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753: The World Shivers (1)

It was a natural disaster brewing over the skies of Hjaalmarch, something that caused great distress to the people who lived nearby the area. The skies darkened and an off-season storm started to form above the old ruins in the southeastern peaks of the city of Morthal.

In dark times such as this, people would hide in their homes and pray for their Gods but as it seemed like something that may have been evoked by the wrath of the Gods, the people turned to the most knowledgeable and wisest of the residents of the city, Jarl Idgord Ravencrone, whom they scorned for long because of her turbulent visions.

But no matter how they begged her to come and see them, Idgord the Younger kept blocking the doorway to the Jarl's Longhouse, Highmoon Hall, saying that the Jarl wasn't feeling like seeing visitors and dismissed as many of the townsfolk as she could, telling them all to stay in their homes, look their doors, and prepare for the storm as they normally do. She then left the guards to deal with the rest of the townfolk and dismissed them in an orderly fashion.

After closing the door behind her, Idgord the Younger rushed back to her mother's chambers and saw her father, Alsfur, standing over the door, skipping back and forth.

"Have the people settled?" He asked.

"I am not sure, but most of the mob have backed down." She said and looked around the place, "You dismissed all the guards?"

"I barely managed to convince Gorm to take the guards and check over the people near the mine. Legate Duilis went out on his own to send reports to the camps around the hold."

"Father, this storm isn't something we can handle."

"We're just normal people, kid. What we can do is limited to what we can affect." Alsfur said and sat on the side of the hearth nearby, "One man shouldn't know more disasters than what he is meant to deal with. In a world where nothing is unknowable to anyone, the minds of people shall collapse from knowing way more than they should."

"I don't get it, father." Young Idgord followed her father and asked.

"Your mother… your brother… you saw what they are like in times like these."

"I… I see."

"The Gods deliver both blessings and curses equally in all societies, whether it is a village like Rorikstead or the Grand Imperial City, people there get their fair share of turbulence in their life. Troublesome but enough for their lives. When the barriers of unknowing collapse whether it is the Sight your mother and brothers have or by… an influx of grim news traveling left and right, things won't be good for a lot of people."

"I see." Idgord understood what her father meant, "You're saying that whatever trouble is outside our reach, we shouldn't go looking for it."

"It would be… crazy… wouldn't it?" Alsfur said the word "crazy" which always causes a stir in this particular house whose half its residents are already accused of madness.

Her father's logic is simple. People shouldn't know more than they should, or else they will be in distress and agony from the troubles they can't resolve with their power.

Idgord the Younger opened the door to her mother's chamber only to see her old mother cowered in a corner, shivering, muttering, disheveled, eating her own nails until blood started dripping. Idgord Ravencrone was in no way, shape, or form fitting to take care of herself at the moment, let alone govern.

Alsfur came behind his daughter and patted her shoulder, as they knew there was nothing they could do but wait for this phase to pass. As they closed the door on the stricken Jarl, they could only feel their hearts quiver with worry over her state, especially with the words she kept muttering.

"… One shall rise and ten shall fall…

… He is one they were nine…

… they were eight, now they are seven, six, no, five…

… he devours, heaven smites, thunder, thunder, feel the thunder…

… heavens… heavens… what he is doing…

… he's tearing heavens… shattering the mountain…

… leave the mountain be… it is my mountain…

… He's passing them… he's not… he will…

… Eight Divines, they were Nine…

… Each Divine is a Gate…

… Pass the Gates…

… Pass the Gates…

… Pass the Gates…

… The Gate of Craft… The Gate of Wisdom… The Gate of Mercy… The Gate of Joy… The Gate of Love… The Gate of Heavens… The Gate of Death… The Gate of Dragon…

… They are calling…

… They are opening…"

A prophecy of that scale was never witnessed by the Ravencrone family ever before. Alsfur and Idgord the Younger don't share the gift that Idgord the Elder and Joric have but they know better than anyone how to take care of those two and how to understand them.

Alsfur looked at his daughter who went ahead and opened the door to Joric's room.

He wasn't much of a speaker, that Joric. He was an expressionist, though, and his expressions were art.

"Is that… blood?" Alsfur asked.

"He kept asking for it so I brought him red dye from the dyer. Don't let him know though, he'll get upset." Idgord the Younger spoke.

Joric had his room all painted with the paint he thought to be blood. The smell was different but a little child like him knew little of the real smell and feeling of blood and couldn't distinguish it from the red dye.

As for what he did with the dye, he drew things that couldn't be understood all over the walls of his room. A figure with long limbs standing in the middle, many smaller figures spread around him, then some monsters of distinctive reptilian shapes, all surrounded by an uneven line that resembled the shape of the Skyborn peak, not too far to the southeast.

It was hard to distinguish the meaning of these drawings but that mountain peak drawing made some sense in a way.

Something has disturbed all the seers in Skyrim, something powerful and terrible that it weighed on all their minds. Something was happening at the Skyborn peak and it was no mortal affair.

Idgord closed the door, fastened her bag, grabbed her knife and her father's axe, and snuck through the marshlands, away from the guards' patrols.

If people can no longer find comfort from all the discomfort that happens in the world, they must seek that comfort in discomfort. And just like her father said, there is only so much bad news people can take before falling into agony, good news had to be brought in order to bring balance and what is better than the direction one expects the least?

***

Idgord the Younger traveled east and spent an hour crossing what seemed to be an endless marshland. Any resident of Morthal, especially less Idgord the Younger, was already an expert in navigating the marshes by the time they came of age and she had keen eyes for those shallow lands. She knew where to find the marsh fishes and how to avoid the mud crab dens and some of the lesser abominations that lurk over the place.

But as she crossed the marshes to the solid ground beyond, it was alien to her as she never ventured this far from home, and the territories near the mountain were always defiant to the influence of the Jarl of Hjaalmrach. Even for the upcoming Jarl of the hold, Idgord the Younger would be in danger even in this part of the land.

However, she braved through the lands she never walked before, expecting to learn about the land she would govern one day. The first obstacle to meet her, however, was no beasts or rebels, but rather a tower she never heard about or seen anything like before.

A tower built of stone, smoother than that of fortifications, and more expensive than that any she knew. The slaps of stone that the tower was made from weren't even native to Hjaalmarsh for all she knew. However, that wasn't what made her alert about this tower.

Around the tower, she could see many corpses that turned into gray ash, each of which was killed on the spot by a crossbow bolt; all these bolts were probably shot from that tower. Avoiding that tower would be the best course of action but as she tried to step back, a feminine voice called for her.

"Step no further or I will shoot." The voice said.

Idgord the Younger froze in place and trembled from fear. Her aim was to reach the faraway Skyborn peak but to meet a dark fate way before she got there was ironically pathetic.

"Don't shoot. I am unarmed… Well, even if I am, I don't know how to swing them." Idgord said.

Knowing that the woman from the tower, whoever she may be, is an excellent shooter, Idgord the Younger preferred to be honest than play games with someone out of her league.

"Get closer then." The woman from the tower spoke, "Step into that ruin in front of the gate. If you are not a vampire, you will live."

"But I am not a Vampire. I am from Morthal." Idgord replied.

"Hah! That small town has more vampires than a coop has chickens." The woman from the tower replied and then revealed her aimed crossbow from the dark window, "Start moving."

"Alright, alright." Idgord agreed to move and hesitantly reached the star-shaped rune in front of the tower.

Knowing some magical spells, Idgord the Younger was a promising sorceress but still a mere apprentice of the arcane arts. She was barely on the level that would qualify her to enroll in the College of Winterhold but her mother was yet to agree on sending her.

And so, once Idgord stood over the rune, she felt the Magicka around her reacting to her presence and then dying down almost immediately. It made her turn her head left and right as she noticed the arcane energy and was mystified by the complex level of the rune she just witnessed.

"A human? What's a normal human doing here?" At that point, the door to the tower opened and an imperial woman walked in.

"I… I am heading towards the peak." Idgord replied seeing the woman in fancy clothes and holding a crossbow approach her with a nonchalant attitude as if she was no longer threatened by Idgord.

"What peak? That peak?" The Imperial woman frowned and then pointed at Skyborn Peak.

"Yes." Idgord nodded as she held the strap of her bag nervously.

"YOU MAD?" The Imperial woman shouted, "Dragons are up there! Dragon Cult! Big scary fucking reptilians that want to eat everyone!"

"I know what a dragon is, Lady. I've seen one even." Idgord replied while on defense.

"I don't know whether you're brave or stupid but for all its worth, don't go there. We're just normal people. You're not fucking… Jon Dare." The Imperial woman said with an upset face and turned back into the tower.

"You… you know the Dragonborn?" Idgord asked while almost chasing the Imperial woman into her tower.

"My fucking ex." The Imperial woman said and allowed Idgord inside her tower, "Until he got my cousin killed that is. I loved him so much, Jon. But he's just… ARGH! Why did you remind me!"

Seeing the Imperial Woman through a fit, Idgord was shocked for a second before narrowing her eyes.

"He got your cousin killed?" She frowned and looked at the woman, "One of Jon Dare's lovers… oh! You can't be…"

"Sigh! Yeah, yeah, let it out of your system." The Imperial woman rolled her eyes and kept walking inside the tower.

Idgord couldn't believe whom she just met and chased further in. As she went into the main lobby, she found many fancy items lying around as if it was a dragon's hoard. Imperial flags, portraits of previous Emperors, armor stands, weapon racks, and many expensive furniture."

"I knew you looked familiar. People thought that you died." Idgord said and looked paler than she actually was, "You are Vittoria Vici."

"Here it goes." Vittoria leaned on a large table in the middle of the room and looked at Idgrod, "We've met before, haven't we?"

"Me? No, you probably met my mother. Jarl Idgrod." Idgrod the Younger said.

"Ravencrone?" It was Vittoria's turn to be surprised, "You're the Jarl's daughter?"

"Yes."

"Then… where is your escort?"

"The hold is tearing itself apart with all this storm gathering over the mountain. My mother and my brothers are having visions of something terrible happening over there." Idgrod said.

"And you're just running over there yourself?"

"Someone has to know what is going on over there. All of Morthal is just burying its head in the sand and waiting for disaster to strike. If I go there and see who is causing that, we may be able to prepare."

Idgrod's plan was logical given the situation and Vittoria would commend her courage but she knows better than to send a young girl to her demise on her own.

"Everyone thinks that you were killed at your wedding, how come you are just an hour away from Morthal?" Idgord the Younger asked the question that was burning her curiosity.

"My ex helped me fake my death because he got a tip on an assassin targetting me. It was supposed to be for a few days until the funeral was over and I'll be brought back by some miracle and all but my cousin, the Emperor, came to my funeral, and turns out he was the target all along." Vittoria said and looked away, "I got mad at Jon, left the place he made for me, got this tower called Myr Watch, and have been living here ever since."

"All by your own?"

"I have a teleporter that works on the Dare Dragon Company's teleportation network. I can be at the Imperial City in a blink of an eye if I want to."

"Wow! The Grand Thane is so amazing at what he does." Idgord couldn't help but wonder.

"Argh!" Vittoria got annoyed by how the Nords were simply crazy about Jon to no end.

"You can't be blaming him for the Emperor's murder though, he was trying to save your life and must have got it wrong." Idgord said.

"Jon Dare? Got it wrong? Are we talking about the same dickhead?" Vittoria asked with a hint of anger, "Jon Dare never gets anything wrong, he's the true High King of Skyrim and no one can even breathe without him knowing and I was the one that gave him the keys to the whole damn Tamriel. He plays God whenever he wants, let people kill each other for his own gain or save them for his own gain."

Seeing Vittoria this angry, it can't be said that her anger was unjustified. She lost her cousin, the Emperor, due to Jon's schemes but the wedge that was driven between the two of them prevented her from returning to her normal life.

"Alright. I guess keeping the matter that you are alive is a secret I must keep then." Idgord said.

"Keep it, tell everyone, it's your choice. They'll think you mad if you told them though." Vittoria fired back.

"Given my family history, you mean?" Idgord asked.

"Your words, not mine." Vittoria replied with a sly answer.

"Well, thank you for your hospitality, and good luck for killing Vampires on your own." Idgord turned away, feeling upset for Vittoria to mention her family's situation like that even though she had good intentions of keeping Vittoria's secret.

"Hey, I didn't…" Vittoria felt that she was insensitive but on second thought, she didn't really need to explain herself.

Idgord looked back at Vittoria, showing enough courtesy to face someone when they spoke which made Vittoria roll her eyes.

"You Nords act all brash and have this foolhardy attitude yet you guys are so sensitive."

Vittoria spat out her words but Idgord still turned to leave, taking the direction of the mountain's peak.

"Hey, don't go up there. If not vampires or dragons, it is trolls or giants." Vittoria called.

"I'll manage. After all, your boyfriend is probably up there causing this mess." Idgord said and didn't turn to Vittoria.

"He's what?" Vittoria immediately rushed and held Idgord by her arm, "How do you know?"

Idgord wanted to take her arm off Vittoria's grip but the latter proved to be actually stronger than she looked.

"Let… GO!" Idgord still forced Vittoria's hand off her and then rubbed it while replying, "My mother and my brother have the sight. They can't stop having visions about him and it is weighing on them."

"But… that's impossible. Jon is… you can't predict him with magic or divination. It is part of his powers as Dragonborn." Vittoria explained.

"Then how do you explain my mother sees him killing dragons and absorbing their souls and my brother drawing a man that wards people from dragons all over his room?" Idgord asked.

Vittoria's eyes widened then she looked down and had a deep frown.

"Even the Cult of Ancestor Moth can't predict anything about a Dragonborn without the help of an Elder Scroll." Vittoria muttered and then looked at Idgord, "It may be that an Elder Scroll is at work or something of its scale."

"An Elder Scroll?" Idgord asked, "I have never heard of an Elder Scroll causing a storm!"

"I am no expert about any of this either but when things that shouldn't happen start happening, it is a Jon Dare signature written all over it." Vittoria said and then looked at Idgord with determination, "I am coming with you, let me grab my things."

***

Far into the mountainous terrain of the Skyborn peaks, a ginormous bolt of lightning descended from heaven and split the mountain apart. Its aim was to someone hidden under the peaks and no matter how well protected he was, this Lightning Bolt would do anything to find and smite him even if it had to split Tamriel in half.

Between 10 Dragons, a Dragon Priest, and an army of Dragon Cultists, Jon Dare sat in the middle, protected by a sphere of his power, and attempted to do the craziest move of them all.

For a long long time, he felt that he had hit the wall, not just a regular growth wall but the final wall.

The limit, the lock of the tower, the end of the road for a mortal man, and the beginning of something greater.

In this late stage of the third realm of his cultivation of power, Jon was on the brink of entering its final domain.

[A/n: next chapter, we'll have a recap of Jon's cultivation levels and how they work, as requested in the comments. Look forward to it and don't forget to Vote, Comment, and Review]