In service of a fallen god., Yup, I don't know how to quit. Options

[jack cloudy]

You know the drill, I finish one story and begin with the next. Meet my latest character and headremover, Morvayn Dres.


In the service of a fallen god.

Morvayn Dres took two deep, silent breaths. He filled his lungs till they were about to burst. In one smooth motion, he stepped out of the shadows behind the pillar and drew his sword at the same time, already swinging it at his first victim before the Orc could blink. He pressed the point of his saber in the arm beneath the pauldron, just deep enough to draw blood. Smoothly, he pulled his sword back a bit, flicked his wrist to aim the blade and performed a backhanded slash that neatly separated the head from the neck.

The entire time between Morvayn stepping into view and the Orc’s head flying away could be counted in a single heartbeat. The other Orcs in the room hadn’t noticed anything yet. Morvayn calmly walked towards the back of the nearest one. He enjoyed the look of surprise and then horror when the Orc turned around. Behind Morvayn, the corpse of his first victim noisily dropped to the floor.

,,In the name of my lord, I bring justice! You will join your unholy master in Oblivion!” Morvayn shouted and raised his saber. He ducked the Orc’s warhammer and cut through his opponents legs. He raised himself, cut off another head and turned towards his next victim. Magical mist poured out of the two Orcs and entered the man who had slain them.

Morvayn felt the mist filling his veins and with it, the power it gave him. When he was two steps away from the third Orc, he acted. He moved faster than anything the Orcs had seen before. In their eyes, he was death turned into flesh and blood, with a grim face they only knew too well. All three remaining Orcs died before they could raise their weapons.

The power his sword had granted him fled and he turned to watch how the corpses fell to the floor. Morvayn removed his helmet and wiped the sweat from his forehead. His red eyes blazed with a fanatical anger when he turned to the statue that dominated everything else in the room. If it was meant to intimidate, it failed to serve its purpose on the Dunmer.
,,Mehrunes Dagon, this shrine shall no longer worship you. For the glory of my lord, I have brought justice.” He said to the four-armed statue of the Daedra and walked out of the room.

Outside the shrine, his face was covered by his helmet again. He gave a few quick orders to the group that had waited outside for his return. Morvayn had concluded they would only get in the way during the fight and told them to stay at the entrance.
,,You, pick up the heads of the outlanders and put them on stakes in front of the entrance. That should serve as a warning to any cultist who wishes to rebuilt the shrine. The rest of you, destroy the shrine. When we leave, I want that accursed place to be in pieces.”

[jack cloudy]

The people of Vivec respectfully cleared a path for him when he came trough. He didn’t expect anything else. Looking at the massive cantons of the sacred city, he was struck by both a sense of happiness and a sting of pain. This place was his home but it felt odd that the cantons were just under 200 years old. Vivec was beautiful yet, he still wished that he would have been able to see the bigger, older Vivec that was destroyed during what was known as the Oblivion crisis.

Now, only four cantons remained, one held Vivec’s palace, another the High Fane and the library and the next two held the temple and the homes of the common citizens. Morvayn walked slowly but with confidence towards his destination. In front of the huge doors of Vivec’s palace, he greeted the two Ordinators standing guard.
,,Rest well, Almalexia and Sotha Sil. May the death of your slayer bring you peace.” He began the traditional greeting.
,,Live well, Vivec. May your glory bring death to your enemies.” The Ordinators replied.

,,Welcome back, Master. Lord Vivec is expecting you.”
Morvayn nodded and entered the palace. Despite being called a palace, the room he entered was completely empty. The only thing that caught the attention of any visitor was the man floating above a platform. Lord Vivec himself, the last god of the Tribunal, greeted the kneeling Morvayn.
,,You have returned.” He simply said.
,,I have, lord Vivec. I bring words of victory. In the name of ALMSIVI, the cultists of Ald Sotha shall no longer worship Mehrunes Dagon.”

For a few moments, silence filled the room.
,,You have done well, Morvayn of House Dres. I give you my blessing. I have seen your actions and your service of the Tribunal. I believe that you are the right Dunmer for a very important task. Go to the city of Sentinel in the province of Hammerfell. There, the king of Sentinel shall hold a competition to select the best warrior of Tamriel. Though I have no doubts that you would win this competition, I want you to only join as a spectator. Watch the competition and make a selection of warriors you wish to hire for this task. You will have to endure the company of the outlanders. Now go and rest so that you are ready for your journey tomorrow. You will find a letter detailing your task on the desk in your room. Do not open this letter till you arrive in Sentinel. May ALMSIVI watch over you.”
Morvayn rose up from his knees, bowed and left the palace.

As the living god had told him, he found a small black envelope in his room. He kneeled in front of an alcove and began to carefully remove his armour, placing each piece in the alcove. He made a short prayer and lied down on his bed. His body relaxed while he relived his memories.

The skies above Red Mountain were a clear blue with a gentle breeze playing across the slopes. A young man with nothing but a simple brown robe and the wooden staff of a pilgrim walked barefooted through the ashy waste. He held his eyes firmly fixed on the ground and walked along an invisible trail, chanting sacred words of prayer as he went.

The ancient door of a Dwemer ruin invited him and he stepped through it into the darkness.
,,Welcome pilgrim, seeker of the rank of High Ordinator. You have entered a place of many curses and blessings. This is the place were the destiny of the Dunmer was decided. This is the place of the betrayal of Nerevar and the Tribunal by Dagoth Ur. This is also the place of his end at the hands of the equally treacherous Nerevarine. This is a place of hope and a place of tears.” A disembodied voice echoed through the metal corridors.

The pilgrim didn’t speak. He continued his prayers and searched a path into the depth of the ruins.
,,It all began in the beginning. Kagrenak, mastersmith of the Dwemer, created an abomination. The Tribunal and their mortal companions, Nerevar of House Indoril and Dagoth Ur, set out to fight the Dwemer and destroy their evil creation. After a long and hard battle in which many Chimer fell, the Tribunal claimed victory and all Dwemer turned to dust. Nerevar and Dagoth Ur entered the citadel where they found the heart of Loknar, which was said to grant great powers to its master. Nerevar left his friend at the heart and left to seek the advice of the Tribunal. The Tribunal decided that the heart should be destroyed for the safety of all.”

A long death Centurion sat against the wall. Its lifeless eyes seemed to stare at the passing pilgrim.
,,When they returned, the heart was gone and only Dagoth Ur remained. The power of the heart had claimed the man’s sanity and in a rage, he killed Nerevar. He then attacked the Tribunal, but was defeated by their immortal hands. All seemed well and the Tribunal led the people through the ages. Chimer turned into Dunmer, mountains grew, rivers dried and islands sank. In their wisdom, the Tribunal constructed the Ghostfence with the sacred souls of the Chimer who had fallen at Red Mountain.”

The pilgrim passed the corpse of a deformed man. No living creature dared to consume the cursed remains.
,,Then, bad signs for the future came. Ash filled the sky, foul creatures roamed the land. The Tribunal contained the problem within the fence and waited for prophecy to be fulfilled. Finally, the day the destiny of the Dunmer would be decided arrived. A ship arrived at the Bitter Coast. With it, it brought a man marked by destiny. This man was known as Luper Alkad, a Redguard born at a certain time to unknown parents. With the power of Akatosh flowing through his veins, he was called Nerevarine by the Ashlanders and Hortator by the Great Houses of Vvardenfell. Luper Alkad received the blessing of the Tribunal and defeated Dagoth Ur who had survived the wounds the Tribunal inflicted on him so long ago. Only the power of the heart had kept him alive.”

The pilgrim entered a cavern beneath the ruins at the heart of the mountain. There, he stoppd to prepare himself for what awaited beyond the door.
,,Sadly, the evil that had claimed Dagoth Ur also claimed this Luper Alkad. With the power of Akatosh, blessed by Azura and with the evil of the heart, he travelled forth and slayed the Tribunal gods Almalexia and Sotha Sil. He then turned on Vivec, last god of the Tribunal. Helped by the souls of his fellow gods, Vivec gravely injured the Redguard and forced him to flee. Luper Alkad would live the rest of his life in exile till this life was finally claimed by Mehrunes Dagon in the Imperial capital, Cyrodiil.”

The pilgrim took a deep breath and entered the final room, the room where the heart had been. He crossed a rope bridge suspended above the lava and arrived at a shrine in the center.
,,I greet you, pilgrim. Take the armour of the High Ordinator. When wearing this armour, never allow your face to be seen by the living. With this armour, people shall no longer know you as Morvayn of House Dres. They shall know you as High Ordinator, the hand and voice of the Tribunal.”

With calm movements, Morvayn removed his robe and threw into the magma below. His staff followed. He kneeled in front of the shrine and gave his words of thanks. He then took up the red armour of the High Ordinator and the sacred Ebony Saber, the ‘Word of ALMSIVI’. He was now the highest ranking Ordinator alive.