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96.93% Dragonborn Saga / Chapter 727: Sloth (1)

Chapter 727: Sloth (1)

Dear Readers,

I am tired of making excuses at this point and I got really drained that past month with Dragonborn Saga. May wasn't the best of months and I spent it writing other projects out of boredom, like I wrote 30 chapters in a complete unpublished novel for no goddamn reason and around 8 chapters in other projects. When it comes to Dragonborn Saga, it just gets stuck in my chest.

Either way, I've decided to continue with "Relife System: the Unholy Mage" where we left off and it's been going well. To those of you who were reading RSTUM, it is back for good and no paused ISA.

Dragonborn Saga will continue now as well for a certain reason. I've got a new Life Update for it that I'm excited to share but I'll let it cook up for a bit before that.

As for now, Enjoy the Chapter~

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There are certain complications regarding fighting the First Dragonborn as well as many advantages and disadvantages Jon needed to take into consideration.

First, Miraak is powerful but a bit slow. Many ages in Apocrypha as the Champion of Hermaeus Mora have indeed taken their toll on him but they have most certainly involved many trials and tribulations so that Miraak doesn't completely become rusty. Second, Miraak is proficient in both combat and magic, just like Jon, and the two are specialized in Thu'um which makes them a very awkward match.

Jon has tried to delve deeper into the historical records about Apocrypha back at the College of Winterhold but he found no reference to the Champion of Hermaeus Mora for ages and no information about his Labors or such things. This doesn't necessarily have to be true but one can only assume that Miraak has had no human interaction for thousands of years.

On the other hand, many people tend to get lost in Apocrypha and it is hard to be sure of whether or not they run into Miraak.

Then there were those puny cultists of Miraak who were previously pirates from outside Solstheim. This means that Miraak has managed to make contact with the outside world somehow but to what extent?

There was no way of knowing but Jon wanted to analyze his opponent on a deep personal level. Miraak is 5000 years old, one of the very few mortals older than Lord Divayth Fyr. Once such an entity is understood, Jon can and will get under his skin.

This is a Dragonborn vs Dragonborn spar. Miraak had all the time and knowledge in the world and Jon must triumph over him using 21 years worth of practice and planning.

Jon is both prepared and fated to attain as much power as he seeks, while Miraak has had years of God knows what experience. This will be a fight with everything.

"And so I am planning on heading far North."

"The land is freezing this time of year. You sure you don't need anyone guiding you?" Frea asked.

"This is something that will be dangerous for even me so I'll need your people to keep clear from that part of the island no matter what." Jon made his demand.

Earlier, the trio of Jon, Wulfur, and Frea made it out of the Temple to the western part of the island near the Wind Stone. From there, it was a small distance between them and the Skaal Village which they took on foot.

As soon as they arrived at the Skaal Village, they met with the Skall Shamans as well as Alina who established a forward operating point at the Skaal village.

As for Frea, she ran towards her father as soon as she saw him.

"Father! I have returned! There is yet hope!"

But as she saw her father standing with Alina, she halted her steps and approached them with respect.

"Priestess of the Hawk." Frea spoke as she recognized Alina immediately.

"Miss Frea." Alina nodded toward her.

During Jon's travels around Tamriel, Alina has visited the Skaal not once but twice in order to affirm the relationship between the Skaal and the Dares. It wasn't long after Jon and Alina's wedding either and it was officially the time to establish the name of House Dare as a clan and gain recognition of the ancient clans.

"Frea!" Storn Crag-Strider, Head Shaman of the Skaal and Frea's father, turned to his daughter with a face that looked healthier than the last time she left him, "How have you fared in your scouting?"

"I have… learned something." Frea said as she looked around her to see multiple men and women in expensive attires and sitting on the ground where her father and the others were supposed to be maintaining the spell that wards the influence of evil off their village, this made Frea wonder out loud, "I'm sorry, what is going on?"

"The people from the mainland followed the Priestess of the Hawk and Bloodskal to our aid. Two children of our tribe have managed to reach their land." Shaman Storn replied, "They brought many mages with them to help us."

Seeing the mages maintaining the spell which drove her father and the other clansmen to exhaustion.

"So… have you found a way to free our people?" Crag asked his daughter.

"No, but I have brought someone who has seen things... He has confirmed that Miraak is indeed behind the suffering of our people." Frea replied.

"I feared that it would be so." Crag's face darkened as he looked with visible dread away from his daughter.

"But how is that possible? After all this time..." Frea asked yet she was interrupted.

"I fear there is too much we do not yet know." Crag said but as he was about to turn away, he spotted the approaching Jon Dare.

"Bloodskal!"

"Shaman Storn, we meet again!" Jon walked closer to the much shorter man.

"I believe it was you who ventured deep into the temple with my daughter." Crag asked.

"Aye!" Jon nodded, "I had to resort to some unorthodox methods in order to infiltrate the Daedric Influence deep in the temple."

"Daedric influence?" Crag asked worriedly, "Wasn't it Miraak?"

"In this particular situation, it is all one and the same." Jon said.

Jon then explained what was going on really and how Miraak, the former Dragon Priest of the Ancient Dragon Cult in the Merethic Era, has turned against his masters and ruled them by his voice as the first known Dragonborn. This somewhat went in line with what Storn Crag-Strider had knowledge of.

Jon added some details about the unholy alliance of Miraak and Hermaeus Mora and their apparent aims without shedding light on the real goal of Hermaeus Mora. Rather, he let Storn spill the beans on his own.

"If the old man of the wood, Herma Mora, is the source of Miraak's power as you say, then this has got to be more dangerous than ever before even when looking at how things are now." Crag said.

"Care to elaborate?" Jon said.

"Of course." Crag didn't mind the conversation, "Since times immemorial, the Demon of Knowledge would come to the Skaal in the form of the Greedy Man seeking the knowledge and the gifts given to our tribe by the All-Maker."

"Funny you should!" Jon commented.

"Excuse me?"

"The Skaal secrets. Aside from the Shamanism of your people, I wouldn't think any mundane knowledge would be that interesting to Hermaeus Mora unless it is about something you deeply guard and consider a secret or a taboo." Jon said.

"I can't say you are off the mark but you are not entirely correct either." Storn replied.

"That's a sly answer. You are either truthful or you're pushing me off the trail. I can't tell." Jon mumbled, then looked at Alina, "You?"

"I believe it is rude to nitpick people's secrets, husband." Alina gave Jon a solemn stare.

"Sorry." Jon backed off then turned to Storn, "While I can't speculate what secrets you want to protect, which is funny since they are secrets, I'll help you guard them." Jon said.

"That's generous of you. We only asked for you as a friend to help us and save our lives, I don't believe guarding our secrets is of any interest to you." Storn replied.

"You are wrong." Jon said before putting on an evil grin, "Just making Hermaeus Mora agonize over something is enough payback for what he has done with me. I'll lend you my strength so don't do anything suicidal like trading your secrets for your people's salvation or anything. I have enough leverage to blackmail Hermaeus Mora."

"Sacrifice myself?!" Storn seemed puzzled but Jon was unbothered, "Would it really come to that?"

"What my husband was saying is that he has his ways to deal with this situation so he was advising not to do something reckless before consulting with us for safer alternatives." Alina translated for the people.

Jon meant something else, though. In the game, Storn Crag-Strider gives his own life to Hermaeus Mora in order to give the Dragonborn a fighting chance against Miraak. Jon would be greatly bothered if this was to happen even though it is of vital importance.

With his many attempts to alter Fate through many trials and errors, he can say the most efficient way to evade the game scenarios from forcing themselves on him is to act in unexpected ways but still be casual and not rigid when it comes to manipulating the events around him.

Now, why is this important?

The simple answer is that his enemy is Hermaeus Mora, the Daedric Prince of not only knowledge but also Fate. His sphere of power is forbidden knowledge, destiny, and the scrying the tides of Fate, weaving his way through the past and future as reading in the stars of heaven, and in whose dominion are "the treasures of knowledge and memory".

One thing to note while contending against such an opponent is that no matter what cards one shall pull out, it is impossible to be unpredictable. When one is predictable in a fight, one is destined to lose. That, however, isn't set in stone. A natural disaster can be predicted to ruin a town in its wake and the town can do nothing if it can't prevent the natural disaster.

In other words, Jon needs to be the disaster.

"So, how will this go?" Wulfur joined the conversation in order to hasten up the plan.

"Miraak is a dangerous foe, a Dragonborn. Still, there is such a legend that stands among us today. Bloodskal." Storn turned to Jon, "This means that you and Miraak are connected, two Dragonborns, the two sons of the Dragon."

Two sons of the Dragon, the wording left those who heard it with terrible thoughts.

"What does it mean if Jon and Miraak are Dragonborns existing in the same era?" Alina asked.

"I am unsure. It may mean that he could save us, or it may mean that he could bring about our destruction. But our time here is running out. The few of us free of control cannot protect ourselves for much longer." Storn said and turned to Jon, "You must go to Saering's Watch. Learn there the word that Miraak learned long ago, and use that knowledge on the Wind Stone. You may be able to break the hold on our people there, and free them from control."

The words of the "Bend Will" shout, the first word "Gol" which means Earth.

All eyes landed on Jon at that moment.

"I learned that word many years ago." Jon said, "It is the word I used to turn Jarl Korir from the vile scum he once was to the decent Jarl he is today."

This reply shocked everyone present. Never have they thought Jon has learned it all along.

"A Power that can turn the hearts of men?" Frea asked.

"And rule over Dragons too." Jon added, "I only know one word and I only used it once. I need two more words for it to be completed."

Such a terrible power indeed.

"But wait! Doesn't this mean that you can free our people now?" Storn asked.

"Yes. I can start working on that right away but things have to happen in a certain order." Jon said, "Once I start taking down the shrines that are built around the stones of the All-Maker, our enemy will be impatient and will release his enslaved dragons on the island. I don't think things will go smoothly afterward."

"What is it that you need then?" Storn asked.

"I'll create a weapon, something that even Miraak will be helpless against." Jon said, "From you, I need a map to the northern parts of Solstheim and I need a guide."

"A map and a guide, I can do that." Frea said.

"The map for me, the guide for Wulfur." Jon said.

"We're doing it, huh!" Wulfur mumbled.

"I'm not sure I am following." Frea said.

"Guide Wulfur to as many Stalhrim deposits on Solstheim as you can. I'll need a large amount of it. The more, the better." Jon said, "As for me, I will venture to the north and visit an old far off relative of my kin."

Jon's words were cryptic but a few knew the truth in them. Jon is a Nord with the blood of giants, or rather, the Giants and the Nords have always been relatives, it is just that the Firemanes are closer to the Giants than any.

As for that relative Jon was talking about, he was referring to an old being that was slumbering in the farthest peaks of Solstheim for ages. A being of sloth that when awakens, the world itself trembles in its wake.

It is time for Sloth.

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A/n: Help me reach my Goal on P4treon & Join Discord! ➡️ https://linktr.ee/donovel or Google "Donovel Linktree" ⬅️


next chapter

Chapter 728: Sloth (2)

A/n: Help me reach my Goal on P4treon & Join Discord! ➡️ https://linktr.ee/donovel or Google "Donovel Linktree" ⬅️

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Was Jon ready to face this one? He can't really say there is anything ever ready… for THAT.

That was a new kind of insanity even for him.

He faced dragons and many monsters and mortals that could do things unbelievable but nothing was anywhere close to this one. It was simply too one-sided at this point.

But despite everything, Jon felt something he couldn't feel in a long time.

He was exhilarated!

This fight was everything he wished for.

Jon Dare and the Six Sins against one of the strongest in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Karstaag.

***

The day began with Jon taking a map and walking from the Skaal Village to the northern wastes of Solstheim. He was searching for a certain cave which he had to call many familiars in order to find. It was a certain glacial cave filled with all manner of Rieklings, the snow goblinoids that inhabit Solstheim.

Once Jon found the cave, he raided it with a few Flame Atronachs along with the one he was riding and as he cleared it, he found a great skull of a Frost Giant fixed to the icy wall of the cave in what seemed to be a ceremonial location for the Rieklings to worship the owner of that great skull.

"Damn!" Jon exclaimed at the sheer size of the skull.

His memories weren't wrong about the thing's location but its size was a completely different matter altogether. The skull of a giant may indeed be gigantic compared to a human skull but Karstaag's ancient skull was the size of a human on its own. Its height alone can be measured to be 1.8 meters (6 ft in American) and its horns looked sharp and menacing.

Jon was supposed to haul that from this cave to the place he needs it to be in order to get along with his current project. For that, he had to use five Frost Atronachs to transport this skull safely.

As he took the skull with him and walked back up the mountain north of Solstheim, he started preparing all the Sin Artifacts for the big fight ahead.

He had the staff Pride in his left hand all the time and had the Wrath morphing into appearance into that of a bone saber alongside the sword Bloodskal which was dangling on his hip ready to be used any time. He was wearing Greed like a cloak and Gluttony like a sash while envy was in its minimized skull mode floating at behind and casting magic at any minor enemies. As for Lust, she was just humming and singing without doing much.

And as mentioned earlier, Jon had the sword Bloodskal on him. He was wearing his Dragonborn Helm and his armor was the Lord's Mail while wearing the reinforced Boots of the Apostle and his custom-made Mammoth Anchors as his arm bracers. As for his accessory, he was wearing his favorite Ahzidal's Ring of the Necromancy as well as Nurina's Elder Ring, the Bond of Matrimony, and the Cube all as rings. Last but not least, he was wearing Kyne's Greater token and had the Old Man's Coin in his pocket.

So far, Jon hadn't had his entire getup in most of his recent fights including the fight against the elder vampire lord, the Nightmarshal of the Night Legion. He looked like he was about to go to fight for his life and that statement wasn't any bit wrong. In the game and in all the records of history, the mention of Karstaag and Karstaag-men was only a thing that would come in the tales of Atmoran horror.

Jon's next destination was the Castle of Karstaag, a sturdy structure built with large ice walls and unique power. This castle stood tall and gave off a great deal of might on its own accord. Jon chose to skip the caverns which led to the castle and flew right into the main courtyard.

Among the castles one may encounter, Karstaag's castle is the simplest. Four high walls, a gate, and a throne. Nothing could beat that in simplicity. The trick here is that everything is made of Ice that is apparently as eternal as the Stalhrim ice. This sort of material can't be found anywhere else on Nirn, it can't be damaged since it was built by the Karstaag-men, and it can't be replicated.

This is the sort of arena Jon has just stepped into.

At first, he met some resistance from the local Riekling, who were making themselves at home. Somehow, they defended the castle with fury and zeal but their mundane weapons wouldn't even pierce Jon's skin let alone drive him away. A spell here and another there and those pesky things were driven off quite easily.

As for the main course, Jon made sure to bring the skull with him all the way to the great throne at the end of the castle. Once he puts that skull on the throne right next to the bones that are also the remains of the giant Karstaag, Karstaag's spirit will be summoned and it is not any less dangerous than what he was at his prime.

"Wrath, hide somewhere close. Greed and Gluttony, hide in the flanks. Envy, stay back. Pride and Lust, stay close to me."

With his sins in position, Jon lifted the heavy skull and put it on the throne.

"…"

At first, it was quite… oddly quiet.

Jon made sure that the skull is resting in place but as soon as he tried to get an inch closer to it, he felt some cold feeling.

"LUST!"

It was out of nowhere when a storm struck out of nowhere and tens of Ice Wraiths emerged and tried to bite Jon off. Venus of Lust immediately created multiple illusions of Jon in many places as she phased him back a few meters.

Still, those illusions couldn't survive a second and since Jon was now a long distance in the back, he saw the full picture he was missing.

"Mother…fucker!"

The reason why the summoning of Karstaag was delayed a little bit was that it wasn't delayed at all. Karstaag was there the moment his skull was put on the throne, the problem was Karstaag is a ghost with a Swift presence and casts no shadow thus it was incredibly hard to notice when it was standing right above Jon.

Jon gulped and his thoughts started to accelerate but Karstaag's appearance wasn't giving him an easy time acting let alone thinking.

It was a towering giant, a giant among giants, his head was abnormally larger than it should have been in the game and he was a bit chunkier too. [A/n: Bloodmoon canon!]

With a single stomp, a frost storm would brew and it would naturally cause Ice Wraiths to form due to the cold temperature. If Jon wasn't a Nord and had less protective equipment than the ones he's wearing, he'd be in serious trouble.

Jon's first action was to retreat more and chug on an entire flask of Frost Resistance potion, something he hasn't done in a really long while. Once he did that, Karstaag started approaching.

Aside from the terrible size, Karstaag was a menace to look at. His large head had four eyes lined together in two lines of eye sockets and had two great terrible horns with an abnormally high forehead and skull top. Each of its fingers had a sharp claw on its end that could easily make the mountain stones turn to dust when struck against. On top of it all, it had a club made of ice.

And while Karstaag was still a ghost, he didn't feel like an Undead but rather a force of nature. The ghost was fully made of Frost energy rather than being a normal ghastly undead. Jon could explain the reason behind that right away but he had no time to confirm it as a club strike was coming at him.

"Wrath!" Jon called and made his move.

From the sidelines, Odokuro of Wrath, the giant Bone Goliath waved its bone blade as it materialized from the place of its hiding and attempted to slash off Karstaag's arm that was holding the club.

However, and in a display of total control, the upside-down club swing switched its trajectory and struck wrath diagonally. Wrath was completely overwhelmed by that one attack and flew in a crash course towards the wall.

Karstaag may have wasted the attack opportunity that was aimed at Jon but the target was still the target and with the club on a wrong trajectory, Karstaag decided to stomp the ground with his mighty feet.

"Greed!"

Just as Karstaag raised his leg up, a black blur rushed out of nowhere and rammed itself against Karstaag. Sleipnir of Greed in its eight-legged horse form rammed Karstaag with a serious amount of speed that sent Karstaag off balance and made him stagger… almost.

But it was the opening Jon needed.

"Pride!"

On its own, the staff flew near the leg Karstaag was standing on and cast "Grease" on the surface where he stood and Jon immediately zoomed past Karstaag and threw the chains of his Mammoth Anchors at the Giants catching him from his shoulders. Jon then turned his back to Karstaag's back and…

"WULD NAH KEST!"

The Whirlwind Speed shout echoed in the castle court and the towering figure of Karstaag was no longer on its feet. Karstaag crashed down with this simple coordination between Jon and his Sin Artifacts.

"Kitty Cat, hold him down!" Jon shouted with excitement as he finally was able to put Karstaag down.

All that is left now is to go all out beating the fallen Karstaag while Nefertiti binds him by her shadows.

From beneath Karstaag, four great pillars of shadow rose from the ground and turned into four black cat paws which started to entangle the giant right away. It was a very satisfying scene for Jon as he dual-wielded Bloodskal and readied his aura intensively.

But…

"Hooman!"

"Oh boy!"

The ghost of Karstaag wasn't bound by the shadows. In fact, he simply phased through it.

Jon wasn't given time to breathe as Karstaag even dissipated from his location and turned into a storm of sleeting frost.

"Shit! Envy!"

Jon called upon Potema of Envy who was on standby. Her innate ability to deal with ghosts was top tier but that only applies to a ghost that is weaker than her. Her other use is Magicka manipulation.

With a fast spell that caused an echo wave to form, the storm of Karstaag was dispelled and the giant showed itself once again.

This time, it was right behind Jon with his club raised in the air.

Jon looked back and up…

"Goddamn, you're so broken!"

And the club struck.

The sight of the sky was mighty amazing this high. Jon could even see the curvature of planet Nirn at this point.

♪ Who can say where the road goes? ♪

♪ Where the day flows? ♪

♪ Only time! ♪

♪ And who can say if your love grows? ♪

♪ As your heart chose? ♪

♪ Only time! ♪

[ A/n: Only Time by Enya. ]

Historians recorded that this is what Jon heard up there in Heaven.

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A/n: Help me reach my Goal on P4treon & Join Discord! ➡️ https://linktr.ee/donovel or Google "Donovel Linktree" ⬅️


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