Answer to the riddle is an echo.
Chapter 8: Mirmulnir
Koraaviik jumped over the railing of the destroyed walkway, landing on the hard rocks below before moving to his bonded.
His mind worked overtime preparing for came next came next. But a weight rose from his chest, one he had almost gotten accustomed to in these last few days. They were truly not alone, the dragon coming towards them a clear testament of that. Koraaviik placed himself in the background, behind and to the right of Midwahgein.
Within sight but not close enough to be in the way. They couldn't risk it.
As the dragon landed Koraaviik sucked in a breath. The slightly pale scales, broken spikes and numerous scars covering the body and wings were marks of an elder. Though Koraaviik had never seen one this old. No, old didn't do it justice, ancient was more like it. Younger dragons were known for their rash and aggressive demeanour, often striking first and asking questions later. Elders however possessed wisdom and knowledge fitting for their age, and while they were often several thousand years old, their long life gave them experience and strength that few dragons possessed.
This one seemed like no exception, It was clear that it wasn't afraid of standing its ground with countless scars that littered his scales. What put Koraaviik on edge was that elders ruled the younger dragons. They demanded respect and could crush you if they deemed you a threat. If this ancient decided they were trespassing on its territory, or simply wanted them gone, there was little to nothing they could do about it.
It was muscle memory, but regardless he quickly went over things in his head.
Koraaviik knew to not look them in the eyes, it would be disrespectful at best, and a death sentence at worst.
Don't speak unless spoken to, like before it was seen as a sign of disrespect. The rest conveniently left his mind as it landed with a mighty gust of air.
The dragon stood tall, head held high in a clear show of dominance. He was a fair bid larger than Midwahgein with a much more robust and muscular build. Worn dark brown scales along the back with a much lighter, almost sand coloured scales along the belly and wings.
Koraaviik breathed out slowly, feeling his own nervousness blending with hers. By tradition it was the elder who spoke the first words, and they didn't have to wait long.
"Ahnok dovah, an unexpected surprise" He grumbled, voice old and rich with eyes that held a glint of something he couldn't quite place.
Midwahgein lowered her head in acknowledgment of his strength, before replying "Drem yol lok. I am Midwahgein. Apologies for trespassing on your territory, but we are in need of...assistance."
Koraaviik silently follow the conversation, taking note of the customs. Drem yol lok, meant Peace fire sky, a formal greeting between two dragons. And it was the expected from a younger dragon when addressing an elder.
It was meant to show respect of territory and the withholding of aggression between two dragons. Midwahgein seemed fairly tense though the ancient dragon showed no sign of noticing.
"We?" It said questioningly, eyes scanning the area for the figure it had apparently missed. Koraaviik took that as his cue and stepped forward, holding his head low and avoiding eye contact.
Koraaviik had his eyes focused on the ground, careful not to show any sign of aggression.
"Dovah-sonaak, dragon priest. I thought your kind died off long ago" The ancient said with a snarl, revealing rows of teeth.
Koraaviik wasn't sure if he was supposed to answer, and even if he was, he did not know what kind of answer it expected, nothing seemed fitting. The dragon, while not aggressive id not seem to be in a cooperative mood. He could only wait in tense silence for whatever it decided.
The ancient turned its attention back to Midwahgein eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Alduin thuri, would not have brought him back" It finished, eyes boring into Midwahgein.
Koraaviik flinched, this seemed more like an interrogation than a meeting between old allies.
But he could not help but notice what the ancient had just said.
Alduin was alive.
They had all gotten the message that Alduin had fallen, the rebellion had been at its highest when it happened. And when alduin fell and it became clear that the dragons could be defeated, well the war didn't last long after that, it seemed like everyone suddenly had the will to fight, men women and children. They had won by a landslide as well, there's only so much you can do when the enemy outnumbered you by thousands. And then the second part, that Alduin would not have brought Koraaviik back. Would not have brought him back.
Alduin could bring someone back from the dead? Maybe this dragon had not been around since the rebellion after all. Midwahgeins next words left him feeling all too exposed.
"Alduin did not bring us back, Koraaviik did" She said reluctantly, gesturing to him. Her voice sounded tense - not only her voice he noted. Her entire body was tense, ready to jump into action at a moments notice. Her emotions where mirroring his own, but much more intense. She must have seen something he couldn't.
The ancient dragon froze for barely a moment before it's head turned to fully face Koraaviik who didn't dare move.
"Is that so?" it said in a strangely neutral tone, looking once again at Midwahgein who stood still, clearly weary of the ancient dragon.
The ancient stood still for a moment the heavy breathing of the two dragons the only sound in the area. "I never cared much for you traitorous humans" It admitted accusingly, but koraaviik new better than to retort, or even react. He stood still, waiting for either of them to make a move.
"You lived your small and insignificant lives without bothering me"
Koraaviik felt the edge of Midwahgein tail brush against his leg. The sudden touch gave him Goosebumps, emotions that followed from her mind was grim determination and fear.
Her voice rang through his mind "When I give the word, you run"
"I'm not leaving you" he replied immediately, though the severity of the situation was starting to make itself clear, the ancients aggressive posture was a clear warning of where they were going.
They were going to fight.
The ancient continued, clearly oblivious to the silent conversation between the two.
"But when you rebelled, and slaughtered my kind, hunted us to extinction like some common good for nothing animal" It spat the last few words, the implication crashing into Koraaviik mind. The dragons had been killed after all. The rebels had hunted any remaining dragons, something Koraaviik had feared but had know gotten confirmation on. He silently cursed, it only made sense that the humans would want revenge for centuries of oppressive ruling but hunting the dragons to extinction was wrong. Doing so proved that they were no better than the dragons. It was worse. The dragons at least let the humans live, it was tough, and by no means perfect, but they lived nonetheless. The shining idea of a just and peaceful, human empire that had slowly been taking shape in his mind, turned to ash.
"When you killed every dragon you could get you filthy hands on, that all changed" It took a small but determined step forward, claws digging into the hard soil with ease.
"Despite your titles and gifts you are just like the rest of them, rotten to the core!" Roared in a challenge, this time it was clear and purposeful. It wanted Koraaviik dead, and there was nothing anyone could say to change it's mind.
Midwahgein re-positioned herself so that she was halfway blocking Koraaviik view of the ancient, something that drew an angry snarl from the ancient.
It spoke the next words slowly. "You would choose a pathetic Joor over a fellow dov?" Voice stuck somewhere between betrayal and hatred.
"You are giving no choice" she hissed out through gritted teeth.
The ancient raised himself to his full height, puffing out his chest in preparation for battle. "Then so be it, your death will be swift."
The ancient barely finished his sentence before Midwahgeins voice screamed through his head, loud enough to make him cringe "Now!"
Koraaviik sprung into action, body turning around and sprinting towards the nearest part of the outpost wall.
"Yol Toor-" Koraaviik looked behind him just in time to see a sleek black tail slam into the ancients face, interrupting the shout and sending him stumbling to the side from the force. He shook his head before turning to face Midwahgein, face set in an angry snarl.
"A traitor and a coward!" He roared jumping forward and slamming his entire body into an unprepared Midwahgein. They wrestled each other, tumbling around in massive pile of scales, claws and teeth. They tore up the ground and crushed anything the happened to be underneath. They barrelled into the wall, making the already badly damaged structure crumble completely under the weight of the two dragons. Midwahgein had a bloody gash across her neck from were the other dragon had managed to tear through the scales. However after hitting the wall she managed to get a stable footing, if only for a moment as the much bigger ancient moved to charge back in before she could retaliate.
Midwahgein managed to use her smaller size and weight to doge to the side, almost making the ancient dragon stumble forwards, before he could turn around she threw herself into his side and sank her teeth into his shoulder, making him roar in pain.
He pushed her back with one of his wings and they were once again in a standoff. Each refusing to back down.
"We are not here to fight you." Midwahgein tried to reason with them. Her breathing was quick and Koraaviik did not have to ask to know the wound on her neck was bad, he could feel the searing pain with each heartbeat.
"Liar!" the ancient roared before charging again.
Koraaviik was not about to leave her to fight it alone, her orders be damned.
Though he'd never fought a dragon before, so he would have to think quickly. How did you kill a dragon, fire or ice? Perhaps, but he had seen dragons bath each other in flames and frost with no visible effect. A precise strike could work, but it would take quite a bit of energy to do any real damage, energy he did not have. The same issue was present when it came to conventional weapons like swords and axes. A dragons hide was tough and highly resistant to both cutting and stabbing. Perhaps blunt force would be effective, but he didn't really have any such weapon on him.
Even if he did he could hardly be considered strong, best he could hope for was to drop something heavy - That gave him an idea. He knew dragons had week spots, places were the scales were much softer and thinner, more vulnerable. The wings, inside of the legs, arms and eyes. But of course the dragon knew they it had those weak spots too and would no doubt do everything to keep them away from harm.
He breathed out trying to steady himself. One wrong move and he would be dead. Perhaps he should go for a solid distraction instead to allow Midwahgein to get the upper...wing.
Koraaviik quickly went over his options, his magic was still low, so he wouldn't be able to throw much around before going dry. Magical exhaustion was the last thing he needed, that would for sure make him useless. No 2 or 3 well placed spells was all he had to work with.
Now were to attack? Flanking behind risked getting slapped by the tail, the sides were covered by the wings, if he got pushed by those he would be either dead or dying and the head was definitely out of the question. Underneath? No he would just get trampled.
The back? Stupid but it just might work.
He looked around, he needed a weapon and since his old sword was now lying somewhere in the temple, probably covered with rust and dirt he would need a quick replacement. He jumped from his cover to one of the dead soldiers bodies, grabbed a spear and ran towards the guard tower. The soldier he stumbled upon earlier was nowhere to be found, probably fled when he had the chance.
Wise man.
Koraaviik sprinted up the first few flights of stairs, quickly arriving on a floor that was missing most of a wall. Barely a second later he crumbled from a spike of pain cutting through his chest. He was on the floor, sucking in a few quick ragged breaths as he dragged himself to the edge. Just as he got a clear view, Midwahgein pushed the other dragon away with a bloody gash across it's left eye. She was however bleeding from several puncture wounds in her chest area.
The ancient had somehow gotten onto her side and then bit into her chest only for her to claw it's right eye out. He took a deep breath, trying to ignore the pain that was pulsing through the bond.
Without any more consideration he jumped from the hole in the wall, spear aimed at the still stunned dragon. He landed heavily on it's back, the spear jammed in between the wing and the spine.
The dragon reared upwards with a high pitched screech, throwing Koraaviik onto the ground. It spun around and roared before it's head shot forward, clearly intending to bite him.
He quickly swung his hand, releasing a thick stream of black smoke and embers before jumping to the side.
The jaw flew forward through the smoke and snapped shut right were he had been a second ago, he got it's attention alright. The smoke hadn't done anything, except hiding him from the dragons sight long enough for him to evade.
He quickly got up and spun around to face the dragon again, barely getting up from the ground before the dragon opened its mouth, eyes burning with rage. This time Midwahgein wasn't there to stop the ancient. The three words left the Ancients maw before he could move to evade.
"Fo krah diin!"
Koraaviik quickly threw up his arms and summoned the strongest ward he could think of, the storm of ice and snow blasted against the ward and he immediately felt the drain on his already depleted reserves. The ward held up well, though he could feel the cold wins roaring past him, the ground beside him immediately froze and cracked and the few plants around was sliced or broken by pieces of ice. Time seemed to slow down during the onslaught.
After two seconds, his arms were shaking.
After four seconds his legs felt wobbly.
After six seconds he was barely able to stand, he lost his focus for less than a second - but that was all it took. The ward flickered and broke, the full force of the shout hitting him like a force of nature. The world spun as he flew through the air before hitting the ground hard, rolling around several times before coming to a stop. It took a moment of silence before he realised the shout had stopped.
He coughed a few times before rolling onto his stomach, pushing himself to his knees, he noticed but did not feel the cuts and bruises on his arms and hands.
Koraaviik looked up, his vision blurry but blinking a few times cleared it enough for him to see the scene taking place. Midwahgein had jumped over and grabbed the ancients head in her claws, using her momentum to slam it into the wall of the guard tower partially making it collapse in the process. The ancient looked stunned for a moment, before it tried to get back up. Midwahgein moved like a blur and slammed her right wing into its head knocking them to the ground again.
Koraaviik wasn't really sure if it the dragon was still moving, he couldn't quite get his vision to focus. However Midwahgein attacked again regardless.
She used the claws on her wings to grab hold of the dragons head before she started slamming it into the massive stones from the tower, again and again. After the first four hits the rocks were bloody.
Koraaviik was taken aback by the brutality, the ancient struggled, it clawed at her neck and wings but she ignored it, its head hit the ground again and then again, this time it was followed by a crack as one of the horns broke off.
She took a few unsteady steps back, breathing heavily.
The ancient was still, a pool of blood splattered across the rouble.
Her neck turned around, eyes catching his before she took a few unsteady steps towards him, however she didn't even make it halfway before collapsing heavily onto her side.
His mind immediately cleared, his own pain fading compared to the onslaught of hers. He felt the gash on her neck, the pounding headache and stabbing pain in his- her chest. He felt pain limbs he didn't have. Something he didn't even know was possible. He gladly carried some the pain for her though. The bite in her chest, the gash along her neck and the numerable scratches along her side and wings.
She was covered with blood.
He struggled to pull himself to his feet, limping as fast as he could. Heart pounding in his chest. He knew it looked bad but the wounds weren't that deep, only superficial. She was just exhausted from the fight that was all.
He dropped onto his knees in front of her, her eyes were closed. Blood flowed from the wound along her neck with every heartbeat. He couldn't see the tooth marks on her chest, it was too covered with dirt and blood but he hoped the wounds weren't deep.
He mentally checked the link, anything to make sure she was fine, the link was alive, she was weak and in pain, but alive.
He ran a shaking hand along her face, forcing the words out despite the pain and exhaustion. "Don't you dare die on me!" And it was an order, she could scream all she wanted at him later. He did not care, but she had to make it, she had to.
"I'm not dying" Her voice came out a whisper, halfway opened eyes and something that might have resembled a smile if it wasn't for the pain overwhelming it all.
His hands were shaking "Y...your neck?" There were so much blood.
She huffed, almost dismissively, he - he didn't understand. "It's not as bad as it looks...his aim was off"
"How do you know?"
She closed her eyes again, a pained breath leaving her "If it wasn't, I would be dead"
He didn't like the sound of that, it made it sound like it was more luck than anything that she made it through the battle. He should've done something else, there were so many other quicker ways he could've distracted that dragon. A flame lance to it's face, a sword in its wing, hell he could've used telekinesis to drop rocks from the tower on it. He looked back at it, the spear was still firmly lodged in it's back, despite the rough beating it took. At least he hit something, he didn't want to imagine what would've happened if his aim had been of and the spear had glanced harmlessly off the scales.
He'd pressed himself too far with the ward, but that didn't stop him from using what little remains he had on a healing spell to Midwahgeins neck. Koraaviik did not care the slightest if he had to spend the next few days recovering from magical exhaustion, so long as she were safe. When the warm glow slowly receded the wound was still here, but the gash had mostly closed and bleeding had all but stopped.
He sank to the ground, taking care to lean on an unwounded part of her chest. Koraaviik somehow felt even more exhausted than before, he feared adrenaline was the only thing keeping him awake and focused. He would no doubt feel the consequences later, but casting one look at Midwahgein made it all feel worth it. His wounds weren't that bad all things considered, his mask and armour had kept him mostly protected, his arms and legs were a mess through. Numerous cuts and bruises that he could do nothing about, he was too drained, too empty as it was.
Midwahgein dragged her head a bit to the side, a half closed eye blinking at him.
"I told you to run." She muttered.
He raised an arm, letting his hand rest on an unscathed part of her neck.
"I would never leave you to fight alone."
It was clear opposition he knew, disregarding her word and acting on his own... but he had no choice. He wouldn't, no. He couldn't leave her to fight alone. The realization came as a new puzzle in his conscience, but it was one he wasn't going to deal with now. The dragon had not been some youngling looking to fight over territory or pride. It was an ancient, and one older than any Koraaviik had ever seen.
One that just so happened to hate anything on two legs with a fiery passion. Even one who had served the dragons all their life, one who fought and died for them during the rebellion.
One whose very soul was bound to a dragon, not even that redeemed him in the eyes of the ancient. Koraaviik could only begin to imagine what the dragon had been through. What experienced had let them to that place, because he'd never seen someone outright hate humans like this. Apathy, indifference and anger sure, all of those were common. Not because of what humans were or did, but because of what dragons were. It was in their nature to rule by might, anyone beneath them were... well beneath them, harmless, not worth their attention. But this elder had not cared, or perhaps cared a little too much.
Either way the dragon now lay dead, battered and bloody on the ruins of an old guard tower. The sight brought neither him or Midwahgein any joy, but the choice had been made by the ancient. To fight them to the death, for goals and motivations neither of them knew.
Koraaviik scratched her scales a few times before letting his arm fall limb to his side.
Midwahgein shifted a bit behind him, but as she moved her wing it sent a spike of pain though the bond. Koraaviik flinched at the sudden pain and rubbed his shoulder a bit not sure if it was her or him who were in pain. He did not have to wonder for long though, as she clearly noticed. "Apologies, I... I keep forgetting your feel it too."
He waved her off with a pained smile, although it was hidden by the mask. "At least now I know what it's like to have someone step on your tail" said with a small chuckle, one he quickly regretted as it turned into a coughing fit.
He looked back to her, wondering briefly what was going through her head in the silence that followed. His golden eyes met hers, there was a glint of amusement in them, but also worry. At first he thought it was over his wounds, but them reality came crashing down on him.
He let a breath leave him, blinking once as a an almost overwhelming exhaustion hit him. Midwahgein continued to look with one eye, to search through him until he looked away. Gaze travelled over the scorched grass and broken wall to the dead dragon. It was still bleeding he noted, ever so slowly forming a pool of blood on the grass and stone.
The first real hope they'd had since they woke up, the first sign of their world. Dead and bleeding after trying to kill them.
"What are we going to do...?" His voice sounded sluggish, maybe the pain shone through but he didn't care. The dragon had mentioned Alduin, but he was probably the last dragon they needed right now. Alduin was the strongest, that had never been up to debate. But regardless of how he'd managed to survive, he and his followers had been the reason for the rebellion. The other priests - well most of them he reminded himself, had been the core of the problem. But as Alduin was the strongest, it was up to him to set an example and then force the others to obey or die.
But his example was apathy and indifference. He cared not what happened to those beneath him, so long as he ruled. But the mortals beneath him grew from fearful to hateful. A hatred born from the thousands of innocents who were enslaved and sacrificed in his name.
Koraaviik let his head fall back, resting on her chest just beneath her wing. Eyes turning to the endless sky above them. The grey ocean of clouds, in all shapes and sizes. Birds flying too high up for him to see any details but their head and wings.
"For now you should rest." She said softly, and it would be so easy for him to close his eyes. Every part of his body screamed at him to do so, to just sleep and recover what little strength he had. But a gust of wind passed over them that made Midwahgein freeze. He felt her tense, both physically and through the bond. He did not know what had happened, but she was worried, and that worried him.
"Someone is coming, people." She said simply, answering his unspoken question.
But it wasn't a solace. Neither of them could fight, they had barely survived fighting the elder, and now a group of people were coming? Koraaviik cursed their luck. They could only hope that they were more friendly than the Ancient had been.
And this is where the first major change is from the old version. Koraaviik is not dragonborn, it had been the plan, in my mind it made the most sense considering where I wanted the story to go but... I guess I realized it was my story, and so many things are free for me to decide - Koraaviik being dragonborn always bothered me but by the power of writing it is no longer.
Actual dragonborn, because yes there is one, will stumble it at a later time. Imagine that will be fun.
Still interesting that Mirmulnir, survived the dragon war and the hunts that followed, he his one of the oldest named dragons in the game. You learn something new everyday.
This is also one of the first fighting scenes I've ever written so would love to know your thoughts.
Two bodies have I, though both joined in one, the more I stand still the faster I run. What am I?