//------------------------------// // 25: Dragon Call // Story: Sombra visits Skyrim // by Blackdrag-rose //------------------------------// "Okay," Raika sighed, sheathing her weapons before turning to Paarthurnax, "so, how in Oblivion am I supposed to get to Sovngarde without dying?" Paarthurnax had spent the time between Alduin's arrival to the mountain, Sombra's crystals ruining his body, and then his departure in complete silence. Raika had no idea if he was stunned that she had somehow managed to find the weapon of the ancient nords, stunned that Alduin had found them out so fast, or stunned that Sombra had utterly destroyed his brother so much that he had to flee. Raika was still surprised with Sombra herself; the more she traveled with him the more she realized that his fight with the sisters over a thousand years ago was more than they were telling her. Sombra had ruined a seemingly invulnerable creature, so it made her wonder exactly what damage the darkness inside of him had done during his fight. "Krosis, I do not know," Paarthurnax replied, blowing out a puff of smoke while he spoke, "I was never given the mindah, the knowledge, of Alduin's hidden fortress. He only told several of his closest allies where his runir, his stronghold, was located. But who should we test to discover its nizaag, its location? There is one who is rash enough that the trap inside Ahrolsedovah, the place you call Whiterun, should be able to work on him. His name is Od-ah-viing, or Snow Hunter Wing in your tongue. When you find the trap just shout his name to the skies and he will come, to challenge the one who beat his master." "But it wasn't me who defeated Alduin," Raika pointed out, motioning towards the crystal chunks lying around the area, "Once he discovers that I didn't lay a hand on his master he'll likely turn around and leave." "The dovah are prideful creatures," Paarthurnax told her, "When you call Odahviing's name he'll come to do battle, whether or not it was actually you that defeated Alduin just now." "Very well," Raika sighed, knowing that she was defeated once again, "We shall make for Whiterun and see if the trap can be readied to trap this Odahviing. With any luck we should be on our way to Sovngarde to finish this fight before he can regain all his strength." What Raika didn't say was that she had no idea if she could fight and defeat Alduin without the aid of her friends, who had so far destroyed everything that came her way. For all she knew Alduin could still kick her butt with what power still remained in his body, despite the massive damage that he had taken from his fight. The other thing that she was dreading, besides the trek down the mountain once again, was that she needed to waste time finding yet another carriage. She only hoped that the driver she had been using for the last few days was still in Iverstead, otherwise they might have to walk to Whiterun. She also wished that she had some method of quickly traveling between locations, so she could do away with the need for carriages once and for all. ------------------------------- Fortunately for the group they found the carriage driver waiting exactly where they had left him and he was eager to take them to their next destination, at a reduced price considering how often they were using his services. The unfortunate part was that they passed by several groups of cultists that were eager to spill Raika's blood, though Sombra was quick to remove them. That meant impaling each of them on his crystal spikes as they passed by them, giving anyone else who dared to fight them the impression that it was a terrible idea. None of them bothered to speak during the ride, so Raika took the time to think about what it was going to take to make Jarl Bulgruuf go along with her insane plan. No, it was Paarthurnax's insane plan and she was just a pawn in destroying his brother, but she had no other plan that could get her to Sovngarde without dying. She seriously hoped that Bulgruuf didn't demand that one side of the war finally wins before she could trap a dragon, otherwise she'd never get to Alduin before he was back at full strength. As they neared Whiterun Raika gripped the handles of her swords, no doubt making the white's of her knuckles pop out, as she prepared to face the Jarl. The guards caught sight of her and her companions as the carriage stopped before the gates, allowing them to approach before escorting them directly towards Dragonsreach. Raika noticed that several of the civilians gave Sombra nasty glances, no doubt from the fact that they had heard that it was him who had summoned the crystal construct and nearly waged total war on the city. If only they knew that he had impaled the World-Eater not a few hours ago, then they'd be singing a different tone and would likely leave him alone. "Dragonborn," Bulgruuf said, speaking the moment that the group stopped in front of his throne, "When your friends left they failed to undo the crystal prison that they put one of my guards in, so he's been sealed in crystal for the last two days. And for the crimes against the city of Whiterun I am afraid that your friend Sombra will have to be thrown in the Dragonsreach Prison until further notice." "And I would escape within seconds," Sombra said, showing no emotion at all, "so, one lord to another, let us skip this nonsense and get onto why we're here. Raika needs to use the ancient trap in your palace to trap a dragon so she can discover exactly where Alduin the World-Eater went so she can finish the job. And if it bothers you so much I'll gladly move the prison and Discord out of here so you won't have to look at him again." "I still need you to release my guard," the Jarl growled, clearly getting mad at him. "That would be Discord, the Spirit of Chaos," Celestia said, "He's known to disguise himself as a guard so he can sneak around without someone catching on to him. He'll stay where he is until we can deliver him back to our world, so if you would please just get the trap ready we'll be out of your hair." "I will not do such a thing while the war is still raging outside my gates," Bulgruuf told them, "besides, even if I wanted to help you I've still got the crystal that's in the way of everything." "Of for the love of the Crystal Empire," Sombra moaned, turning to face Celestia, "Do you think that a fatal blow to Discord might send him back to Equestria and get him out of our hair?" "Well, it might," Celestia confessed, wondering where he was going with the train of thought, "but in order for us to be sure that his spirit leaves Tamriel and doesn't stick around we'd have to open a small hole between our worlds. In order to do that my sister or I would have to cast the spell to create the hole, followed by destroying his shell within seconds of the hole forming. Once his spirit is gone then we should be able to get this dragon calling on the way." "What?" Bulgruuf asked, having not followed the conversation until the end, "I never agreed to allowing you to summon a dragon into the heart of my city!" "Oh for the love of Talos," Raika shouted, "If we don't stop Alduin then there won't be a Skyrim for the Imperials and Stormcloaks to fight over, nor will there be a Tamriel for anyone to fight over. You've clearly chosen that you won't help us defeat the World-Eater, so shut up and get out of our way before you end up releasing Discord before they're ready to get rid of him." Sombra, knowing that Raika was on board with their plan, drew his blade, now pulsing with the darkness once more, and moved towards where he knew Discord rested. Several guards moved to block his path, but just one look at them with the Dark Magic flowing out of his eyes was enough to make them back up in fear of him slaughtering them. The others moved after him, passing the guards until they stood in the porch area where the crystal prison still rested, with Discord still trapped inside. "Exactly where we left him," Celestia said, her magic igniting in front of her as a small black orb phased into existence, "Give me a few minutes and we'll have the means to be rid of Discord before he has another chance to escape." Raika watched as the hole, for that was all she could call it, moved near the crystal prison and continued to grow until it was the size of someone's head. Sombra, waiting for the moment when the hole was stabled for the brief moment he needed, was positioned in front of Discord's still body, his sword at the ready. She had no idea if his blade could break through the plain surface, but seeing how Sombra could summon them at whim it made sense to her that he could destroy them as well. Luna and Trixie, having no tasks in this two person spell, simply stayed near the door, making sure that the guards and the Jarl didn't come in and ruin all the hard work. The moment that Celestia nodded to Sombra, indicating that the hole was ready, he pulled back his arm and swung with all his might, cutting right through the crystal prison and Discord in one swoop. The moment that Discord's body was in two pieces they began to shrivel up, turning to dust that began to gather in a spot right before the hole. Once the body was gone and the dust was in one piece the hole devoured everything that was Discord's form on Tamriel, sending him back where he belonged. The moment that all of Discord's spirit was gone Celestia closed the hole, slamming it shut and leaving the area bare once again. "Summon the dragon," Sombra shouted, the guards present shivering as they made sure that the trap was ready, "Let's get this show on the road. Whenever your ready Raika." Raika wondered how it was possible for Sombra to change from a silent and non-commanding person into a loud and commanding person who knew what he was doing. Then she realized that she was seeing the version of Sombra long before Celestia, Luna, and Discord ever came to the Crystal Empire and changed his live. This was the King, the one that Celestia fell in love with, the one that Luna befriended, the one that Discord tried to destroy, and the one who would defend his empire until his final breath. This was the king that she could, and absolutely would, respect until it came time to finally say goodbye to him. As the others gathered near the top of the porch, the top level where the levers were located, Raika moved towards the opening and sucked in the air for a moment. "Od Ah Viing!" The dragon's name rolled off her tongue and sounded throughout the plains near Whiterun, but Raika had no idea if the call would even work like Paarthurnax said it would. As she stood there she heard the guards shuffle around the porch, likely getting a better view as they awaited the arrival of the dragon like she was. Then, before anyone could bother to steady themselves, a red dragon landed on the edge of the porch and walked in without a care in the world. One of the guards got too close to the dragon, because the moment that he approached the beast he was hit by his right wing and thrown into the wall. "Foolish bron," the dragon growled, smoke coming out of his mouth as he spotted Raika, "Sup Dovahkiin. What can I do for you today?" "Aren't...you going to fight me?" Raika asked, confused as to why the dragon was acting so friendly around her instead of trying to kill her like the rest of his kind. "Mindin fos hi drey wah Alduin?" the dragon asked, shaking his head for a moment as if he was remembering something, "Forgive me, I forgot that you do not know our language. I said 'After what you did to Alduin?' You and your friends ruined Alduin, showing the rest of our kind that he doesn't have the skills to lead any of us. Let me guess, you want to know where Alduin has gone?" "Yes," Raika said, still wondering why this dragon was being so different from the others, "So Odahviing, I'm assuming that you know exactly where he has gone?" "Geh," Odahviing said, "Yes. Alduin has gone to his hidden fortress in Skuldafn, the only place in all of Skyrim that connects to the realm of the afterlife, Sovngarde. I can easily take you there, but unfortunately I can only take one person at a time. So, if you want to finish what you started, I'll be able to take you and you alone." "Don't need to worry about that," Luna replied, flexing her wings while gesturing to her sister's pair, "My sister and I will be able to follow you without much of a problem. Sombra can easily open a gate for him and Trixie to follow us through, so they're also good as well." "Very well then," Odahviing said, turning around and allowing Raika to climb onto his back, "We shall make for Skuldafn, where the rest of Alduin's forces have gathered to defend their lord from you and your friends." Raika let a smile appear on her face, knowing that the cycle that started in Helgen when she was nearly executed was nearly over. All they had to do was make it through the gauntlet that was waiting for them and then she could finally see who was stronger, her or Alduin. For the first time since she started this quest she was actually excited to fight someone, even if it was a legendary dragon that was supposed to end the world.