The Dragon of the Outer Worlds
An Elder Scrolls/Outer Worlds crossover
Summary: The Dragonborn in the Outer Worlds universe, what else is there to say?
…
Chapter 1
The sounds of the Bannered Mare tavern in the city of Whiterun were a mishmash of clanking tankards, sloshing of mead and ale poured from barrels, the song sung by the bard, the crackle of open fire in the room and the chatter of the city's people enjoying themselves after a hard day's work.
The wooden doors to the inn swung open bringing a gust of cold air which made the occupants of the room closest to the entrance shiver. And stepping inside and closing the door behind him was a tall figure wearing midnight black armour. Some of the tavern patrons raised their mugs and cheered as they saw the revered hero of Skyrim the Last Dragonborn enter the tavern. Doubtless the man had just returned from a job involving him killing a dragon or some other monster plaguing the countryside.
Martin Stormcrown, for this was the Dragonborn's name, strode up the front counter, giving cursory greetings to the patrons who were familiar with him. Standing at the front of the bar, Martin waited patiently before a tall frothing mug of Honningbrew mead was place in front of him by the tavern keep. Putting a small number of coins on the countertop, Martin took up the mug of mead and downed the contents in one go. Giving a small but relieved sigh, Martin leaned against the bar as another mug was place in front of him.
Another day, another bag of gold, thought the Slayer of Alduin as he took a sip of his mead, letting the white noise of the tavern fill his ears. Relaxing for a moment, the warrior stared at the wall past the bar blankly. It was only when he felt someone nudge him did Martin break out of his reverie. Looking to see who had nudged him, the warrior saw an old man standing next to him looking at him intently.
The old man was dressed like an Imperial Legion officer with blackened armour and two rearing horses embossed in silver on the chest plate.
"My apologies, young man, didn't mean to bother you like that," he said to Martin with a friendly smile.
"It's fine," Martin waived off the apology going back to his drink.
"Pardon me for asking, but aren't you that fellow who slayed the World-Eater Alduin some time back?" the old legionnaire asked politely.
Martin turned to regard the man cautiously. "Who wants to know?"
"Well, I do. Apologies, I should introduce myself. My name is Wulf, I'm an old hand of the Legion." The legionary offered a hand to shake. After a moment, Martin clasped the old man's hand in his shaking it firmly and being somewhat surprised at the grip the old man had.
"Martin Stormcrown."
"Martin? As in Martin Septim from the Oblivion Crisis?" Wulf asked humorously.
"Apparently. My… grandfather had a strange sense of humour," Martin admitted.
"I see," Wulf nodded in understanding. "Well, this is a fine chance. I'd always hoped to meet the hero of Skyrim, and what luck I find you here," he proclaimed cheerfully.
"Cut to the chase. What do you want?" Martin asked tiredly as he sensed this old man had a job for him to do.
"Sharp one, aren't you?" Wulf grinned cheekily. "Matter of fact, I do have something of a quest for someone brave and skilled enough to do it," he said temptingly.
"Who or what am I killing?" asked the Dragonborn as he took another sip of his mead.
Wulf chuckled at this and replied, "Well, I don't technically need anyone or anything killed, but the job will have its hurdles."
"Something you need retrieved then?" Martin asked in a bored tone.
"Well, it's nothing I need retrieved, but it will be something of interest to you and everyone else," Wulf said coyly.
"Which is?" Martin asked pointedly.
"Would you believe me if I said it was an Elder Scroll?"
This got Martin's attention as he straightened up a little and looked at Wulf more seriously. "Where?" he asked calmly.
"Well, there was a recent excavation in the mountains near Markath that revealed another Dwemer ruin, but due to the automatons that maintain it, the excavators were all killed with the only survivor fleeing to tell of what he and his friends found," Wulf explained. "I overheard the story with few scarcely believing it, but when the man claimed that he saw what looked like an Elder Scroll, I thought it would be of great interest to you," he said.
"It would be if the rumour is true," Martin stated.
"Well, I managed to speak with this survivor who told me where the excavation site lay and I searched around Skyrim hoping to find you," Wulf then said.
"Why tell me? Wouldn't this be of interest to people greater than I?" Martin asked.
"Well, given the stories I heard of your exploits, I think you're the one best-equipped to undertake such a journey delving into the unknown," Wulf told him.
"Perhaps, but that doesn't mean I like jumping into the unknown," Martin said.
"And yet you've come out on top every time you have," Wulf remarked. "Isn't that what being an adventurer is all about? Diving into the unknown reaches of the world, never knowing what you might find waiting for you?" he questioned.
"I'm more an exterminator than an adventurer," Martin said honestly. "But… I suppose it wouldn't hurt to see if the rumour of another Elder Scroll is true. Better in my hands than anyone else's," he added after some thought.
Wulf smiled at this and nodded. "Good to hear. I feared I would have to go myself, but I'm getting too old to be delving into Dwemer ruins at my age," he said cheerfully.
"Hm." Martin grunted at this before finishing off his drink and asking, "Where is this ruin exactly?"
Wulf pointed it on Martin's map. With a nod, Martin paid for his drink and left the Bannered Mare heading off on another adventure into the unknown.
It was roughly early morning by the time Martin had travelled to the mountains of the Reach in Skyrim. Besides being waylaid by some foolish thief thinking he could rob to which Martin responded with the threat with a swift swing of his axe, the journey had been relatively uneventful.
Looking at his map, Martin noted to himself that the ruin was a league south of a nearby Forsworn bastion. Having cleared out the Forsworn encampment not just a few days ago, Martin feared no sudden attack or ambush from the hillmen of the Reach, until at least until they got their numbers back up.
Using a simple clairvoyance spell, a trail of blue coloured smoke showed the Dragonborn the path that would take him to his objective. Following it, Martin soon found the remains of an encampment. The campfire was smouldering, dying from lack of fuel and the contents of the stew pot hanging above it had gone lukewarm.
A nearby waterfall cascaded a downpour of water, but his gaze piercing through the deluge of liquid, the Dragonborn saw what looked like a cave entrance with the telltale signs of Dwemer factory pipes reaching out indicating the presence of Dwemer technology within.
Going through the waterfall, Martin strode down the rocky corridor which gradually transformed into the smooth stone floors common with Dwemer ruins. Golden-bronze pipes which hummed and vibrated with steam protruded from the walls running along the length of them. Sighting some relatively fresh bloodstains on the stony floor, Martin surmised that the excavation party that had been here previously must've run into some trouble with the automaton guardians common throughout Dwemer ruins in Skyrim.
And sure enough, the Dragonborn came across some Dwemer spiders scuttling about tending to the walls of the ruins. Drawing out his axe, Martin went to work; the blade of his axe cleaved the dwemereth metal of the mechanical spiders, breaking them into pieces and leaving them broken and unfunctional. Clearing the first lot of mechanical guardians was easy enough and Martin delved further into the ruins, coming more bloodstains with Dwemer Guardian Spheres roaming about. These mechanical beings were also destroyed.
Soon, the Dragonborn entered what looked like a control room of some kind. Pursing his lips in irritation, Martin found the control console of numerous buttons. Past experience with such things left Martin wary of them, never quite knowing which button will open the door to progress further in or trigger a trap meant to kill greedy and unwary treasure hunters.
It was a process of trial and error finding the sequence in which to press the buttons to open the door. A few narrow misses from the whirling blades traps, jets of fire and even released automatons later, Martin found the right sequence to open the door and pass through.
Annoying as it was, Martin found it almost comforting to know that even after millennia of their original owners no longer being of this world, their devices still functioned as though they were made today.
Dismissing the thought from his mind, the Dragonborn came up to another room, larger than the one previous. In each corner of the room stood Dwemer centurion automatons that would doubtless come to life to kill any intruders. Taking the initiative, Martin hacked apart the machines making them come to life, although it would be for naught as Martin hacked them into scrap metal. Searching through the remains of the centurions, Martin found the almost standard fare from Dwemer centurions. Daedric arrows, some Dwemer metal parts, soul gems and centurion dynamo cores. Storing the useful parts in his satchel, Martin soon came to a flight of stairs that were barred.
But nearby was a device that used dynamo cores to presumably open the gates. Using the cores he took from the centurions, the Dragonborn place the devices into the slots of the opening mechanism and the metal bars of the gate slid away into the walls.
Striding purposefully up the stairs, Martin delved deeper into the factory and soon came across the remains of the excavation party. His eyes softening a little at the fate of the unfortunate party, Martin bowed his head in silent prayer before continuing on his path.
And not long after, Martin found an almost familiar sight. It greatly resembled the reading room in the Tower of Mzark in Blackreach, the subterranean world beneath Skyrim where he had found his first Elder Scroll. And on a balcony above, Martin spied what looked like the controls for the lenses that would open the containment unit that presumably stored the Elder Scroll he seeked.
Climbing the stairs, Martin found the controls and began the process of elimination. Each button he pressed made the focussing lenses move and shift about. After half of an hour of familiarising himself with the buttons and the movements of the lenses each press of the button made. Soon, the Dragonborn solved the puzzle and the lenses all focused their light on the containment unit which flared brightly before lowering itself down. His prize in sight, Martin approached the container and opened and nestled inside the chest was the familiar sight of an Elder Scroll within which contained untold knowledge. Reaching out to touch, Martin grasped the ancient relic feeling the flow of power within it.
Then something happened which the Dragonborn did not expect. The feeling of vertigo overcame Martin as the Elder Scroll in his grasp glowed brightly and his vision became with blinding bright light.
And in the blink of an eye, The Dragonborn disappeared from Tamriel.
…
A dig site near Kovir
In a dig site near the city of Pont Vanis in the Kingdom of Kovir, numerous workers dug and chipped away at the soil, unearthing elegant architecture from a bygone age. Wooden scaffolding was erected all around the dig site, with workers carrying tools to and from the places they were digging into, dumping wheel barrows of earth, dirt, rocks and pebbles into wagons that would be carried off for some other purpose
Walking calmly through the dig site was a young but attractive woman wearing elegant yet practical clothing. Her hair was red as fresh blood, done in twin buns hanging just below her ears. Her eyes were a deep shade of emerald and tiny freckles dotted the bridge of her narrow nose.
This was Triss Merigold, a sorceress of some repute. Formerly an advisor to the late King Foltest of Temeria and a former member of the Lodge of Sorceresses and now an advisor to King Tancred of Kovir. How Triss found herself King Tancred's newest advisor was a long tale to put it mildly. But one could say that it all began with a Witcher, a mutated monster slayer for hire, Geralt of Rivia the famed White Wolf.
It had been a remarkable journey for Triss; from finding a barely conscious Geralt outside of the stronghold of the witchers with barely any memory of who he was and how he got there; the plot hatched by the Order of the Flaming Rose that Geralt and Triss herself had thwarted; the assassination of King Foltest for which Geralt was wrongly labelled the Kingslayer and the adventure to clear his name; the subsequent witch hunt led by King Radovid the Stern and the Church of the Eternal Fire as well as the invasion from the southern empire of Nilfgaard; the return of Geralt's daughter in all but blood Ciri and her pursuers the Wild Hunt; and the prevention of the White Frost from claiming their world.
It had been a most harrowing journey for Triss but she had somehow pulled through in the end. And although she had had some part in the assassinations of the various kings of the Northern Kingdoms conducted by the Lodge of Sorceresses in their alliance with Nilfgaard, which in turn had been the reason for the literal witch hunt led by Radovid, Triss was now happy to put all that behind her.
And here she was today in service to a sympathetic king, being led through a newly discovered elven ruin. Ages past, the Aen Seidhe, elves, were once the rulers of the world before the arrival of humans and the subsequent wars that led to a tenuous peace although the Elder Races being on the bottom of the pecking order, had built many palaces and such throughout the world. These places had fallen into ruin, but still contained many treasure within… and were often home to monsters wanting to be left undisturbed by pesky and stupid humans.
The head of the dig a middle-aged scholar with greying hair and wearing round rimmed spectacles perched on his nose spoke animatedly to Triss as he walked her through the excavation.
"It really is quite fascinating!" he prattled. "For so many years, we never knew that this ruin lay hidden just outside of Pont Vanis and I've been to many in Kovir!" he said in excitement.
"I imagine it would be," Triss concurred. "I've been to my share of elven ruins, but I've never seen this one," she said as she glanced around.
"Truly?" the scholar looked at the sorceress. "You must tell me about the ruins you've been to," he said engagingly. "I'd be eager to compare notes," he offered eagerly.
"Let's just see what this ruin has to offer, and maybe I'll tell you about the ruins I've been to," Triss said getting the man back on track. "What can you tell me about this particular ruin? Who discovered it?" she enquired.
"Well, it was a curious gentleman named Wulf," the scholar replied. "Curious fellow; looked like a soldier and told me he found what looked like the entrance of an elven ruin that no-one had found before," he recalled. "Curious as I was, I ventured out here and found that the story was not a lie at all," he told Triss. "Soon after, I got some funding from King Tancred and had begun the excavation."
"I see. So, why invite me here?" Triss asked.
"Well, given the nature of these ruins left behind by the Aen Seidhe, I felt it best to ask for help regarding matters of a mystic nature," the scholar admitted. "And given that you are an advisor to the king and a mage, you were the perfect fit," he said.
"Of course," Triss intoned dryly. Although she knew it was common among the ancient elven ruins to have magical defences, she had to wonder if there was still some who felt that as a mage, she was expendable. Triss dismissed the thought upon thinking it; King Tancred had assured her that she and the other mages she had brought with her to Kovir had a place in the kingdom.
"What else can you tell me about this ruin?" Triss then asked her next question.
"Well, from what I can translate of the runes and hieroglyphs, this ruin houses an ancient treasure," the scholar replied. "What kind of treasure it is, I am not certain, but the runes do say it houses ancient knowledge," he then said.
"Interesting," Triss muttered. "It would be a great find… if it survives," she said offhandedly.
"I certainly hope so, Miss Merigold," the scholar agreed with an excited nod. "The foreman of the excavation ha informed me shortly before you arrived that they were almost about to make the breach into the ruins," he explained.
"Breach? How?" Triss raised an eyebrow at this and before she could ask another question, a loud explosion answered her question followed by a large plume of smoke and granite dust. Triss coughed as she waved away the dust from her mouth.
"Ah, it seems Mister Digglesworth has made the breach already," the scholar lamented. "I was hoping to introduce him before he did so," he said sheepishly.
"And Mister Digglesworth is?" Triss asked.
And marching out of the dust cloud covered in dust and soot and wearing a miner's uniform and mining goggles over his eyes was a dwarf. "That'd be me, lass," he said gruffly before looking at the scholar and told him, "We've made the breach, we can enter the ruin anytime ye like, sir."
"And you thought using explosives to make the breach was necessary?" Triss deadpanned.
"Ach, ye worry too much, lassie. How else we were gonna get inside that fancypants elfy ruin?" Digglesworth snarked.
"Picks and shovels?" Triss suggested dryly.
"Eh, take too long," Digglesworth dismissed the notion. "A pinch of saltpetre and Bob's yer uncle! Open sesame!" he laughed raucously.
"Well, let's nothing inside heard that explosion, because we might need the help of a witcher if we run into anything in there," Triss told the dwarf miner.
"Well, lucky that you know one, don't ye?" Digglesworth said slyly. "Or am I wrong?"
Triss pursed her lips as she thought of Geralt and chose her words carefully. "I do know a witcher, but last I heard he was half a continent away on another contract. So, unless you know a witcher in the vicinity of Pont Vanis, you'd best pray your explosives haven't woken anything up in these ruins," she warned.
"Well, method of breaching the ruins aside, shall we adjourn inside and begin?" the scholar asked hopefully.
"May as well since we're here," Triss said tiredly as Digglesworth handed her a lantern and together with the scholar and the excavation crew, they entered the ruins through the breach Digglesworth had made with his explosives.
With the light of the lanterns providing illumination in the otherwise dark ruins, Triss gazed all other the walls and the ruins with an air of scholarly interest. On the surface, the architecture of the ruins matched that of Aen Seidhe elves, but as they delved further in, the structure began a subtle gradual change. Gemstones that glowed with soft blue light set in square ensconces lined the walls providing additional light.
One of the miners made to pry one of the gemstones free until Triss stopped him firmly. "Don't touch anything! We don't know the purpose of these stones," she told the man.
"Why? They're providing light for us? That's all they do," the man said as if it were that simple. Triss glared at the man for being so simpleminded to think such a think.
"For all we know those stones could be security measures to protect whatever secrets are within in this place," she told everyone. "So until we know more about this place, we don't touch anything until I say otherwise. Understood?" she asked looking at everyone. The excavators all grumbled but it was Digglesworth who spoke up in support of Triss's words.
"The lass is right. I've been in enough of these old ruins to know that just grabbing the first shiny thing spells trouble. Could be cursed for all we know," he said wisely. The implication of a curse made the team a little more cautious and heed Triss's words.
Delving further in, they came to a bronze gate. "Hmm, no locking mechanism. None that I can see," the scholar remarked as he examined the doorway. "No hinges either," he added. "Perhaps a switch somewhere can open this door?" he suggested.
"Maybe," Triss said sharing the man's sentiment. "I could teleport us to the other side?" she offered.
"Please do."
Chanting in the Elder Speech, Triss's hands glowed brightly as she tried to conjure a spell. A portal appeared briefly before fizzling out as soon as it disappeared. Frowning a little, the sorceress tried again and again her portal failed to appear.
Humming in thought, Triss spoke. "Seems this ruin is magically protected to prevent anyone from teleporting inside it," she deduced the logical conclusion.
"I could blow apart the gate?" Digglesworth said helpfully. "Got some blasting gear and materials with me. Won't take a moment," he boasted confidently.
"I think we'll save that for last, Mr Digglesworth," the scholar said quickly. "No, there must be some kind of hidden switch somewhere," he declared. "Cast your eyes about everyone, look for something that could be a switch," he encouraged everyone and everyone then began examining the walls and floors. Triss chose to examine the gate; running her fingers along the brassy metal, she admired the craftsmanship of the gate. She almost wished Geralt was here; he had more of a head for navigating ancient ruins and their pitfalls. Dismissing the thought from her head, Triss told herself that she didn't need Geralt to help her with this. She was a sorceress; the day she let some silly gate beat her would be the day she would give up being a sorceress.
Inspecting the stone frame of the gate, Triss spotted an oddly formed piece of stone. Brushing away the cobwebs, Triss gave a little hum as she saw a glowing gemstone similar to the ones on the walls of the ruin.
"I think I've found something!" she called out to the others.
"What did you find, Miss Merigold?" the scholar asked pausing his examination of a section of the wall to look at the redheaded sorceress.
"I think I might've found the switch to open this gate. Stand back, I could be wrong." Triss firmly pressed the tiny gemstone. The gemstone pressed inwards and there was a loud click and the golden gate slid down and away into the floor. "That did the trick I think," Triss said with some satisfaction.
"Huh, I coulda had that gate down in half the time," Digglesworth grumbled. Triss glared the dwarf before sighing and walked through the gate with everyone else following after her.
Walking further into the ruin, the architecture made a strange shift from the familiar elven aesthetic to something that Triss was not at all familiar with. Pipes, both large and small, fashioned from bronze metal lined the walls and hummed with the sound of liquid and steam pumping through them.
"Fascinating!" the scholar exclaimed in wonder. "The sudden shift in design! I don't think this an Aen Seidhe ruin now," he observed.
"No. It isn't," Triss said in agreement although her reaction was not one of wonder, but one of caution. This sudden change in the layout had her on edge; if the sound of hot liquid in the pipes was any indication, this ruin was still active and whatever made its home here may still be around.
"Wonder what made these pipes?" Digglesworth asked as he ran a hand across one of the ducts. "Still warm," he remarked in surprise.
"That's what worries me," Triss said to the dwarf formeman.
"Eh?" Digglesworth looked at Triss sharply. "What's that supposed to mean, lass?" he asked.
"These pipes are running hot liquid in them. That tells me that this ruin, if it is a ruin, is still active and its owners could still be around," Triss informed.
"…Right," Digglesworth had a worried look on his craggy face. "Should we head back to the surface and bring some soldiers? Maybe hire a witcher?" he asked nervously.
"Maybe we should," Triss said in agreement and prepared to suggest to the scholar that they head back for the surface and ask the king to send some men when the man in question gave a shout.
"Look at this!" Triss then realised that they were now standing in a large hall. Suspended above them in a teal green gem case was whatever was the treasure of the ruin. And suspended from arms around the room where lenses of the same green stone and in the centre of the hall were similar lenses set in the floor shining bright white light from them.
"Have you ever seen anything like this?" the scholar asked Triss who shook her head in response to the question. "Well, if I can guess, this may be whatever treasure this ruin holds is hidden by this locking mechanism," he theorised.
"And these lenses are the key to unlocking it," Triss postulated.
"Yes, exactly!" the scholar exclaimed in excitement. "There must be some way to move these lenses into the desired position," he said thoughtfully.
Triss looked around and she saw on a raised dais what she could only guess were the means to move the lenses into the desired position. "How about those?" she asked pointing them out to the scholar.
"Good find!" the scholar congratulated her. "They must be what move the lenses into position," he said as he walked up the ramparts with Triss following them. The console appeared to be a series of glowing blue gemstone buttons. "Would you care to do the honours, Miss Merigold?" the scholar offered.
"Let's hope we don't end up burying ourselves by pressing the wrong button," Triss said dryly as she examined the buttons. Cautiously pressing one, Triss looked up to see the arms shift swivel around the room. "It seems these buttons move the arms about and there is a sequence in which the buttons must be pressed to move the lenses into the right position," she guessed.
"Yes, that's what I'm thinking too," the scholar agreed. "Try another one," he urged.
With the encouragement, Triss button another button and the lenses shifted back into the first position. Pursing her lips in thought, Triss pressed the first button she had before and then chose another button. The arms all shifted and move around in odd positions until at last, the lenses were all lined up with the lights from the floor. A low but loud rumbling as the treasure chest suspended above was lowered down to the ground and slid open revealing the treasure within.
A large heavy looking scroll encased in metal. Digglesworth looked at the scroll with an air of dismissiveness. "All that and no gold or silver? Just a measly scroll?" he sneered.
"That scroll alone could be worth a fortune, Mister Digglesworth!" the scholar chastised the foreman. "Who knows what words are written within?"
"Bah, a few scribblings on a bit of paper, probably nothing worth reading anyhow," Digglesworth scoffed at the idea.
As the scholar argued with the foreman, Triss approached the scroll with an air of interest. She could sense the raw magical power radiating from the artefact; it seemed to draw her closer to it, urging her to touch it. Like a moth to the flame, Triss reached out with one hand and grazed the metal container.
And like a flame igniting, the scroll glowed with bright white light enveloping Triss and her world went white.
…
The first thing Martin felt was something cool and wet draping itself across his brow. His eyes opening, the Dragonborn saw a young woman with café brown skin and curly brown hair done in a topknot and brown eyes looking down at him with a curious gaze. Locking eyes with the young woman, Martin spoke.
"Where am I?" was his question.
The young woman gave a nervous squeak and moved back. Martin sat up and took stock of his surroundings. He was laying on a cot and nearby were other cots which had people laying on them. A quick glance at the occupants, Martin guessed that wherever he found himself in was a sick house as some of the other occupants all looked sick and unhealthy. Looking at his nurse, Martin repeated his question.
"Where am I?".
"You're in the sick house, but you don't got plague or nothing!" his nurse babbled out quickly, looking very nervous looking at Martin as if she was trying to avoid his scrutiny.
"Where am I exactly?" Martin reiterated. "What town?" he further asked.
"You're the Spacer's Choice township of Edgewater in Emerald Vale," his nurse babbled out quickly looking just about ready to faint from worry. "Wh-Who are you if I can ask?" she timidly asked.
"Martin," Martin offered a hand to shake. The young woman shook hands with Martin nervously with an oil stained glove.
"Parvati. Parvati Holcomb, that being my name and all," she said as she shook hands with Martin. "You got a firm grip there, Mister," she added timidly.
"Nice to meet you," Martin said nodding at Parvati. "Edgewater and Emerald Vale. Where abouts is that?" he then asked.
"On Terra-2 of the Halcyon Colony," Parvati replied.
Martin raised an eyebrow and commented, "Never heard of either."
Parvati stared at Martin dumbfounded. "You been living under a rock or something? How you ain't heard of Terra-2? Where are you from? Monarch?"
"Skyrim," came Martin's blunt response and he then looked at himself and realised that he was clad in only a pair of shorts and shirt. "Where are my weapons and armour?" he enquired.
"Sorry. That's all you were wearing when I found on the beach unconscious," Parvati told him.
"You sure?" Martin asked.
"U-Uh-huh," Parvati nodded nervously.
Martin then noted that Parvati seemed a little too nervous and he asked her, "Why are you so nervous? Have I done something to make you nervous?"
"N-No, sir. I'm just… not good with people," Parvati replied holding up her hands in a gesture of denial and protest. "Honest! I found you and that other lady laying there unconscious on the beach outside Edgewater and brought you here. Mr Tobson told me to put you both in the sick house until ya were conscious."
"Other lady?" Martin repeated.
"Yeah, you don't know her?" Parvati indicated a cot opposite Martin and he looked to see a young woman with blood red hair laying there unconscious. The red hair initially made Martin think of Aela the Huntress, but that was the only similarity this woman had with Aela.
"I do not recognise her," he said after a moment of scrutiny. Rising from the cot, Martin's head nearly scraped the ceiling of the room. Parvati looked just about ready to faint.
"You're… you're bigger than I thought!" she blurted stupidly before bowing her head in embarrassment.
"Am I?" Martin asked.
"Y-Yeah," Parvati stood to her own feet and she barely reached Martin's chest, craning her neck to look up at him. "You might be bigger than everyone in Edgewater!" she proclaimed.
"If you say so," Martin said absently before looking at the unconscious who was brought in with him. Holding up a hand which glowed with a healing hands spell, something that Parvati looked surprised. Ignoring the query from Parvati, the Dragonborn aimed the spell at the unconscious redhead and ribbons of glowing golden light whipped around her, rousing to a state of consciousness.
"Eurgh… what happened? Where am I?" the woman as she sat up, rubbing her eyes revealing a pair of emerald-green eyes. "Who are you?" she asked as she looked up at Martin blearily.
"Martin of Skyrim," the Dragonborn told her. "What is your name?" he asked briskly.
"Triss. Triss Merigold of Maribor," the redhead replied. "Where am I?" she asked as she looked around at the room and its occupants.
"Edgewater of Emerald Vale on Terra-2 apparently," Martin informed her.
"Never heard of any of those places," Triss stated bluntly.
"What's the last thing you remember?" Martin asked as he knelt down to eye level with Triss.
"I was with an excavation team exploring a newly discovered Aen Seidhe ruin and we found this scroll," Triss replied.
"A scroll. Can you describe it?"
"It looked… ancient. And I could feel the power coming from it," Triss described. "I touched it and the next thing I know I wake up here," she said.
"Same thing with me," Martin stated. "I met a man called Wulf who told me about a Dwemer ruin and that there was supposedly an Elder Scroll within. I'm guessing you found an Elder Scroll as well," he said to Triss knowingly.
"Elder Scroll? Is that what you call it?" Triss asked and Martin nodded in reply. "What is an Elder Scroll exactly?"
"Elder Scrolls are powerful artifacts of my world that contain untold wisdom that without proper preparation can render you blind when reading them, and that's if you're lucky," Martin said bluntly.
"Never heard of such things," Triss said with a shrug of her shoulders.
Martin hummed and came to the logical and only conclusion that made sense. "We're both on other world and from different worlds to each other."
Triss nodded in agreement. "That's what I'm thinking too," she said.
"Can you stand?" Martin then asked her.
"Let's see," Triss then slowly rose to her feet, swaying on the spot. Martin gently grasped her arm to steady her as he stood to his feet as well. Triss looked up at him and nodded her thanks. Martin nodded in understanding before looking at Parvati and asked her a question.
"Is there a jarl we may speak with about our predicament?"
"Jarl? What's a jarl?"
Martin sighed and clarified his question in terms that would be more easily understood. "We would like to speak with the local leader of this town," he said to Parvati slowly.
"Oh, that'd be Mr Tobson. He works in the saltuna cannery. I can take you there if you'd like?" she offered.
"Please do," Triss said with a warm smile.
"S-Sure, this way," Parvati said to them as she led them both out of the sick house and into the town of Edgewater.
To say the town was in a state of decay was underscoring it. The buildings looked they were barely holding together. The citizens looked exhausted and dead on their feet. Soldiers wearing yellow and grey armour looked barely conscious at their posts.
"What's wrong with these people? Why do they look so tired?" Triss asked looking concerned.
"It's… the plague that's been going around," Parvati informed her. "But Mr Tobson says if we all work hard, the plague will pass," she said although the tone in her words betrayed her doubt.
"Is there anyone doing anything about this plague?" Martin asked.
"We only have so much medicine to go around and the cannery already has so few workers, so we can only afford to give medicine to those Mr Tobson say are deserving of it," Parvarti said sheepishly. "And we had a bunch of people desert too," she added quietly.
"Hard not to see why," Triss said sardonically as she eyed the state of disrepair a section of wall was in.
"Mr Tobson's doing his level best for Edgewater. He's put in requests for the Board to send new workers and supplies, but they don't get answered," Parvati said awkwardly. "The cannery's just ahead," she told Martin and Triss as she led them up to a large building made of nearly all metal with the large words Spacer's Choice Saltuna Cannery in bright yellow letters flashing on the building.
Passing a pair of armed guards, the trio entered the reception and Parvati then led into an elevator and hit the lever. Music played throughout the elevator as the doors slid shut and it moved upwards for a few moments before coming to a stop. The doors slid open to reveal a moderately furnished office space where seated at a wooden desk was a stout looking man wearing a suit that would look moderately better than what everyone else in town wore, but looked a dirty.
"Mr Tobson, I assume?" Triss asked taking the initiative on introductions.
Mr Tobson, the man sitting at the desk, smiled genially and replied, "Indeed it is, ma'am. Reed Tobson, Spacer's Choice. Who may I ask are you two?"
"Triss Merigold of Maribor," Triss introduced herself.
"Martin," the Dragonborn simply said his name.
"Might I ask if you two were sent by Spacer's Choice?" Tobson asked hopefully.
"No," Martin said bluntly with a frown and Tobson's face fell at this.
"I suppose it was too much to hope that you might be from Spacer's Choice," he sighed before looking at Triss and Martin asking them, "But what can I do for you?"
"How are all these people getting sick? Why aren't you doing more to heal them?" Triss asked indignantly.
Tobson looked taken aback at this indignant tone in Triss' words and frowned. "I am doing all that I can, ma'am. But I can only work with what I am given by Spacer's Choice. So long as everyone works hard, we will endure. Work fortifies the spirit after all," he said almost pompously.
"Have you told that to everyone who works here?" Martin snarked.
"Of course. Every day," Tobson said almost proudly.
"Hm." Martin's first thought that this Tobson fellow before him was an idiot who believed what he preached, but sadly hadn't any idea what really went on outside of his office. "Moving on. I'd like some information and perhaps some form of paying work," he said bluntly.
"Are you a freelancer, by any chance?" Tobson asked.
"If you mean mercenary, then yes," Martin replied folding his arms over his chest.
"Well, our local constabulary may have some work bringing justice to former employees of ours who have sadly turned marauder. You'll want to speak with Constable Reyes," Tobson told Martin.
"Hm. The Constabulary?"
"Just down the road south from the Cannery," Tobson replied. "There might be some others who'd pay freelancers around town," he then suggested.
"I'll see what I can do," Martin stated bluntly before leaving but not before looking at Triss and said to her, "Coming?"
"Um, sure," Triss muttered. "What about you, Parvati?" the redhead asked looking at Parvati.
"Actually, I need Miss Parvati to stay here. I have a few things I need to speak with her about," Mr Tobson said giving Parvati a look. Parvati sighed and nodded her head in understanding.
Triss frowned at this but did say to Parvati. "We'll come see you later once you're done here. Is that alright?" she asked Parvati kindly who smiled meekly in response.
Leaving the office via the elevator, Martin and Triss left the cannery. Taking a moment to stand in silence, Triss then looked at Martin and said to him, "Mr Tobson is… something."
"He's an idiot," Martin said bluntly in response to Triss's words.
For a moment, Triss was struck with déjà vu and felt like she was talking with taller Geralt. Funnily enough, Martin had a similar look to Geralt; white-blonde hair and scarred countenance. But there were differences as well; purple-blue eyes and his hair was cut in an almost military crew cut and the fact that he was at least a foot taller than Geralt were obvious things. But personality wise, Martin almost seemed like Geralt's twin brother if the Witcher had a twin brother that was lost to begin with; both had a blunt almost caustic wit, no doubt hardened by life experiences and a dislike of dealing with figures of authority. Whether Martin possessed any other personality traits Geralt possessed remained to be seen.
"So, I'm guessing you have some kind of plan?" Triss then asked.
"Find the constabulary and see what kind of work they have and go from there," Martin replied bluntly.
"And after that?" Triss asked pointedly.
"Find the nearest watering hole and get a drink and figure things out from there," replied Martin. "You're welcome to tag along if you'd like," he offered absently before walking off.
Triss stared after the man and huffed to herself. "I swear it's like dealing with Geralt all over again," she muttered to herself as she hurried after Martin to catch up with him.
TO BE CONTINUED…
A/N: First chapter of this is done and dusted. This has been on the brain for a while now, and given the lack of Outer Worlds crossovers on this site, I like to think I made the first step in making a crossover like this. I know I already have an Outer Worlds/DC Comics crossover set in my Justice League of Amazons idea/universe, but there aren't too many fics for Outer Worlds, crossovers or otherwise, so I fancy myself the trailblazer in this regard.
I've got a few original ideas for this story anyway, one being Martin/Dragonborn's weapons and armour; given the in-lore of Outer Worlds states that weapons and gear from Spacer's Choice are of poor quality, I'm thinking Martin makes his own weapons and gear using weapon and armour parts. And with the upcoming Outer Worlds 2 coming out later this year or next year, I would not be surprised if we got a weapon and gear crafting system or have a companion who can create weapons and armour for the player character, so one could look at the Dragonborn crafting his own weapons and gear as perhaps a teaser for the next Outer Worlds game which I am very much looking forward to.
And since Triss Merigold from the Witcher is also in this story, we might see some other Witcher characters show up in the story. I'll let you have the fun of guessing who and where they might show up. Disclaimer: it won't be Ciri, Geralt and/or Yennefer.
And apart from that I haven't got any more to say, so feel free to leave a review if you like this story and if you want to see this story continue, add it to your follows and favourites lists.
Be kind to one another,
Angry lil' elf.