//------------------------------// // 16: The News Just Got Worse // Story: Sombra visits Skyrim // by Blackdrag-rose //------------------------------// Trixie, who was not an easy mare to scare anymore thanks to her exposure to the harsh life of Skyrim, was now utterly scared for her life and the lives of her new companions. She could have handled dealing with more bands of bandits, a few cave bears, the occasional questioning by the officers of the Aldmeri Dominion, and a giant or two. She was positive she could have fought another dragon at the moment, so long as she had the backup that Raika and the other provided. But fighting Sombra, the Tyrant of the Crystal Empire? Even if she knew twice as many spells as she did now and could fight as well as the Princesses did, she suspected that Sombra would still wipe the floor with her. "Trixie, do you mind stopping for a moment?" Luna asked, catching the mare by surprise, "If we wait any longer I'm afraid that my sister's wing won't be able to heal properly until we get back to Equestria. I need to set the wing now." Trixie sighed and pulled the caravan off onto the side of the road, making sure that the horse wouldn't go anywhere until she commanded it to move again. Luna pulled out one of the daggers they had packed into the crates and moved it towards the backside of her sister's armor, tearing through the armor with ease. When she reached the area where the wing came out she made sure not to touch the fragile limb, choosing to cut around it before finally pulling the armor off. She was also grateful that they had bought two or three pieces of spare armor ahead of time, so that way they could replace her sister's armor. "Here sister," Luna said, pulling out a piece of wood that they used to bite down on and passed it into her sister's hand, "be ready. I'll act the moment you tell me to." "Be gentle dearest sister," Celestia replied, popping the wood into her mouth as she braced herself before giving her head a single nod. Luna, being the graceful mare she was, gently gripped her sister's wing before popping it back into place. Her sister let out a scream as she fixed her wing, but she wouldn't have to worry about breaking any teeth or screaming her throat raw. Once the grunt work was done Luna pulled out a roll of bandages and gently bound her sister's wing up, so it could set properly and heal as fast as it should be. It was the best she could do while they were in Skyrim and she knew Celestia appreciated her aid. "I hate to see you in pain sister," Luna said, helping her sister into a new piece of armor, "but we must press on if we hope to save not only Sombra, but the whole of Tamriel. We will find a way to save our beloved friend." "Th...thank you Luna," Celestia coughed, pulling the wood from her mouth and tossing it into a bag, "Though I may be in pain I cannot help but feel that we haven't seen the last of Discord and his tricks, or the chaos that he's caused." Trixie, not wanting to get caught by any of the Aldmeri Dominion patrols, moved the reigns and their horse got underway, slowly so she didn't somehow undo Luna's work. Raika had been silent the entire time, no doubt silently mourning the death of her housecarl and watching Celestia's wing get put back in place. Trixie had never seen one of the Princesses of Equestria in so much pain, but she doubted that anyone would believe her when they returned home. ------------------ Dragontooth Crater. A gap in the mountain side that had a cliff overlooking the rest of it. There was also an ancient word wall resting at the base of the cliff. It was a remote place, with little to no travelers, so it made the perfect place for a dragon to lay low, take a nap for a few hundred years, and forget about the troubles of the world. That had been this particular dragon's plan, had someone not suddenly appeared in front of his word wall from the shadows. Sombra staggered out of the shadows, grateful that Discord had awakened his memories so he could make a clean getaway without drawing too much attention to himself. One of the problems with mass shadowstepping in unfamiliar territory was that it was impossible to predict when he would eventually end up. From what little he could tell of his current location he suspected that he was somewhere close to where he had entered the shadows, seeing how he had expanded most of his magical energies fighting Discord and the Princesses. He was content to find somewhere where he could regain his energy before he made a move, but then he noticed the dragon staring at him. "Who dares interrupt my slumber?" the dragon shouted, slamming his wing/arms into the ground as he turned towards Sombra. "I am Sombra, King of the Crystal Empire," Sombra said, drawing his sword and readying his magic, "I've just spent the last two hours fighting with beings that are more powerful than you are. So unless you want to be shackled into being a slave I suggest you fly off before my good mood changes." "You are no threat to me," the dragon said, drawing closer to the strange armored nord, "I bow my head only to Lord Alduin." "You will bow to me, in time," Sombra roared, breaking open the ground as crystals shot up all around the dragon. The dragon, having never seen such a spell in all his years, reared up in surprise for a moment, but then gathered his inner Thu'um and released a gout of fire right at Sombra's face. Sombra, weakened as he was, readied his magic and summoned a wall of crystals to protect himself, admiring the way that the flames bent around them. The dragon was able to smash through them after a while, but Sombra was ready for it as he stepped from his own shadow to the one behind his enemy. When the flames died down the dragon lifted his head in surprise as he realized that its enemy was nowhere to be seen and made a point to start searching the rest of the area. Before the dragon could find his enemy he noticed the shadows gathering all around him, hardening into giant crystal spikes that made it impossible for him to fly away. It was clear that his enemy was skilled in the single school of magic, but that didn't mean that he was out of the fight just yet. As he prepared to smash down the walls for the second time the strange nord appeared in front of him, though he noticed that the shadows were surrounding him. "I'm in no mood to play games," Sombra growled, allowing the shadows to gather around him, "You WILL serve me one way or another." The darkness jumped from where Sombra was standing and slammed right into the dragon, surrounding his entire body before flowing right into his eyes. The dragon saw images of his own personal fears brought to life, images of either the Dragonborn killing him and absorbing his soul, somehow enslaving him against his will, or even his Lord killing him for the fun of it. These fears, brought to life, were impossible for him to conquer, because he knew that he couldn't stand against Lord Alduin and survive. He also knew that, thanks to him being a lesser dragon, that if he found the Dragonborn he or she was likely to kill him and steal his soul. He knew that he was trapped in the darkness and there was no way for him to ever conquer his fear. Sombra, after what he assumed was ten minutes, finally allowed the darkness to recede from the dragon for two reasons, the first being that he was nearly out of energy and fighting the dragon had taken what little he had left out of him. The second reason was that he wanted to see if he had corrupted the dragon, turning him into a loyal subject that would do whatever he said. When the darkness separated from the dragon Sombra was surprised to find that its scale color had darkened to an ebony color and the same energy that was coming off of his eyes came off the dragon's eyes. "Slave," Sombra said, causing the dragon to look over at him and bow his head, "you will follow my orders, no matter what I ask when I ask. If I order you to be silent, you will be silent until I command otherwise. If I order you to burn a village to the ground, you will burn the place till there is nothing left. If I order you to kill a company of adventures, you will attack them until they are all dead on the ground. Do I make myself clear?" "Yes my master," the dragon replied, feeling nothing but the urge to follow the nord's orders now, "What is your command?" "Rest," Sombra coughed, nearly falling to the side before correcting himself, "I require rest. Your orders are to let no one, and I mean no one, interfere with my rest until tomorrow morning. Once I am ready we'll get underway and then I'll make my plans clear." "As you command," the dragon growled, laying on the ground as Sombra collapsed by the boulder he was near. ------------------ Raika was in a terrible mood long before they ever arrived in Riverwood. It was because her Housecarl, the one assigned to guard her by Jarl Bulgruuf himself, had died thanks to one creature, one being from another world, that couldn't leave the Princesses alone. Worse yet Discord had awoken the evil memories of their friend Sombra, twisting the kind nord, or stallion, into the evil tyrant that had been defeated by Luna and Celestia. Thanks to Discord Skyrim not only faced the threat of a black dragon that was leading an army of dragons and a vampire menace, but the power of someone who commanded the shadows themselves. What they needed to do was find someway to save Sombra from himself, before the citizens of Skyrim realized what was going on and declared total war on him. To do that they needed to find him, no doubt fight him for a second time, and find someway to break the hold that the darkness held on him. If he fought as well as he had done when he fought Discord and the Princesses then they were in terrible trouble, and Raika suspected that not even the Dragonborn could stop him. When the caravan reached Riverwood Raika immediately climbed off the back and approached the inn, followed by Luna while Trixie tended to Celestia. The patrons, the few that were there at the middle of the night, saluted them as they entered, but other than that they ignored them for the most part. Delphine's partner nodded in their direction and gently moved his head towards her room, silently indicating that Delphine was in her room and was waiting for them. Raika nodded her thanks and moved towards the room, making sure that there was no one around to witness her entering before closing the door behind them. "Dragonborn," Delphine welcomed, barely noticing Raika's pissed off mood, "I trust you have some information for me?" "Yeah, the Thalmor know nothing," Raika replied, glaring down the Blade that had gotten Sombra his invitation, "They're in the dark as much as we are, but their only lead is on someone named Esbern." "Esbern's alive?" Delphine asked, completely off guard, "He's the last living Blade in existence that knows the ancient Dragonlore of the ancient Blades. If anyone can solve the puzzle of how to stop the dragons from returning its him. No doubt the Thalmor think he's hiding in the Ratways of Riften, so I suggest that you start there." "I won't be heading out to Riften for some time," Raika replied, turning back to the stairs and only stopping the moment she felt Delphine's hand on her shoulder. "There is no time for rest Dragonborn," Delphine angrily said, "If we don't stop the dragons from coming back there won't be a Skyrim for anyone to live in. Then its a matter of time until they fly to the other provinces of Tamriel, slaughtering everyone until they are the only living beings left in the world." "Forgive me for not caring at the moment," Raika growled, pulling off Delphine's hand, "One of my friends died saving me from your suicidal mission into the Thalmor Embassy and another one is unaccounted for at the moment. Thanks to you getting Sombra that invitation he finally met Discord, the being that we were trying to keep him away from the moment that he showed up in Skyrim. Now we've got to deal with an army of dragons, a bunch of vampires that want to kill everyone, and a tyrant that wants to conquer everyone. All you have taught me is that the Blades aren't as honorable as they were when the Oblivion Crisis happened." "Would you prefer staying in the monastery of High Hrothgar until the end of the world?" Delphine fired back, "The Greybeards fear the power of the Dragonborn and would rather have you not use your power for the greater good of the world..." "The Thu'um is dangerous in the wrong hands," Raika replied, placing a foot on the steps, "and I agree with them. I may be the Dragonborn, but I'm not going to follow your blasted rules. I'm going to find someplace to rest for the night, get some decent rest for once, and then I'm heading to Whiterun so I can give Lydia the proper sendoff that she deserves. Then, pending any dragon or vampire attacks on the city, I'll visit Riften and find Esbern." As Raika walked up the stairs Delphine turned towards Luna, forming a plan that would require Luna to convince Raika to head to Riften immediately so she could put a stop to the dragon attacks. "Luna, you know that Rend would do as his duty demanded," Delphine commented, turning towards the Lunar Princess, "You need to convince Raika that she needs to forget about sending Lydia off and go to Riften to find Esbern." "I will do no such thing," Luna nearly shouted, pinning the bottom of her sword's sheath against Delphine's chest, "Rend Org'resh was a firm believer in sending off his fallen brothers and sisters that were slain in battle. It was his way of honoring their memory and he taught many of the Blades at the time that it was important to remember those that fight at your side. Do not tell me to force Raika to leave Lydia's body until after the dragons are dealt with, for it goes against what Rend taught me. If Rend was looking down on the Blades at this moment I'm certain that he would be ashamed of what you've become." "So you won't aid me either?" Delphine replied. "Raika needs a moment to herself," Luna commented, turning towards the stairs, "and I suggest that you leave her alone before we leave to find this Esbern tomorrow. I swear that if you bother Raika about leaving without seeing Lydia off I'll bring the Nightmare out and we'll see how you fare against the Queen of Knights. Oh, and by the way, Rend Org'resh would be ashamed with how pitiful the Blades have become after all these years." Luna found Raika outside, sitting next to Trixie with a sour look on her face, clearly telling anyone that she was annoyed beyond the breaking point. She couldn't blame her for feeling angry, as she was angry that Delphine, who claimed to be one of the few Blades left in existence, would just discard the teachings of one of the most legendary members of her own order. She even had the audacity to try and force Raika to forsake her own companion's burial after her life had been saved by said companion. Delphine was lucky that Luna had gotten better at controlling her anger, otherwise the Nightmare would have come out and crushed her in an instant. "To Whiterun?" Trixie asked as Luna climbed onto the back. "Yes," Raika replied, closing her eyes for the moment, "We'll find refuge in Whiterun until tomorrow." Trixie nodded and got underway, barely catching the fact that the Blade they had talked to, the woman Delphine, watched them leave from the doorway of her inn. Personally, she thought that the woman was creepy and was losing her mind, seeing enemies in every shadow when there weren't any. Now that the Tyrant had been awakened there could very well be an enemy stalking the shadows around them that very second, but Trixie wouldn't know the difference. She just hoped that they survived the night without any problems. ------------------ Morning reared its ugly head and Sombra was awoken by the rays of light that hit his eyes, causing him to summon up a giant crystal spike that made it impossible for the sun to reach him for the moment. Now covered in the shadows thanks to his pillar he sat down and let out a sigh, just as his stomach growled at him. He remembered that the last time he had ate anything was the day before around noon, a few hours before he and Raika went to that party. Before he did anything that resembled conquering the known province he needed to get something in his stomach, then he'd start his conquest. "Feyl dii In," said a voice as the dragon from the previous evening returned to the camp, after dropping a dead deer on the ground, "Zu'u lost drun krenbahlok." "Excuse me?" Sombra asked, not exactly sure what the dragon had just said to him. "Forgive me Master," the dragon replied, bowing his head slightly, "I did not know you that you didn't know our language. I said, 'Morning my Master' and 'I have brought breakfast'. This was all I could find in the immediate vicinity." Sombra stared at the deer and sighed as he let the magic gather around his hands, before allowing the flames to gather around the deer and begin cooking it. Sure, he was the King of Shadows and a Master of Dark Magic, but that didn't mean that he had to eat anything raw like a lot of the nords in Skyrim did. The dragon returned to his corner and laid down, clearly content to let Sombra do what he wanted until he was ready to leave the area. Eventually the meat was ready and he simply ate whichever pieces looked the best, choosing to toss the other pieces over to his new minion so nothing was wasted. When he was done with the deer he got onto his feet and made his way towards the opening in the mountain, so he could get underway and figure out what to do now. "A moment Master," the dragon said, causing Sombra to turn around and look at him, "I know of two other dragons, weak willed like I was, that could easily be swayed to join your side. Last I heard that the two of them were heading to Eldersblood Peak, where they planned on staying until Lord Alduin called upon all dragons to attack the Holds of Skyrim. If you wish to meet them I can get us there within the hour." "Yeeesss," Sombra said, a grin appearing on his face as a plan formed in his mind, "Take me to them and I shall...convince...them to forsake their cause and join mine." The dragon lowered his head and allowed Sombra to climb onto his neck, getting situated behind the spikes before the dragon took off towards the east. Sombra knew that if he wanted to conquer the province of Skyrim he was going to need a base of operations and a loyal, if subservient, army that he could use against everyone else. He then recalled the sleeping Draugr, the dreaded undead that everyone in Skyrim, be they adventurer or citizen in a Hold, feared to fight. If he could fill their empty shells with his dark magic he was sure that he could create an army to fight for him. ------------------ Morning was a ugly time for Raika and the Equestrians that were still following her, because it meant that the events of the previous evening were truly real. Lydia was dead, Sombra was missing, and Discord, the cause of their current problems, was out there somewhere, waiting to cast his hand into her affairs again. The Jarl had been informed of her Housecarl's death and Raika had been permitted to burn Lydia's body outside the city, just within the sights of the guards. Bulgruuf had let them know that he'd be standing with them, to silently say farewell to Lydia. While they waited near the pyre Raika noted that the sky was beginning to get cloudy, the type of clouds that meant that a storm was going to happen sometime that day. She silently wished that Celestia could move the clouds for them, but the mare refused to mess with Skyrim's weather for even a minute. She even asked Luna and told her about her sister's answer, but Luna shook her head and told her to leave the weather the way it was. Raika eventually let the conversation die down as the guards approached them, carrying Lydia's body until they were able to place her on the wooden pyre. "Here Raika," the Jarl said, holding a torch out for her to take, "Lydia was your Housecarl, so you should have the honors." Raika gently took the torch and stared at it for a moment before letting out a sigh, turned towards the pyre, and tossed the torch at the base of the wood. The logs immediately caught on fire, but as everyone backed up Raika stood there and watched as her Housecarl was consumed before her eyes. The others might not share her pain, seeing how they were from a different place all together, but she was glad that they were here with her regardless. Several of the guards told stories about Lydia while she was learning how to handle a weapon and how she would follow her orders to the letter until she died. They had figured that she was exaggerating about the death part, but seeing how she was gone now they realized that she had literally meant it. Eventually the flames died down and Lydia's ashes were collected into a urn, one that would be placed in the Hall of the Dead when they returned to Whiterun. Before they got anywhere Raika noticed a strange sight; a nord standing some distance away with three dragons standing behind him. A nord, she noticed after staring at him for a few more seconds, that had some sort of darkness coming off of his eyes. "Sombra," Raika muttered, not believing what her eyes were showing her before the ground violently shook below their feet. Everyone else fell to their knees as Raika watched the area around Sombra burst upwards, giant spires of crystal shooting out of the ground and reaching towards the sky. Her eyes widened as a giant structure made of crystal, looking similar to a palace she had never seen before, grew out of the ground. Celestia and Luna, now standing at her sides, silently watched the structure grow until the ground finally stopped shaking and the crystals turned black. She had a feeling that they knew exactly what was going on and that they were going to tell her at some point in the future. "Jarl Bulgruuf," Luna said, staring at the corrupted mockery of the Crystal Palace, "we're going to need an army."