Hello everyone! This is my first story here and it's something I've been wanting to do for a long time. I have personally beaten Skyrim to it's entirety and have finished the 3 Dark Souls games so I feel like this was a self fulfilling prophecy of some kind.
Something you might find in this story is that I have a fairly decent grasp of Elder Scrolls lore, but Dark Souls lore continues to confuse me. I have watched many videos online trying to explain it, but I occasionally ran into differing opinions on various subjects making it more hard on me as I would then have to choose one and go with it, but I feel like I did a good job. This could mostly be because I made somethings up myself to make the story actually work. I did this mostly with the Elder Scrolls lore though considering thats where this will be taking place and not a whole lot is known about some of the lore involved.
I'm basically just creating plot devices here.
Anyways! On to the Story.
Beware though, There will be a hefty amount of dialogue in this chapter.
In Skyrim, there are tales that are passed down generation to generation such as Ysgramor and his Companions or The Tale of Talos and his ascension from man to Godhood. The one most important story is more of a prophecy than anything however.
Alduin, The World Eater. When he returns to Nirn during the End Times, he shall consume the entirety of the world. That is of course, unless a man with a soul or blood of a Dragon confronts the beast and slays it, which would stave off Armageddon for Eras to come.
The story of the Dragonborn and Alduin's inevitable clash was known across Tamriel since the time of the Tongues and their defeat of Alduin and has since sparked songs and books dedicated to the Dovahkin.
There was simply one problem with all of this that no one knew of except for the Gods themselves.
The Dragonborn of legend simply didn't exist yet and Alduin was on the way.
If you were to ever visit the Gods in their Hall of Aspects, you would be greeted by a never ending white plane that housed one large silver table with four chairs made of gold facing each other on two sides and a blue throne at the head made of some sort of giant gemstone.
Upon the throne sat a man wearing golden hemmed purple robes with pale skin devoid of wrinkles. Skin so flawless that the only thing that could be considered a mar upon it was a flowing blonde beard that reached just below his chest. The hair on his head matched both the position and colour of his beard.
This was the Dragon God of Time and Head Deity of the Nine Divines, Akatosh and he was currently looking over the empty hall with his golden eyes that peeked out from behind his entwined hands.
"This is bad" a silky smooth voice emanated from him. "I can feel Alduin flowing through my sands and he is close to escaping. I normally wouldn't involve myself in the matters of man like I did with the Opening of Oblivion and Dagon, but with no Dovahkin to meet my son in battle then I know that Nirn will fall in a matter of one cycle". He closed his eyes to focus. "And I'm afraid that I can't let that happen just yet. Nirn still has many more Eras to live through before I'll let it be consumed"
His eyes snapped open and unleashed a blinding golden light throughout the Hall that travelled through the Planes of Existence, from Oblivion to Sovngarde and finally to Nirn, signaling that the God of Time had just left this Realm of Life for another.
For some reason that no one but he knew.
In the land of Lordran, time was a fickle thing. The fading of The First Flame had caused a strange flux in it's flow allowing legends of the past to traverse the present even though they were recorded to have died long ago, before the Undead Curse became a problem.
The strangest part about this lands Time Stream was that it was currently stuck in a never ending loop marked by the Chosen Undead's escape from the Northern Undead Asylum and either the Linking of the First Flame or the Snuffing of it.
It was this strange flow of time that originally caught Akatosh's attention while he traversed different Time Streams, but it was the man that time focussed around that captured his interests. Originally a Pyromancer from a land known as the Great Swamp, this man was sent to an asylum straight north from his current location of Lordran not long after his twenty first birthday when he was found to be an "Undead" by a religion known as the Way of the White. Months of solitude went by before he escaped with the help of a Undead Knight named Oscar. During his escape the so called "Chosen Undead" recognized his destiny to break the Undead Curse and keep the Age of Fire going, but could only do this by going to the land of this Time Stream's Gods link the First Flame, which would accomplish both goals simultaneously.
If Akatosh were any other God then he would believe that the Undead's journey was about to come to it's end, but since he is the one with indomitable control over time, he already knew that no matter what the Chosen Undead decided to do; there was no escaping the cycle.
As Akatosh gazed upon the man standing before the dissolving body of Lordran's Lord of Sunlight, he knew that the Undead knew this as well for when he gazed deeply into his own personal Time Stream he saw that this wasn't his first time living through the cycle.
It was in fact his thirteenth.
This surprised the Dragon God, for he knew that time was meant to never be changed unless he so willed it so he figured that when the cycle started anew, this man would follow the same footsteps he laid out in past cycles, but it seemed that he was the exception to this rule that every other being in this Time Stream followed. Each cycle was done differently than the last with him only using fire through one to the current one wear he wore a bulky suit made of stone like material and a giant sword with veins of glowing orange.
Another thing about this man that surprised the God was that he had slain multiple dragons and their kin absorbed their power more than twenty times. The only one that Akatosh knew of that could pull off the same feat would be the nonexistent Dragonborn from his own Time Stream.
Akatosh grinned, showing his pearly white teeth. "He will do perfectly" He stated. The God then started his descent from his league high vantage point of the Kiln of the First Flame.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~At the same time~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Chosen Undead silently watched Gwyn's body slowly dissolve into a mass of souls that was immediately absorbed by his own massive soul. It's not like he really needed the souls anymore though considering the fact that whenever he tried to use them to increase his own abilities they simply did nothing and stayed within him. This had happened sometime during his seventh time in Lordran; about at the same time that he noticed that everything in the land had stopped getting stronger with each cycle
He placed his hands on the Havel's Helmet and slowly lifted it off revealing a face that wouldn't normally be associated with his home of the Great Swamp. He had tanned skin from the warm albeit fake sunlight of Anor Londo along with a chiseled jaw and broad chin hidden under a full beard of black hair that only went half way down his neck. It wasn't perfect though as one scar did inhibit it's growth from a little bit above his left brow right down his jaw bone.
He placed the helmet inside his bottomless box that was chained to his hip and sat down on the ash covered ground. His still gauntleted hand rose and flowed through his short cut hair as looked around in deep thought.
"I don't think I'll survive through the next cycle". The man concluded. A ball of fire burst to life in his left hand, but instead of tossing it, he started at with his silver eyes. A stark contrast to the glistening gold of the whirling mass of flame. "Doing this used to give me purpose. To keep me from going Hollow like everyone else, but the repetitiveness has made everything lose meaning". He then let the fireball dissipate and he turned to look at the unlit bonfire at the center of the Kiln. "As soon as I light that fire, I have no doubt that I will go Hollow. Given my power, I know that nothing would be able to stop me. Not Ornstein, not Nito, not even the dragons could stop me"
His knees tucked into his chest and he whispered "I don't want any of that it happen, but I don't see any other alternative either". Tears were gathering in the corners of his eyes, threatening to fall at any second. They most likely would have if he hadn't heard a voice that reminded him of Qwynevere and Qwyndolin.
"Not faring too well I take it?" A large pale man in a purple robed asked him while floating down through the broken roof of the Kiln.
The Chosen Undead quickly stood up and gained some distance from the man. Reaching into his bottomless box, he pulled out Havel's Helmet and Shield; equipping them with practiced precision expected of a veteran warrior.
Mind processing information faster than most could fathom, the man tried to make a suitable plan. 'This one is new- not apart of the cycle or else he would have been here every other time as well. Same voice patterns as Qwyn's children so I can assume that this guy is a God of some sorts. No weapon in sight and is only wearing robes meaning that he will either use some form of magic that doesn't need a catalyst or is a pyromancer'. He held his shield even tighter than normal and thrust it before him for whatever attack may come, readying the Dragon Greatsword as well to cleave the God in two for when a moment arose.
The God before him seemed to realize that he meant to kill him if it was needed and raised both hands to the air in the form of appeasement. "Easy there young one, I've come in good faith". The Undead slightly loosened his grip on his large shield, but was still tensed for attack. "I've come here in need of your help".
The man furrowed his brow beneath his helmet in rage. "I am already helping the gods with what I'm doing right now! What else could you want from me!". Let it be known that he didn't take too much joy in being the god's plaything after the second cycle of hell that is Lordran.
Moving closer to the Undead, the god touched down on the ash covered ground. "I believe introductions would help first". He bowed slightly. "Akatosh, God of Time"
Seeing the that the supposed God of Time's eyes were looking at him expectantly, he bowed even less than Akatosh had. "Cadmus of the Great Swamp. I will ask once more; what else do you gods want from me!"
Akatosh looked around the Kiln for a second before a gave Cadmus a look. "I came here to offer you a proposition"
Cadmus physically flinched back a bit. "A deal. What kind of deal could you make that I would even care for?"
The Time God gestured to the ashen remains of the Kiln and the unlinked First Flame. "I can make all of this end. I can end the endless loop of time that you find yourself stuck in and finally let the Undead Curse be broken- at least until the next time the Flame must by linked"
The Chosen Undead dropped his sword and shield to the side along with his helmet and closed in on Akatosh. His hands gripped the front of the fine robe, silk if he had guess and dragged the god's face to be level with his. "Don't you DARE fucking joke about that. I have been stuck here for thirteen cycles. THIRTEEN!" A wild look had entered his eyes. "The gods here can't even help themselves! How in the ABYSS would you be able to fix this clusterfuck of a land!"
Akatosh calmly grabbed Cadmus' hands and pried them off his robe. "I know that my deal seems too good to be true, but please refrain from touching me in such a manner again". Cadmus lost the crazed look and adopted one of apology.
"I'm... I'm sorry. I know I'm out of line, but to be frank; how DO you think you can fix the time loop?"
A cocky smirk unbefitting of a god like Akatosh was plastered on his face. "I told you before Cadmus; I am the God of Time. To be more specific, I'm Time given physical form and as such, I can do what ever I please with it as long as it doesn't alter anything too severely". He looked up at the broken roof of the Kiln. "Let me give an example".
Cadmus watched as one of Akatosh's fingers barely twitched.
All of a sudden a heard what sounded like stones being stacked upon one another and looked to the roof like the god in front of him was. To his surprise, every single stone was back in what he assumed was it's original place. He quickly looked back at the god to see he still wore that cocky smirk of his.
"Ok" He spoke slowly. "I am inclined to believe you now". Minor suspicion came back to him. "But what exactly is this deal you were speaking of earlier?"
Akatosh smirk broke into a genuine smile, the kind you would usually find if you were to give a child a treat. "What I ask for is simple: Come back with me to my original Time Stream and help with a problem I have and in return, I will undo the time loop this Stream is stuck in, allowing the occupants to be free of a torture they are unaware of"
Confusion was evident on Cadmus' face and Akatosh couldn't really blame him. "What in the name of the Sun are you talking about? Time Streams? What are those?"
"Think of Time Streams like threads of a blanket that goes on forever. This universe is only one of the infinite number of threads that make up the blanket. If we use that example then I would be considered the knitter. I make every single thread the way I wish for it to be and considering the fact that I have been doing this literally forever, some Time Streams like this one end up have problems due to my oversight and I apologize for that"
Cadmus rubbed his temple with his hand. "I think I understand". He stared the god straight in the eye. "If I'm going to agree to this arrangement then I have some conditions"
They held each others stare for a moment.
"Ok. Let's hear them. If they are manageable then I'll see to it that it is done" Akatosh declared.
A smile grew on Cadmus' face. "My first requirement is that I'm allowed to take everything that is within this box" he tapped the bottomless box on his hip. "And I will have this box and it's contents with me and not scattered so I have to find everything again"
Akatosh nodded. "That's doable, however, where I place you in my Time Stream will have you be a prisoner and will not be allowed anything besides the clothes on your back. My compromise is that I place that box near your position and all you have to do is find it". He saw Cadmus looking at him with a not so happy expression. He quickly added on. "I wouldn't be so heartless as to not tell you where it is, if thats what you are wondering"
The Undead shrugged. "That is fair, but I'm going to hold you to that". He paused.
"Yes? What is your second condition?" The god inquired.
Cadmus took a steady breath. "My second condition... My second condition is that you help fix my friends".
A tilt of a head was Cadmus response. "I'm afraid you're going to be more specific before I do anything".
He looked at the ground and clenched his hands into fists."My friends like Solaire, Siegmayer, and others like Rhea all met a terrible fate here in Lordran; one that they didn't deserve for all the good they had done. What I'm asking is that you help them and give them an ending deserving of their deeds and not the end that others have pushed them towards".
Silence greeted Cadmus. Looking up he saw that Akatosh had his eyes closed and seemed to be focusing. What about, he did not know.
Several minutes passed before Akatosh opened his eyes to stare at Cadmus. "From what I can see, all possible deviations in the Time Stream that happen if I fulfill all lead back to the path the original was on. So yes; that is also acceptable". Akatosh also knew that the Undead had failed to specify any more than the three he would like to have saved, but Akatosh being the benevolent god he was, was going to help those mentioned and then some.
Cadmus bowed considerable more deeply that time than he did when he first met Akatosh.
Standing straight once again, Cadmus posed a question. "You have upheld your end so I'll uphold mine, but how exactly is this gonna work?"
Akatosh beckoned Cadmus over to the First Flame. "Under normal circumstances, you would have two choices here". He pointed at the Bonfire. "Link the First Flame". His finger moved to point at the large door. "Or snuff it and become the Dark Lord" His hands then clasped behind his back. "Unfortunately, these are not normal circumstances and the only way for me to safely take you out of this Time Stream is for you to simply stop existing here. Becoming the Dark Lord defeats the whole purpose of that seeing as you would become too... powerful, I should say. If you cast yourself into the fire though, you become it's kindling and venerable enough for me to take you out".
"So I just Link the Flame as per usual? And you'll do the rest?" Akatosh was asked.
"Exactly" The god nodded. "Before you go though, I'll need that box of yours so I can fulfill the other part of your request" He smiled then. "It just wouldn't do for you to suddenly be deprived of your assets".
Cadmus unlatched the box from his leggings and proceeded to strip off the remaining armour he had on and put it along with the Dragon Greatsword inside of it before pulling out the Wanderer Set and putting it on. Afterwords Cadmus handed the box into Akatosh's awaiting hands.
The box bounced up and down in the god's hand. "Surprisingly light for something that carry's all that you own"
Cadmus' clothed form shrugged. "It's some kind of ancient magic that nobody really understands other than that it works pretty damn well" He flipped the hood of the armour over his head, which slightly covered his eyes. "Ok. I'm ready for this"
He reached his hand out to light the bonfire, but before he did, he turned to the god of another universe. "I'll meet you over there right?"
Akatosh sent him a reassuring nod with the box still in-hand.
The pyromancer slowly inhaled and the exhaled. With one confidant step forward, his hand touched the hilt of the sword that signified a bonfire.
And with that came the immediate pain of being burned alive by a primordial element and instant regret for deciding to do this again despite the fact he will never have to do it again if Akatosh truly did need help.
Cool! All done!
I think this went pretty well! If you think otherwise or have a question; please review or send me a message.
Before any questions about the whole Time Stream thing comes in, I should just explain it right now.
What the Time Streams represent are different universes. Me calling them Time Streams instead of alternate universes stems from the fact that Akatosh is the god of TIME not space or anything like that. I wasn't able to find a god of Space in the Elder Scrolls universe so I had to improvise and create a plot device like I mentioned at the beginning.
Also, to make things clearer. Akatosh in this story technically belongs to the Elder Scrolls Time Stream, but I made him more of a multi dimensional being which started time for everything. He simply likes the Elder Scrolls universe the most and hangs out there almost all the time while subconsciously creating more and more Time Streams and due to this, he ends up neglecting some universes and simply ignoring others like with the Dark Souls universe, which would explain why Cadmus didn't immediately recognize Akatosh as a god and instead had to deduce it.
Anyways, thank you so much for reading this! I'm open to criticism and will try to incorporate any I get.
See ya next time!