30th of Last Seed, 3E 427
She was alone, until she noticed she was surrounded by statues. Ash statues.
"You know you can't win, don't you?" She heard someone whisper. She turned to see the man in the golden mask. He seemed so sure of himself. It was almost pathetic.
"I know I'm going to die trying," was her response. "Stop trying to frighten me."
He said nothing. It was almost as if her response had shocked him.
The surroundings faded.
The City of Vivec stood before me, the cantons towering high. The sun shone brightly, and the light glinted off the water. Gondolas went to and from different areas of the city, ferrying the citizens, despite it not being as busy as it usually was during the later hours.
I couldn't afford luxuries like gondola rides if I wanted to remain unseen, so Julan and I had to make our way to the Temple Canton on foot. That was a long journey. I think it may have taken us two hours to get through Vivec without bumping into any Ordinators.
"Have you thought this through?" Julan asked. "I... I mean, what if they arrest you?"
"I kind of want to know what this Archcanon has to say," I said in an undertone. An Ordinator had just passed us, and I needed to exercise caution.
Soon enough, we did arrive in the Temple Canton, however now that we were here, the Ordinators were even harder to avoid.
"Quickly! Over here!"
I turned around and saw an older Dunmer woman wearing light blue robes. Her dark hair had been pinned up in a tight bun. She looked mildly frightened to me, honestly, but given the circumstances, that was understandable.
"You're Ulina Therayn, right?" She asked.
"Yeah -"
"Did you want to meet the Archcanon?"
Instead of answering, I glanced towards the Ordinators, and nodded quickly.
"I'm Danso Indules," she continued. "The Archcanon is in his private quarters, and he very much wishes to speak with you."
"I got that letter from him weeks ago," I replied. "I guessed as much."
"Oh, so you do know?" Danso nodded towards the door. "We weren't sure if you had ever managed to receive the letter. I suppose I should have known. After all, why else would you be here, risking yourself in plain view of the Ordinators?"
"I don't know, Danso," was my response, "maybe you should tell me?"
There was a momentary pause while Danso and I exchanged dark looks, and then she opened her mouth to speak again.
"I must warn you... avoid confrontations with the Ordinators at all costs," she said. "The Archcanon has spoken with the High Fane Ordinators, but you are a wanted criminal, they may try to arrest you..."
Oh. Fantastic.
"...if the blood of faithful servants of the Temple is spilled, it will make a reconciliation all that much more difficult," Danso finished.
I narrowed my eyes.
"I'm not stupid enough to try and kill an Ordinator," I said firmly.
Danso's smile faltered.
"Of course not," she replied. "You have to understand, I meant no disrespect -"
She stopped once she saw the look on Julan's face.
"Get going, Therayn, or we'll all be in trouble," she warned.
I took Julan's hand and we went through to see the Archcanon, still avoiding the Ordinators. That was only becoming harder and harder for me. The damn fools were everywhere. Luckily for me, the Ordinators didn't seem to pay much attention as Danso seemed to indicate they would. The Archcanon was sitting back in a chair in his office, and frowned when he first saw me and Julan.
"I'm sorry, but I don't think I was warned as to your coming presence," he began. "You would be…?" "Ulina Therayn, the Nerevarine," I informed him. "This is my partner, Julan. We've come to see what you have to say."
"Ah," he nodded. "I wasn't expecting you this soon, truthfully."
Essentially, he wasn't expecting me to come at all.
"I am Tholer Saryoni. Thank you for coming…" he glanced at Julan. "Would you mind stepping out, sera, so Ulina and I can -"
"With all due respect, whatever you have to say to me you can also say it to Julan," I told Saryoni firmly. "He's been through me through all of it. I have nothing to hide."
Saryoni scowled, but didn't order Julan out.
"Very well," he said. "You know the Temple's doctrine on the Nerevarine. Perhaps it is time to change that doctrine."
"Change it?" Julan asked. "You mean…you won't persecute her anymore?"
"Perhaps not," Saryoni replied. "The Temple must, of course, protect the people from false doctrines. And your association with Imperial intelligence makes your motivations and integrity suspect-"
"I did not come here just so you could tell me off," I snapped.
Saryoni narrowed his eyes.
"With all due respect, muthsera, I must ask that you bite your tongue," he said coldly. "At least until you let me finish what I have to say. Now, despite all that aforementioned stuff, you have been chosen Hortator and Nerevarine by the Dunmer people. And we have reached a crisis with Dagoth Ur. We can no longer defend the people against the awakened Sixth House. You and your prophecies may represent our last hope."
I was their last resort. They didn't really want my help. They just had no choice.
"You're kidding, right?" Julan snorted his distaste. "After all the lies you and your Temple has spread, now you want her to get rid of Dagoth Ur for you? Surely those 'Gods' of yours would do a better job?"
"Therayn," Saryoni said sharply, ignoring Julan. "The reason I requested your presence was because Lord Vivec has asked to see you about this. Personally."
Wait, what? Vivec, one of three living Gods that wanted me dead?
"Would you agree to a private meeting with him, and hear in person what he has to say?" Saryoni seemed insistent.
I exchanged looks with Julan. He seemed to hate this idea more than I did. And trust me, I hated this plan. But I seemingly had no choice in the matter. I reluctantly thanked Saryoni for his time, before turning to leave, walking out of the building towards Vivec's temple.
"Are you insane?" Julan yelled as soon as we were out of earshot. "He's going to kill you, Ulina! Again!"
"Thanks for the vote of confidence."
"Ulina, I'm being serious. This is one of the living Gods that wants you dead."
"Yeah, well, I think it's better that I get this meeting over with," was my response. "I mean; what sense would it make to walk away from a God? He'd only hunt me down in the end."
He sighed.
"I suppose you have a point."
"Though thinking about it, I think you'd better wait at Black Shalk," I said. "I think it would be best if I handled this alone."
Julan looked towards me incredulously.
"And I thought you were insane before."
"Just trust me on this, alright," I pleaded.
Julan sighed, but agreed to wait outside the door. Fine. It was certainly better than nothing. Then, I went inside.
The temple was barely lit, the only source of light seemed to be from the circle of candles surrounding someone. Someone who happened to be sitting crosslegged, while floating in the air. I took a closer look. A balding, half-Chimer, half-Dunmer man (well, if you can call him a man), eyed me with interest.
I'm going to have to take a guess and say he was Vivec.
"Ah, Ulina Therayn," he greeted cheerfully. "I was wondering when you would come. We have business, you and I."
"So it seems," I replied, taking a few steps towards him.
Vivec stopped floating and stood before me. Honestly, it was hard not to feel intimidated.
"When I was young like you, I was very impatient," he began. "So I will keep our business short. Then, later, there may be time for other things."
"So, why did you summon me?" I asked. "To kill me?"
"No."
He spoke blankly, almost without any emotion at all.
"First, I want to remove my curse upon the Nerevarine, end the persecution of the Dissident Priests, and proclaim to all Morrowind that Ulina Therayn is the Incarnate and Nerevarine, the prophesied savior of Morrowind, and the last hope to withstand the menace of Dagoth Ur and the Sixth House."
I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. It was as if I had lost my voice.
"These things I will do, whether you wish or not," Vivec said simply.
All I could do was nod.
"Next, I propose to surrender to you the power and responsibility of defeating Dagoth Ur. You may choose to refuse; I will not compel you."
"I won't refuse," I said quietly.
I mean, seriously, I had come too far to refuse Vivec's help now.
"You will receive the power as a gift, in the form of an artifact called 'Wraithguard.' You may accept the gift, then do with it as you will. You will receive the responsibility as an oath. You may give your oath, then keep it or break it as you like. First, will you accept Wraithguard as a gift?"
"I accept," I somehow managed to squeak out.
Vivec looked surprised, but then he smiled. And, unless I was much mistaken, it looked genuine.
"Good. Sensible of you," he proclaimed. "And now, will you give your oath, before all gods and men, before all spirits visible and invisible, before my honor and your honor, to dedicate yourself and Wraithguard to the defeat and destruction of Dagoth Ur, and the preservation of Morrowind and its people?"
"I do."
I had come this far; if Vivec thought I was about to back down from this now, he could think again.
To my surprise, he laughed.
"Not very sensible...But still very good," he said. "I was hoping for someone who would have no hesitations about making such an oath."
"Oh, so now you're trying to trick me?"
"No," Vivec stated firmly. "You will now have a brief, momentary sensation of time passing. Don't be alarmed. You are being taken out of time in order to avoid the unpleasant experience of learning how to use Wraithguard. It will be over before..."
Suddenly, for a split second, I felt as if I was floating in the darkness. There was nothing else but me and a bright shining light in the distance…I reached out to grab it. If I didn't, all would be lost.
"...you know it."
Suddenly, I was back in Vivec's Temple, with a very heavy Dwemer gauntlet on my left arm. Somehow, I gathered that I would have to get used to it. It was also enchanted, and I could see the shining of the heavy enchantments flicker in the dim lighting.
Wraithguard.
I remembered back to when I was reading books about Nerevar, the Tribunal and the war with the Dwemer. One of the important things about it was Kagrenac's Tools. Wraithguard was one of them.
"Now, I will notify the Temple that you are our champion," Vivec said coolly. "There shall be no more persecution of the Dissident Priests, and I hope both sides shall swiftly be reconciled."
For a moment there wasn't much I felt I could say, but I managed to murmur "thank you." Vivec smiled slightly at this.
"We have time for questions, if you like," Vivec nodded towards the door. "Or you may leave, as you wish. But I think there are at least two things you ought to know before you leave: how to use Wraithguard, and how to defeat Dagoth Ur."
I narrowed my eyes.
"What are you talking about? You mean there's a specific way to do all this?"
"Of course. You can't very well go blundering through Ur's citadel, suddenly expecting results. To defeat Dagoth Ur, go to Red Mountain to recover the artifact hammer Sunder from Gate Citadel Vemynal, then recover the artifact blade Keening from Gate Citadel Odrosal. Then proceed with Wraithguard, Sunder, and Keening to the citadel of Dagoth Ur. Within the citadel, find the Heart of Lorkhan. Use the three artifacts to sever Dagoth Ur's connection to the Heart, and he will be destroyed, and the Blight ended on Morrowind."
Honestly, all this was starting to make my head spin.
"To destroy Dagoth Ur, you must sever his connection with the Heart of Lorkhan," Vivec continued. "To do this, strike the Heart with the artifact hammer Sunder once, then strike the Heart more than once with the artifact blade Keening. You must wear Wraithguard, because you cannot handle either Sunder or Keening unless you are wearing Wraithguard."
"What will happen if I try?"
"You will die," Vivec replied bluntly.
Well, we wouldn't want that.
"What I have told you is the short, simple explanation," Vivec finished.
He gestured to a piece of paper floating between us. Until now, I had never even noticed it was there. "That there is the long, detailed explanation, written down for your convenience. Read it, study it and commit it to memory."
"And I will," I promised. "But first, I want to ask you a few questions."
"And ask you shall."
"How did this all happen in the first place? Why did you kill Nerevar?"
I thought I heard a sigh of resignation from the Living God.
"Why did I kill you?" Vivec corrected.
I grit my teeth, but didn't bother to argue. Although I didn't see myself as Nerevar, I knew others would likely disagree.
"I did so because you threatened the faith of my followers, and I needed their faith to hold back the darkness," Vivec explained. "And when you came to Vvardenfell several months ago, I thought you were my enemy – a pawn of the subtle Daedra Lord Azura, or a pawn of Emperor Uriel Septim, or a simple fraud. Perhaps a Hero – but not much of one if my faithful could destroy you. Now circumstances are altered. I need you, and you need me."
Oh, so he needed me. He didn't summon me because he actually wanted my help, he summoned me because he was out of options!
I decided not to bring this up, and just continued to ask questions.
"Why is Dagoth Ur so strong?"
"Dagoth Ur is strong because he is close to the source of power, Lorkhan's Heart. And because he retains the passion of madness, while we have settled into the lonely and unrewarding posture of dogged dutifulness and perseverance. And, finally, perhaps because he is stronger and smarter than we are, and his followers are more fervent and fanatical. I believe we were careless and complacent, and out-witted. And, in the matter of denying the Nerevarine, we were foolish."
"But surely you know your actions would have caused others to suffer."
"I respect your insight, Ulina, and you for it. The most I can say is: I did the best I could, as I saw things. Can you, mortal, presume to judge the actions and motives of a god?"
Yes.
"But, because I need you, and you need me, I will make an accounting for my sins, to you. But not now. Destroy Dagoth Ur, and then we will discuss my sins. Then, perhaps, you will have earned the right to judge me."
I guess I had to take down Dagoth Ur for sure then.
"Right. I'll be going then."
For a second, there was silence, and I made my way towards the door. Vivec's voice stopped me cold when he spoke again, however.
"Ulina."
I turned around.
"Good luck."
"Thank you," I said.
I think I'm going to need it.