At the Summit of Apocrypha 2
Aeros pushed Serana behind him as the lead cultist lunged forward with sword in hand. At the same time, he tore one of his own swords from its sheath, bringing it up in front of him just in time to block the cultist's blade. The two of them strained against each other for a brief moment, before Aeros shoved the man away, sending him crashing into one of his companions.
Taking the opportunity provided, Aeros fell back next to Serana.
"Friends of yours?" Serana asked, dagger and spell at the ready as she eyed the cultists.
"Never seen them before in my life," Aeros replied, drawing his other sword.
The cultists climbed to their feet. "Die, deceiver!" one of them spat, casting a fireball at them.
Aeros and Serana threw themselves out of the way, the spell detonating against a building behind them.
Aeros hurriedly got to his feet, just in time to avoid a gout of flames. He glanced over at Serana and was relieved to see that she was okay, for the time being. How long that would last, he didn't know. He turned his attention back to their attackers.
There were about five of them, all dressed in the same robes and masks. Besides the one wielding a Nordic sword, the others carried nothing more than a dagger on them. The real problem though, was their magic. With that many of them, it would be dangerous if he let them control the pace of the battle…
With a yell, he dashed forward, swords already moving. He parried the blade of the first cultist with the sword in his left hand, slashing upwards with his right. The keen edge sliced through the brown robe easily, cutting deep into the man's midsection. Aeros silently thanked whatever god was responsible for him having his swords with him.
With a gasp, the cultist fell to his knees, clutching at the wound. Aeros finished him off with a thrust through the neck.
"AEROS, DUCK!" he heard Serana yell. Not even bothering to glance up, Aeros did as she said, dropping to the ground, and not a moment too soon, as he felt a wave of intense heat pass over his head.
Rolling to his feet, Aeros was greeted with the sight of an ice spike zooming towards his head. He leaned back and watched as it flew by. He faced the cultist who had cast the spell, and before the woman could throw anything else at him, shouted.
"IIZ SLEN NUS!"
The woman was abruptly encased in ice, teetering momentarily before crashing down to the ground and shattering.
Glancing over at Serana, he saw she was now facing off against two of the remaining cultists, who were firing spells off one after the other as they attempted to flank her
"KRII LUN AUS!"
At first, the effects of Aeros's Shout weren't apparent; that is, until the two cultists found themselves struggling to hold Serana at bay. She grinned as she realized what had happened, and renewed her attack.
Aeros hadn't stopped to wait for his Shout to take effect, instead turning his attention back to the remaining cultist.
"I don't suppose you'd be willing to tell me who's behind all this?" he asked as he parried the man's dagger aside.
"Die!"
"I figured you were going to say that," Aeros sighed. As the man swiped at him again, he expertly sidestepped. As the man stumbled forward, off balance, Aeros smashed the pommel of his sword into the man's mask. The mask shattered, as did the cartilage in the man's nose.
The man, or dark elf actually, swore as blood spurted out of his broken nose. He still didn't give up though, and tried to blast Aeros with a bolt of lightning. Tried.
The Dunmer pointed his hand at Aeros, the spell already prepared. Before he could do anything though, an ice spike sprouted from the side of his head in a spout of blood. He collapsed bonelessly.
Aeros turned to Serana. "Thanks," he said appreciatively.
"Anytime," Serana replied with a smile. "Is that all of them?"
Aeros nodded. "Yeah, I think so. I took out two of them, and didn't see any more."
"Only two?" Serana asked teasingly. "You're slipping, Aeros. I got three."
"Hold on," Aeros objected. "Since when was this a contest? And besides, I helped with two of those."
"I don't know if you can call that 'helping,'" Serana said dismissively. "All you did was shout some fancy words at them. I could have taken them without your help." She smiled as Aeros glared indignantly at her.
Aeros wasn't able to stay like that for long however, and soon his face split into a grin. "Fine, I'll give this one to you," he conceded. "But don't expect to win next time!"
They both laughed at that, but soon Aeros grew serious. "All joking aside," he said seriously. "Just who were these guys?"
Serana frowned. "I don't know. I've never seen them before. And you say you haven't either?"
Aeros shook his head. "No. I've never seen them before today."
"What was that about you being some kind of deceiver?" Serana wondered.
"I have no idea," Aeros said with a shrug. "Hopefully, they have some kind of hint on them that can answer that for us. Here, I'll search these three, you check the other two."
Serana nodded and began searching through the clothing of two of the cultists, while Aeros did the same with the other three.
It didn't take long for Serana to find something. Tucked inside the sash of a female cultist, she found a scrap of folded paper. She handed it to Aeros.
"Here, she had this."
Aeros opened the note and read aloud.
"Board the vessel Northern Maiden docked at Raven Rock. Take it to Windhelm, then begin your search. Kill the False Dragonborn known as Aeros before he reaches Solstheim.
Return with word of your success, and Miraak shall be most pleased."
"Miraak? Who the hell is Miraak?" Serana asked, her brows knitting together in confusion.
"I don't know," Aeros said with a shrug. "Although the cultists did say something about him being the 'True Dragonborn,' or something like that."
"Another Dragonborn?" Serana said in shock. A thought suddenly occurred to her. "Wait...please tell me this isn't another doppelganger thing," she asked, sighing wearily.
Aeros chuckled. "I doubt it. Although, this person might not really be Dragonborn."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you know how there's other people who can use the Thu'um, like the Greybeards?"
Serana nodded, understanding now where he was going with this.
"It's possible that this Miraak is someone like that, who's been taught how to use the Thu'um. Of course, if that's true, that's worrying in of itself, if he's going around convincing people that he's Dragonborn."
"Hmm…"
Aeros pocketed the note. "Either way, I want to know why someone is sending people after us."
Serana nodded. "I want to know that too. Maybe we can find some more clues about this Miraak person onboard this 'Northern Maiden.'"
Aeros stood and helped Serana to her feet. "Well then, it's off to Windhelm. We'll need to head back to Proudspire first though, so that I can grab my armor and whatever else we'll need. The rest we can pick up at Hjerim."
Serana nodded, and they hurriedly made their way back to Proudspire, after giving a brief explanation to the guards who had come running at the sound of fighting as to what had happened.
As they walked through the front door of Proudspire, Jordis greeted them from the kitchen.
"It's about time you two got ba-" the blonde-haired housecarl started to say, but stopped when she saw the state they were in. "My Thane!" she said in shock. "What happened?! The two of you are covered in blood!"
"I'll leave this to you," Aeros said to Serana as he went to retrieve his armor. Jordis looked expectantly at Serana.
"We were attacked on our way back," Serana explained. She told Jordis about the attack and the note they had found on one of the cultists.
"That's why we're heading to Windhelm, to get to the bottom of this," she finished.
Jordis nodded in understanding. "Very well," she said, as Aeros came back up the stairs, wearing his armor and with a pack slung over his shoulder.
"Ready to go, Serana?" he asked. She nodded, and he turned towards Jordis.
"Jordis, I have no idea how long we'll be gone," he said warningly. "But don't expect us back for at least a couple days, maybe longer."
Jordis nodded. "Alright. But what about your pre-existing appointments? What should I tell General Tullius and the court?" she asked.
Aeros grinned crookedly. "Whatever you like." He laughed when Jordis simply sighed. "Relax, Jordis. It's not like Tullius will have your head for me disappearing."
"It's not the General that I'm worried about, my Thane," Jordis said. "I'm more concerned with the noblewomen when they find out Lady Serana has run off."
Serana winced as she imagined their reactions. "I'm sorry, Jordis," she said apologetically. "I promise to make it up to you when we get back."
"And how exactly do you plan on doing that?" Aeros asked with a chuckle.
"By having you go and apologize to them in person," Serana said simply. The two women laughed at the look of dismay on his face.
The two of them said their goodbyes to Jordis, and exited the house. As they walked down the street, a sudden thought struck Aeros and he couldn't help but let out a small chuckle. Serana eyed him curiously.
"What's so funny?" she asked.
"I just realized that it looks like we both get that break we've been asking for," Aeros explained.
"Yes, but why does it take someone trying to kill us for that to happen?" Serana asked with a sigh, smiling ruefully.
Aeros just laughed.
- Windhelm -
The trip to Windhelm was uneventful, and the two of them found themselves standing on the docks a few days later.
They had made a brief stop at Hjerim, Aeros's house in Windhelm, to pick up some more potions and other supplies, before making their way to the docks. Once there, iIt didn't take long for Serana to find out where they could find the Northern Maiden and her captain, Gjalund Salt-Sage. The two of them walked down the docks, both of them keeping their hands near their weapons.
"We'll need to be careful," Aeros said to Serana. "Chances are that there are more of these cultists waiting on the ship." Serana nodded in agreement.
That was why, when they reached the Northern Maiden, they were both surprised by what they found. It was just a regular sailing vessel, with no sign of cultists or guards. In fact, the only thing that seemed odd about the ship was the crew. They moved about in a dazed manner, as if they had just woken up from a dream.
"Are these people alright?" Serana asked quietly. Aeros shook his head.
"I don't know. But they certainly don't seem like a threat."
They managed to get one of the crew members to direct them to their captain. Once again, they were surprised by what they found. Gjalund Salt-Sage sat in a chair at the stern of the ship, gazing out at the Sea of Ghosts in a lost manner.
"Excuse me, sir, are you Gjalund?" Aeros asked. "Captain of the Northern Maiden?"
Gjalund looked up at him. "Aye, that's right. Why?"
"My name is Aeros and this is my fiancée, Serana," Aeros said. "You came here from Solstheim, right?"
Gjalund's face hardened at the mention of Solstheim. "Look, I don't know why you're interested in that place, but I'm not going back there."
Aeros and Serana glanced at each other. "Why not?" Serana asked.
Gjalund's shoulders slumped in exhaustion. "It's hard to explain," he said tiredly. "I remember those people with the masks coming on board, then… Next thing I remember, we were here and they were gone. That's not right, losing whole days like that!"
He shook his head. "There's been something strange going on there for a while, but after this… I'm done. I'm not going back to Solstheim."
"Please, sir," Serana said imploringly. "We really need to get to that island."
"Have you been listening to me?" Gjalund growled. "I'm not going back there."
Aeros spoke up at this point. "You owe us," he said bluntly. "Those cultists you brought here tried to kill me."
Gjalund's face paled. "Now hold on!" he protested. "That wasn't my fault… I didn't know they were going to attack anybody." He stopped and sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "But you have a point. Taking you back to find out who sent them is the least I can do. Besides, maybe you can put a stop to whatever's going on over there. I owe them a bit of payback myself."
"So you'll take us to Solstheim?" Aeros asked.
Gjalund nodded. "Aye. We set sail in an hour." He left to go gather up his men and some supplies, leaving the two of them standing there alone.
"Well, we've got our passage to Solstheim," Serana said.
Aeros nodded distractedly. "We did. But this is more complicated than I thought."
"You mean the captain and the crew not remembering the past couple days?" Serana guessed. Aeros nodded. "What could cause that?"
"Well, there are a few spells that can alter a person's memory," Aeros said thoughtfully. "But as far as I know, most of those only work on individuals, not groups of people or an entire ship's crew. The handful that can affect groups are typically only able to be cast by a powerful mage, not the kind that we encountered in Solitude."
"What does that mean?" Serana asked.
Aeros shrugged. "I'm not sure. It could mean that either this cult has some powerful spellcasters in their midsts, or this Miraak person is more powerful than we thought. Either way, we won't know until we get to Solstheim."
An hour later, Aeros and Serana stood on the deck of the Northern Maiden as it entered the Sea of Ghosts, watching as the city of Windhelm steadily grew smaller and smaller, before it disappeared from view entirely. Neither of them said anything for a long time, still staring at the receding coastline of Skyrim.
"In three days, we'll be in Solstheim," Aeros said suddenly, startling Serana. After a moment, she nodded in agreement.
"And then we can get to the bottom of all this, and return home," she said, turning to look towards the horizon.
Aeros nodded, but remained silent. I hope so, he thought to himself. But why do I have a feeling that it won't be that simple?
- Three Days Later -
A knock on their cabin door woke Aeros.
"Dragonborn, sir? Lady Serana?" a voice called politely through the door.
"What is it?" Aeros asked blearily, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"The captain sent me to let you know that we'll be approaching Solstheim shortly."
"Thank you," Aeros replied. "Let him know that we'll be up on deck shortly."
"Yes, sir." Aeros heard the muffled sound of footsteps retreating. With a groan, he sat up and swung his feet over the side of the bed. He got dressed, and was buckling on his armor when he heard Serana stir behind him.
"What's going on?" she asked, covering her mouth as she yawned.
Aeros glanced at her and chuckled. Serana was looking at him sleepily, fighting back the urge to yawn again. Her hair, free from its customary braid, cascaded gently over her shoulders, as the covers bunched around her waist . She looked, in a word, breathtaking.
"What's so funny?" she demanded, noticing his mirth.
"I was just thinking how lucky I am to have met you," he replied.
Serana's expression softened, and she smiled at him. "And I'm lucky to have met you," she said in response. "I'm glad you're the one who freed me from that tomb."
"A task I would gladly do again, lady of mine," Aeros said with a mock bow. Serana burst into laughter at his antics.
"Now, what's going on?" she asked again, once she regained control of herself.
"Captain Gjalund says we're approaching Solstheim, and I wanted to head up on deck to get a good look before we dock."
Serana threw the covers off and climbed out of bed. "Let me just get dressed and then we can go together."
Once they were both dressed and armed, they left their cabin and made their way to the bow of the ship.
"Ugh," Serana said in disgust, covering her nose and mouth. "What's wrong with the air?"
"It's all the ash from Red Mountain," Aeros said, pointing off the starboard side of the ship. Off in the distance, they could just make out the hazy outline of the giant volcano, spewing ash into the air.
"We're pretty close to Morrowind," he explained, "and a lot of the ash from Vvardenfell makes its way out here."
It was at this moment that Gjalund joined them. "Well, here we are," he said. "This is Raven Rock. Can't say I'm all that glad to see it again."
The two of them turned their attention back to the front of the ship. As they drew closer to the port, Aeros and Serana examined the surrounding coastline curiously. To their surprise, everything was coated in a thick layer of ash. They could see what looked like some form of giant mushroom further down the coast, along with several odd jellyfish-like creatures that floated through the air.
"Gods, why would anyone want to live here?" Serana asked, as they took in the bleak appearance of the land.
Aeros shrugged. "For varying reasons, I'm sure. A lot of the people here are Dunmer, who fled here after Red Mountain erupted. For others, well, for probably the same reasons why people live in Skyrim, or Black Marsh, or the Alik'r Desert. It's all they know."
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Although, I have heard that the northern half of the island is supposed to be relatively ash-free."
Their discussion was forced to a stop as the crew began securing mooring lines. Aeros turned to Gjalund.
"Thank you for taking us here, Gjalund," he said. "I know that you didn't want to come back." He handed the man a bag of gold as payment for their passage.
Gjalund nodded in thanks. "Yes, well, I had my doubts, but if anyone can figure out what's going on around here, it's you, Dragonborn. Good luck."
Aeros and Serana gathered the rest of their belongings and said their goodbyes to the captain and the crew. As they stepped off the ship however, they found their way blocked by a finely dressed dark elf.
"Can we help you?" Aeros asked politely, realizing this dark elf wasn't going to let them by.
"I am Adril Arano, Second Councilor of Raven Rock," the elf said stiffly. "I don't recognize you, so I'll assume this is your first visit to Raven Rock, outlanders. State your intentions."
Serana expected Aeros to be offended by the rude manner in which this Dunmer treated them, but he brushed it off easily.
"My name is Aeros, and this is Serana," he said, introducing themselves. "We're looking for Miraak. Do you know him?"
The Second Councilor blinked several times at the name, and his eyes seemed to grow distant as he replied, "Miraak...I...I'm not sure that I do."
Aeros and Serana looked at each other. They had received this same response each time they had questioned a crew member about Miraak on their way here.
The Dunmer, Arano, seemed to focus on them again. "Just remember, Raven Rock is sovereign territory of House Redoran. This is Morrowind, not Skyrim. While you're here you will be expected to abide by our laws."
Aeros decided to press his luck. "Are you sure you don't know who Miraak is?" he asked.
Again, the elf seemed to go into a sort of trance. "I...I'm unsure. I swear I know the name, but cannot place it."
He made as if to turn away, so Aeros tried one last time.
"Can you tell us anything about him?" he asked. Adril froze, and answered slowly.
"I don't think so. I'm not… The name has something to do with the Earth Stone, I think. But I'm not sure what."
Finally, Aeros thought. A clue. "Can you tell us where to find this Earth Stone?"
Adril, it seemed, was able to answer this question easily enough. "What?" he asked, snapping out of his daze. "Oh yes, just follow this road through Raven Rock and along the shoreline. It's right on the edge of town."
"Thank you, sir."
"Just mind that you follow the law while here, and you'll have no trouble here." Aeros and Serana left as Adril began talking with Gjalund, something about supplies and the East Empire Trading Company raising prices again.
The two of them made their way through the town easily enough. As they drew closer to the outskirts of the settlement though, Serana noticed something.
"Hey, Aeros," she said quietly. "Does something about these people seem...off to you?"
"Hmm? What do you mean?" Aeros asked, distracted by his own thoughts.
Serana struggled to explain. "Well, I mean...just look at them," she said finally, gesturing helplessly.
Aeros finally looked around, and saw that she was right. All around them, various people either shuffled about in a dream-like state, or just stood there, gazing aimlessly into space.
"You're right," he said. "And it's not just these people either. It's the rest of the townsfolk too. They might not be acting as oddly, but none of them are giving these people a second glance."
"What do you think is causing them to behave like this?" Serana wondered aloud.
Aeros started to shrug, but stopped as they rounded the corner.
"Well, that's a new one," he muttered.
At the end of the path they were following was a giant stone spire, with strange carvings on it. It almost resembled some of the standing stones that dotted Skyrim's landscape; there were just a few glaring differences.
All around what Aeros assumed was the Earth Stone, people toiled, building...something. It almost looked like a shrine of sorts. There was also the minor issue of the stone being cloaked in a sickly green aura.
As they approached the Stone, Serana nudged Aeros with her elbow. "Aeros, these people...they're chanting something."
They both listened intently, and felt a shiver run down their spines.
Here in his shrine, that they have forgotten.
Here do we toil, that we might remember.
By night we reclaim, what by day was stolen.
Far from ourselves, he grows ever near to us.
Our eyes once were blinded, now through him do we see.
Our hands once were idle, now through them does he speak.
And when the world shall listen, and when the world shall see, and when the world remembers, that world will cease to be.
The chant echoed from the lips of every person there, all of them moving in a trance, and speaking as if controlled by one mind.
"All right, I'm officially creeped out," Serana said. She looked at Aeros imploringly. "You're the Arch-Mage here; just what the hell is going on?"
Aeros shook his head helplessly. "Serana, I wish I knew. It's possible to control someone's mind with magic, but an entire town? That would require an artifact on the same level as that of a Daedric Prince's!"
The two of them walked around the Stone, trying to see if they could wake the people from their trance. But no matter what they did, the people continued to work mindlessly.
"You there…" a voice said thoughtfully from behind them. "The two of you don't seem to be in quite the same state as the others here. Very interesting."
They turned around and found themselves facing a Dunmer dressed in elaborate wizard robes, studying them intently.
They waited for him to say something else, but when all he did was continue to stare at them, Aeros finally spoke up.
"Excuse me, who are you?" he asked, breaking the awkward silence.
"I am Master Neloth, of House Telvanni," the dark elf replied. "May I ask what it is you are doing here?"
"We're looking for someone named Miraak," Aeros answered, expecting the same response from Neloth that they had gotten from everyone else. To his surprise, Neloth actually seemed to think about the name.
"Miraak...Miraak… It sounds familiar but I can't quite place… Oh. Wait. I recall. But that makes very little sense. Miraak's been dead for thousands of years."
Aeros and Serana glanced at each other. "What does that mean?" Serana asked.
"I'm not sure, but it is fascinating, isn't it? Quite unexpected. Perhaps it is connected to whatever these people are working on." He seemed interested in the idea but set it aside for later.
"I'm afraid I can't give you any answers. But there are ruins of an ancient temple of Miraak's towards the center of the island. If I were you, I'd look there."
Aeros looked towards the center of the island. Hopefully, this temple could provide the answers to all of their questions. He turned back towards Neloth.
"How do we get to this temple?"
Author's Notes: Onwards, to the Temple of Miraak! Sorry for the delay, but here's the second chapter of At the Summit of Apocrypha. Hopefully, I won't take so long for the next chapter.
Characters:
Gjalund Salt-Sage: Captain of the Northern Maiden, he frequently makes trips to and from Solstheim. Following the start of the Dragonborn DLC, you can find him moving about his ship in a daze, uncertain of how he arrived in Windhelm.
Adril Arano: The Second Councilor of Raven Rock, Adril greets you upon your arrival to Solstheim, demanding to know your reason for being there.
Neloth: A master wizard of House Telvanni, Neloth lives in the mushroom tower of Tel Mithyn, where he conducts his research and experiments. He assists you in your quest to defeat Miraak by helping you retrieve a Black Book from a nearby set of Dwemer ruins.
Dragon Language:
Iiz Slen Nus = Ice Flesh Statue (Ice Form Shout)
Krii Lun Aus = Kill Leech Suffer (Marked for Death Shout)