Part 10 - The Greatest Sin

Chapter 175 - Some Sort of Mordor Rip-Off

After a powernap, the trio set to work trying to decipher the five maps. Miles used a projector in his suit to display them as Paarthurnax flew.

"What if you put them on top of each other?" Asked Gwen.

"Too obvious." Replied Max in a monotone voice.

Miles tried it anyway in as many configurations as the computer in his suit could come up with, but Max was right: the map looked like a mess with bits missing. After some more thinking, Miles suggested:

"What if you just lay them all next to each other and it's a map of the continent with a giant X on it?"

"Too obvious." Max repeated.

"Try anyway."

Miles set the computer to work again but still to no avail. Max frowned at it.

"There's a bit missing."

"How do you know?" Asked Gwen.

"Because."

"That's…not helpful." Said Miles.

"There's a bit missing because that eleventh layout would have worked except a piece was missing. It's a map of the continent, but the piece with the actual X on it isn't there. Look."

The spiders confirmed his observation.

"So where would the last piece be?"

"The original…no idea. A version…maybe Apocrypha but I don't feel like visiting Hermaeus Mora at the moment."

"Then where do we get it?" Asked Gwen.

"Paarthurnax, any ideas?"

"Perhaps. Show me the map."

Miles moved the map so it was projected in Paarthurnax's vision.

"Geh. Yes. I know of a strange place, a wasteland void of life, on the Western continent in that area. Perhaps it is a place to begin searching?"

"It's all we've got." Gwen reasoned.

"Then let's go there." Concluded Miles.

Paarthurnax banked and changed course a little.

"Kos nau hin dein. Be on your guard. It is known as Vol Gult, Dark Ground, for it is where nothing can survive after the inferno that destroyed it. Few have ventured there."

'Dark Ground' was an understatement. The ground seemed to be pitch black and Miles half-wondered if he'd be sucked into the Void when he stepped on it. However, no such thing happened so he turned to Max and Gwen for an idea of what to do now. Paarthurnax watched them curiously. Gwen had put her mask and hood up and was surveying the view; Max was drawing shapes on the ground with the tip of Furore Mortale.

"You good, Max?"

"Sure. As good as can be at the moment. Does it matter? We're here to find a piece of a sword in some sort of Mordor rip-off, not talk about me."

"It definitely matters."

"Good, then stop talking about it and you'll help make it better."

"Right. Sorry."

"Any ideas, guys?" Asked Gwen.

"No." Replied Max.

"What's that tower over there?"

All eyes turned to where Miles pointed.

"I don't see anything." Replied Max.

"Maybe your suit's highlighting it?" Asked Gwen.

"Yeah it is. It looks kinda weird."

"Let's go. Any chance you can fly us, Paarthurnax?"

The dovah lowered his head for them to climb on.

"Zu'u dreh ni med daar zu'u koraav. [I do not like this I see.]"

Miles and his suit had been right about there being a tower. It wasn't particularly tall, but it was pitch black as though it devoured the light that touched it.

"Gwen, is your spidey sense going nuts at this?"

"Just a little."

"Tickle each other's senses all you want. I'll kill anything that confronts us with a word." Max grumbled.

"Fen saraan. I will wait here for you." Said Paarthurnax.

The trio entered the tower through a rotting wooden door. Suddenly, Gwen stopped.

"Do you hear that?"

The other two stopped and listened. There was a rumbling whisper on the word saying one, maybe two words over and over again.

"Well, I was kidding when I called this place a Mordor rip-off but Sauron's probably chilling in the basement." Said Max, looking back at his parents with a wiry grin.

It was the first hint of cheer he'd given for most of the day, and despite the voice in the air it gave the spiders a little hope.

"What's it saying?" Gwen asked.

"'Burzum-ishi krimpatul'. In the darkness bind them."

"That's welcoming…" Miles muttered.

"Buckle up. Let's get this over with."

It turned out the tower was exactly what the family were looking for. A spiral staircase went down and down until not even Furore Mortale's light seemed to be able to pierce the darkness. However, at long last they came to the bottom of the stairs, signalled by Max trying to keep going down and walking face-first into a wall. The trio peered into the gloom. In the very centre of the room, something caught the light. Miles edged forwards.

"Be careful." Gwen whispered, scared even her voice might stir up some sort of dust monster.

Miles eventually reached the pedestal in the centre and clasped the object on it. He returned to Max and Gwen and looked it over in Furore Mortale's light.

"I think it's the handle."

"Looks like it, unless it's a fake. It can't be this easy; nothing is." Max replied.

"I guess the area around here is defence enough. It's horrible." Gwen reasoned.

"Anybody see anything else? No? Then let's get out of…here."

The light of Furore Mortale had caught something else that was moving towards them. Max put his hood and mask up.

"Who are you?" Miles asked.

The whisper of 'burzum-ishi krimpatul' only grew louder. Max put two and two together and tried again, this time in the Black Speech of long-lost Mordor:

"Amirz are lat?"

The whisper changed to a chant:

"Ash pros u thu ul uluk."

"Err…what does that mean?" Asked Miles.

"'One blade to break them all.' Really Lord of the Rings-y."

Gwen fired a web at the thing, but it did nothing.

"Up the stairs, now." She instructed, taking the lead.

Max was last onto them and narrowly avoided the swing of some sort of weapon, possibly a mace, that obliterated the bottom few steps.

Paarthurnax was waiting, just as he said he'd be, and took-off without a word as soon as the trio were aboard. Miles held the handle of the Sword Perilous up so they could inspect it in the better light.

"It's the real deal. I feel sick just looking at it." Said Max.

"How do we stick it to the cross-guard?" Asked Gwen, taking the first piece out and handing it to Miles to see if he could work it out.

As he took it, a voice began to speak in his head. For the first few words it was OK, then he began to feel like each one was shaking his brain in his skull. The longer it continued the worse it got, so he thrust the pieces into Gwen's hands.

"Arrgh. That…ow."

Gwen took them and began to get the same feeling, but she jammed the two pieces together. There was a ring of light that seemed to consume the place the two pieces had been joined before. The voice stopped as it faded and the two pieces were together.

"You weren't kidding. That does hurt."

"Death really wasn't playing around when he made that thing." Said Miles.

"Of course not. He made it to kill High Elder Gods, and that's what we're gonna do." Said Max.

"The last piece is in Dea's palace, but I need something to eat first."

"Me too." Gwen agreed.

Paarthurnax suddenly began to dive, pulling up at the last moment.

"Woah! What was that about!" Max yelled.

"Krosis. I heard you were hungry, and I spotted food."

Miles looked over the side and back at Paarthurnax's rear claws. In them were clutched an animal not dissimilar to a cow, but about the size of a sheep.

"Unless anyone has any money, I guess it's roasted…whatever that crossbreed is."

After a few minutes, Paarthurnax found a place to land. The animal tasted surprisingly good, although the trio wondered how much of that was down to hunger. By the time they were finished, it was getting dark so they settled down for the night. Max fell asleep quickly, but Miles and Gwen sat up a little to talk.

"I don't think we've had a moment with just the two of us for a while." Said the former, staring up at the stars.

"Three googolplex years, apparently. It doesn't feel that long, though."

"A month for me, I think."

"I'd say a few days at most. Max did say it wouldn't feel like very long."

"How you doing with it all?"

"Alright, but we've not really been around people all that much, so I'm not sure how I'll feel. What about you?"

"I'm…coping. It's kinda a shock to the system. I'm worried about Max, though."

"Same here."

"I wish we could go back in time and help him." Miles whispered.

"But we can't, so we have to help him now."

"How?"

"I guess just be there for him when he needs someone."

"I feel like it's not enough. Man, I hate myself for abandoning him after that."

"It wasn't you; it was your Legion counterpart."

"But what if it is me? That version started out like normal me."

"And screwed up. A lot."

"Yeah. I guess. Just hit me if I look like I'm going down that road."

"Let's start with some sleep."

"G'night."

"Goodnight."

They cuddled up together and fell asleep.

Crossovers in this Chapter

- Skyrim
- Lord of the Rings

Not had LotR for a while; part one was the last time, I believe.