The Story of Trey- Chapter 13 Options

[treydog]

Chapter 13

As I made the slow trek to the Urshilaku camp, I thought about trust. Nothing in my youth had made me believe in the honor or the honesty of others. Mostly, they seemed to be interested in what they could get from you. And, with that philosophy, I had become a thief. But then, I was accepted by House Redoran and made a member of a family. Even though they expected me to perform services for them, they repaid me with loyalty and honor. And then, despite all my worries about their reactions to my role as the Nerevarine, they had continued to support me. The fact was, they trusted me- knew that I shared their code of honor. So much so that they had even sided with me against their Archmaster. And that meant that I should have trusted them to be honorable and fair, as well. Though I didn’t realize it, my musings on trust would be tested much sooner than I had anticipated.

The camp was as I had remembered it- a small cluster of tents in the Ashlands, huddled on the coast of the Sea of Ghosts. These were the people to whom I owed the most, the people whose lives had been made harsh and savage by the constant scheming of the Empire, Dagoth Ur, the Temple, even the Great Houses. If I were to see the path of prophecy to its bitter end, it would be for the Ashlanders that I did so. After greeting the Urshilaku working among the tents, I approached Nibani Maesa’s tent and asked permission to enter. The wise woman smiled to see me, overcoming her usual reserve just a bit. When she asked me, “What news, outlander,” I showed her the tokens of the Great Houses that proved that I had fulfilled the Fourth Prophecy. Then I told her of the attempt by the Temple to lure me to Vivec City, where they no doubt planned to imprison or do away with me. A strange look passed over her face at that, and then she said,

“I have thought long upon the Sixth Trial, Trey. I was blind, but Azura's star has guided me through my dreams. Vivec's high priest, Saryoni, has asked to see you when you are Hortator and Nerevarine. Go to him, and demand to speak with the false god Vivec. Vivec has tried to keep Kagrenac's Tools secret, but you will need these tools when you stand before Dagoth Ur. Get Kagrenac's Tools from Vivec. They are the keys to the riddle of the Sixth and Seventh Trials.”

Completely stunned, I could only stare at her in amazement. How could Nibani, of all people, send me to the very stronghold of our enemies? When I caught my breath, I asked her what Kagrenac’s Tools had to do with anything. She quoted a verse from the Lost Prophecy that I had brought from the Dissident Priests,

“ ‘Star-blessed hand wields thrice-cursed blade.' Gilvas Barelo has told you of Kagrenac's Tools, the enchanted devices the Tribunal use to steal power from Lorkhan's heart. One of these tools is the blade Keening. Your star-blessed hand must wield Keening. If Vivec has this blade, it is your fate to take this blade from him.”

So quickly was my new understanding of trust to be tested- one of my closest advisers counseled me to rely on the honor of one of my greatest opponents. Though my mind rebelled, my heart knew that she was right. If all Azura had wanted was my death, she would have no need to go to so much trouble. Nibani was my guide, appointed to help me find my destiny. I had no choice but to follow her guidance.
Knowing that the ultimate struggle against Dagoth Ur was growing near, I decided to scout the approaches to Red Mountain before I went to Vivec. And, in truth, I was delaying the meeting with Saryoni, for I feared imprisonment and torture above all things. Although I knew that I must go to Vivec, must suffer whatever consequences were to come, still I put it off, with the excuse that I needed to know more about Red Mountain. What I discovered was the presence of evil, but I don’t think it stemmed from Dagoth Ur, at least, not directly. Near the foyada Bani-Dad, I came upon a Velothi dome, which seemed a good place to shelter from the ash-storm which had plagued me almost from the moment I left the Urshilaku. The runes on the entrance marked the ancient dwelling as “Shishi,” a peculiar name that I wish I had never heard. As I emerged into the entry, I nearly stripped over the body of a Dunmer sprawled across the floor. A quick examination revealed her to be a Telvanni servitor, and that she had been cut down by swords. Worse yet, she was unarmed, and the wounds showed that she had been running away from her killer. As I ventured deeper into the dwelling, I found more Telvanni cut down in their tracks. Then in the lower part of the dome, I found the greatest horror of all.

A person dressed in the bonemold armor of House Redoran, my House, stood with bared sword, surveying the carnage and searching the room. When I asked what passed, she turned with a snarl and attacked me. I blocked as best I could, while shouting,

“Cease this madness, Redoran! Do you not recognize one of your own House Fathers?”

My identification of myself as a ranking member of the House only seemed to redouble her fury, and it became clear that I was going to have to do more than block. Since her actions had shown her to be an outlaw, her execution was no more than simple justice. Even so, it went hard for me to be the purveyor of that justice. I heard a voice calling from above, asking,

“Anise? What are you playing at down there? Did you find another Telvanni?”

So there were others involved in this murderous rampage- perhaps they would be more reasonable about explaining their actions. When I reached the top of the stairs, that proved to be a vain hope, as two more Redoran guards set upon me. An icy rage overwhelmed me and I showed those rogues no more pity than they had shown the unarmed Telvanni retainers they had butchered. On the body of the leader, I found a partial explanation, a report that had been written in great haste. The document read,

CODE

As instructed, a party of five entered the Velothi tower of Shishi. Five Telvanni sorcerers fell and the tower is now ours, but we have suffered heavy losses. We will hold Shishi as long as we can and await your orders.



Brerama Selas

So, in addition to the crimes of murder and attacking a senior member of his House, this Selas added the venal sin of lying. Only three Redorans had been present, all hale and hearty. And the “five Telvanni sorcerers”? No more than simple unarmed servants, slaughtered when they were trying to escape. Unfortunately, the report was not addressed to anyone, but I vowed that I would find out who had ordered this atrocity. Whether the Telvanni had a legitimate claim to Shishi, I neither knew nor cared. Whatever the case, there was no excuse for this mindless brutality.

Sometimes, trust has to be paid for in blood. Although it horrified me that someone in my House could do such a thing, I was satisfied that I had been the instrument of justice. For good or ill, House Redoran would take care of its own.

[treydog]

I had anticipated treachery from Dagoth Odros; I had simply not been vigilant enough. The first indication I received was when the Flame Atronach struck me from behind. As soon as I turned to deal with that threat, the ash vampire raked his claws down my back. I was fortunately able to dispatch the atronach quickly, which allowed me to get my shield into play against Odros. For a time, defending was the most I could do, as the ash vampire’s tough hide turned even my ebony sword. It quickly became apparent to me that trying to fight him this way would lead to my defeat. His claws shredded my armor and my flesh, while I seemed able to do only small damage in return. He was stronger, but I was faster, and I used that speed to my advantage. Dodging around and between the pillars in the room gave me time to imbibe a healing potion and to summon a Daedric longbow. My plan was to keep out of reach, all the while piercing him with arrows. I hoped that the magicka imparted by the bow as well as my ability to target more carefully would prove effective. That tactic confused Odros; again it seemed that the creatures of the Sixth House were more prepared for direct attacks, such as those launched by the Temple or the Great Houses. I, on the other hand, had only one goal in mind- winning. Whether my victory would be considered tainted in the eyes of some puffed-up knight meant nothing to me- let some other fool “die nobly;” I intended to live. So it was that I found myself racing through Odrosal, stopping long enough to loose a couple of arrows, only to run again. Odros’ silent, mindless pursuit was almost more frightening than the roaring charge of an Ogrim; it was alien, another sign of a mind that was no longer human. Whatever consciousness controlled the ash vampire, it was not that of the Chimer he had once been. When at last he fell, I was able to take from the corpse his Sixth House amulet, as well as the Amulet of Heart Fire. However, what he did not have was the sword, Keening.

A search of the now empty citadel at last revealed a trapdoor in the ceiling of one chamber; I clambered up the ladder and turned the latch. I have always hated those ceiling doors; I fear that someone with a hammer is waiting for me to poke my head through like a curious and not-too-bright ground squirrel. Fortunately, no one was playing “whack-a-Breton” in Odrosal that day, and I was able to hoist myself into the tower without incident. Whatever its original purpose, the room was now an elaborate Sixth House shrine, complete with ash statues and a sacrificial pit. And in the center of that pit stood a short-sword, point down, glowing with unmistakable magicka. Even before I touched it, I heard it set up a counter-point to Sunder’s incessant murmuring. Every instinct I possessed warned me that this must be a trap; that it could not be so easy as just grasping the sword. But my will was no match for the pull of the sword as I was dragged closer. As I grasped the hilt, I realized that no other trap was needed- Keening itself was the trap. And I had fallen into it and was irrevocably lost.

If the hammer’s assault on my brain had been intense, the combined power of Sunder and Keening was unbearable. Their voices set up a resonance that drove every other thought from my head, leaving only the compulsion to wield them, to go to the Heart chamber and become a creature of the Heart of Lorkhan. I fell to my knees, unable to resist the potential that was in my possession. When it seemed as if I had no choice but to succumb, a different voice broke through the chorus of Kagrenac’s profane Tools. This voice also had power, but of a different sort. Without words, it was as pure as the morning sun on a spring day, as clean as the moon reflected from the surface of the sea. It did not promise, did not command, did not threaten. Instead, it simply…was. And it created a still, calm space where I too, could exist in peace. This was a display of true power, of strength without end, a promise that tomorrow would always come, if only I believed. With a vigor I had not felt in many months, I regained my feet. Sunder and Keening still murmured in the back of my mind, but it was nothing, a mere whisper, transient and with no power to move or change me. I wrapped the sword with the hammer and prepared myself for what was to come.

Mind and will once again my own, I paused in the silence of Odrosal to review the plans Vivec had developed for fighting Dagoth Ur and gaining access to the Heart. One idea was to weaken the defenses of the Sixth House by attacking the citadels and the seven ash vampire kin of Dagoth Ur. Even though they apparently could not be killed, they could be dispelled for a time and would be unable to assist in the defense of the Heart. Of the seven, I had already removed three- Uthol, Vemyn, and Odros. If I followed the plan, I should go to the citadel called Tureynulal next. But I questioned the value of that slow nibbling around the edges. The three ash vampires I had bested had either possessed the Tools or else stood directly in my path- confronting them had been necessary. Now that I controlled all of Kagrenac’s Tools, it was time to strike. The longer I delayed, the more time Dagoth Ur would have to prepare. If this had been a battle of great armies, a campaign of attrition to weaken the Sixth House might have made sense, but I was a lone man. Every time I fought, I risked serious injury or death, not to mention the loss of the Tools. While my death might be only a temporary setback for Azura or Vivec, it would be rather more permanent for me. No, my stealthy spirit told me that this called for a lightning stroke out of the darkness, not a slow wearing away. Dagoth Ur was probably off balance right now, still trying to decide what the disappearances of Vemyn and Odros meant. As a former general, he would expect an opponent to consolidate his gains and take some time to plan. Better to attack before the insidious blandishments of Sunder and Keening weakened my resolve. If I appeared suddenly, bearing Kagrenac’s Tools, Dagoth Ur would probably believe that I had come to challenge him. That was how his mind would work- I had defeated his lieutenants; now I was ready to attempt to wrest control of the Heart from him. If he continued to believe that, if I could keep him from divining my true purpose- then I might succeed.