Hello, readers. I apologize for taking so long to update, but this fic has been mainly a side project for me, so I don't expect to update it very often. This may change in the future.
Without further ado, enjoy!
Geva Viloth took no joy in her current assignment. Geva was one of the Ordinator Captains of the Order of the Watch, and had been recently sent to Maar Gan with two other Ordinators and a member of the Mages Guild, and was told nothing more than there being a magical disturbance in a cave to the east of the town. She wore standard Ordinator armor with a long tunic, as well as a short cape.
She could understand wanting to investigate, but two Ordinators and a Captain to escort a mage? One or two, maybe, but this seemed a bit much. Nevertheless, she was one of the most zealous members of her order, and as such, she respected her peers and their judgement, so she gave them the benefit of the doubt.
She and her men had finally reached the cave after two days of traveling on pack guars. It looked like nothing out of the ordinary. To the untrained eye, it seemed like nothing. Geva knew better, for the cave was just outside the Ghostfence. And there was nothing out of the ordinary about it. There was absolutely nothing visibly strange about this place. Just about every hole in the ground this close to the Ghostfence was visible property of either the Sixth House or some other vile cult. And yet, there was nothing.
"I don't like this," said the Ordinator on her right hand side. His name was Beris Arua, Geva's good friend and right-hand man. He spoke with a thick Dunmer accent, and wore a blue half-cape slung over his left shoulder with the symbol of the Tribunal on it.
"Me neither," Geva replied. "I worry that this may not be as pointless as I thought."
"Of course it isn't!" said the mage behind them. He was an Altmer enchanter named Salaril. He wore a loose, hooded blue robe with darker patterns throughout. "How many times have I repeated this?"
"Considering the fact we have been told absolutely nothing, you shouldn't be surprised," Geva answered flatly.
"You do not need to know everything to know that our task is important!" Salaril replied angrily.
The Ordinator to his left groaned. "Why did I have to sit next him?" he complained. His name was Filsath Maris. Particularly mouthy, but he knew when to be silent, and he was also more-or-less the intellect of the three Ordinators. He wore the standard armor, save for smaller pauldrons.
Beris and Geva stopped and unsaddled their guars, and Filsath and Salaril followed suite.
"Well, Filsath," Beris replied. "You were so special, you were selected to guard our valuable asset!" His voice reeked of sarcasm.
"I am not an asset!" Salaril angrily exclaimed.
"Lucky me..." Filsath muttered.
Geva got a torch and used her magic to light it. "Enough chatting," she commanded. "We have work to do."
They all walked into the cave. Beris told everyone to keep their weapons ready, as they didn't know what to expect. But there was nothing to expect.
The cave was about as regular-looking on the inside as it was on the outside. No torches, no bones, no shrines, no banners, not even carvings. There weren't even any stalactites or anything of the sorts. It was as if this cave just... appeared. Out of nowhere.
"Now that we're inside the cave," Geva broke the silence. "Do you intend to tell us why we're here?"
"You will know when you see it," Salaril responded.
"I, for one, would rather know beforehand," Beris said.
"There is no danger, if you are speaking out of concern," Salaril said out of annoyance. He stopped walking. "Give me the torch!" he said to Geva, who complied. He continued walking, slowly this time.
"What is it? Are we here?" asked Filsath.
"We are near, now be quiet!" replied Salaril. After a few more moments of walking, Salaril stopped. "We're here," he said nervously.
Geva looked, and saw... nothing. A dead end. There was a rock wall, and in the middle, a dip in the wall that went in a few feet, just large enough to let a person fit in.
"You have to be damn kidding me!" Beris yelled. "What in Oblivion did you drag us out here for!?"
Salaril ignored Beris, and moved closer to the dip.
"I'm talking to you, enchanter!" Beris exclaimed, and stomped over to Salaril. But just when he was about to grab him, Salaril disappeared into the dip.
The three Ordinators were taken aback. Beris cursed very loudly out of surprise, then Salaril walked back into the cave.
"Are you coming?" he said, noticeably more enthusiastic than he had been up to this point.
Geva went first, then Beris and Filsath followed.
When they came out the other side, they found themselves to be in a forest. The trees were tall and unfamiliar, and they seemed to stretch for miles more. They could see animals in the distance, all of which with some kind of fur, with some birds, as well.
"We in Skyrim?" Filsath commented.
"What makes you say that?" asked Geva.
"The elk," Filsath responded. "You only see them in Skyrim or High Rock."
"So what makes you think we're not in High Rock?" Geva asked.
"Eh, we could be," Filsath responded. "Skyrim just came to mind first."
"I say we find out," Salaril said.
"Agreed," Geva said. "Let's head out."
Salaril cast a Mark spell, and they began walking north. They walked for a few hours, noting the flora, observing the fauna, before eventually seeing smoke in the distance to the east. They chose to go towards it.
As they got nearer, they saw several humans in strange apparel, sitting on logs around a campfire. They seemed to be laughing and and having a good time.
"Enchanter, stay back," Beris said quietly.
"Why?" the enchanter responded.
"You don't have a mask, among other reasons," Beris answered. They didn't know where they were, so it was better to be cautious. It wouldn't go well if people who had never seen a Dunmer or an Altmer before suddenly met a group of Dunmer warriors and an Altmer wizard. They would likely be revealed either way, but it was better to do it slowly.
The three Ordinators walked up quietly to the humans. There wereeight of them, three women and five men. They were all wearing either vests or coats, some being colored, and a four of the men had beards, one of which had one significantly longer than the others. There were no visible weapons aside from knives, which were likely being used for culinary reasons. They all seemed to laughing and having a good time, all of them having a drink in their hands.
Then, one of them - a woman with blonde hair and a red vest - jumped back and was startled when she saw the three Dunmer approach. The others followed suite, all showing a look of confusion, and one of them grabbing a knife. The three Ordinators lifted their hands to show that they were not a threat, then one of the men - the one with a big beard - spoke up.
"Who are you?" he said with obvious confusion. They spoke Cyrodiilic (thankfully).
"Travelers," Geva quickly responded. "We mean you no harm."
"What's with the getup?" asked the woman who saw them first.
"This getup is holy armor, s'wit!" Beris shot back, his accent confusing them further.
"Beris, calm down," Geva politely ordered. She continued to speak to the humans. "Could you tell us where we are?" she asked.
"What do you mean?" asked the long-bearded one.
"You aliens or somethin'?" another of the men asked jokingly.
"Just- where are we? What nation are we in?" Geva responded, trying to get a good balance between broad and specific.
The humans exchanged strange looks among themselves, then the long-bearded one spoke up again.
"Take off your masks," he sternly requested. Filsath and Beris looked to Geva, who nodded. They hesitated, then each of them removed their masks to the horror of the humans. A few more of them grabbed knives, but they all looked on in fear.
Beris grunted. "We're really not even on Nirn anymore, are we?" he commented.
"B'vek, this is getting troublesome," Filsath grunted. "Listen, we mean no harm. Now, where in Oblivion are we?"
"C-Canada!" one of the women responded, utterly terrified.
Immediately, a ball of light landed and exploded in the campers midst, and as it did, they all fell to the ground, unconscious. The three Ordinators looked behind them in surprise to see Salaril crossing his arms back together.
"Are you serious!?" exclaimed Geva.
"We need to report this, and I do not have the patience to listen to the mutterings of a dozen scared humans," Salaril replied impatiently. "Besides, we now know where we are."
"As much as I hate to say it, he's right," Beris said. "We weren't getting anywhere with them, and we do have to report back before we get into any trouble."
Geva let out a sigh. "Very well," she said. "Let's get going."
Salaril Recalled them all back to the spot he Marked in front of the cave, and they all returned to Morrowind. Geva didn't know precisely what had just transpired, but she did know that the Archmagister needed to be informed at once.
Loki patiently awaited Dagoth Ur to finish convening with his council about his offer. The room he stood in - if one could even call it a room - was one of the chambers of the cave that Dagoth's fortress was built inside of. It was filled with ancient machinery and Sixth House decor, such as candles, bells, and banners. Every so often one of the Ash Slaves would pass through, but aside from that, he was left relatively alone.
Loki had heard many stories about this realm, the realm of Mundus. Beings of extraordinary power came from here, beings capable of shattering fortresses with the power of their voice, beings able to not only mold, but transcend reality itself.
And, of course, beings that could turn themselves into gods. Beings like Dagoth Ur, or the Tribunal. And even still, this was not including the beings beyond all of this, the ones called Daedra, Aedra, and Magna Ge.
Once, many, many years ago, Odin attempted to invade Mundus. He took a very large army with him, and off he went.
Over half of his forces were lost in the plane called Oblivion, the Daedra there proving too numerous and powerful.
He forsook his conquest there, and fought a great war on Nirn, in the continent called Yokuda. Odin refuses to this day to speak of what happened there, though there were rumors that he and a few troops payed a small (and peaceful) visit to Atmora before leaving.
After that, Odin left, and erased Mundus from every record he could get his hands on in an attempt to stop anyone from going there, for fear of what would happen if someone were to anger the beings of that realm.
Loki only discovered it after meeting the Collector many years prior. The Collector apparently had a Daedric blade among his collection, and Loki's inquiry's of it gave him much of the information he needed to get there.
Eventually, Dagoth Vemynal, one of the Ash Vampires, told Loki that Dagoth Ur has made his decision,. and would like to discuss further details.
Vemynal led him to to the chamber he had first greeted Dagoth in, where the Sharmat stood waiting for him.
"Son of Odin," Dagoth called out to him. "I have considered your offer with my Council."
"So I'm told," replied the God of Mischief. "What was your decision, then?"
"I am inclined to accept," Dagoth began to Loki's gratitude. "However, I would like more details before I commit my House to our alliance."
Loki took a seat on a nearby rock, his staff in hand. "What should you like to know, then?" Loki inquired.
"Firstly, what precisely are your plans?" the Sharmat asked.
"My idea was to spread the Blight on Midgard up to the point where it can be declared a global threat," Loki explained. "Once that happens, we can reveal ourselves and offer to end the plague. In return, I would receive total control of the planet, and when that happens, I will provide you with whatever resources you require to conquer Morrowind."
"A sound plan," Dagoth replied. "But what are your plans if the people of my world were to discover this?"
"My knowledge of the smaller details of your world is fairly limited, unfortunately," Loki answered. "If you were to accept my offer, we could plan accordingly."
"Your reasoning is fair," said Dagoth. "Now, my second question: how are we to get there?"
"I have created a portal that directly leads to Midgard from here," Loki answered. "It's a rather narrow doorway, but I assume that shouldn't much of an issue."
"You have answered my questions, Asgardian, and I am pleased by your answers," said Dagoth. "I have but one request before I accept."
"And what would that be?" Loki inquired.
"I wish to see Midgard for myself," the Sharmat answered. "I cannot make a fully informed decision without knowing what exactly I am up against, for a wise warrior must know his enemy."
Loki got up and thought for a moment. then looked to Dagoth. "I'm sure I could easily arrange that," said the Asgardian. "We shall have to be disguised to not arouse attention, but that is of no issue to me, and I doubt it would be to you, either."
"Very well," replied Dagoth. "We shall set forth once we are ready. I believe it would be reasonable to discuss further details as we journey."
Loki nodded. "Very well."
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