When the Devil Broke the Universe

"Thanks for coming with us," Madoka said, as Mami carried Sayaka's sleeping form along the street leading out of town.

"It's no problem." Mami replied, shifting Sayaka's weight on her back, "I wouldn't want you to deal with this alone." She was just a tad suspicious; some random old man had just happened to (literally) run into Madoka who had all the answers and could fix things in a way no one else could? It wasn't that she didn't trust Madoka, far from it—she had been god, after all. But desperation was a flaw all its own, something Mami was all too familiar with.

It was best to be cautious of grifters.

The three girls left town, passed the river bridge and headed up the hill surrounded by knotted trees and wild undergrowth. Ahead though, at the top of the hill lay Wulf's hut. It wasn't particularly impressive, just an average lower-class nordic house, but neither was it particularly ramshackle. Madoka knocked on the door, and Wulf soon opened it and greeted them with a smile.

"Ah, good to see you. Come in, come in. I've just prepared some tea."

The girls stepped inside to find a cozy atmosphere; a table and chairs, a bed, a roaring fireplace, and even a small bar and library in the corner. Wulf motioned them to lay Sayaka down on his bed as he brought over the chairs from his table so they could all sit.

"Ah, my name is Mami Tomoe," Mami said, introducing herself.

"Good to meet you, Ms Tomoe." Wulf said with a toothy smile, then shook her hand after delivering her chair. As the two girls sat down, Wulf grabbed the tea he'd prepared and poured a cup for each of them and himself, "Frost Creek is fairly remote; it's rare we get too many visitors from out of town, aside from the occasional family relative from Morthal. I don't often get to play host, so I relish the opportunity when it comes along".

"I always liked being a host too," Mami said, gratefully accepting the cup—then covertly sniffing it just to make sure. It smelled fine, "It always made me feel less alone."

"Company is the antithesis of solitude," Wulf agreed, sitting down, "One cannot exist alone, no matter how strong one's fortitude."

"You said you were a soldier?" Madoka asked him before taking a sip. She made a slight face; it was a bit too bitter for her, but said nothing.

Wulf nodded, "Yes, I was in the Imperial Legion, many years ago. Haven't been for a long time though, not since the Empire fell."

"What happened to it? Your empire, I mean." Mami asked.

Wulf's smile vanished as he put his cup down. He looked at the fire he had going, "… Why do all empires fall? Politics, greed. People cutting each other down because of conflicting visions of how they think the world should be," he sighed, looking back at them, "The truth is, the empire had been on its deathbed for a while, but with the civil war here in Skyrim and the assassination of the emperor… well, it didn't end well."

"I'm sorry," Madoka said earnestly.

"Bah, listen to me, just an old man stuck in the past." Wulf said, correcting himself, "Nothing lasts forever, and the empire was old. It was time for something new to take its place".

"And what would that be?" Mami asked.

Wulf gave her sad smile, "I think the world is still trying to figure that out. Now," he clapped his hands, having put down his tea as his attitude suddenly became much more upbeat, "I think we should try to wake your friend if we can, hmm?"

To this, Madoka's mood shifted dramatically and she stood up excitedly, leaning over Sayaka's bed, "How do we do this?"

Wulf couldn't help but admire her enthusiasm, "The first thing is to determine the problem. Do either of you have any idea what might be wrong with her?"

Mami and Madoka shared an uneasy look, to which Wulf responded, "… I can't help her if I don't know what she needs. What is said here won't leave this house, I assure you."

Madoka exhaled, steadying herself as she chose her path. Sayaka wasn't getting any better—even if her slowly purifying gem did wake her up, it would be months from now before it was clean. She had to act. The pinkette pulled a small ornate object from her pocket—egg-shaped and gold, with a dark interior. "It's not her body that's sick…it's her soul."

Wulf gestured to her, and Madoka, after a second of hesitation, handed the gem off to him. He carefully inspected the object, then looked down at Sayaka, "Ahh, I see. You're a lich." Not a judgment, a simple statement of fact. Tension filled the room, with the girls not sure what would happen next.

Wulf put the soul gem on the bed next to Sayaka. His voice was grave, "You are right to be cautious. Skyrim is a conservative and traditionalist place even in the best of times, and these are certainly not the best of times. There are many places where almost all magic aside from restoration is frowned upon, and most cultures across Tamriel in general abhor necromancy."

"We're not dead… not exactly," Madoka protested, "We just…" how to explain the magical girl system in under a minute with no context? "… We were lied to. We all made a wish, and this was the consequence. We don't want to hurt anyone. Please," her eyes gave a pleading look.

Wulf gave her a reassuring smile, "I do not mean to judge; I have been all over Tamriel and seen many places and people. I am simply telling you for your own benefit—be wary of who you trust with this, or you may find yourselves on the wrong end of a witch hunt."

Both Mami and Madoka paled a bit. The silence was deafening.

"…I'm sorry," Madoka said quietly, not sure what else to do at the moment.

"Never apologize for what you are," Wulf replied, "Only for what you do," he saddened, "Unfortunately, there's not much I can do for your friend. Complex soul magic such as this is rare and dangerous, and I don't pretend to know how your soul container works."

Madoka's remaining enthusiasm left her eyes, "…You can't help us," she said, confirming her own fears. They were back to square one.

He shook his head and Mami and Madoka's hearts sank, "I truly am sorry. However," they perked back up a bit, "I know where you can find someone who can."

"Where?" asked Madoka.

"The College of Winterhold. It's a dangerous journey though, through well over a week of hostile tundra and icy seas. You'll need to be able to protect yourselves." Wulf stood up, gently handing Sayaka's soul gem back to Madoka, before heading over to his small library shelf and pulling out an atlas.

"Protect ourselves how?" Mami asked curiously after taking a sip of her tea.

A wry grin formed on Wulf's face, "Magic, of course."