jash moved to catch me and there was no sign of reprimand or exhaustion in his eyes. I didn’t deserve that love or devotion. I also was unable to deny it.

“You should have become human awhile ago.” I said. “The FBC might have gotten distracted from fighting the Dark Presence and try to take you in.”

“I don’t have that ability any longer.” Jash replied.

I tried to look at Jash but he turned his eyes from me. As we covered the final few feet to the police station I worried that Jash wouldn’t be able to return to Skyrim. I worried that he would be stuck in this ****** world with me. While I had learned to endure, he deserved more than this world could give him.

As soon as we were no more than two feet away from the police station, four FBC agents pointed their guns at Jash. Of course they saw someone injured and immediately assumed the monstrous looking creature was the cause of my injuries. All he had injured was my ass which the agents couldn’t see.

A harsh looking woman, that seemed to have some Indian heritage, walked in front of the four agents. It was clear that she lead this team. No one with that much confidence ever did anything but lead.

“I’m Special Agent Alex Casey.” I said with more vigor than I felt. “Tell your men to lower their weapons.”

“FBC Field Agent Kiran Estevez.” Kiran said with authority leaking out of every word. “If that monster won’t allow you to step away, my men will assist you.”

“Don’t tell me you’re a fan of Alan Wake.”

“Your partner, Saga Anderson, told me to find you. And I’ll be ****** if you’re dying on my watch.”

Saga was stubborn and probably hadn’t left Bright Falls easily. Or wherever she was which probably wasn’t as far as Kiran would have liked. I didn’t want to open up to someone I had just met. I didn’t even like letting Saga inside my head at certain times. But it was either I became an open looking book to the FBC or we wouldn’t get inside.

“I know the FBC kept track of my dreams, Estevez.” I said sternly. “I thought I hid them well but your organization managed to find out about them.”

“And if I had heard about them?” Kiran asked, her posture not showing any intention of relaxing.

“I had thought they were just dreams about a man called Jash. It turns out my mind was being transported each night to Nirn. He wasn’t a mere dream.”

“And this is Jash?”

“Yes.”

“You trust him?”

“I trust the Saxhleel with my life.”

Kiran’s posture remained rigid. Of course she wouldn’t take my word but I hoped my answers had started to sway her. If they hadn’t Jash would be a ******* idiot and run so that one of us could enter the station.

“I believe that you’re the man from Casey’s dreams, Jash.” Kiran said and turned her intense gaze to the Saxhleel. “But it’s strange that you just happen to arrive now.”

“I came here originally to take the dryskin back with me to Skyrim.” Jash replied with only a few words being in Jel. “I didn’t know what point in time I would be arriving.”

“If your mission was just to bring Agent Casey back with you, why stay?”

Jash paused before answering and I understood why. He didn’t like Earth and wanted to get back to Skyrim. He also didn’t want to insult the FBC agent without reason.

“It is ours to yearn to feel the snow under our feet once again.” Jash admitted. “But I could tell that Alex’s quest in Bright Falls was important to him. Once I take him with me he will never see this world ever again. So I didn’t want him to have any unfinished business before leaving.”

“And your decision had nothing to do with the Shadow’s wants?” Kiran asked.

I had known Jash since he had been a hatchling. I had grown used to his every movements. So I saw a barely noticeable shiver run down my husband’s spine when the FBC agent mentioned the Shadow. Did she also notice it?

“The Shadow?” I asked and drew Kiran’s focus away from Jash. “The FBC knows about the Dark Presence? You even have a name for it?”

“The Dark Presence?” Kiran asked after a moment. “Yes, we call it the Shadow.”

If even the FBC felt desperate enough to reveal anything to me, then they were truly afraid. Whatever was happening here was bad even to them.

“I would never love anyone that was pure evil, Estevez.” I said curtly. “I would never love anyone that would side with something like the Dark Presence.”

Jash held up his hand and cast Candlelight. The small ball of light was bright in the darkness as it circled his head. Shades of green seemed to spill down Jash’s scales indicating his annoyance. But the green was quickly covered up by black.

“I am Jash.” Jash declared as the spell quickly ended. “I am the Daedric Prince of Balance and Extremes. It is not ours to ally ourselves with something like the Dark Presence. That…entity is nothing but extremes and lacks all balance. Thus something that is repulsive to me. Even if it was more in line with what I am, it has dared lay a hand on Alex Casey. That is something I can never forgive.”

Kiran looked from Jash to me and back. I could see the conflict in her eyes. Not only was she going to have to trust Jash, but she would have to allow non-FBC agents into her circle.

“I believe you.” Kiran said and the other FBC agents lowered their guns.

I felt like gasping for air after as the tension in the air went away. But I just took a step away from Jash and managed not to fall to the ground. All the agents but Kiran turned their gazes to the area around the police station. Either the FBC knew about the Taken or they had encountered something similar in the past.

“Alan Wake is locked up.” Kiran said. “We also have Ilmo and Jaakko Koskela in the cell beside him.”

“Those idiots that give guided tours?” I asked. “The ones that own Coffee World? Wh-they’re members of the Cult of the Tree?”

“Not just members. Might have even founded it.”

Early on in the investigation, Saga and I had run across an FBC tower that had trouble with local wildlife. Seemed like the animals loved chewing through wires. Something had seemed off, though, almost like Cauldron Lake didn’t appreciate the FBC being there.

And it had been something, well someone, that didn’t want the FBC around. All the facts pointed to the Koskela Brothers being more than evil but…something didn’t add up. They weren’t evil but..I was missing a key piece to the puzzle.

As Jash and I followed Kiran into the station, I saw a strange look in his eyes. It was as if he wasn’t really here. I wanted to ask him what was wrong but I knew he wouldn’t give me an answer until he felt it was time. All I could do was trust him for the moment.

To distract myself I thought of another problem to solve. Logan’s birthday would have been soon and Saga would need help dealing with that. Her husband had divorced her in the wake of the tragedy and so she always turned to me.

Not that I was much help.

Logan? Dead?

It was as if I had woken up from a terrible dream when I finally came back to reality. Even though the Dark Presence hadn’t possessed me, it had still left its mark. It had made me believe, even for a moment, that Logan was dead.

What if the Dark Presence was trying to make the girl’s death a reality? What if this fight wasn’t just about freeing a writer but saving a girl’s life?

If Saga was able to handle this ******* insanity better than me, she wouldn’t give up the fight for her daughter’s life unless she died. Hell, Saga wouldn’t stop fighting for Logan even then.