Last time on The Legend of Varion…
Varion got some new gear, and he and his team assaulted Alftand in search of the Elder Scroll. After a very long trek, they have arrived at the underground city of Blackreach, where their goal awaits…
Now, back to the story…
Varion hadn't known what to expect when he first stepped into Blackreach, but he was stunned by its beauty. The cavern was immense and lit with an almost supernatural blue glow from what looked like massive versions of the glowing mushroom. He glanced around, taking note of all the dwemer buildings that still stood after all this time. Judging by the sudden breaths of his companions, they were feeling the same awe he was. "It's incredible," Lydia said softly, her eyes mesmerised.
"To think, there was this city underneath Skyrim this whole time" Aela commented with admiration in her tone, though her eyes quickly narrowed. "And of course there's more of them down here" she groaned, pointing to the Falmer that she'd sighted. Varion sighed in annoyance, couldn't he just have an easy time for once?
"Ok, enough sightseeing. We're going to explore this ruin, look for the tower of Mzark. That's where we'll find the scroll. Don't engage the Falmer unless we have to. This place is big enough to avoid them" he reasoned, gaining understanding nods from his companions. "The old geezer didn't say what the tower looked like, so I think we just head to the tallest structure in the place. Oh, and don't go near that giant glowing orb" he added, pointing to the object of his command as he did. Hanging above what looked like the primary structure of Blackreach was a large orange sphere. "No idea what it is, but I don't think we want to find out" he thought with some trepidation. The group began their slow trek around Blackreach, heading towards a tall tower looking thing in the relative distance. Of course they weren't able to sneak past all the enemies, mainly because for all his planning, Varion was no sneak and often just decided to fight through them anyway.
"I'm just glad we didn't run into a Chaurus" Faendal sighed as he plucked an arrow out of their latest kill. Aela nodded in agreement as she began cleaning the blood off of her sword, taking the brief moment of rest that they'd found in between fights.
"A chaurus?" Lydia asked, unsure of what they were talking about.
"It's like a giant insect thing. Spits enough poison to cripple a whole bandit camp, or thereabouts. Tough bastards" Varion explained, resuming the walk towards the tower.
"You know about them?" Faendal asked in surprise. So far, Varion had largely been in the dark about what they'd been doing or fighting.
"I was a bounty hunter for years. Sometimes, when there's no bandits, people want big animals killed. I've fought a few of them in my time, hated it on every occasion" he explained with a shudder. One such fight had seen him in agony for the next two days while healers purged the poison from his body, a direct bite from these things was crippling.
"Huh. Interesting. I've taken on two in my life, but being Bosmer means I have more of an edge than most others" Faendal replied as they continued walking. "Besides, range does have it's benefits. Why don't you use a bow more often Varion?" Faendal asked curiously. The dragonborn shrugged.
"I used to, but it never felt as right as close ranged swordplay. Besides, now I can shout energy and breath fire. Those cover my ranged options" he answered truthfully. "Besides, I carry enough weapons already," he added, subconsciously adjusting his sword on his back to fit more comfortably. The group continued moving through Blackreach relatively unopposed, taking their time to admire the surroundings.
"The dwemer were a cruel race" Faendal began, referencing the Falmer. "But they were a brilliant one" he continued, gesturing to the various buildings and constructions that filled this massive underground city. Varion nodded.
"It's quite hard to take in" he replied in agreement, glancing around at every opportunity. However, he had to remind himself and the others that they weren't there to sightsee and they could be attacked at any point. They focused themselves and soon they made it to what they hoped was the tower of Mzark. "Well, it's big, it's a tower. As good a place to start as any" Varion reasoned to himself, placing a hand on the door. However, he paused.
"Something wrong my thane?" Lydia asked.
"Just a side note. We're definitely coming back here. This place is great" he replied with a small grin before shoving the doors open and walking inside. The others followed him in, Lydia with a slightly less happy expression at the notion of her, the non poison resistant, non companion, non dragonborn housecarl, having to come back and explore this death cavern in the future. Varion noticed this and chuckled. "I guess actively seeking out danger isn't everyone's cup of mead" he noted mentally. They then made it to a hexagonal section of the room with a lever in the middle.
"Ah, another new experience for you Varion" Aela spoke, regarding the device with familiarity. At his curious head tilt, she explained. "This is an elevator, another Dwemer invention. It's like a platform, and when you pull the lever, it carries you directly up or down" she explained.
"Huh. Clever" he remarked, looking at the 'elevator' with a little apprehension.
"Don't worry. You've slain dragons, I'm sure you can handle one of these" Aela teased, causing the dragonborn to roll his eyes. To her credit, she was right. It was a very stable ride, Varion not even feeling the need to balance. As they arrived at a new set of doors, Varion shoved them open to find that they were now in a larger chamber filled with chests and other loot. They passed by a few chests, retrieving some gear, jewels or trinkets for their troubles. Varion let his friends take whatever they wanted, he wasn't there for gold or equipment, especially with what Eorlund had made for him. He did pocket some gemstones though, small and light and valuable, the perfect saleable commodity. They then moved into the next chamber and were shocked once again. Just in front of them was a gigantic metal… thing, and it took up nearly the entire room, at least from what they could see.
"What is that?" Lydia asked curiously, totally unsure what to make of it.
"I don't know, but…" Varion closed his eyes, feeling something pulsing from within the metal construct. He placed his hand on it and focused. "The scroll is in here. Or very near here" he declared, keeping his voice level despite the excitement and relief he was now feeling.
"Great. Let's get it and get out" Faendal said in response, failing to hide his joy of the dungeon crawl being over.
"It's a dwarven thing. It's not going to be that simple" Varion warned, before beginning to make his way around the thing, going up a ramp that spiralled around it as he did. He soon came to the peak of the ramp, now standing on a platform where he could look forward and down on the big metal thing. There were four pedestals, each containing a button in them, though all pedestals on the left had their buttons covered. There was a fifth pedestal to the far right with what looked like a place to put something.
"My thane, could the lexicon go there?" Lydia theorised. Varion shrugged and put it there, giving Lydia a thumbs up when it clicked into place.
"So, we've got the cube in place. Now what do we do?" he asked the group. They all shrugged, having truly no idea what to do with any of this. Varion pushed the button that wasn't covered and flinched as the machinery started whirring and making noises. Once he and the others were sure that they weren't in any danger, Varion pressed the button again and more noises whirred. He did this twice more, then noticed the button get sealed off like the ones on the left. He frowned, then pushed the second button the same number of times. Once he finished, the lexicon began to glow blue, the lines on it lighting up. The clamps that had held it in place detached and Varion removed it from the mechanism. The covers on the left had retracted, revealing the second pair of buttons.
"There is no way it can be this easy" Aela said indecorously. "Even those nordic puzzle doors are more complex than this!" Varion put a hand to his chin in thought.
"This isn't meant to be a puzzle. This is just a tool for reading the scroll" he answered, or at least gave his own theory on it. He pushed the two new buttons four times each, watching as the machinery overhead whirred around the room. At the final button push, a compartment in the giant metal storage thing opened and a crystal rose out of it. The mechanical clamps then took hold of each side of the crystal and pulled back, revealing something inside. In excitement, Varion leapt over the balcony (hearing the audible simultaneous face-palm from Lydia and Aela as he did so) and quickly ran over to look closer. He saw the shining scroll, and he felt his mouth drop open slightly. It was one of the most beautiful things he'd ever seen, and judging by the sharp intake of breath made by his companions when they got as close as he did, he wasn't alone in thinking that way.
"It's…" Lydia trailed off.
"An Elder Scroll. We actually found an Elder Scroll!" Aela quietly cheered. "They'll be singing songs about this in Jorrvaskr for decades!"
"When you first came to me in Riverwood all those months ago Varion, I never imagined it would lead to a moment like this" Faendal said, clapping his friend on the shoulder. The dragonborn reached out and gently removed the scroll from it's holdings.
"Heavier than I thought" he complained mentally, though that couldn't keep the smile off his face. "We did it" he said softly, a little overwhelmed by the fact that he now held one of the most powerful things in the world in his hands, and a little nervous about how much closer he'd just gotten to facing his destiny.
X-X-X-X-X
After retrieving the lexicon, the team had found another elevator to take them out of the ruin and back up to the surface. Rather annoyingly, they'd come up in a chamber about 15 meters away from their horses, meaning that they likely could've skipped the whole trek if Varion had simply destroyed the door barring their way which they now opened with a lever. "Well, time to get back home!" Faendal said in celebration, already making his way towards his mount.
"Actually, I've got something to take care of in Winterhold first," Varion explained, adjusting the Elder Scroll which was now tied to his back overtop of his greatsword. "I'll see all of you when I get back. Yes Lydia, that includes you" he added with a smirk, cutting off his housecarls protests before they could even start.
"My thane, why do you wish to return there? Shouldn't you go to the throat of the world?" Lydia asked, confused as to his new objective.
"Septimus wanted the lexicon in exchange for his help. It'd be wrong of me to not follow through on our deal, especially as he did lead us to the elder scroll" Varion reasoned.
"I guess you're right, but please be careful. The man is insane" Lydia said more quietly. Varion smirked.
"He's also 5'7 and looks about 80 years old. Trust me, I'll be alright" he replied reassuringly before Lydia finally conceded defeat and agreed to return to Whiterun hold with the others. They grabbed the horses and after saying goodbye to the others, Varion set off for Winterhold. The ride wasn't too bad, seeing as Alftand was already in Winterholds south west corner. Within hours he arrived at the ice fields, just as the sun was beginning to come up. "We must've been in that ruin for hours" Varion thought to himself with mild annoyance. Whenever delving through a place like that it was easy to lose a sense of time. It felt like they'd been in there for at least a day, though that had just been his frustration exaggerating the duration of the endeavour to his mind. He stepped to the ice fields and tied up his horse before breathing deeply. He'd been coming up with this plan to cross the ice fields since they had ridden back to Whiterun after their first visit to Septimus, and now that Lydia wasn't here, he was free to try it out. "WULD!" he shouted, feeling himself be catapulted forward. Though the shout only carried him so far, he felt himself slide across the ice, his momentum carrying him a considerable distance. He smirked, this felt awesome. He repeated his technique a few more times and before he knew it, he was already at Septimus' outpost. He dropped back into the little ice cave and spoke to the old man again.
"Ah, you've returned, and you bring the lexicon!" Septimus cried excitedly. Varion rolled his eyes, this could get annoying real quick.
"Yeah, got the scroll too. Here" he replied, handing the cube over to the hermit. He snatched it out of Varions hands with a crazed enthusiasm and looked at it almost reverently. "Incredible…" he whispered, before mumbling more words.
"What does it show?" Varion asked curiously. He'd looked at it before, but he couldn't make sense of whatever he had seen.
"The sealing structure can only be loosened by the blood of the dwemer, but none remain to bear it…" Septimus trailed off, seemingly deep in thought. "Of course!" he suddenly exclaimed, causing Varion to flinch slightly. "A panoply of their brethren could gather to form a facsimile! A trick! Something even they did not expect! No, not even them!" he declared. Varion rolled his eyes.
"Translate that into words I can understand" he asked tiredly.
"Oh seeker of the scroll, if you wish to aid Septimus, gather the blood of the elves!" he said, turning his attention back to Varion. "Alter, Bosmer, Orisimer, Falmer, Dunmer, a combination of their blood can create the key to open the box!" he explained, handing Varion a strange looking device. "The extractor will drink the fresh blood of elves. Return when you have the set!" he added. Varion looked the extractor over, noting the sharp needle.
"Well, I could butcher a few Thalmor for the Altmer blood" Varion thought with grim excitement. He'd get to kill Thalmor and put it towards a productive cause, win win. He could get the other bloods except Falmer easily just by exploring bandit camps and he'd just head back to Blackreach for the Snow Elf blood. "Wait a minute gramps," he replied, returning to his skeptical ways. "Why do you want this thing open so badly?" he asked. Septimus' eyes lit up with enthusiasm and wonder.
"The box contains the heart of a god, Lorkhan. They thought it was destroyed by the Nerevarine, but my master knew otherwise. He led me to it. The heart of a god, the encompassing nature of divinity, makes the Elder Scrolls appear to be a passing thought" he said reverently. Varion rolled his eyes, but kept the mention of this mans 'master' in the back of his mind.
"I'll need to find out who that is. No doubt something bad" he thought with some level of dread. He nodded, took the extractor and quickly made his way out of the cave. However, when he got to the entrance of the mini tunnel leading to the ladder, he quickly drew his sword and got into a fighting stance. Blocking his path was the same wretch of tentacles that he'd thought he'd seen the other day, except these were very tangible and now had eyeballs mixed in.
"Come closer…" it spoke slowly in a deep voice. "Bask in my presence…" it added. Varion decided that remaining a noticeable distance away from this wretched abyss was hardly an unreasonable choice.
"What in Oblivion are you?" he asked, keeping a tight grip on his sword. The… thing, actually chuckled at this.
"An apt choice of words. I am Hermaeus Mora, Daedric prince of fate and destiny" it explained. "I have been watching you for some time. Your exploits are most impressive" he complimented. Varion frowned.
"I take it you want something from me? Requiring the talents you've seen?" he guessed.
"You continue to render Septimus obsolete with your actions. You retrieved the Elder Scroll, you will retrieve the blood, all things he cannot do. Once he has opened the box, he will serve no purpose to me" Hermaeus explained. Varion frowned at hearing this, he'd heard that the daedra were somewhat predictable in the fact that they'd betray you the second you stopped being useful. "I wish for you to take the place as my champion, once the box is open. What say you?" Varion thought this over. On one hand, his logical mind said 'don't bargain with the giant tentacle demon thing from another plane', and his less logical side was agreeing with it.
"However, having a Daedric prince as an 'ally'..." he thought, considering the possible benefits. His dragon nature bubbled within him, his lust for power rising. "What do I get out of this alliance?" he asked carefully.
"The benefits of serving me are numerous, as others have discovered" Hermaeus replied. The way he said that sentence made it sound like he was implying something deeper, but Varion thought nothing of it.
"Let's get one thing straight. I'm not going to become your slave" Varion retorted. "If I do this, gather this blood, help Septimus open this thing, my reward had better be damn worth it" he demanded. To his irritation, the demon simply chuckled slowly.
"Open the box, and all shall be revealed" he replied in farewell. Varion watched as the tentacles faded out of this plane and soon, it was as if they had never been there at all. Glancing around, he reluctantly sheathed his sword.
"Give me a damn break…" he growled, climbing out of the cave, eager to get away from this place. "Seems like all the crazy stuff happens in there…"
X-X-X-X-X
A few days of rest in Whiterun was enough to get Varions mind off his encounter with Hermaeus Mora, though he'd now turned his focus to even more daunting matters. "Someday soon, I read an Elder Scroll" he thought with a mixture of excitement and great dread as he put his armour on early in the morning on a Sundas. He knew that this was the only way to learn the shout he would apparently need to stop Alduin, Dragonrend, but the idea of reading the thing now lying on one of his weapon racks still made him nervous. "Septimus was driven insane by these things, and here I am about to read one" he continued to think, his mood dropping.
"My thane?" Lydia asked from his doorway where she'd come in and no doubt seen the troubled look on his face.
"It's nothing Lydia" he replied dismissively, but he already knew she wouldn't buy that.
"Varion…" she said with a knowing tone and he gave a humourless chuckle.
"You saw Septimus Lydia. I'm about to read the thing that drove him nuts. Willingly" he answered, giving his worries audible form.
"My thane, you have one of the strongest, most stubborn wills I've ever seen. I know you'll be fine" she replied, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Well, I'm glad one of us believes that" Varion responded, though he knew she'd know what he really meant behind that statement.
"You sure you don't want me to come?" she asked for the third time in two days. Varions lips twitched upwards at her insistence, but his answer remained the same.
"I can't bring you Lydia. This is something I have to do alone" he replied, the same way as he'd done the last two times. Her sigh of exasperation was nothing new either.
"I just… What if you don't make it back? I could've been there to help you" she reasoned, almost pleading now for him to change his mind.
"I can't. Especially with the dangers" he thought. He remembered the words of Arngeir from weeks ago. "He said that by learning Dragonrend, I'm exposing myself to the pure hatred and rage of those who hated dragons in the past. It could change me, turn me evil. Gods, I feel like I walk that line enough already" he reflected, not that he'd tell Lydia any of this. He didn't need her to be afraid around him, even if she arguably should be. So he decided to comfort her in another way. Given by her sharp intake of breath when he hugged her, she wasn't expecting him to do that. "I promise Lydia, successful or not, I will make it back here alive" he said softly. He felt her return the hug tentatively, though she soon gripped him pretty tightly.
"Please" was her only response. They stood like that for a moment more before Varion grabbed his greatsword and placed it on his back, sheathed his katana, tied the scroll to himself once again and departed without another word. He didn't say anything to anyone as he grabbed his horse and rode to Ivarstead, being alone with his thoughts. He left the horse there and began another long walk up to High Hrothgar. Thankfully, the journey felt shorter every time and Clear Skies took care of the snowstorms that would've plagued his trek otherwise. The Elder Scroll on his back was the most annoying thing, it weighed him down quite significantly. When he made it to High Hrothgar, Arngeir greeted him with what appeared to be grim acceptance. Varion shared his mood, it seemed neither of them were really happy with what would happen tomorrow, when Varion would finally read the scroll. They offered him a night's rest and he gladly took it before departing soon after breakfast. Even then, he hardly spoke. When he made it to the Throat of the World again, he saw Paarthurnax.
"You have it. The Kel, the Elder Scroll. Time shudders at it's touch" he said, almost reverently.
"If I read this, what's the guarantee that I make it through the reading?" Varion asked nervously, voicing the concern that had plagued his mind for the entire journey.
"You are doom driven. Dragonborn. Your destiny is to defeat Alduin, and this is how it shall be done, evidently. This scroll has a special connection to this spot" Paarthurnax explained. "You should be fine" he added, though sounding less sure of himself. Varion took a deep breath and clenched his fist. He took his helmet off, giving him a much more complete field of sight, for reading purposes.
"I'll do it. I'll read this scroll. I have to" he declared, taking it off his back and walking over to what he had been told was the time wound. As he entered it, he felt weird. The world around him was now rippling, distorted, and he felt a strange connection with the scroll he now held in his hands.
"Hurry Dragonborn, I fear Alduin may approach soon," the elder dragon said with worry. Varion barely heard him, the feeling he was experiencing was so different to anything he was familiar with that he was unnerved, yet calmed by it. He steeled himself and held the scroll in front of his face, and with only a moment more of hesitation, he opened it. In that instant, he knew, if he lived long enough to tell the story, he'd never be able to convey the feeling of reading an Elder Scroll through words, or anything. He watched, frozen, as events from what seemed to be the past played out before his eyes as he was unable to interact with anything. He watched as a blonde armoured woman killed a dragon alongside her comrade, a heavily armoured man with a huge axe. They were joined by a third man in robes and they conversed, but Varions eyes focused on something.
"He has the scroll!" he noted, watching the scene with interest. He saw Alduin descend and land on the mountain and taunt the heroes before taking flight, only to see them shout.
"JOOR ZAH FRUL!" they roared collectively and Varion felt the words burn themselves into his brain, then into his soul.
"Dragonrend" he thought with relief. "I finally have it. This worked". However, the scroll was still showing him this vision, so he theorised that there could be something else he needed to see. He watched as the heroes charged into battle against Alduin, and his heart sank as he saw the futility of their attacks. Alduin barely seemed to react, and he quickly killed the woman. Her pained cry as he practically bit her in half would've made Varion flinch, if he could move that is. He then noticed the robed man produce the Elder Scroll and shout some sort of incantation and Alduin was enveloped in a glow. He roared defiantly, but then the glow enveloped him and he vanished, leaving nothing behind but what looked like a small ripple-y area on top of the mountain. "They used the scroll to banish him through time, to now" Varion mentally commented, understanding the situation in front of him. He'd just witnessed the dragon break happen, but he suddenly found himself being pulled out of his vision. For a few moments, he only saw white and he feared the worst, but he soon found his sight returning to normal. He found himself falling over, though he managed to catch himself so he landed on his hands and knees.
"Dovahkiin? Are you well?" Paarthurnax asked with concern and Varion clenched his fist.
"I'm here. I'm alive. I know who I am. My name is Varion, I am the dragonborn" he repeated in his head a few times until he fully felt like he'd caught up to reality. He glanced over at the elder scroll on the ground which had shut by itself. He made a move to reach over to it, but suddenly a familiar roar sounded from behind him and his blood went cold, then quickly to red hot with unnatural rage.
"We meet again, Dovahkiin, and this time I will destroy you" a deep voice declared. Varion got to his feet and drew his greatsword, a look of sheer hatred on his face as he donned his helmet again. The anger seethed from his voice as he growled only a single word in reply.
"Alduin!"
A/N:And we reach the conclusion of Arc 8! Next chapter will be the long anticipated battle between Varion and Alduin, and from this point forward, we've got through all the boring bits of the main quest to write about! Huzzah! Expect another update next Sunday, or maybe I'll start making the story twice a week again!
As a side note, I've been going back over older chapters and finding much room for improvement. If you check back there, you'll be seeing differences in various details, extra dialogue pieces, stuff like that. I just want the entire story to be good, and though I do still feel some pride in those early chapters, it's clear that I've come a long way since. Just food for thought if you feel like rereading. Chapter 1 in particular will be very different…
Thanks for reading, be sure to favourite, follow and review and I'll see you all in the next chapter!
