Chapter 20 - Anti-Climactic Encounter
The first thing Yang noticed, as she slowly regained consciousness, was that the sky was on fire.
That was odd... and unexpected. The last time she'd read an Elder Scroll, she'd been brought to a white void. Then again, though, it was an Elder Scroll. They were expected to be unexpectable.
The next thing she noticed was that, aside from the sky being on fire, her surroundings looked practically unchanged. Sure, there were weird lines and markings blinking across her vision, dancing right at the edges of her perception, but other than that, it looked like she was still at the top of a snow-capped mountain. A closer examination revealed to her that she was still on the Throat of the World, just as she'd been when she'd read the Elder Scroll.
It also revealed three other people who hadn't been there before, a woman and two men, and bodies of men and dragons were scattered around the mountain. By the looks of things, she could guess that the Elder Scroll had worked, brought had back to the moment when the Tongues had faced Alduin.
She was proven right when a dragon suddenly descended down right next to her, throwing up snow through her with it's landing, before it was swiftly attacked and killed by the woman and one of the men.
An eerie peace descended upon the mountain with the dragon's death, and the three took the time to begin arguing about their next course of action, and to the surprise of the others one of the men pulled out the Elder Scroll, the same one she had just read. Further discussion, however, was interrupted when another dragon approached.
To Yang's surprise, she actually recognized the dragon. It was the black dragon, the one from Helgen, who had effortlessly razed the fortified town in mere minutes. She watched as the black dragon, who was apparently Alduin, called a meteor shower down onto the mountain top, just like Helgen.
The Tongues, however, knew what to expect, and they dodged, called up wards, or smashed the meteors away from them with their weapons, before glaring at Alduin as he flew over their heads, laughing the whole time at the futility of their rebellion.
"JOOR ZAH FRUL!" The Tongues shouted in unison, the first mortal-created Shout in the history of Tamriel flying from their lips, and as it struck Alduin, and he tumbled down from the sky, Yang absorbed the Words they used, and understood their meaning.
The fearsome Shout, Dragonrend, the bane of dragons, the Tongues' ultimate weapon... was mortality, plain and simple. Even the words in the Shout were not a secret: Mortal. Finite. Temporary. Dragons used it when referring to mortals all the time, after all. But when Shouted by the Tongues, with intent...
"What have you done?!" Alduin demanded, roaring in confused rage and frustration, as he attempted to get up from the crater he'd created, unable to shake off the feeling of disorientation, as he suddenly felt himself cut off from the world, from his divinity. Dragonrend had forced the immortal semi-divine dragon to experience mortality, as the mortals he'd lorded over did, and suddenly all he could see was what was in front of him. His body felt too big and unwieldly, as his brain was suddenly unable to fully operate it.
In the end, though, Alduin was still a giant lizard of immense strength. Even cut off from his connection to Akatosh, and unable to Shout, he still had teeth, claws, a thick scaly hide, and a few tons of weight behind his every strike. While the Tongues... did not.
The female warrior fell first, overconfidently charging at the grounded Alduin, who easily dodged her strike, before shooting his head down on her, gripping her between his teeth. Yang winced as she heard a distinct "crunch", before Alduin shook his head, flinging the body into a nearby Word Wall.
The surviving Nords didn't waste any time in using their Scroll on Alduin after that, especially as Dragonrend wore off, and Yang watched as Alduin was banished forward in Time. Idly, she wondered if she could do the same thing, to use the Elder Scroll she held in her hands on Alduin, and make him someone else's problem in the far future. She quickly rejected the idea, though; she barely knew how to use an Elder Scroll, beyond reading it in specific locations. If the Elder Scroll wanted her to use it in that way, it would have told her, like how it told her the location of Auriel's Bow. If she tried using it in a way it didn't want to be used... she'd be lucky to go blind, like Dexius, but be far more likely to end up like Septimus Signus.
She couldn't risk that fate, not with Hermaeus Mora interested in Jaune.
Finally, as the surviving pair contemplated their actions, and she felt a tugging sensation on her consciousness, she heard the Scroll's user murmur: "Yes, the World Eater is gone... may the spirits have mercy on our souls..."
Feeling herself in her body once more, she shook her head, trying to shake off the disorientation, before gingerly opening her eyes.
The sky wasn't on fire anymore, the ground wasn't littered with corpses, and the two Tongues were replaced with Jaune and Serana.
Jaune and Serana looked just as on-edge as the Tongues had, however, and the black dragon, Alduin, was still at the Throat of the World.
"Alduin!" Paarthurnax cried out a warning, somewhat unnecessarily.
"Bahloki nahkip sillesejoor. My belly is full of the souls of your fellow mortals, Dovahkiin." Alduin declared, ignoring the lesser dragon. "Die now and await your fate in Sovngarde!"
"Lost funt. You are too late, Alduin!" Paarthurnax taunted, even as he reared up, as threateningly as he could. As a dragon thousands of years old, his tattered wings and chipped horns and teeth paled in comparison to Alduin, and they all knew it.
"Suleyki mulaag, Paarthurnax. My power has waxed, while yours has waned. Aav uv dir. Join me or perish with your mortal friends."
"Unslaad hokoron! Never again!" Paarthurnax spat, and even as he took off, charging at Alduin, he called back: "Dovahkiin! Use Dragonrend if you know it!"
"Come on, Yang!" Jaune shouted, gripping Yang's shoulder. "We have to help Paarthurnax, before the other dragon kills him!"
Yang groaned, shaking herself out of her stupor. Between the disorientation of using the Scroll, and the awe from the sight of watching two dragons clashing in mid-air, she had lost herself momentarily. As the skies burned above her, she yelled: "Paarthurnax! Get out of the way!"
The old bronze dragon, it seemed, had heard her, because she saw Paarthurnax break away, making for High Hrothgar, unwilling to get in the Dragonborn's way. Blood flowed from nasty gashes in his side, despite them only having fought for seconds.
"You will interfere no longer, zeymah." Alduin called down, before Shouting at the sky. The world above them shuddered, and the skies turned red as rocks suddenly began raining down unto the Throat of the World, and towards Paarthurnax and the trio.
Serana acted quickly, using her telekinesis to deflect as many of the rocks away from them as possible, while Jaune pulled out his shield, and his Aura flared white as he covered Yang from the meteors that got past Serana, all the while crying out: "Where the hell are the rocks even coming from?!"
Yang didn't bother answering, instead using the space Jaune was giving her to look up, tracking Alduin's location. She had one shot at this, before she played her hand, and Alduin knew for sure that she knew Dragonrend. Until then, though, Alduin would be cocky, less cautious. She couldn't delay too long, though; she couldn't expect Jaune to block the meteors forever.
Finally, she spotted Alduin diving down, trying to intercept Paarthurnax, as a meteor hit his side, and he roared out in pain. Taking a step forward, she glared at him, and Shouted: "JOOR ZAH FRUL!"
Dragonrend's effects were just as impressive as she'd seen, through the Scroll, and Alduin tumbled in mid-air, suddenly unable to control his flight, and he missed Paarthurnax and slammed down onto the Throat of the World as the rain of meteors halted.
Yang didn't waste any time; she'd seen what had happened to the female Tongue. Instead, before the dust settled, she leapt forward, cocking her fist back, before trying to punch Alduin in the snout.
Yang hissed in pain, as her fist, which had been able to dent Dwemer Centurions and punched through a dragon's eye, smashed into what she could only describe as a mountain. If it hadn't been for her dragonbone gauntlets, Yang would have bet that her knuckles would be bruised and bleeding, if not outright broken.
The dust and snow around her were cleared away in a single breath, as Alduin huffed and exhaled, revealing the full extent of the damage she'd dealt to him: one of spiky ridges that protected his head had cracked and fallen off.
Yang didn't waste any time, and immediately used one of the two Shouts Paarthurnax had taught her: "YOL TOOR SHUL!"
A wave of fire shot out of Yang's mouth, and Alduin winced from the heat, but the brief flames did little to actually harm the massive dragon, and she saw Alduin use his movement to rear his head back, preparing to strike.
"FEIM!" Yang Shouted, using the other Shout she had learned, and Alduin's head went through her body, as she turned ethereal.
Before the overextended Alduin could recover, a massive icicle smashed into his back, and a white shield bashed itself against the side of his snout, throwing Alduin off balance. Yang rolled to the side and cancelled the Shout, gasping as she became physical once more. She hadn't expected that becoming ethereal would mean air itself would go through her; a grave miscalculation in combat.
Jaune swiped at Alduin's head, and Alduin backed off for the first time, as the dragonbone sword cut through his scales. Rather than press the advantage, though, he knelt by Yang, and as he pulled her up he asked: "You alright there?"
"Damn lizard's harder than I expected." Yang admitted, shaking her wrists to loosen her fists. "Got a plan, Vomit Boy?"
"I'm working on it..." Jaune muttered, looking around. A wild thought suddenly came to him... "Do you trust me, Yang?"
"Always, Vomit Boy." Yang answered without hesitation, eyeing Alduin cautiously, ready to drag Jaune in any direction if needed.
"Can you get under him and melt the snow?"
"Easily." Yang replied, with far more bravado than she felt.
"Don't worry, I'll keep him distracted." Jaune reassured her, and before she could stop him, Jaune charged at the dragon, screaming his lungs out.
For a brief moment, Yang felt a thrill of fear, that he would end up like that female Tongue, in the jaws of Alduin. But Jaune knew his capabilities, knew how weak he was, and he kept his guard up the whole time, committing himself to defense. As Alduin's head shot towards him, Jaune ducked under it, before slamming his shield under Alduin's jaw.
Yang cautiously circled around Alduin as Serana ran up to support Jaune, pelting Alduin with icicles as she did so. Alduin reared his serpentine neck back, roaring in fury, and Yang spotted her opportunity, sprinting from behind Alduin while he was distracted, before sliding under Alduin's tail, channeling her magicka into the only spell she knew as she did so.
"I assume... you have some bright idea, Jaune?" Serana asked, as she continued wasting her magicka on ineffectual spears of ice. She'd have tried one of her Shock spells, but she hadn't wanted to accidentally hit Jaune or Yang, and she'd seen Yang dive under the black dragon.
"On my mark, I want you to cast a Blizzard on the snow around the dragon." Jaune whispered, even as he narrowly dodged another bite, and drew blood as he counter-attacked, slashing at Alduin's snout. "Till then, just keep him busy!"
Serana found herself feeling doubtful, seeing how little effect the cold was having on the dragon, but she trusted Jaune's mind, and she continued to pelt Alduin's face with ice.
"I tire of you mortals!" Alduin roared, wheeling around, and Jaune quickly threw his shield up as Alduin's tail slammed into him. His Aura burned bright around him, like a second sun, and Jaune found himself skidding away from the mere impact, his arm feeling numb. The sheer force behind that tail had almost sent him flying, even with his mostly-full Aura; even getting stepped on by the Grimm Wyvern hadn't been that bad!
"Interesting..." Alduin mused, looking back at Jaune. He'd never seen a mortal like this before, and found himself mildly intrigued.
Jaune fought to maintain his footing as Alduin slammed his tail into the ground, shaking it, and Serana found her spells much less effective against Alduin's hindquarters. Before Jaune could fully recover, Alduin spun around once more, head shooting down towards Jaune, and Jaune felt his knees buckle from the blow, as his shield bore the brunt of the World Eater's weight.
"Before I kill you, joor, tell me what you are." Alduin demanded, as he reared back for another strike.
Jaune looked under Alduin, however, and grinned, as Yang Shouted from underneath him: "YOL TOOR SHUL!"
Alduin backed off, howling in pain as his less-armored underside burned, before stumbling as his footing suddenly felt less secure. Yang quickly rolled out from under him, swung up unto him using her momentum and his wing, and Shouted down unto his back: "FUS RO DAH!"
"Serana, now!" Jaune barked, seeing Alduin stumble around the slushy half-melted snow, and Serana complied, freezing the area around Alduin, turning the slushy snow into ice and limiting his movement.
The fighters didn't waste their chance.
Jaune charged towards Alduin's neck, before chopping into it and channeling his Aura into his sword.
Yang leapt from Alduin's back and onto the back of his neck, and stabbed the broken-off spike into it with all her might.
Paarthurnax swooped back up from High Hrothgar, before diving down onto Alduin's back, biting down on his neck as he did so.
After a brief moment, Alduin lay motionless, body half-encased in ice, bleeding from numerous wounds on his neck and head.
Yang jumped down from his head carelessly, landing by Jaune, as Serana walked up to them, and observed the World Eater in the flesh.
"... do you think he's..." Jaune began, after a pause.
"He'd better be." Yang spat a gob of blood at Alduin, before grinning at Jaune: "Good plan, Vomit Boy."
"Took you long enough." Jaune grinned back, before he jumped forward, pulling Yang out of the way, as Alduin's eyes suddenly shot open, and the ice around him began to rumble and crack.
"Meyz mul, Dovahkiin. You have become strong." Alduin complimented, before he opened his mouth and a roaring jet of fiames burst forth. Serana tried to smother the flames with a Blizzard, but to her shock she found herself, for the first time in a centuries, low on magicka. Yang tried to use Dragonrend on Alduin, but Paarthurnax was still on his back, trying to stop him.
As Alduin shook violently against his icy prison, he whipped his head around, spewing his Fire Breath all over the place, preventing the trio from approaching him, from stopping him, as he melted the ice around him.
To his credit, Paarthurnax tried to stop Alduin, clamping down harder, applying more pressure, but his broken and worn teeth could not overcome Alduin's sheer determination, and with a final flex of his body, the ice around him shattered. Alduin then slammed his body into a nearby rocky outcrop, crushing Paarthurnax against the rocks, forcing him to loosen his grip.
"But I am Al-Du-In, Firstborn of Akatosh! Mulaagi zok lot! I cannot be slain here, by you or anyone else!" Alduin declared to the trio, who were unable to advance due to the flames coating the ground between them. Stretching his wings out, he glared at them, and as he took off he taunted: "You cannot prevail against me. I will outlast you... mortal!"
"Where's he going?" Yang asked Paarthurnax, as Jaune ran up to him, and began channeling Aura into him, while they all watched Alduin slowly fly away.
"He is probably fleeing to Sovngarde, to regain his strength." Paarthurnax observed, as he slowly got to his feet.
"Sovngarde?"
"It's where Nords go, if they die in glorious battle." Yang explained. "The legends say he eats the souls of the dead..."
"He can do that?" Jaune yelped in surprise, and when Paarthurnax grimly nodded, he shouted: "We can't let him get away, then!"
"We can't stop him, Vomit Boy. I can't get him with Dragonrend, not at this range, and I don't think Paarthurnax can catch up to him, even with his injuries."
"... Serana, do you think you can lift me up with your magic?"
"I might have just enough magicka left for that... but why? What are you planning?"
"Yang's Shouts might not have the range, but she might be able to use that Unrelenting Force Shout to send me flying at Alduin, if you lift me up at the right angle" Jaune explained, as he walked up to the edge of the mountaintop, and looked towards Alduin.
"Are you crazy?!" Yang demanded, marching towards Jaune.
"My sword's our best weapon against him, and Beacon trained me to have a landing strategy." Jaune explained, looking at Yang, pleading for her to understand. "Please, Yang, we don't have much time left!"
Yang glared at him, and sorely wanted to refuse, to tell him he was insane, that they could always rest up first and then storm Sovngarde. But they didn't know how many souls he'd consume before they got there, how much he'd be able to recover. And she knew he'd never forgive her, if she didn't at least let him try to save the souls in Sovngarde, to stop the World Eater.
With a heavy heart, she gripped his breastplate, and pulled him close, demanding: "Promise me you'll return safely, Jaune."
"I promise, Yang." Jaune said, with a tired smile, as he held her hand reassuringly. "And an Arc never goes back on his word."
"... lift him, Serana." Yang finally acquiesed, and as Jaune floated, Yang gathered her breath, and Shouted at Jaune: "FUS RO DAH!"
As Jaune flew off into the distance, Yang prayed to the Divines that her aim had been off, that Jaune would miss Alduin
Jaune didn't miss.
With their keen eyesight, Serana and Yang were barely able to make out Jaune fly into Alduin, stabbing his sword into Alduin's leg.
They saw him pull something out of his pocket.
"No..." Serana whispered, horrified, as she guessed what was about to happen.
"What's wrong?" Yang demanded to know, even as she couldn't take her eyes off of Jaune and Alduin. "What's going on?"
Dark purple flames suddenly appeared around the two as they flew into the distance, before it engulfed them, and Yang watched in horror as Alduin and Jaune disappeared into thin air.
Author's Note: ... I have no idea how this happened, either. But definitely don't expect the next chapter anytime this week...
I had to rewrite the Alduin vs Yang fight to try and make sure that, well... everybody had an opportunity to shine. That there wouldn't be any character simply laying back passively, all but forgotten about. I had to make sure everyone had something to do, that Alduin felt like an actual threat, an unstoppable force of nature.
Paarthurnax took the most rewrites, but eventually I had him leave the battle simply because, as far as he knows... he can't actually allow himself to be exposed to Dragonrend. He's millennia old; Dragonrend would weaken him even more than Alduin, as the weight of time crashes down upon him, and then he'd just be a liability in the battle.
I also had to come up with an argument that would actually let Yang agree to Jaune's plan. He's been sent flying by her before, and she knows that he has good landing strategies. She and Serana know the value he places on a soul, being an Aura user and all (hence their misdirections when explaining the Soul Cairn).
Translations:
Bahloki nahkip sillesejoor - (My) hunger has been fed by mortal souls
Lost funt - You fail
Suleyki mulaag - My power (has) strengthened
Aav uv dir - Join or die
Unslaad hokoron - Unending enemy
Zeymah - Brother
Meyz mul - You have become strong
Mulaagi zok lot - My strength is the greatest
