52: Apocrypha
"I don't mean to insult your wisdom Archmage," Neloth said, walking behind Trixie as they made sure the Skaal were out of the way of what they were doing, "but are you sure that we can trust them to do as they promised? I mean, they have been sleeping for the last thousand years, but I cannot say that I trust them after everything that they have done to this island."
"Normally I would be agreeing with your friend," the Skaal Leader, Skorn, commented, speaking as they approached the circle that had been made in the ground, "I would not normally trust the Dragon Priests that ruled over Solstheim with an iron fist, but we have no choice in this matter. If we cannot put aside our hatred for each other and band together, then I'm afraid that Miraak will have already won the war and nothing we do would stop him."
Trixie and her friends had ventured into the tomb of Vahlok the Jailor, the Dragon Priest that was responsible for the downfall of both Miraak and Yolrahtoor, and had come out with the knowledge of what they needed to do. Vahlok had disappeared into the evening breeze, a promise echoing that he would awaken the other Dragon Priests that had ruled under him and bring them, and more importantly their Black Books, to the village. That was where Trixie, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Queen Chrysalis, Skorn, and Neloth had constructed a circle of magic that they had pressed into the ground in the center of the village.
It was here that they planned on siphoning the power of the seven Black Books to tear open a portal to Apocrypha, where Miraak had been spending the last three or four thousand years. They wouldn't be able to destroy any of the Black Books, as Sombra said that it was impossible to destroy them without forcing their maker to do so, but they could lessen their influence on the world. He had constructed seven pedestals, identical to the one that held the Black Book of Nchardak, expect his were made of crystal and could contain the corrupting power of the Books. The Books that he and his friends had already acquired were placed in the circle, one of the outer ring while the second, the one they had found in Miraak's temple, was resting in the center.
"I trust that none of them would like to see Miraak or Yolrahtoor return to power," Trixie commented, tapping the Staff of Magnus on the ground as she stopped beside Skorn, "They'll come, and then they'll help us enter Apocrypha. Once we're inside its only a matter of time before we find Miraak, and hopefully Raika as well, where we'll put him down and save the island from further harm."
A gust of wind whipped around the entrance of the village, the same that Trixie and her friends used every time they came to the village, and a group of figures appeared before them. They were none other than the Dragon Priests that followed Vahlok until the end of their days, the ones that had stood against Miraak and his Daedric master. Trixie had been expecting them to arrive at some point that afternoon, but it amazed her that Vahlok managed to find each of them and convinced them to help the nords that called the island home. Three of them were carrying large black tomes of knowledge that seemed to be emitting darkness from them, while Vahlok himself carried two of them in his hands.
"I don't believe my eyes," Neloth said, sounding amazed at the sight before him, "all seven of Hermaeus Mora's Black Books, assembled in the same location, for the first time since Miraak's defeat. This is truly a sight to behold."
"We have come, just as you asked us to," Vahlok said, speaking to Trixie, as she was the only one who could understand her, "baring the books of our enemy, the Daedric Prince Hermaeus Mora. You say we can siphon their energy to open a portal to Apocrypha, but no such spell exists in our world."
"That's where Sombra comes in," Trixie replied, directing the Black Books into the remaining pedestals, "he has the most experience in this particular field, so he knows a few spells that we can use to achieve our goal. He'll siphon as much dark energy as he can from the Books before opening the portal to Miraak's sanctuary, which we will use the moment we are ready. Once we are inside Apocrypha we will begin our search for Miraak and Raika, the Last Dragonborn, before he has a chance to truly awaken his old ally. As soon as we find him we'll need to put him down, so be on your guard the moment we step through that gateway."
"He can pull off such a spell?" Neloth asked, an eyebrow raised as if he didn't believe what she was saying.
"I can," Sombra said, standing at the edge of the circle and making sure all the runes they had placed were the correct ones that they needed, "Most mages from our home world cannot handle the sheer raw and corrupting power that comes from using Dark Magic, with the exceptions of Princess Celestia, Princess Twilight, and myself. My special talent is, and will always be, control over Dark Magic, unless some creature, like Discord for instance, comes along and shatters my concentration. Now, when I perform the spell we might experience some fiends that want to prevent us from reaching Apocrypha, so I need each of you to be ready in case something comes out before I stabilized the portal."
Trixie repeated what Sombra said to Vahlok, who nodded his understanding and shouted a command to the rest of the Dragon Priests, who spread out and faced the summoning circle. Trixie, Neloth, and the rest of her friends did the same thing, their weapons at the ready in case something actually did come out before Sombra finished his spell. Sombra drew out his scythe and spun it around his head before slamming it down on the rune that rested at his feet, the one that had been designed to activate the others. The shadows wrapped around the circle and all six of the Black Books on the outer ring opened, their pages flapping between each other as if they were trying to find a certain page.
That was when a steady stream of purple energy rose out of each of the Black Books, gathering around the book they had found in Miraak's Temple. The sky darkened around them, telling anyone that was familiar with Sombra's magic that the spell was definitely working, while the book itself began to violently shake. Sombra groaned for a moment, feeling the Black Book fight him and his magic, but the moment that followed he gained the purple wisps of magic that flowed out of his eyes. With his bond to the dark magic strengthened he sent out another surge of magic, hitting the book so hard that it literally snapped open, the spell that had been keeping it sealed shattering within seconds. Behind the book's pedestal a mass of shadows gathered, forming a large opal shape that eventually collapsed on itself, opening the portal that would take them to Apocrypha.
Everyone waited for a few moments, watching for anything dangerous to emerge from the newly created portal, but when nothing came out Trixie smiled.
"Okay, here's how we're going to do this," Trixie said, turning to face everyone around her, "Vahlok, the Dragon Priests, Sombra, and myself will head into Apocrypha and try to find Raika and Miraak, but the rest of you should stay here. In the unlikely event that the creatures of Hermaeus Mora discover the portal we'll need someone to defend the village against them, so with the rest of you staying here I'm positive we won't have to worry about it."
Sombra chuckled and approached the gateway, making sure that it was as stable as he thought it was and, finding that he was correct, began the journey into Apocrypha.
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Miraak paced around his summit for a moment, his mind wandering as he worried that Yolrahtoor wouldn't be ready for when the Dragonborn's friends came to look for her. He had shattered Raika's memories, her mind, and her body to bring Yolrahtoor back, but he feared that, in the process, that his previous spell he had placed on her could have been shattered. There was the slimmest possibility that the original Yolrahtoor, the one that had served Alduin until Miraak had changed her mind, was still in there and could surface at the worst moment for all of them.
But while he feared that he may have brought the original Yolrahtoor back it paled in comparison to his joy that he could finally send her out to exert his will on everyone else.
"Miraak...Miraak..." his master said, phasing into the space behind him, "The friends of the Dragonborn have opened a portal into my realm, breaching the magical barrier I placed around my Black Books. When they come for you, and I know they'll come for you, I want you to stay your hand for a moment, so I can take their knowledge for my...collection."
"Oh course Lord Hermaeus," Miraak said, though he had absolutely no intention of sparing any of their lives, "I'll be sure to do so when I fight them later."
He knew that, even if he were to fall to the Dragonborn's friends, he had a plan in place that would allow Yolrahtoor to escape into Tamriel without his enemies knowing until it was too late. So while he waited for his enemies to arrive he had what little minions he could spare placing the armor he had made on Yolrahtoor, prepping her for battle. His enemies were in for quite the surprise, if they managed to make it to his summit.
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"So this is Apocrypha," Trixie said, staring out at the bookshelves, piles of books, and the eerie black water, "I must say, this is what I expected from the Daedric Lord of Forbidden Knowledge."
"Unfortunately, it seems that Miraak was expecting us," Vahlok replied, pointing a bony finger at the line of creatures coming their way before pulling out his staff, "so it seems that we're going to have to fight out way to the summit."
Sombra remembered seeing a low detailed picture of several of the creatures that were coming their way, the creatures that the Black Books referred to as Seekers and Lurkers. They were all loyal to the Daedric Lord Hermaeus Mora, so it made sense that they would gather together to protect his realm from any intruders. It also made some sense that they would also serve Miraak, who was using them as his own personal army until he brought back the greatest weapon in his arsenal; Yolrahtoor.
"I'm not sure if we can take them all by ourselves," one of the other Dragon Priests said, "I'm positive we could beat them all if we still had our armies, but with only six of us I don't think we'll get anywhere near the summit."
Trixie sighed and leveled the Staff of Magnus with the oncoming wave of enemies, magic surging out of the top and connecting with the chest of one of the Lurkers. The lightning branched outwards and suddenly a couple dozen of the creatures were blown off their feet, blasted right into the water and devoured by whatever creature called the water home. Sombra, on the other hand, simply ran towards their enemies and swung his scythe through the first creature he came to, a wave of darkness emitting from the head and cutting through whoever was unfortunate to get caught in its path. He was glad that the wave only went in the direction that the weapon was swung in, otherwise he would have to hear it from the others that they didn't know about the attack.
The Dragon Priests, now seeing that they were being left behind by two nords, who happened to be from another plane of existence, drew their staffs and charged into the battle. Magic erupted from their ranks, smashing into the Seekers and Lurkers, blasting them backwards and giving them a chance to draw closer to their allies. Trixie nodded to Sombra and he slammed his scythe into the floor, creating a wall of crystal nearby that he would soon wrap around them so he could stop the enemies advance. It would help separate them from their enemy, forcing them to go around it and giving them time to figure out where to move on to next whenever they found an exit.
Fortunately for them the wave was enemies was the only threat that they faced in the current level they were in, though Trixie was quick to discover how they were supposed to move on. She approached the open book near the back of the chamber they had appeared in and disappeared, causing the others to follow her and appear behind her in the next area. There they found a couple of staircases and a bridge, but they were patrolled by dozens of Miraak's minions, who came at them almost immediately.
As the others fought off the enemy Sombra noticed a book resting on a pedestal with two Lurkers protecting it, which told him that it was important in some way. He willed a crystal spire out of the water and pierced one of them in the chest, killing it almost immediately, and gave him a walkway that he used to draw closer to the second Lurker. His enemy raised its hands to defend itself, but Sombra spun around in the air and drove the head of his scythe into the Lurker's chest, crashing it to the floor. Once he was sure that the deed was done he grabbed the book and stored it away, knowing that they would likely have a use for it later on.
They continued their advance against Miraak's forces, felling any of them that dared to get in their way while blasting any that chose to flee before they could bring back reinforcements. They reached a corridor that eventually lead them to a gate, though they fought with the Seekers and Lurkers that had been chosen to guard the tome that Sombra spotted. It was quite easy to clear the room of enemies, but as Sombra gathered the second tome he began to wonder if Miraak was even trying to stop them. His forces were beginning to flee before they could even reach them, giving them time to recover their magicka before pressing on through the corridors. Though before they moved deeper into Apocrypha Sombra spotted a third glowing book and took it upon himself to grab it, knowing that they'd need it later on.
They passed through a crossroads, where they followed it down a path, only for it to bend around and force them to travel down the second hallway. The group followed the pathway deeper and deeper into Miraak's realm, eventually coming to room with a fourth glowing book, so while Sombra grabbed it and stashed it away the others pressed on. Seekers and Lurkers fell to the combined magic of Trixie and the four Dragon Priests, littering the ground with either their bodies or the armor that the Seeker's wore.
Eventually they came to a chamber that was held up way above the one they had just been on, though Sombra noticed that there were no enemies floating about and that there were five stands waiting for them. Four of them, he noted, were bare, almost as if they were waiting for something to be placed on them.
"I see what they did," Sombra commented, pulling out the four books he had collected and spotted a symbol on each one of them, "We'll need to place one of these books on a certain pedestal, though I am positive that there might be a lingering spell that we're not aware of yet. Give me a moment or two and I'll be able to determine which spell they used on these pedestals."
"No have no time," Vahlok replied, grabbing the tomes and giving one to each of his followers, keeping the one with an orb on it, "If there is a spell in this chamber than my followers and I shall suffer the consequences."
Sombra sighed and moved for them to pass him, watching the four Dragon Priests spread out while they searched for the pedestal that their glowing book belonged to. Ahzidal, carrying the book with the symbol of limbs, moved to the back of the chamber, directly across from the first pedestal, where the Trixie and Sombra were standing. Dukaan, carrying the book with a pair of pincers on the front, settled to the right of where they stood, which Zahkriisos, carrying the book with a pair of blades, settled on their left. Vahlok, seeing the other pedestals taken, returned to the one they were standing at and positioned himself in front of it, before nodding to the other Priests. all four books touched their pedestals at the same time, but none of them moved an inch in case there was a hidden spell they didn't know of.
Then, just as they were about to release their books, a spark of lightning erupted out of each book, tearing through the chest of the Dragon Priest that stood in front of it before gathering around the final pedestal, where the book that rested upon it opened up.
"Agh...damn Miraak to Oblivion..." Vahlok moaned, collapsing on the wall as his comrades did the same, "I...should have...listened to you...Sombra..."
"Don't worry Vahlok," Trixie said, standing in front of him while Sombra waited nearby, "We'll stop Miraak and whatever he has planned for Yolrahtoor."
"I...believe...you..." Vahlok started to reply, but whatever magic was keeping him alive expired and he collapsed on the ground, followed by his followers.
Trixie sighed and followed Sombra up to the next floor, where they found a Seeker floating in front of an open wall that was covered by a scroll, which also had swirling words on it. Sombra approached the Seeker and swung his scythe through it, causing it to collapse into a heap on the floor while his weapon absorbed the soul. Once the immediate threat was dealt with he stared at the open water in front of them and began to plan where he needed to summon his pillars. The moment that he knew exactly where they needed to go he placed his hand on the ground and summoned his magic, several pillars erupting from the water and raising in a diagonal fashion.
"This is our bridge," Sombra said, his voice darkening just a bit, "Its time to end this."
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"Where are they?" Miraak commented, speaking to himself while he waited for his enemies to arrive, "I know I felt my spell on those books go off, but I would have expected them to arrive sooner than this..."
That was before a crystal spire entered his field of vision and he turned to face it, seeing two nords running up the side before jumping off and landing near the rim of his summit. One of them was dressed up in the robes of a major mage, which meant that she could only be the infamous Archmage of Winterhold that Miraak had seen in Raika's memories, Trixie Lulamoon. The second nord was dressed up in steel armor, but the lush red cape, the pure black moving hair, the steel crown, and the tendrils of magic coming out of his eyes told a different story. Miraak knew the nord could only be Sombra, the King of Shadows, but he was too confident to let the presence of such a powerful mortal phase him.
"Ah, finally," Miraak said, drawing his sword and his staff as they approached him, "the friends of the Dragonborn. I expected more of your pitiful band to come here, to the seat of my power. What's wrong? Did some of your friends die at the hands of my spell earlier? Is that why it took you so long to reach me?"
That was moments before a second crystal spire erupted out of the ground, tearing through the floor and impaling Miraak in the chest, before lifting him right off the ground. He coughed and blood erupted out of his mouth as he dropped his weapons; he had been expecting some form of fight, not an instant near win for his enemies. Then, just as quickly as it had appeared, the spire retreated into the floor and disappeared, causing Miraak to lay against the ground, bleeding out.
"There, your basically dead," Sombra said, kneeling in front of the dying villain, "Now, tell me where Raika is and I'll end your misery in an instant, just like I did with my crystal spire. If you don't tell me then I will make sure to make you suffer, which will eventually lead you to telling me everything I want to know before I end your existence."
Miraak had to chuckle, despite Sombra's threats to torture him to get whatever information he wanted. His plans would all be coming to reality, all thanks to what Sombra had brought to Tamriel. He pressed his right hand into his blood and drew a rune on the closest book he could find, his magic flaring wildly as his final moments drew closer to him. Even from where he was laying he could hear the sound of water moving, telling him that his plan was now in motion and that he could pass on if he desired.
"The Dragonborn is no more," Miraak coughed, leaning against a stack of books as he stared out at the open water, "and soon Yolrahtoor will enforce her will upon Tamriel. I must thank you, King of Shadows, for giving me the tools to create a portal that would allow me to leave this realm without Hermaeus Mora finding out. Thanks to you my plans can finally be set in motion, even if I won't be around to see what happens next..."
Sombra and Trixie turned around in time to see a large ring of crystal rise into the air, located somewhere in the distance from where they were standing. Even from their distance Sombra could tell that the ring was large enough for a dragon the size of Alduin to pass through, though he didn't like what that was telling him. Magic pulsed around the center, as if it was awakening whatever magic Miraak had poured into its construction, which they had been told was a portal. Before he could move forward to summon a pillar to get him to the ring he felt the tower they were standing on shake, almost as if something had hit it.
"Pain..." a voice echoed, sounding nearly identical to Alduin's voice despite sounding like a female dragon, "Agony..."
Once the second word was said the tower shuddered for a moment, which told Sombra that something was definitely attacking the tower at its base. A roar echoed around them, scattering the books across the summit as the tower began to tilt just a bit, though Sombra was more concerned with whatever Miraak had released. He heard the sound of something large erupting out of the water below them, though whatever it was tore through the air and unfurled its wings the moment it was in front of them. It was a large bright red scaled dragon, the same one that he believed the nords of Solstheim called Yolrahtoor, but despite the fact that he could see the scales around her eyes he noticed that something was off about her.
The armor that she was wearing, the one he assumed that Miraak had created for her, wasn't attached to her like a nord would wear a piece of armor; it was literally fastened to her scales and her body.
"Go...Yol...rah...toor," Miraak weakly said, causing Sombra to look back at him for a moment, "Do...what...you...."
This time when Miraak stopped speaking Sombra made sure to feel for a heartbeat with his magic, though he found none and was glad that the villain was dead at least. He turned to the dragon that was staring down at them, almost as if she was making up her mind whether or not she should just kill them or leave them for Hermeaus Mora. Sombra gripped the handle of his weapon and waited, hoping that Raika was still inside the dragon somewhere so he could reason with her instead of resorting to violence.
"I WILL DESTROY TAMRIEL!" Yolrahtoor roared, rotating herself so she could face the portal, "I WILL RAZE EVERYTHING TO THE GROUND AND SLAUGHTER EVERYONE IN A SEA OF FLAMES! NEITHER THE DIVINES NOR THE DAEDRA WILL STOP ME!"
Before either Sombra or Trixie could stop her Yolrahtoor released a savage roar and flew into the crystal ring, escaping to wherever Miraak had the ring set to.
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Storn had been waiting patiently, waiting for the group that went into Apocrypha to return with news that Miraak had been defeated and his plans had been ruined. He had faith that Sombra and Trixie would be able to defeat the First Dragonborn, but he didn't trust the Dragon Priests that had traveled in with them. As he sat in front of the portal he felt the ground shake, not too much before it faded, but the second hit was violent enough for everyone in the village to cry out in terror. Then he heard the roar, the one that his ancestors had described in great detail, and knew that the village was still in danger as he looked into the sky.
There he found a massive red dragon, covered in black armor that looked like it was burning between the pieces, flying though the air, a trail of flame following her.
"All-Maker preserve us," Skorn said, his old heart rapidly beating at the sight before him, "Yolrahtoor has returned..."
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Wait a minute...did Miraak create a female version of Deathwing?
Something tells me that Yolrahtoor reminds me of Broly.
6147158 That's the angry sayian guy that tried to kill Goku at one point right?
6147951 Yes. Yes, he is.
6150125 Ah. I don't know a lot about that universe, but I know about Goku, Vegeta, and a few other villains.
Though something tells me that Yolrahtoor is going to start purging the world of everyone.
6150758 Yolrahtoor as Goddess of Fire and Destruction is fitting.
6150792 I wonder; will she attack the island first, or will she fly to Skyrim and start there?
6152069 Knowing her, she'll start with Solthisteim then deal with Paarthunaax in Skyrim.
6152466 Yeah, I think you might be right. Start with those that lead to her betrayal, despite the fact that their all dead, and work her way back to the beginning.
6153494 And then she'll eventually fight Sombra. I wonder if Sombra still thinks of Raika as a friend?
6153698 I think he sees the dragon and the threat she poses, and not the friend he was trying to save. Now during the fight he might try and break through to her, but after everything Miraak did I'm not sure what's happening with her.
So Miraak is dead and Yolrahtoor is free...
Stendarr preserve us all!
6999607 ... sind in a clone army of 99999999999erorr king sambras
You're severely underestimating the power of the Equestrians. Discord would be at least on par with-if not even more powerful than-any of the daedric princes. Here, Sombra bested him, and he can't even beat fucking Miraak?! In the words of Billy Mays, you shittin' me?