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.

[Soulseeker3.0]

good job Trey!!

[minque]

Well now..what a terrible discovery for our Trey, members of his own house being cold-blooded murders like that, now there must be some kind of explanation here and I´m sure he will find it.

The mystery tightens now....and we all wait eagerly for the continuation.

And as usual this is a wonderfully written story, that has brought many hours of greart reading (I´ve started reading it from start again just for the joy of it!)

So at the end let´s do a "jonajosa" :goodjob:

[Fuzzy Knight]

Great done... :goodjob:

[OverrideB1]

Alas poor Trey, he finally discovers that not all Redoran deeds are noble and not all Telvanni power-obssessed Mage-Lords. Do not think that Great House Telvanni has fogotten the Redoran deeds at Shishi... or that they are forgiven.


Superbly written, as always treydog :goodjob:

[treydog]

After I had rested in Shishi, I continued south to Maar Gan and then used the silt-strider to carry me to Ald’Ruhn, Balmora, and finally, Vivec. I could have used the Mages Guild to instantly send me to my destination, but I wanted a chance to consider what was to come next. Although I had no love for the Ordinators or the Temple, I would prefer not to start a religious war in the middle of Vvardenfell’s largest city. Drawing on my experience as a thief, I knew that if I had to fight my way out, it meant that I had failed. The phrasing of Saryoni’s message added to my confusion. The signature showed that he had dictated the letter, so the contents weren’t precisely “secret.” Still, he had done a great deal of rhetorical tap-dancing to avoid committing himself one way or another regarding taking a position on the prophecies. What it had boiled down to was, “we don’t believe it, but we can’t ignore it, so why don’t you come by for a nice chat?” I was sure that the rack, the hot irons, and the pincers would just be there for the sake of atmosphere. Of course, things didn’t have to go the way the Temple expected. At the first sign of trouble, I would Recall out of there and figure out a different way to approach the Sixth Trial.

When I reached the High Fane, I immediately recognized my contact, Danso Indules. She was pacing about with the nervous energy of a cat in a dog kennel. My sudden appearance did nothing for her frayed nerves. She paled and looked around as if expecting to be struck by lightning just for standing near me. Gesturing urgently, she retreated into the shadowed passageway that ran through the High Fane and hissed,

“The archcanon is in his private quarters, and he very much wishes to speak with you, but I am to warn you... avoid confrontations with the Ordinators at all costs. The archcanon has spoken with the High Fane Ordinators, but if you are a wanted criminal, they may try to arrest you. If the blood of faithful servants of the Temple is spilled, it will make a reconciliation all that much more difficult.”

That was ironic, insisting that I come to Vivec, the base of the Ordinators’ power, and then warning me to avoid them. And on top of that, Saryoni had to know about the public notice that Berel Sala was circulating. If the archcanon was so concerned with secrecy and avoiding confrontations, why hadn’t he suggested a meeting at some out-of-the-way Temple? Just like his letter, this was a sign of a man who wanted to sit on the fence. He had to see me for himself, particularly if he really had read the Apographa, but he wanted to be able to whistle up a company of Ordinators if the conversation took a turn he didn’t like. He was a typical politician, trying to have things both ways, without making a decision. I decided to have mercy on Danso Indules before she died of nervous exhaustion, and asked her about the best way to reach Saryoni’s quarters. She rattled off a couple of different possible paths and then positively scurried away from me, casting fearful looks all about.

A Potion of Shadow got me past the Ordinator at the door to the High Fane, and a bit of creative sneaking carried me down the corridors to the outer door of the Archcanon’s quarters. Unable to resist a little enjoyment at the Temple’s expense, I renewed the Shadow effect and knocked loudly on the door, then stepped to one side. As soon as the door was flung open, I slipped inside, stifling a chuckle as the Temple bureaucrat peered up and down the corridor. Finally, he muttered a most un-priestly phrase and slammed the door. While he was thus occupied, I had made my way to the inner door, which I quickly saw was locked. With the room’s two occupants so close by, I didn’t want to risk trying to twiddle the lock with one of my picks or take the chance that they would sense the release of energy from an unlocking spell. Of course, my Shadow potion was going to wear off soon, so I had to do something…. The ruse I had used to get into the outer office suggested a possibility, so I imbibed a potion that gave me the power of Telekinesis. That allowed me to manipulate the door on the other side of the room, swinging it open without touching it. This time, both the Temple functionaries stormed over to see what was going on, and I quickly spelled open the inner door and slipped inside.

With a word, I dispelled the Shadow effect and made a mocking bow to Tholer Saryoni, adding,

“I believe you had requested my presence over a small matter concerning the source of the Tribunal’s power?”

My lack of respectful obeisance and my choice of an opening topic caused the already pinched lines of the Archcanon’s face to deepen still further. Perhaps I should have been more respectful, but I knew that this man had the power and the knowledge to have mitigated the worst excesses of the Ordinators- and had done nothing. If he expected me to throw myself on the Temple’s “mercy” he was in for a very long wait. Seeing that I was going to be stubborn, Saryoni heaved a great sigh and began, first with an attempt to justify his untenable position,

“The Temple must protect the people from false doctrines. And your association with Imperial intelligence makes your motivations and integrity suspect. But you have been chosen Hortator and Nerevarine by the Dunmer people. And we have reached a crisis with Dagoth Ur. We can no longer defend the people against the awakened Sixth House. You and your prophecies may represent our last hope. Perhaps it is time the Temple changed its doctrine regarding the Nerevarine. Lord Vivec wishes to meet with you.”

That was rather like a man whose leg was being gnawed off deciding it was time to “change his doctrine regarding wolves,” but it was at least a start. And I would believe in that change when I saw it; nothing in the Temple’s history made me feel much like trusting their sincerity. But I was here for one reason only- the “god” Vivec had something I needed. If things went well, he would give it to me voluntarily. If not- it might be time to test the “immortality” of the Tribunal. And that might be good practice before I faced Dagoth Ur, who had also gained his corrupt power from the Heart of Lorkhan. Of course, I did not mention any of those thoughts to Saryoni, but simply indicated my willingness to meet Vivec. Relieved, he straightened and removed some keys from his desk.

“Good. Here are two keys: one to the private back entrance to my quarters, the other to a locked entrance to Lord Vivec's palace. I regret that, at present, the Ordinators are not completely under my control, so, for now, I'll ask you to avoid confrontations with them. Lord Vivec is expecting you. His Lordship is remarkably patient, but perhaps it would be better not to keep him waiting.”

I did not bother to tell the priest that Vivec’s patience or lack thereof was of little concern to me.

[jonajosa]

You always know how to present your work trey. Good as ever.

:goodjob:

[Soulseeker3.0]

I qoute Jona

[quote=jonajosa]You always know how to present your work trey. Good as ever.[/quote]

and I add, nice and fun way of getting past all of the people and into the archcanon's room

[minque]

Ah trey.....you amuse me as ever with your way of describing the events, I particularly enjoyed the following :

[quote]. Perhaps it is time the Temple changed its doctrine regarding the Nerevarine. Lord Vivec wishes to meet with you.”

That was rather like a man whose leg was being gnawed off deciding it was time to “change his doctrine regarding wolves,[/quote]

It gave me a great big laugh....


*note to self: tell LoneWolf to read this*


Finally I´ll do a jonajosa: :goodjob:

[Wolfie]

Lol i already read it, i found that line quite amusing
Great qork Treydog

[Dantrag]

I should probably just keep up with this continually because I'm always having to catch up.

Now that I have caught up...AWESOME!!!!!! :goodjob:

[treydog]

When preparing to meet a god, even a being who is only notionally a god, the proper demeanor is important. That demeanor may be considered to include attitude, as well as attire. Given that my fashion sense was hopeless, I didn’t worry too much about the attire- my armor and sword would have to do. That left attitude, something with which I was superbly endowed. I was angry, disrespectful, disdainful, and rebellious. In other words, in the perfect frame of mind to meet “Lord” Vivec. Or so I thought.

When I entered the actual Temple, my assumptions about Vivec were radically revised. From the mannerisms of the Ordinators and high Temple functionaries, I had imagined that Vivec would surround himself with luxury and comfort. What I discovered was a nearly empty dome, lit by a few lamps, and containing no furniture beyond a reading stand. If the lack of creature comforts was surprising, Vivec himself was even more so. He floated in mid-air above a small central platform, clad only in pauldrons, a loin-cloth, a bracer on his right arm and a torque on his left bicep. But even more peculiar was his physical appearance. He had the pointed ears, large eyes, and elongated face of all Mer- but his skin was unique. The right side of his body was the golden hue attributed to the Velothi of ancient times and the left was the ash-gray of the present-day Dunmer. I must admit that I spent several seconds simply gawking at him, wondering what sort of being would choose to appear so, and how it had been accomplished. He endured my scrutiny silently, simply watching me with the eyes of a poet- eyes that appeared even more haunted than my own. At last I shook off my bemusement and said,

“I believe you requested my presence?”

In a surprisingly low voice, he responded,

“I expected you. We have business, you and I.”

“Business? What business might I have with a ‘god’?” (The resentment bubbling inside me had not been completely disarmed by Vivec’s appearance or mild manner.)

“When I was young like you, I was very impatient. So I will keep our business short. Then, later, there may be time for other things. First, I propose to remove my curse upon the Nerevarine, end the persecution of the Dissident Priests, and proclaim to all Morrowind that Trey is the Incarnate and Nerevarine, the prophesied savior of Morrowind, and the last hope to withstand the menace of Dagoth Ur and the Sixth House. These things I will do, whether you wish or not.”

When I did not reply, he smiled briefly, and continued,

“Next, I propose to surrender to you the power and responsibility of defeating Dagoth Ur. You may choose to refuse; I will not compel you. You will receive the power as a gift, in the form of an artifact called 'Wraithguard." You may accept the gift, then do with it as you will. You will receive the responsibility as an oath. You may give your oath, then keep it or break it as you like. First, will you accept Wraithguard as a gift?”

Such a straightforward offer was not something I had experienced very often since coming to Vvardenfell. Vivec was offering me a way out from the Temple’s persecution, but balancing it with the responsibility of defeating Dagoth Ur. Oh, and he was going to give me a “gift.” That was the one part of his offer that rang false; after all, I had already had experience of the sorts of “gifts” the gods tended to give mortal men. They were almost always very expensive gifts, both in terms of their monetary value and what they cost the person foolish enough to accept them. Still, I was committed to defeating Dagoth Ur in any event, and Nibani had told me that I must go through Vivec to achieve that goal. Therefore, I said, in a slightly less surly tone,

“Very well. I accept your conditions and your gift.”

Again, Vivec surprised me with his directness-

“Not very sensible. But very good. I was hoping for someone who would have no hesitations about making such an oath. You will now have a brief, momentary sensation of time passing. Don't be alarmed. You are being taken out of time in order to avoid the unpleasant experience of learning how to use Wraithguard. It will be over before...”

A darkness came over me, and I felt as if I were floating in a vast emptiness without a sense of weight or direction.

“ ...you know it. Now. I will notify the Temple that you are our champion. There shall be no more persecution of the Dissident Priests, and I hope both sides shall swiftly be reconciled. We have time for questions, if you like. Or you may leave, as you wish. But I think there are at least two things you ought to know before you leave: how to use Wraithguard, and how to defeat Dagoth Ur.”

Though I was disoriented, I was still willing to listen to any advice Vivec could give me. After all, he was the only being on Vvardenfell who had firsthand knowledge of Dagoth Ur. Whether I trusted him or not was beside the point- I HAD to have his knowledge.

“How do you advise me to defeat Dagoth Ur?”

“To defeat Dagoth Ur, go to Red Mountain to recover the artifact hammer Sunder from Gate Citadel Vemynal, then recover the artifact blade Keening from Gate Citadel Odrosal. Then proceed with Wraithguard, Sunder, and Keening to the citadel of Dagoth Ur. Within the citadel, find the Heart of Lorkhan. Use the three artifacts to sever Dagoth Ur's connection to the Heart, and he will be destroyed, and the Blight ended on Morrowind. To do this, strike the Heart with the artifact hammer Sunder once, then strike the Heart more than once with the artifact blade Keening. You must wear Wraithguard, because you cannot handle either Sunder or Keening unless you are wearing Wraithguard. That is the short, simple explanation. Here is the long, detailed explanation, written down for your convenience. Read it, study it, commit it to memory.”

As I absorbed this, I considered what else I might ask. I will not repeat all that passed between us, but Vivec continued to be surprisingly candid. In the course of the conversation, he noted that he had made available certain documents from his personal library. Inveterate bibliophile that I was, I eagerly asked to see the library. Along with the plan for defeating Dagoth Ur and an estimate of Dagoth Ur’s intentions, he mentioned some material regarding the Battle of Red Mountain and the events that led to the creation of the Tribunal.

“I have made available two conflicting accounts of the events of Red Mountain, my own true account, and another false account common among the Ashlanders and preserved in the Apographa. I don't care whether you believe my account or not. I leave it up to you to judge which is true.”

It has been my experience that whenever someone says they don’t care what you believe, that they actually care a great deal. However, I cannot say that I was ever completely able to read Vivec’s moods or meaning. Having met him, he was as much a mystery as ever. With much to consider and much to study, I rather distractedly took my leave and wandered out of the Temple.

[minque]

wow.......amazing this was, I fully understand Trey´s reactions here when meeting Vivec....Now then this is really a wonderful description of the whole thing. So I really don´t know what to say other than....


:goodjob:

[Dantrag]

still great

[jonajosa]

Exactly Dantrag.

:goodjob:

[Wolfie]

Great work Treydog

[Soulseeker3.0]

great Trey

[treydog]

Upon leaving the Temple of Vivec, I experienced a genuine miracle- an Ordinator actually spoke to me in a civil fashion. He hailed me as the champion of Morrowind and expressed hope that the orthodox Temple and the Dissident Priests would soon be reconciled. In that, at least, Vivec had been truthful. As to the rest, only time and events would tell. I wanted to look over the material he had given me, but not here. I could not forget the “public notice” that Berel Sala had sent around, naming me an outlaw and otherwise dangerous character. All it would take was one overzealous guard or citizen with a crossbow and no one’s plans would matter any longer. Moving purposefully, but without running, I reached the Mage Guild and was teleported to Ald’ruhn. I still maintained a room in the Mage Guild there, and also felt most at home in the Redoran Council town. Then too, that was as close to the Urshilaku camp as the Mage’s Guild could send me. Once I was settled behind a closed and locked door, I laid out all of the items Vivec had given me. There was the bracer called “Wraithguard,” as well as a number of documents. True to my nature, I turned first to the written material. The summary regarding Dagoth Ur’s probable intentions and plans was frightening, largely because it appeared to be an honest assessment, without the usual Temple rationalizing and justification. It spoke directly about the Tribunal’s dependence on the Heart of Lorkhan for their power and of their loss of two of Kagrenac’s Tools, Sunder and Keening. The Temple believed that Dagoth Ur’s ultimate goal was to build and animate a mechanical god, imbued with the power of the Heart, and known as Akulakhan or Second Numidium. He and his ash vampire kin, or “heartwights,” would then become the head and high priests of a theocracy built around the “new god.”

There was a great deal more, but what it came down to was this: Dagoth Ur was powerful, immortal, and insane. The only way to render him vulnerable was to sever his link to the Heart. And, just for fun, he tended to never leave the Heart chamber and had had years to prepare for an attack. Having learned enough from that to realize that the future did not look very promising, I decided to turn to the past. The two accounts of the Battle of Red Mountain were quite similar, although Vivec’s “history” contained a great deal of self-justification and rationalizations about why the Tribunal used the power of the Heart. The other glaring difference was that Vivec’s story completely omitted any mention of Nerevar’s death, to the point of never even stating that he had died. He just disappeared from the tale at a certain crucial juncture. The Ashlander account explicitly stated that Almalexia, Sotha Sil, and Vivec poisoned Nerevar in order to carry out their intention of making themselves into gods. The purported method of the poisoning also offered an explanation of Azura’s involvement- the deed was done under the guise of preparing for a ritual to summon the goddess herself. I did not find it hard to make a judgment between the two stories, given the known facts. Fact- the Tribunes became “gods.” Fact- Vivec acknowledged that their power came from the Heart and Kagrenac’s Tools. Fact- Nerevar opposed the use of the Heart. Fact- Nerevar died under Red Mountain. Although my grasp of logic might have been questionable, I could only reach one conclusion that fit the facts. But, for now, that conclusion was beside the point. Whatever the Tribunal might have done in the past, Dagoth Ur was a danger of the present. And in truth, I felt no great kinship to Nerevar, even if I was supposed to be his reincarnation. Everything I had experienced caused me to rather doubt the whole “Incarnate” business, to believe that it was all a manipulation by Azura. If she wanted me to avenge Nerevar’s murder, she was going to be disappointed. I would fight Dagoth Ur, because the people of Morrowind and Tamriel needed me, and because I had been marked to do the job. But I would not be a hired sword, not even for a goddess.

Taking a few moments to rein in my anger, I next turned to Wraithguard. It was a lovely piece of the armorer’s art, crafted from Dwemer metal and inscribed over its entire surface. My innate ability to sense enchantment was hardly necessary to determine that the bracer was also imbued with powerful protective magic. Although the individual protections were not particularly strong, the sheer number of them, and the fact that they did not require “recharging” showed that this was an artifact of extreme value. I could well believe that it had been crafted by Kagrenac himself. More important was the fact that Wraithguard was essential if I was to survive handling the other two Tools. And Sunder and Keening were essential to the plan to defeat Dagoth Ur. Unfortunately, the Tribunal, in their own mad quest to sustain their power, had managed to lose those artifacts in the citadels of Red Mountain. One thing I wondered about a great deal. The plans for defeating Dagoth Ur described what would happen to him when I severed his link to the Heart. However, there was no discussion of what might happen to me. Nor was there any mention made of the effects on the Tribunal. Vivec had admitted that they were growing weaker because they had been unable to renew their own links to the Heart. If I succeeded against all reason, and Dagoth Ur no longer stood in their way, what might the Tribunal do? Would they not yield to the temptation to use the tools again? Would they not go so far as to murder the “savior of Tamriel,” making up a suitable story about his “heroic sacrifice?” After all, they had done as much before when they had made themselves immortal.

As I had known they would, all of the paths I might follow led me to Red Mountain, that smoking ruin of a peak in the middle of the blighted lands. Before I went there, though, I would speak to Nibani Maesa again. She had been my guide throughout this journey into madness; perhaps her wisdom would show me a way out the other side.

[Soulseeker3.0]

congrats trey on agian giving us all a great story to read!

[Dantrag]

awesome