Chapter 39: Ada Vs. The Volcano
I can't describe what a relief it was to finally be able to walk through the streets in safety, without having to constantly check over my shoulder for Ordinators. I wanted run around Vivec shouting out the good news, but since it was still pouring with rain that would have been a bit impractical (and probably got me arrested for disturbing the peace). Instead I spent the morning in Ebonheart, looking over Vivec's plans to defeat Dagoth Ur.
Before going back to Ald'ruhn, I went to the Duke's chambers to collect the Lord's Mail. Never mind how dishonourably I'd come by it – at this point I needed as much protection as I could get. Another thing I decided to take was the Shadow Shield, the enchanted shield I'd picked up in the stronghold of Kogoruhn. I left Chrysamere, though – it had been useful in the fight against Bolvyn Venim, but I mostly preferred to fight with a one-handed sword and shield rather than a heavy, unwieldy claymore.
When I arrived in Ald'ruhn I found a message waiting for me at the Fighters' Guild. It was from Varvur, asking me to meet him in the evening at the Rat in the Pot – he must have waited there every evening for several days. Aww, how sweet of him.
I spent the day in Skar receiving congratulations from Athyn Sarethi and the other councillors, but I couldn't keep my mind off my appointment with Varvur. When I finally arrived at the tavern that night, he was waiting in one of the lower rooms – the same one where we'd spent the night together a week ago.
As soon as the door closed behind me, he pulled me into his arms and kissed me as if we hadn't met for a year. "I missed you," he murmured against my cheek.
I felt slightly guilty. I had missed him, of course, but the truth was I'd been so busy that I'd barely had time to think about him. I hugged him back extra-tightly to make up for it.
"I heard the news," he said at last. "Lord Vivec himself has declared you the Nerevarine. Is it true that you have actually seen him? Spoken to him?"
I nodded, and he heaved an envious sigh. "It must have been an incredible experience. I would give almost anything to have been in your place."
He looked so awed that I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd found it a bit of a letdown. "What have you been doing in the meantime?" I asked, changing the subject.
"Almost nothing. The weather has been too bad for any Redoran expeditions." He clenched his fists. "I feel so useless. You are going off to battle Dagoth Ur, while I'm stuck here. If I could only go with you to Red Mountain – "
"No," I said firmly. "Either you'd get corprus, or you'd end up with a blight disease or something. The only reason I can go is because I'm immune to those things."
He sank down onto he bed with a frustrated sigh. I sat down beside him, sliding my arms around him. "Isn't there anything else you could do? Join the Legion, or – okay, maybe not the Legion. What about the Redorans at Ghostgate?"
"Hmm." Varvur looked thoughtful. "My cousin Salyn is a Buoyant Armiger at Ghostgate. I suppose I could join the Order, if my parents would agree to it."
"The Armigers? Aren't they the ones who all – " I broke off, but it was too late.
"Who all… what?"
"Er." I could feel myself blushing. "I heard that they, ah, 'serve' Lord Vivec in more ways than one. If you know what I mean."
For a moment Varvur looked shocked, and then he burst out laughing. "Who told you that?"
"The publican at Ghostgate." My face was burning.
"Well, she was teasing you." He shook his head. "I don't mean to be rude, but… I think it is hard for a Westerner to understand. Your gods are so distant… but imagine if you could actually see and speak with the people you had worshipped all your life. The love we Dunmer have for Vivec is not the same kind that a mortal has for another mortal."
"But, um, the 36 Lessons – "
"Those are all metaphor and… what is the word? Allegory." He paused. "I am not saying that Lord Vivec hasn't had mortal lovers. But for all the Armigers to be… that is ridiculous. Why would he bother with people like my cousin Salyn when he has the Lady Almalexia?"
My head jerked up. "Hang on. Almalexia? I thought she was Nerevar's wife?"
"She was, yes, before his death. After that she became the consort of Lord Vivec."
My mind was starting to race. Vivec and Almalexia were lovers? That certainly put a whole new spin on the story of Nerevar and the Tribunal. Had that really started after Nerevar's death… or before it?
It didn't necessarily mean anything, of course. But… if the people involved had been mortals, rather than gods, I wondered if anyone could have avoided drawing the obvious conclusion.
Varvur was looking at me oddly. "Is something wrong?"
"Er… no. Nothing." I took a deep breath. "Varvur… what's going to happen about us? We can't keep meeting in secret like this forever."
"I know." He paused. "I'm not sure if… Ada, do you think you would be willing to marry me? Have my children? Not yet," he added, seeing my expression, "but later, perhaps?"
"I'm… not sure. Maybe. If things work out, I mean." Both of us were silent for a minute.
"I think perhaps we should wait," I said at last. "Until I get back from Red Mountain, I mean. After all… I can't even be sure I ever will come back."
Varvur's arms tightened around me. "No! You are the prophesised Incarnate. Even Vivec himself has said so. How can you possibly fail?"
"The prophecies only say that I have to defeat Dagoth Ur," I reminded him. "Not that I have to survive the battle."
Neither of us said much else, but we spent a long time lying in each other's arms. And despite what we'd just agreed, we slept together one last time before I left. After all, it might be the only chance we got.
... ...
The week that followed was a long, painful, seemingly endless slog. I'd spend all day battling through the raging blight storms of Red Mountain, fighting cliff racers in the air and monsters of all kinds on the ground, until finally I reached one of the ancient Dwemer citadels. Then I'd carve a path through the Sixth House servants inside while hunting around for the rest of Kagnerac's Tools.
In the notes he'd given me, Vivec had suggested that I challenge each of Dagoth Ur's 'ash vampire' kin before tackling Ur himself. According to him, this might fool Ur into thinking I was trying to make my way up the Sixth House hierarchy. I wouldn't be able to kill any of them permanently, as the Heart of Lorkhan would eventually bring them back to life, but it would at least buy me time to search for Sunder and Keening.
Most of the Ash Vampires attacked me on sight, but I did have one rather weird encounter in Endusal, the citadel of Dagoth Endus. I'd been using a Chameleon spell to sneak past one of those tentacle-monsters, and ran straight into Endus himself. He spotted me as soon as I got close, but instead of attacking, he smiled and raised a hand in greeting.
"I greet you, Ada Ventura," he said in a friendly way. "Or Nerevar. Or whoever you are. I'm Dagoth Endus, brother of Dagoth Ur, and lord of Citadel Endusal. Would you like a little ancient Dagoth brandy?"
I was a little taken aback, to say the least. "Dagoth brandy?"
"It is a rare nectar beyond compare, distilled ages before your ancestor's ancestors, and a fitting toast to our challenge." He uncorked a small bottle and held it out to me. "Would you like to sample it?"
"Are you joking?" I snapped. "Just how stupid do you think I am?" Talos, I thought this kind of thing only happened in trashy adventure novels. "Ah, Agent Ventura, I've been expecting you. Please sit down and enjoy a sumptuous meal while I explain my over-complicated plans for world domination."
"No? Pity. But then, a pity to waste it on a coward like you." He tossed the bottle aside. "Still, you are the challenger, so honour demands that you deliver the first blow. Whenever you're ready."
After we'd fought, and I'd defeated him – somehow I got the impression he wasn't really trying – I thought how weird it was for an Ash Vampire to fuss about honour and etiquette. Maybe he was trying to win my sympathy, but in my view it just made him a hypocrite on top of everything else. You couldn't claim to care about 'honour' and then spend all your time skulking under a mountain, sending out hordes of blighted minions to terrorise people who couldn't fight back, and hypnotising innocent people into doing your bidding. The fact that the Ash Vampires weren't just mindless monsters made their actions worse, not better.
The other strange thing that happened that week occurred at Ghostgate, in the Tower of Dusk. I'd come back to the Redoran hostel after a long day of battling ash creatures and Corprus beasts, and was surprised to see a grey-haired, balding Imperial in a Legion cuirass sitting at the bar. When he saw me, he smiled and motioned me over to join him.
"Hello," he said, patting the seat beside him. "They call me Wulf. What brings you to Ghostgate?"
Wulf? Weird name for an Imperial – it sounded more Nordic. "I'm the Nerevarine, believe it or not," I said, hoping I wouldn't have to explain what it meant. "I'm going to confront Dagoth Ur beneath Red Mountain."
His face lit up. "What a piece of luck! Look. I'm an old Legion veteran – as old as the poor old Emperor, bless his soul. I'm too old for campaigning – I came this far to look at hell, but I can't go any farther than this." He scrabbled in his pocket and fished out an old, worn-looking coin. "I'd take it kindly if you'd carry this old lucky coin with you when you go to Dagoth Ur. Sort of a token of the tough young hero I used to be. Would you do that for an old man?"
"Sure," I said, taking the coin. It felt slightly warm in my hand. I slipped it into my own pocket and turned back to Wulf, remembering that he'd mentioned the Emperor. "Have you heard anything more about the troubles back in Cyrodiil?"
Wulf sighed. "The Emperor is getting old. Don't know how much longer he'll hang on. So is the whole Empire, for that matter – getting old, that is." He took a swig of his drink. "The Emperor and the legions have held the Empire together for hundreds of years. It's been a good thing, by and large… but maybe it's time for a change? Time for something young and new."
His words reminded me of what Caius had said just before he left for Cyrodiil. "What sort of thing?"
"No idea," he said promptly. "I'm old, and old dog doesn't get new ideas. But maybe young folks like you should try some. Could be messy... but change is never pretty."
"Yeah. Maybe." I found it hard to imagine life without the Empire, and frankly I preferred not to think about it.
"Well, good luck on the mountain," he said with a smile. "Go with Kynareth – and don't forget my old lucky coin."
At that moment the bartender called over to ask what I wanted to drink, and I turned away to speak to her. When I turned back a moment later, Wulf had gone – completely vanished. Odd.
"Do you know that guy?" I asked the bartender.
"What guy?" she asked, looking puzzled.
"The one I was talking to just now. Old Legion veteran. Calls himself Wulf."
She looked bewildered. "I didn't see anyone. And I don't remember any old Legion veterans here at all… at least, not in a very long time. I could be wrong, but I don't think so."
I looked back at the seat where Wulf had been sitting only moments ago. How could she not have seen him? Maybe he was a ghost, I thought. Nothing would surprise me any more.
I took out Wulf's coin to look at it as I sipped my drink. There was something a bit unusual about it, and I suddenly realised what it was – the face on the coin was Tiber Septim, not the current Emperor Uriel VII. Boy, it had to be really old – Tiber had died four hundred years ago.
"Go with Kynareth," Wulf had said. I laughed rather bitterly. Every one of the Nine Divines would have to be working overtime if they wanted to get me out of this alive.
... ...
At long last I had gathered everything I needed for the assault on Dagoth Ur's citadel. I paid one last visit to Vivec's Shrine in the Temple Canton before flying out to Red Mountain from Ald'ruhn. I'd chosen to go at night in the vague hope that I might be able to catch Ur unawares, though I knew it wasn't very likely.
I couldn't take very much with me this time, as I had to carry Sunder, Keening and Wraithguard on top of my normal gear. Unfortunately Wraithguard was made for the right hand, so I had to use it in place of my normal strength-enhancing gauntlet. I'd just have to hope that Wraithguard's impressive set of defensive enchantments would make up for it.
Flying over Red Mountain at night was an even more nerve-wracking experience than it was during the daytime. The combination of darkness and thick ash-storms made it almost impossible to see anything, especially in a closed helmet, and I had to rely on my sense of direction to guide me towards Dagoth Ur's citadel. It was pretty much by luck that I finally spotted the bubbling crater of Red Mountain far below.
I'd expected the place to be heavily guarded, but there was nothing around the entrance apart from a few cliff racers. I guess Dagoth Ur never expected anyone to get that far. More fool him, I thought, as I searched for the crank to open the Dwarven door.
The inside of the citadel looked like any other Dwemer ruin. I'd been hoping to somehow sneak in and find the Heart without having to face Ur himself, but I hadn't taken more than a few steps before I heard a mocking voice calling to me. I nearly jumped out of my skin.
"Come, Nerevar. Friend or traitor, come." The voice seemed to come from the walls themselves. "Come and look upon the Heart, and Akulakhan. And bring Wraithguard... I have need of it."
How did he know I was there? And what the hell was 'Akulakhan'? Oh well, so much for the subtle approach. I was just going to have to face him head on.
Dagoth Ur's taunts continued as I progressed deeper into the ruin. For the most part I ignored them – in fact, they were quite useful in helping me to find my way through the facility. But it was pretty damn creepy to think that this guy was somehow watching my every move.
The ancient, rust-covered Dwarven corridors were almost empty apart from Sixth House guards and a few dead bodies. I couldn't help rolling my eyes as I walked past a bunch of randomly-placed lava pits – honestly, this guy was seeming more like the villain of a cheesy adventure story every minute. He even had an underground volcano lair, for crying out loud. All I needed now was for him to kidnap Varvur, dress him up in a skimpy outfit and dangle him over a shark-infested pool.
At the very end of the innermost chamber was a small wooden door, guarded by the last of the Ash Vampires. I could sense that Dagoth Ur was very near now. After defeating the guard, I cast all my protective enchantments before creeping through the door.
"Welcome, Moon-and-Star, to this place where destiny is made!" Dagoth Ur's voice echoed around the rocky walls of the cave. The place was a lot smaller than I expected, dimly lit and containing only a few braziers and a large ash statue. I couldn't see any sign of the Heart of Lorkhan.
Dagoth Ur himself stood at the end of the cavern. He appeared much as he had in my dreams: tall and thin, with grey, shrivelled-looking skin stretched over protruding bones, his face covered by a golden mask. Like all the Ash Vampires he had freakishly long hands and fingers, with sharp, claw-like nails.
"Now that you have come to me here, there can be but one result," he continued. "Many times I have considered offering to accept your oath of service."
"Hang on." I narrowed my eyes. "Who said anything about an oath of service?"
"You might try to buy my trust by giving me Wraithguard, Keening, and Sunder. I thought we might once again be friends... comrades... brothers in arms."
Ah, here it was: the 'join me and we will rule the world together' speech. "Nope," I said. "Sorry. Not going to happen."
"But I have won this place and power by right of conquest," he went on, as if I hadn't spoken. "I will not risk it to cunning and deceit. If you are my enemy, I cannot trust you – and even if you are not my enemy, I cannot let you live."
I began to draw my sword, but he held up a hand. "I have final questions I would ask you, if you would answer."
Actually, maybe it would be a good thing to keep him talking while I figured out what to do. "Go on then," I said with a sigh.
"My first question is: Are you really Nerevar reborn?"
"Well, Azura seems to think so," I said. "And I guess if anyone ought to know, it's her. But if you don't trust her, your guess is as good as mine."
He sighed. "What a world... Perhaps we shall never know. But as I have sympathy for you, and the melancholy fate of all mortals, I shall weep for your death."
"Gee, thanks," I said sarcastically. "Anything else?"
"My second question is: if you win, what do you plan to do with the power from the Heart? Will you make yourself a god, and establish a thearchy? Dispute control of Tamriel with the Septims? Or will you share the Heart with your followers, as I have, and breed a new race of divine immortals?"
Obviously I couldn't tell him what I was actually planning, so I just smiled mysteriously. "Maybe I have my own plans for the Heart."
"Well, perhaps there may be surprises in store for me yet." He shrugged. "No matter. My final question is: if I had offered to let you join me, would you have surrendered Wraithguard, Sunder, and Keening to me to seal your oath?"
"Are you kidding me?" I shook my head in disbelief. "I'm not a complete idiot. I don't want to join you, and even if I did, there's no way I'd hand over the tools. Why the hell should I trust you?"
"Thank you for your forthright response," he said, sounding a little amused. "And now, if you have any questions, ask them… otherwise, you are the challenger. I await your first blow."
I paused. There were all sorts of things I could have asked him, of course, but the truth was that I really didn't care. I didn't want to hear his excuses, or his justifications, or his promises of how great Morrowind would be when everyone was an Ash Zombie or a walking corpse. What was the point, when I was just going to have to kill him anyway?
"Nah," I said at last. "Not really. Let's just get on with this, shall we?"
"As you wish." He stood back, waiting for me to attack, as he had promised.
Well, I still didn't really have a plan, but there was nothing for it. I hurled myself through the air towards him, thrusting my glass longsword between his ribs. It didn't even break the skin.
Dagoth Ur laughed and swatted at me with one of those claw-like hands, and I only just managed to dodge the blow. Gritting my teeth, I tried again, and once again he just shrugged off the blow as if it were a flea-bite. The same thing happened several more times – and then suddenly, without warning, he vanished.
Glancing around, I saw a second door set deep into the rock wall. Could that be the way to the Heart?
Something was glittering on the floor just in front of the door. I moved closer and realised that it was a House Dagoth ring, inset with gems and enchanted with some very powerful resistances. Cautiously I slipped it onto my finger and cast the enchantment, then opened the door – and found myself standing on a narrow platform, half-way up the wall of a vast natural cavern. The place was huge.
Dagoth Ur was standing on the edge of the platform, only a few feet away. When he saw the expression on my face, he threw back his head and laughed.
"What a fool you are. I'm a god. How can you kill a god?" He shook his head. "What a grand and intoxicating innocence. How could you be so naive?"
I was barely listening. Beyond the platform on which we both stood was a massive stone head the size of a house, crowned with a headdress of Dwemer steel. Looking more closely I saw that it was attached to an equally enormous body, fifty feet high, rising out of a huge lava pit at the bottom of a cavern. The sheer scale of the thing was almost beyond belief.
"Numidium," I whispered, remembering the story of the Brass God. I'd always thought it was just a legend, but now…
I almost forgot Dagoth Ur was there until I heard his soft, mocking laughter. "Admiring my handiwork, 'Nerevarine'? Akulakhan will be the champion of my armies, liberating first Vvardenfell, then Morrowind and then, perhaps the rest of Tamriel. It will serve as a sower and cultivator of the divine substance derived from the Heart. Then, perhaps, it will be time to consider whether the Dunmer should cultivate ambitions of empire." He took a step forward. "Now do you see why it is useless to oppose me? There is no escape. No Recall or Intervention can work in this place. Come, lay down your weapons – it is not too late for my mercy."
Screw that, I thought, and plunged over the edge of the platform. If this lunatic thought I was going to help him with his plans for a Greater Morrowind, he had another think coming. A spell of some kind whizzed past me as I flew, and I realised I'd have to find the Heart pretty damn quickly.
I floated round behind 'Akulakhan' to shield myself from Dagoth Ur's spells, looking around desperately for anything that looked like a Heart. Where the hell was it? At long last I spotted it, resting on a small platform at the base of Akulakhan's spine. It was pulsating steadily, and seemed to be surrounded by some kind of magical shield.
Quickly recasting the ring's enchantment, I detached Sunder from my belt and dived downwards. At once I was hit by a blast of magicka – it must have been a curse of some kind – and I felt my strength and energy begin to leech away. My pack slipped off my shoulders, and I could only watch in horror as all my supplies – food, potions, Divine and Almsivi Intervention amulets – disappeared into the lava.
There was no time to lose; I needed to get this done quickly before Ur could hit me with any more spells. As soon as I got within range I swung Sunder at the Heart with all my strength, but too late – a massive bolt of fire magicka exploded around me, and for a few horrible moments it was like being caught in a furnace. If it hadn't been for the magical resistances, I'd probably have been killed outright.
I grabbed my last healing potion and gulped it down, then seized up Keening and slashed it several times across the Heart. High above me, Dagoth Ur let out a cry of rage and horror.
"What are you doing? WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Suddenly he was standing right behind me. "Fool! Stop!"
I ignored him and continued to hack away at the Heart. With a terrible roar he lunged forward, sinking his long, sharp claws into my shoulder. The inch-long fingernails tore through the thick metal of my cuirass as if it were made of butter, sinking deep into my flesh.
I screamed in pain and tried to shake him off, but he only dug in deeper. Frantically I jabbed at the Heart with Keening, willing it to die. All at once it seemed to deflate, shrivelling up like a punctured balloon before vanishing completely.
A howl of anguish echoed around the cavern as Dagoth Ur saw the source of his powers vanish. He tore his hand away from my shoulder, ripping my flesh, and stumbled back onto the narrow wooden bridge leading away from the platform. I turned round to see him standing with one hand raised, ready to cast another of those terrible spells.
There was no time even to think. I dropped Keening and lunged forward, barrelling into Dagoth Ur and knocking him off balance. With a final, despairing wail, he tumbled over the side of the bridge and into the bubbling lava pool below. The last thing I saw was his clawed, bloody hand grasping wildly towards the ceiling as he sank beneath the surface.
All of a sudden there was a loud rumbling sound, and the entire cavern began to shake. What the hell was this, an earthquake? Vivec hadn't said anything about earthquakes!
The platform where I'd entered the room was twenty feet above me. I looked around frantically, wondering how to get back up there, until I suddenly realised I could still fly. I grabbed Keening and Sunder and launched myself upwards, not a moment too soon – the second my feet touched the upper platform, the rumbling increased and I saw Akulakhan's massive body crack and fall to pieces. If I'd stayed on the lower platform I'd have been crushed by the falling rocks.
I found the crank to open the door on a nearby Dwemer pipe, and pulled it. The stone covering slid back and I pushed through the door into Dagoth Ur's cavern, trembling like a leaf. Only moments after the door closed behind me, I realised that the Levitation spell had worn off.
As my eyes adjusted to the faint light, I wondered vaguely why I felt so weak. I put a hand to the back of my neck where Dagoth's finger had dug into it, and found it soaked in blood. Dimly I realised that I was quite badly injured. When the shock and excitement of battle had worn off, it was going to hurt like hell.
I tried to cast a healing spell, but my mouth was so dry that I choked on the words. The spell fizzled out miserably, leaving me without any magicka for a second attempt.
Taking a few shaky steps forward, I realised that there was someone else there in the cavern with me. A Dunmer woman in a light-blue gown stood by the entrance to the cavern, her arms outstretched as if to welcome me. She was beautiful, shimmering faintly in the torchlight, and somehow I knew she was Azura. I sank to my knees, too exhausted to do anything else.
"You no longer bear the burden of prophecy." She took a step forward, smiling down at me. "You have achieved your destiny. You are free. The doomed Dwemer's folly, Lord Dagoth's temptation, the Tribunal's seduction, the god's heart freed, the prophecy fulfilled. All fates sealed and sins redeemed. If you have pity, mourn the loss – but let the weeping cease."
As she spoke, the cavern seemed to fade and in its place I saw a vision of Red Mountain. The ash-storms died down, the Ghostfence faded away, and the sun emerged from behind white, wispy clouds. The sky was clear and blue above Ghostgate. It was like a beautiful dream.
"The Blight is gone, and the sun's golden honey gilds the land." The vision faded, and I was back in the cavern with Azura."Hail saviour, Hortator, and Nerevarine. Your people look to you for protection. Monster and villains great and small still threaten the people of Vvardenfell; enemies and evils abound, yet indomitable will might rid Morrowind of all its ills."
"I'll try," I said weakly. "But, uh… maybe if you could see your way to…"
Azura nodded."For you, our thanks and blessings; our gift and token given. Come, take this thing from the hand of God."
She stretched out her hands, and I saw that they held a small, beautiful ring. As I got to my feet I saw her slowly fade away, leaving only the ring floating in the air where she had stood. As my hand closed around it, I felt my strength flood back as Dagoth Ur's curse was lifted.
Unfortunately the ring hadn't actually done anything to heal me. I was still bleeding fairly heavily, and the pain from my wounds was getting worse every minute. If I didn't find a way to heal myself soon I would probably go into shock. Sighing, I plodded over to the door and began to make my way out of the building.
As I struggled on through the endless corridors, I could feel my breathing grow shallow and my strength ebb away with every step. I still didn't have enough magicka to cast another healing spell, and there was no way I'd ever manage an Intervention spell in this state. My only hope was to get back to Ghostgate, but that was impossible – even if I managed to fend off the ash-creatures along the way, it was still a walk of several miles. I'd never make it.
At long last I reached the outer door and staggered into the open air, blinking in the early-morning sunlight. It was a beautiful day, without a trace of ash or blight. A new dawn. And I was going to die.
I sank to the ground, wincing at the intense heat rising up from the steaming lava pit. If I had to go, I thought, at least I could take Kagnerac's tools down with me. Crawling to the cliff edge, I dropped them over one by one – first Sunder, then Keening, and finally Wraithguard – and watched them slowly sink into the lava. Then I lay back, feeling tears beginning to prick my eyes.
I'd never get to say goodbye. That was what hurt the most. Uncle and Aunt… Athyn… Varvur… I'm sorry.
Something was digging uncomfortably into my left thigh. Gods, couldn't I even die in peace? Wincing with every movement, I fumbled around in my pocket and drew out the 'lucky coin' that Wulf, the old Legion veteran, had given to me.
Much luck it had brought me, I thought sourly. Maybe I should toss it into the lava and make a wish? Sighing, I rubbed it idly between my fingers – and it abruptly vanished.
Hang on a second…
A vision of Daedric writing flashed through my mind, and I found myself mouthing the words without knowing what they meant. Suddenly I knew that something had changed. I didn't feel any stronger or healthier, but somehow, for a few precious seconds, I felt that I had hope. If I acted now, I might just have a chance – but I'd have to be quick.
Think, Ada, think... With any luck, I might just have enough magicka left to cast Almsivi Intervention. Clearing my mind as far as possible, I mumbled a prayer to any gods that might be listening, then gritted my teeth and poured every last ounce of energy and concentration into casting the spell.
In the fraction of a second that followed, which felt like an hour, I was sure I had failed. Then I heard the familiar 'sucking' sound, and moments later I found myself in the courtyard of the Temple in Ald'ruhn.
There was no one else around. Feeling strangely light-headed, I dragged myself to my feet, stumbled over to the door and banged on it as hard as I could. It swung open suddenly and I practically fell through the doorway, right in front of the priest Tuls Valen. His eyes widened in shock when he saw me and he opened his mouth to speak.
"Can't talk now. Heal first." I brushed past him and limped into the inner chamber, where healing shrines to various saints were arranged around the central ashpit, and collapsed to my knees in front of a random shrine. I could use these for free, right? "Oh, Saint Roris – " I began, and promptly threw up all over the collection plate.
"Oops," I said faintly, just before everything went black.