Shattered Destiny
Chapter 30: And the game has changed
"What is your name?" Goro revises his question.
I frown. "I am… both Alduin and Keiki?" It sounds wrong, but feels right.
"How can you be both a human, and a Ryu at the same time?"
"Same way as the Stormcloaks can be dead and alive at the same time." I answer with a shrug.
"A-aren't they ghosts?" Mei asks, brow furrowed in confusion.
"Ghosts that bleed once struck." I point out.
"He's right, I saw it too." Junchi nods his head in agreement.
"Anyways, there's a chance that the Stormcloaks will assault Kumo." I casually throw out there.
"Why's that?" Goro asks suspiciously.
I grin at the Jonin. "Because I told them that Kumo belonged to the Imperials, their mortal enemies." Close enough.
"I don't think we should continue with this, there's so much we don't know about… this." Goro points at me. "And I'm growing concerned about Keiki's wellbeing."
"Don't be, Keiki is fine." I wave off the jonin's concern.
"Keykey?" Horadric asks by the tent flap.
"Yes?"
My teammates make hand signs in panic and vanish, leaving behind random objects that are littering the tent. I'll have to learn that sometime. Horadric enters the tent. "I heard that you can Shout." He wonders with awe.
Yor Tul Shul. "Yup." I nod simply.
"Shouting is a rare gift, taking lifetimes to learn the basics… And for one so young to be able to shout… Can you show me?"
"Fus."
The Shockwave makes Horadric stagger. "It's true." He's in awe. "Have you met with the Greybeards?"
Wulfgar, I can barely remember what happened to him. "I met with one, yes." I nod. "He's… not with us anymore." This time I say with shame.
"You are a Dragonborn." He still can't believe it.
"Yes."
I've never seen a happier person. "The Divines have truly blessed us! we'll turn this war around and show the world that Skyrim belongs to the Nords!"
"You were losing?" I ask with a frown.
"Aye, A Dragonborn was awoken at Helgen when a dragon attacked, instead of aiding us, who saved her from an execution by the imperials, she sided with them!" Horadric is seething with anger from the betrayal.
Helgen! Alduin's memories of the small town comes vividly to mind.
I broke free of my prison and found myself south of the Throat of the World, Helgen was the first town I encountered, there was a public display going on, an execution I think, it was the perfect place to reveal myself to the world once more.
And then Alduin butchered almost the entire town, interrupting the execution of a Nord man. "Why?"
"I don't know." Horadric hangs his head. "But we have you, if you would fight with us that is."
At least they've asked, and not forcing. "What about Kumogakure?"
"You'd have to ask the captain, once you've rested of course."
Quest Started: Seige of Kumogakure.
Speak with the Stormcloak captain:
"Okay." I nod simply.
"I'll prepare the next lesson, If you wish to continue that is."
"Yes!" I nod vigorously.
"A second Dragonborn in the same lifetimes." Horadric stares at me with awe, backing out of the tent, a pair of soldiers stumble out of the mage's way, having been eavesdropping on our conversation. "Give the boy some privacy, he killed a troll!" He scolds the soldiers, and finally I'm left alone.
After a minute the random objects turn back into my teammates. "How does that work?"
"Replacement Jutsu, teleport somewhere nearby while leaving something behind." Goro explains. "What did he mean by 'Dragonborn'?"
"Dragonborn have the blood of dragons through their lineage, and are able to devour their souls to empower their Thu'um… Shouts."
"And you are one of these?" Mei asks.
"Not by blood, but by soul."
"You have Alduin trapped inside of you, we know."
"No, Alduin's soul resides in this body, and no other… The soul of Keiki Sekine doesn't exist." I thoroughly explain.
Goro's concern for me deepens. "But you're a boy, acted like one… Is… is Alduin an infant?"
The notion makes me laugh, not too loudly as to avoid drawing attention.
You are now hidden.
"What's funny?"
"Alduin is centuries old, and was slain in battle by the Dovahkiin… Dragonborn." I can still remember it vividly. "He had to cross into Sovngarde to do it, but he was determined."
Sneak is now level 27. +27 Character XP (101/225)
"Sovngarde?" Junchi asks.
How dumb am I, to expect people of another world to know what I'm talking about. "The Afterlife, for warriors."
I can see it on their faces, more questions, but with each answer another one appears. "Can you control who you become?"
"No." I shake my head. "The complete soul of a dragon is too much for any mortal, and as such I can only be Alduin for a limited time."
"Before being forced back to being Keiki?" Goro asks.
"Yes." I confirm with a yawn. "Even being partially complete, as I am right now, is draining."
"How complete is your soul?" Mei asks.
"I'd say…" How far has my soul been split? I honestly don't know, thousands of pieces, but how much of it was jammed into this body to begin with? "Enough to allow me to do this." I hold up an arm and allow my draconic power to tear it apart, leaving behind chakra and dragonbone.
Might of Alduin has been added to active effects.
"No material is stronger than Dragonbone." I boast.
"May I?" Mei holds a hand out, and I lay the shifting claw in her hand for inspection. The tinder touch of flesh on vein is one that makes me flinch.
"It's alright." I say through clenched teeth.
Might of Alduin has been removed from active effects.
I can't maintain it anymore and have to let it change back, leaving a human arm covered in blood in her hands. Mei-chan pulls her hands back and bites her tongue to keep from shouting in disgust. "I don't know how much I will remember of this conversation-" I let out a yawn. "-I will remember."
"Is it to do with going back to Keiki?" Goro asks, and I nod in confirmation.
"Only Alduin remembers everything, Keiki gets fragments."
"I don't know how comfortable I am with that." Junchi admits. "The Deadbeat being an ancient ryu, I feel cheated."
"Being a Jinchuuriki doesn't make one insanely powerful for-" Goro tries.
"Tell that to Lightning's Jinchuuriki." Junchi snickers, cutting him off. "If Alduin didn't wake up and fight him, we'd be dead… We saw what happened to Koi-sama after he gave out."
"I'm sorry this upsets you Junchi."
Sneak is now level 28. +28 character XP (129/225)
"Upsets!? You get a free pass on life based on your birth alone!"
"Someone in there?" A guard asks.
"Just me, sorry."
Speech has leveled to 10. +10 Character XP (239/225)
"Must have been my imagination."
"Keep it down!" Goro scolds Junchi.
"I need to rest, can you guys decide what to do outside of the camp?" I let out yet another yawn,
"We're not leaving you here." Goro says resolutely.
"We were split for a week, we can't just leave you." Mei-chan agrees.
"Let's move onto Kumo and get our mission over with." Junchi folds his arms, getting increasingly angry.
"Junchi, you were placed on this team because you could put Kiri and the mission above personal gripes." Goro hisses.
"It was a mistake, clearly." Junchi snarks back. "A Deadbeat, stronger than most Jonin… How is this world fair!" And with that Junchi vanishes in a cloud of smoke.
You are discovered.
"You shouldn't have come!" Guards spill into the tent with weapons raised, in reaction Mei and Goro vanish, making more white smoke.
"You won't escape forever!" Another guard shouts.
I just sit and watch the guards, nearly all of them are nearly stepping on top of me.
"I could have sworn I heard something." In unison the guards put their weapons away in record time and return to patrolling the camp as if nothing happened.
With a final Yawn I lay down to rest, pain strikes my soul as once again it splits back down to the chunk this body was given.
Not that I'd remember it.
"Scouts have found the Imperial village of Kumo...gacu-Kumo, but it's larger than anything we've seen before, larger than Solitude or Windhelm." The captain says, pointing at a spot on the new map that was recently drafted. Skyrim's map is beneath it, but as it's no longer relevant it's no longer being used.
I munch on a sweet roll while kicking my legs on a raised bench, watching the war meeting take place. "I was hesitant to launch an attack, but with a Dragonborn on our side-" I choke on the sweet roll. "It should be easy, Ulfric Stormcloak will be joining us in the offensive." There is a massive cheer. "And after we win, we'll have struck a massive blow to the Imperial dogs!" Another cheer.
Finally I spit up the sweet roll into my hand and attempt to eat it again, listening to the counsel with raised interest, and worry. "We'll gather near the mist wall and prepare the catapults, they won't see us until we're on top of them!"
With another cheer the soldiers charge out of the war tent.
Quest Updated: Seige of Kumogakure.
Complete: Speak with the Stormcloak Captain
Take Kumogakure from the Land of Lightning:
Eliminate the defenders: (0%)
Kill or pacify the Jinchuuriki of Lightning:
Kill or capture the Raikage:
The largest quest I've ever seen, and it certainly feels like it. "It looks like our magic lessons will have to wait." Horadric says regretfully. "I won't leave your side, Dragonborn."
Horadric Jorvung is now your companion.
"Are we… leaving now?"
"Time is of the essence, they can't wait for long."
I can't stall for my team… But something tells me that they're mad at me. Looks like I'm a Stormcloak through and through now… Mama, papa… I miss you. With a sigh I stand, and walk out of the tent somberly, Horadric following close behind.
It's not that far, maybe a five minute walk, but my teammates are nowhere to be seen. My sadness is swept away by sheer shock.
Tents, Catapults, soldiers, weapons, armor and potions, have they been prepared for this seige for days? In the front is a man who's clearly not a soldier, nor a ghost. He draws a sword and points it into the air. "Children of Skyrim!" His voice booms. "For too long have we been pushed by the imperials and the traitorous Dragonborn, now the gods have given us a second chance to retake Skyrim from the Imperials, our victory is assured!" There is cheering. "By nightfall this city will be ours!" Ulfric Stormcloak brings his sword arm down, pointing at the cloud barrier. "Charge!"
The Catapults let loose their stones, and the soldiers charge the cloud wall. Once the giant stones vanish behind the cloud wall, the mist reforming behind the enormous rocks.
If civilians didn't know about the war, they do now. Lightning explodes from the cloud wall as Kumo's Shinobi finally make an appearance.
With the appearance of the shinobi the first wave of Stormcloaks falls, but more stormcloaks leave the nearby tents, marching towards their deaths as if possessed.
How many civilians are they going to kill this way? "Something wrong, Keykey?" Horadric asks, itching for a fight.
I wipe away a tear. "I can't, the civilians aren't aware of the war going on."
"What honor is there in killing unarmed civilians?" Horadric asks me.
"Honor?" I furrow my brow, Shinobi do whatever it takes.
"Yes, without Honor we are nothing more than beasts."
Tell that to the Kage of this world. "I won't harm any civilians."
"Your choice, but we need you Keykey… We need the Dovahkiin."
You don't want me, you want Alduin. But I'm not going to give you him. Without another word I run towards the cloud wall, avoiding the main assault force as much as possible with Horadric barely keeping up.
"You actually engaged Kumo?!" Mei-chan appears in front of me, furious.
"Mei-Chan!" I skid to a stop.
"What are you doing here!?"
"We must continue to the village." Horadric urges.
"Horadric-sensei, this is Mei-chan." I introduce him to my teammate reluctantly, at least it's not Goro. "We're… Friends? friends!"
"Sensei's trying to find Junchi, I stayed behind to watch you." She punches my shoulder harshly with her bandaged arm, the burn marks from graduation are still there.
I open my mouth in time for a boulder, deflected from its intended course, crashes down sending stones everywhere, the impact knocks me off of my feet.
-60 health.
My head hits a rock with a sickening crack, sending a shock through my skull. I lay on the ground until the majority of the ache subsides and I can move my limbs. My hands light up and I hold them next to my concussed head.
+10 HP. -8 Chakra. +12 Medical Ninjutsu XP (37/75)
+12 Medical Ninjutsu XP. (59/75)
+12 Medical Ninjutsu XP (71/75)
The pain subsides as my health recovers, as does my focus.
Medical Ninjutsu is now level 1 (32/100)
A lock rock rests in the middle of the stream, I look around, Horadric is on his knees close by, trying to stand. I turn my head aside as another deflected boulder hits nearby. Mei is unconscious, head bleeding.
Don't you dare die on me. I push myself to my feet and rush to the girl's side, a hand glowing white and hovered over her.
-16 Chakra. +10 Medical Ninjutsu XP (42/100)
Cracks appear in the sky as reality breaks until all that's left are two shards, with each rupture time slows to a standstill, I can't move, I can't think. On one shard is an aerial view of Kumogakure, and the other of the treeline I emerged from.
Choose your destiny:
The shards line up with each other, and words appear in front of me.
Whichever decision you make will change the world irreversibly. Choose Carefully.
The shard of the treeline glows.
This was stupid, I'm fighting an impossible battle that the $t0r^^C!o k$ dragged me into, I may be Dovahkiin but even I can see that this was suicide.
The shard of Kumogakure glow.
I can't leave now, everyone's counting on me to be there. I can't abandon the $t0r^^C!o k$ now, as Dovahkiin I have the power to finish this.
I can't think, I can't move, some other force is choosing between the shards.
Destiny Shattered.
The shard of the treeline breaks into thousands of pieces, the remaining shard grows until it becomes my new reality.
I can't leave now, everyone's counting on me. My concussion fades as I regain health, I stand and make a run for Kumogakure, alone.
An explosion of electricity makes me stop as a team of shinobi lands between me and there.
There's no turning back now, and I can't do this alone… I'm trusting you Dragon. I leap. "Hear my name and Tremble Mortals, for I am Alduin, the First Born of Akatosh!" There is an explosion of Chakra and Magic as parts of the Dragon's soul reunites.