Chapter 31: Slipping Away

Emily felt sick. It was not from the great wings that nearly unseated her with every beat or the undulating neck that rose and fell with the dragon's momentum. It was the knowledge that atop that tower awaited them not one but two. One of whom she knew. Or thought she did.

The tower was made up of blackened stone, whose undulating motion gave the tower the appearance of a writhing tentacle stretching up towards the leaden sky. The green light spewing from its summit only increased as they drew nearer. The summit consisted of a large flat plane, the only section of the tower that was not in perpetual motion and in the centre was an archway of stone standing in a pool filled with a thick oily substance. Standing before the archway were two figures. One was tall, robed in flowing black robes ornamented with gold. A golden tentacled mask obscured his face but his eyes burned green through the eyeholes, his gaze locked firmly on the approaching dragon.

The second figure was a woman of slender build perhaps a head and a half shorter than the man. She wore similar robes but lacked a mask and where the robes of the man trailed to the ground hers was more tribal in design. Her face was as hard as Emily remembered, with cold grey eyes and a sharp mouth. Hwit landed heavily on the stonework, his claws spread wide to gain purchase as his two riders dismounted.

"Dovahkiin," said Miraak, slowly, deliberately, "You have come at last." He turned his attention to the pearly white dragon they stood before, "You disappoint me, Hwit, to submit to the words of another so easily. Your will is weak. Now, your brother-" Hwit growled, baring long gleaming fangs.

"My brother lies dead in a field, slain like a common lizard," he said in a booming voice, "I go my own way now. My presence is too great for this…lowly structure." With that he crouched, spreading his wings wide so they blotted out much of the green light. "But I will be near. This battle should prove interesting." Then with a great whoosh he took off from the tower and soared up into the grey expanse. Emily watched the retreating form with unease.

"And who is this stranger you have brought?" Miraak asked, his tone one of idle curiosity, "My quarrel is with you, Dragonborn. Why you saw fit to rip me from Apocrypha and bring me here to this…to your world." He paused. "Though indeed, perhaps I should be thanking you. Hermaeus Mora himself cannot touch me here and once your soul is in my possession I can finally make my triumphant return to Tamriel with my Queen by my side." He rested a hand on Maylene's shoulder and she sneered at Emily.

"It could have been great, Emily," she said in a high pitched girlish voice that did not suit her countenance, "We could have been great. Too bad you had to shack up with some goth tart." Emily's eyes narrowed at these words and she bared her fangs as Serana readied ice on her palm. "I never thought you'd be the one to betray me, you were always so weak and spineless."

"I'm not afraid of you anymore," said Emily hotly, her eyes becoming two red slits.

"Because your girlfriend gave you powers?" tittered Maylene, "How cute. Don't act like you're special. You aren't the only one." With that she held up one hand. Tentacles erupted from her palm, coiling around her wrist, dropping to the ground where they fizzed like acid, melting into the stone. Emily recoiled at what she saw. It was not the tentacles she recoiled from but the flinty piercing gaze of her former girlfriend. Her eyes bored into her and she put her in mind of a dog slavering at the end of its leash to get at the meat kept just out of reach.

"I believe I will let you settle this, Maylene," said Miraak, "I won't deprive you. Take her soul and activate the portal."

"With pleasure, my Lord," Maylene replied, her lip curling. She raised her hand, summoning a glowing green energy which she brought level with Emily's chest. Emily stared down the woman she had once loved, summoning ice upon her palm. Maylene grinned and fired.

The ice struck the green energy midway across the stone plinth upon which they stood, causing the air to ripple as a sound like a thunderclap echoed around them. Maylene loosed blast after blast. Emily blocked them, each one knocking her back a foot. Her teeth were gritted with the effort.

"Are you going to fight back? Come on," Maylene taunted, "Or are you going to make this a disappointment like every other aspect of our relationship?" Her gaze slid from Emily to Serana. Emily watched as she conjured a writhing ball of tentacles, aiming at Serana.

A harsh cry tore from Emily's lips as she leapt to one side to engage the magic intended for Serana. The blow sent her spinning through the air, landing on the stones and rolling over and over. She could feel the tentacles burning wherever they landed, leaving great angry looking burns on our arms and neck. Serana took her hand as she climbed unsteadily to her feet. A look of understanding passed between them as their gaze settled on one another. Then they broke apart, taking off in different directions. Icy spikes were conjured as they sprinted towards the dark witch. Maylene's gaze darted between the two. She smiled a grim smile as Emily reached her. The ice slammed into her arm as she brought it up to deflect the blow. She recoiled before delivering a blow of her own, burning green energies slamming into Emily. Emily dodged, feinting and Maylene sent a ball of energy which missed her by mere inches.

Serana struck her from behind, an icy lance piercing her shoulder. She rounded on the vampiress, grey eyes locked on her as she blocked a second blow that followed the first.

"I don't know what you see in her," she spat, "Pale, useless, spineless.." Her words were cut short as Serana brought up her fist, abandoning magic in favour of melee for the time being, punching her square in the jaw and sending her staggering back. She recovered quickly, her jaw cracking as she faced her opponents. Ice gathered about their fingertips.

"You first," she snarled at Serana as she gathered the green energies about her fingers. Her eyes darted back to Emily. "Don't worry, I'll not keep you waiting." Then her eyes left Emily. This proved to be a fatal mistake for the moment her gaze left Emily, the Earthling conjured an icy lance.

Maylene froze, dark energies faltering. Her face was fixed in a contorted sneer as she stared ahead. Slowly she looked down at the icy lance protruding from her stomach, at the glistening viscera that was even now dripping onto the stonework. She looked over her shoulder, cold grey eyes glinting as they made contact with Emily. Her jaw went slack as she dropped to the ground, wheezing, hands clawing at the escaping coils.

"Bravo, Dovahkiin," said Miraak from a throne wrought of stone, carved into the likeness of great black tentacles writhing below a single green eye with a slit pupil. "It would seem I have underestimated you. Our battle will be a worthy one indeed."

"Why do you want to kill us?" Emily demanded.

"I care not for the fate of the vampire," Miraak replied, "As for you? You are Dragonborn. As am I. Your very presence prevents me from returning to Tamriel. Only when I have killed you and used your soul to activate the portal can I resume my destiny as Dragonborn and ruler of Solstheim. And why stop there?" He got up from the throne and descended the steps, walking past Maylene where she lay, gasping and shaking, paying her no more heed than he would to an insect.

"Skyrim would make a welcome addition, I am sure there are those who would leap at the chance to serve me and share in my power," he continued, "Just as the unworthy Maylene once did. I had only to ask of you and she gave what information she could willingly. But it wasn't enough. I knew I had to draw you out of hiding. So I issued my little challenge and awaited you here. Now, shall we get on with the matters at hand?"

He drew a blade as twisted as his words. "And you, stay out of this, it does not concern you." His fingers made a gesture and great writhing tendrils broke through the ground at Serana's feet, lashing themselves around her wrists, her ankles and waist, binding her in place. Emily rushed over to Serana, pulling at the slick black tendrils, straining with the effort, trying to wrench them from around her. She felt something hard slam into her back and felt the searing burning sensation as the magic coursed over her, tearing her leathers to ribbons.

"How disappointing," said the Dragonborn disapprovingly, "A novice mistake, to turn your back on your opponent." Emily turned from Serana to face him.

MUL QAH DIIV

Fire swirled about Miraak and where it touched horns and scales born of the glowing orange light grew, lending him a draconic visage. He ran at her, his thu'um a wind at his back and Emily moved to meet him.

FO KRAH DRIIN

An icy blast ripped from her mouth, hitting the first Dragonborn squarely in the chest. His recoil was brief and a swirling vortex issued from beneath the grotesque mask he wore, spinning toward Emily. She had barely enough time to raise her ward when she was struck by the full force of the cyclone. Her boots were braced against the stonework, her arm raised outstretched before her, the ward bearing the brunt as she was forced back several paces. Then he ran at her again, this time loosing lightning from his fingertips which danced over the ward. It flickered and faded as the lightning leeched at what magicka remained. Emily darted to one side as a bolt struck the stone of the dormant portal.

FUS RO DAH

The thu'um caught her full in the chest and she was flung backwards like a ragdoll, crashing into one of the stone pillars. She rolled to the ground and looked up into the face of her attacker. Then she looked past her to the vampiress still bound against her will. She forced herself to her feet, wavering slightly where she stood. Then Miraak was upon her, lashing out with blade and spell. The blade conjured whipping tendrils into being and more than once Emily was forced to duck and rubble from the stone structure it struck instead of her rained down upon her head. There was dust in her eyes and ears, her back a pattern of red welts. She drew ragged breaths she did not need. Miraak stood over her.

"Surrender your soul to me," he said, "Why draw out your suffering?"

"Never!" Emily yelled as she locked eyes with him. His green glowing eyes bored into hers. There was a flicker in them for a moment. But of what? Uncertainty? Surprise?

ZUN HAAL VIIK

The twisted sword was ripped from his hand where it skittered across the stonework. Emily took advantage of the momentary faltering in his movements to conjure ice about her palms. Then the battle raged anew, lightning against ice. First one seemed to have the advantage and then the other. The tower echoed with their Thu'um.

"Give in, Dovahkiin, I am stronger here," shouted Miraak though he too at last seemed to be showing the first traces of weariness. By now Emily could not speak except to shout and she merely shook her head. When he next raised his palm, so she raised hers. Their powers met in the midst of the field of battle, fighting for supremacy. The ice splintered along the length of the lightning and the lightning twisted about the ice. First the combined magicks were forced one way, then the other. Emily's hands shook with the effort. She gritted her teeth as the magicks were forced back towards Miraak. At the last moment, as he saw the magic closing in he faltered at what he believed to be an impossible truth. He could not be defeated. He was the first of the Dragonblood. Yet the combined ice and lightning ravaged every inch of his armour, splintering it wherever it struck, flaying the flesh beneath. He struggled within the mesh of destruction magicks. A final cry tore from his mouth as he split apart with the sound of a thundercrack.

Instead of dying away the rumbling of thunder continued, rolling around them as the tentacles holding Serana in place shattered and she fell to the ground. The stones were shaking as Emily fought her way over to her, dropping to her knees beside her.

"Are you alright?" her voice was barely more than a whisper.

"I'll be fine," Serana replied. She gripped Emily's arm tightly. "We need to get out of here," she continued, "The tower can't stay standing without Miraak. We'll have to risk flying."

"I haven't the strength," Emily said, shaking her head, "You go."

"Not happening," Serana replied, gripping Emily's shoulders, "Come on-." Her words faltered as she looked at something over Emily's shoulder. Then she pushed Emily to the ground. Emily's eyes were filled with green light and she heard an outcry as something slammed into the ground next to her. Serana's pale hands clutched at her chest where tentacles writhed, burning. Emily saw Maylene, hunched over, smiling wickedly beneath her lank hair as she clutched at the deep wound in her stomach. Then she slumped forwards, at last surrendering her grip on life.

Emily scrambled over to Serana, trying to rip the tentacles from her but they held no form, only splitting and dividing with every touch, covering more of the vampiress. The stones beneath them trembled and shook. The tower was falling apart. There was a sound like a gunshot as a crack ran along the stones between them and the stone she was kneeling on upended, throwing her forwards as the plinth they had battled upon disintegrated. The whole world seemed to be shaking apart. A roaring sound cut through the deafening rumble as she grabbed for Serana. Then something hit her hard on the back of the head and she heard no more.