If you want to read 20 Chapters ahead and more, be sure to check out my P-Tang12!!!
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(A/N: Don't forget to give those power stones to Skyrim everyone!)
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Aerion flexed his shoulders, feeling incredibly light despite the heavy dark robes and the devastating Black Prism at his hip. "The rest of the enemy are cleared," Aerion announced, looking around the massive, ash covered chamber. He turned his golden eyes toward the three dormant pedestals scattered across the different elevations. "Now, let us align the light and finish this."
The massive, three story chamber was completely silent, save for the faint, continuous hum of the divine laser beam striking the central crystal. Thick, black ash coated the stone floors, the only remaining evidence of the massive horde of corrupted shades they had just eradicated.
Aerion stood in the center of the ground floor, his golden eyes sweeping over the complex architecture, mapping out the most efficient route. He needed to align the three dormant pedestals scattered across the different elevations to guide Meridia's light to the main door.
"The first pedestal is directly ahead, on the elevated wooden platform," Aerion pointed, identifying the easiest target.
He and Jenassa walked across the ash covered floor, approaching a series of thick, ancient wooden log stairs built into the stone architecture. They ascended the rustic steps quickly, arriving at a wide, sturdy wooden balcony overlooking the ground floor.
Resting in the center of the wooden planks was the first dormant pedestal.
Aerion stepped up and pressed both hands firmly against the heavy stone housing. With a deep, resonating rumble that shook dust from the rafters, the internal gears engaged. The stone top retracted, and the flawless crystal sphere locked into place.
Instantly, the blinding beam of white light from the central crystal struck the newly exposed sphere. The light fractured, sending one brilliant beam directly down to the heavy iron main door on the ground floor, illuminating a locking rune above it. A second beam shot diagonally across the massive chamber, striking a receiver near a closed iron door on the second level.
With a loud, echoing clack, the iron door on the second level slowly swung open.
"One down, two to go," Aerion noted, turning away from the pedestal. "Let us move. The path continues through that newly opened door."
They retraced their steps, navigating the stone ramps and suspension bridges to reach the second elevation. They stepped through the iron doorway, leaving the massive central chamber behind and entering a narrow, dimly lit stone hallway.
They hadn't taken twenty steps before the temperature plummeted again. Waiting for them in the adjacent room was a small detachment of corrupted shades, wielding rusted iron maces and axes.
"I have these, Patron," Jenassa declared, her voice a low, lethal gravel.
She didn't wait for Aerion to cast a spell. The Dark Elf assassin surged forward, a blur of malachite and steel. She ducked under a wild, sweeping axe strike from the lead shade, driving her Orcish Dagger directly up into its ethereal jaw while simultaneously sweeping her Frost Steel Sword across the midsection of a second shade.
The entities shrieked and dissolved into ash before they could even mount a coordinated defense. Jenassa moved with absolute, terrifying efficiency, dismantling the small group in brutal close quarters combat in less than ten seconds.
Aerion walked past the settling ash, nodding approvingly at his bodyguard's lethal prowess.
At the far end of the room was a heavy, ancient wooden door, reinforced with rusted iron bands. It looked entirely unassuming, blending perfectly into the dungeon architecture.
However, Aerion's transmigrated meta knowledge immediately flared with a harsh warning. He remembered the layout of Kilkreath Temple perfectly.
"Hold, Jenassa," Aerion commanded sharply, raising a hand just as the Dark Elf reached for the iron ring.
Jenassa froze instantly, her hand hovering an inch from the handle. "A trap, Patron?"
"A highly lethal one," Aerion confirmed, his golden eyes scanning the stone floorboards directly in front of the door. "The pressure plate is linked directly to the door's hinges. The moment that door swings open, a phalanx of heavy iron spears will thrust violently upward through the floorboards. It is designed to impale whoever is standing in the threshold."
Jenassa pulled her hand back, a look of profound respect crossing her face. "How do we bypass it?"
"Speed and distance," Aerion instructed calmly. "Stand back, out of the immediate threshold radius. Use the flat of your longsword to push the door open from a safe distance, and pull your blade back the very instant you apply the force. Do not linger."
Jenassa nodded, understanding the mechanics perfectly. She stepped back, taking up a position to the far left of the doorframe. She extended her Frost Steel Sword, pressing the flat of the heavy blade against the center of the ancient wood.
She took a sharp breath, and violently shoved the sword forward, pushing the heavy door inward, before instantly snapping her arm back.
CREAAAK.... THWACK!
The moment the wooden door swung open, a terrifying, deafening sound of heavy iron punching through stone echoed in the small room. A tightly packed row of thick, rusted iron spears shot upward from the floorboards with devastating, lethal force, striking exactly where someone would be standing if they had pulled the door open normally.
The spears remained extended for a fraction of a second before the heavy counterweights engaged, retracting the iron spikes back beneath the floorboards with a loud clatter.
"Clear," Aerion stated calmly, stepping carefully over the perforated stone tiles and entering the small, hidden room.
It was a dedicated treasure vault. Resting against the back wall was a sturdy steel chest.
Aerion crouched before the chest, throwing the heavy lid open. The interior was remarkably well stocked. He bypassed the decayed burial linens and immediately gathered the raw wealth.
[Gold Acquired: 300 Septims. Current Septims: 79,201]
Nestled securely beneath the loose gold were several glowing, humming soul gems. Aerion picked them up, his Enchanter's eye instantly verifying their contents. They were fully charged, brimming with trapped souls ready to be used for forging or recharging magical armaments.
[Items Acquired: Common Soul Gem (Filled) x3, Lesser Soul Gem (Filled) x4]
[Inventory Weight Increased by 0.10 KG. Current Weight: 73.84 / 510 KG]
"A highly profitable detour," Aerion noted, standing back up and seamlessly depositing the items into his spatial void.
They exited the small vault, carefully stepping over the spear trap once more, and took the hallway branching to the left.
The corridor was incredibly dark, the wall sconces having long since burned out. The only light came from the faint, ambient glow of Aerion's lingering Magelight orbs.
Suddenly, Lupin, who was trotting a few feet ahead of them, stopped dead in his tracks. The tiny cinnamon fox lowered his head to the stone floor, his nose twitching wildly, and let out a sharp, urgent yip, pawing at the air.
Aerion halted immediately, looking down at the floor where the fox was indicating.
Stretched taut across the narrow hallway, barely an inch off the ground and completely invisible in the gloom, was a thin, nearly transparent tripwire.
"Good boy, Lupin," Aerion praised genuinely, kneeling down to give the fox a quick scratch behind the ears. The familiar's magical senses were proving to be an invaluable asset in the trapped ruins.
Jenassa looked at the tripwire, tracing the line to a cluster of heavy, sharp iron axes in between the walls in the shadows beside them. "A swinging axes trap. Nasty. I owe the little beast a piece of venison."
"We simply step over," Aerion instructed.
They carefully lifted their boots, stepping cleanly over the taut wire, entirely bypassing the lethal ambush. Lupin hopped over it with effortless grace, his bushy tail wagging proudly.
They continued down the winding stone hall, turning left once more, until they reached the location of the second pedestal.
However, the ancient architecture had failed significantly here. The stone bridge leading directly to the elevated platform housing the pedestal had completely collapsed, leaving a yawning, fifteen foot chasm over a dark, lower level of the ruins.
"The path is cut off," Jenassa observed, looking down into the darkness.
"A minor inconvenience," Aerion dismissed.
Possessing an absolute, monstrous 420 points of Stamina, Aerion's physical capabilities far exceeded mortal limitations. He didn't even need a running start. He stepped up to the jagged edge of the collapsed bridge, channeled kinetic energy into his legs, and simply leaped.
He soared effortlessly across the fifteen foot gap, his dark robes billowing behind him, and landed with a heavy, solid thud on the isolated platform.
He walked up to the second pedestal, slamming his hands onto the stone housing. The gears ground, the crystal rose, and the divine light was instantly caught.
The beam refracted brilliantly, bouncing backward to strike the main central crystal in the grand chamber, which instantly split the light again, sending a beam shooting toward the third and final pedestal on the highest elevation.
With the alignment complete, Aerion turned around and executed a flawless, standing broad jump back across the chasm, landing perfectly beside Jenassa.
"Let us proceed to the third," Aerion commanded.
They followed the newly opened path, passing through a heavy iron door that had unlocked when the second crystal aligned. The hallway emptied into another medium sized antechamber.
The temperature plummeted. A dozen corrupted shades materialized from the walls, their ethereal forms hissing as they drew their dark weapons.
Aerion didn't hesitate. He thrust both hands forward, summoning the blinding, eradicating power of his holy magic.
"Burn in the light!" Aerion roared.
Massive, sweeping beams of Purify erupted from his palms. The small room was instantly bathed in blinding white luminescence. The shades caught in the direct path of the holy magic didn't even have time to swing their weapons, they shrieked and violently boiled away into black ash.
Jenassa moved flawlessly through the chaotic light, cutting down the stragglers that managed to dodge the magical barrage.
The concentrated use of the Restoration magic triggered another rapid wave of systemic growth.
[Restoration (Purify)(+1) Leveled Up 8 Times! Current Level: 36]
"The room is clear," Aerion stated, letting the holy light fade from his hands.
They continued their ascent, walking up a steep set of thick, ancient wooden log stairs built into the far wall. The stairs led to a narrow, elevated hallway that eventually deposited them onto the highest balcony of the massive, three story central chamber they had cleared earlier.
Resting at the very edge of the balcony, perfectly positioned to receive the light, was the third and final pedestal.
Aerion approached it and firmly pressed the stone housing down.
The final crystal sphere rose. The beam of divine light struck it perfectly, bouncing backward with blinding intensity, completely illuminating the massive chamber. The light struck the main, central crystal, which then focused the entirety of its accumulated, refracted energy into a single, blinding laser beam.
The laser shot straight down to the ground floor, striking the massive, heavily sealed iron double doors at the back of the room.
CLACK. BOOM.
The heavy locking mechanisms violently disengaged, and the massive iron doors slowly, ponderously swung wide open, revealing the dark, ominous path leading deeper into the mountain.
"The alignment is complete," Aerion announced, looking over the balcony. "The path to the catacombs is open."
They had to backtrack, navigating the long, winding path down the wooden stairs and stone ramps, returning all the way back to the ground floor of the grand chamber.
They approached the massive, open iron doors. The air pouring out from the darkness beyond was freezing, thick with the smell of death and ancient, undisturbed dust.
They crossed the threshold, officially leaving the outer temple and entering the Kilkreath Catacombs.
The atmosphere shifted instantly. The architecture here was far more oppressive, claustrophobic, and entirely dedicated to the dead. The walls were lined floor to ceiling with small, rectangular burial niches, housing the wrapped, desiccated remains of ancient Nordic priests.
Aerion and Jenassa walked in silence, following the winding, descending stone hallway. They walked down a long, steep flight of stairs, the darkness pressing in around them, until they reached a wide, rectangular room.
Strangely, the room was completely devoid of corrupted shades. The temperature was cold, but it lacked the biting, necrotic chill of an ambush.
Situated directly in the center of the quiet room was another stone pedestal.
Aerion walked up to it and pressed the housing. The crystal sphere rose, catching the ambient divine light traveling through the ceiling channels. The beam refracted, shooting directly across the room to strike a crystal receiver mounted high above a heavily iron banded wooden door.
The wooden door clicked and swung open on its own accord.
"No shades," Jenassa noted, her grip on her weapons tightening. "It is too quiet."
"The calm before the storm," Aerion agreed, his golden eyes narrowing. "Malkoran is consolidating his forces near the artifact. He knows we are coming."
They passed through the wooden door, entering another descending stone hallway. They walked down a final, long set of wide stone stairs, the air growing incredibly foul, smelling of rotting meat and dark, volatile magicka.
At the bottom of the stairs, a set of heavy iron doors stood slightly ajar. A pulsing, sickly purple light emanated from the cracks, violently clashing with the pure, brilliant white light of Meridia shining from the ceiling.
Aerion held up a hand, signaling absolute silence.
He crept toward the slightly open doors, pressing his back against the cold stone wall, and peered through the gap.
The final chamber was massive, serving as the inner sanctum of the temple. The room was utterly infested. A swirling, chaotic vortex of dozens upon dozens of Corrupted Shades filled the lower floor, their ethereal forms hissing and chittering in a terrifying chorus.
But they were merely the vanguard.
Standing on a raised, circular stone dais at the far end of the room was a mortal man. He was dressed in ragged, dark, heavily enchanted robes that seemed to absorb the light around him.
He was currently chanting in a low, guttural, completely alien language, his hands raised as he manipulated thick, swirling tendrils of purple necrotic energy.
Directly behind the man, resting upon a beautifully carved, pristine white stone pedestal, was the prize. It was a longsword of absolutely flawless, breathtaking design.
The golden crossguard was shaped like a sunburst, and a blinding, brilliant sphere of pure white light was embedded in the pommel, fighting desperately against the dark magic surrounding it.
It was the Dawnbreaker.
Jenassa crept up beside Aerion, peering through the crack in the door. Her crimson eyes locked onto the chanting man on the dais.
"Is that him, Patron?" Jenassa whispered, her voice barely a breath. "The one who caused all of this?"
"Yes," Aerion whispered back, his golden eyes cold and analytical. "That is Malkoran. The Necromancer."
Aerion pulled back from the door slightly, turning his head to ensure only Jenassa could hear his tactical assessment.
"We must be incredibly careful how we handle this, Jenassa," Aerion warned, his tone grave. "Malkoran is not a standard, back alley conjurer raising skeletons. To corrupt an entire temple dedicated to a Daedric Prince, and to manipulate the holy light of an artifact belonging to the Daedric Prince, requires a profound, terrifying mastery of the arcane arts. He is extremely dangerous. He will employ highly volatile, destructive magic."
Aerion paused, tapping into his meta knowledge. He knew that when Malkoran's physical body was slain, his dark magic would violently resurrect his soul into a vastly more powerful, heavily armored Shade. He couldn't explicitly explain the game mechanics, but he needed her prepared for the second phase of the boss fight.
"Furthermore," Aerion added darkly, "I can sense the instability of the necrotic energy tethered to his soul. When his physical body drops dead, do not lower your guard. I have a profound feeling that this defiler has something highly lethal up his sleeve. The fight will not be over when he hits the floor."
Jenassa's grip on her bow tightened. She didn't question his intuition. "Understood, Patron. What is the strategy?"
"Absolute, overwhelming force," Aerion dictated softly. "I will advance first. I am going to unleash the absolute maximum output of my purifying magic to systematically eradicate the meat shield of shades protecting him. While I am clearing the horde, I need you to find a vantage point. Use your bow. Keep Malkoran suppressed. Snipe him, interrupt his chanting, and force him to prioritize defense over offense. Do not let him cast."
"Consider him pinned," Jenassa nodded, nocking a heavy steel arrow to her Dwarven Bow.
Aerion turned back toward the doors. He crouched low, engaging his stealth matrices. He wanted to close the distance as much as possible before initiating the chaotic barrage.
He slipped silently through the gap in the iron doors, his dark robes blending perfectly into the shadows of the entrance. He moved with absolute, silent precision, placing his boots carefully to avoid the loose stone and debris.
[Sneak Leveled Up 8 Times! Current Level: 41]
He managed to close the distance to the edge of the lower floor, standing just yards away from the swirling mass of corrupted shades, completely undetected.
He stood up to his full, towering height.
"Jenassa. Now," Aerion commanded, his voice echoing loudly in the cavernous sanctum.
THWIP.
Before Malkoran could even turn his head, a heavy steel arrow, trailing a streak of magical fire, shot across the room and slammed violently into the magical ward shimmering just inches from the Necromancer's shoulder. The impact shattered the ward, violently interrupting his dark chant and forcing the man to stagger backward.
"Intruders!" Malkoran shrieked, his voice ragged and echoing with dark magic. "Kill them! Feed them to the shadows!"
The entire horde of Corrupted Shades turned as one, their glowing white eyes locking onto the High Elf standing in the open. A terrifying, hissing wave of black smoke and rusted iron rushed toward him.
Aerion did not draw a weapon. He didn't flinch.
He planted his feet firmly on the stone floor, drew a massive, expanding breath, and tapped into the absolute depths of his 590 point Magicka pool.
"Let there be light," Aerion roared.
He thrust both hands forward, fingers splayed wide.
The resulting explosion of Restoration magic was catastrophic.
It was not a localized beam, it was a massive, expanding wave of blinding, pure, uncompromising holy light. The wave washed over the front lines of the charging horde like a physical wall of force.
The eradication was instantaneous. The corrupted shades didn't have time to shriek. The moment the holy light touched their ethereal forms, the dark magic binding them together violently detonated. Dozens of shades were instantly vaporized into clouds of harmless black ash, leaving their ancient weapons clattering loudly to the stone floor.
Aerion began a slow, relentless, terrifying march forward. He dual cast the Purify magic continuously, sweeping his arms back and forth like a farmer scything wheat. Every step he took left a wide swath of complete annihilation in his wake.
From the shadows near the entrance, Jenassa operated with lethal, rhythmic efficiency. Draw, aim, loose. She didn't aim for the shade, she focused entirely on the Necromancer on the dais.
Every time Malkoran raised his hands to cast a devastating spell of frost or lightning, a flaming arrow would strike his wards or graze his dark robes, violently disrupting his concentration and forcing him to scramble for cover behind the stone pillars. Aerion's relentless barrage of holy light continued to eat through the horde, the golden text of his system registering the massive, rapid growth of his magical skills as he systematically burned the necrotic corruption from Meridia's temple.
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[Main Panel]
Name: Aerion
Race: High Elf (Altmer)
Health: 420/420 Stamina: 420/420 Magicka: 590/590
Level: 103
Skills: Animal Affinity (MAX LEVEL), Fast Skill Levelling (MAX LEVEL), Fast Magic Mastery (MAX LEVEL), Instant Shout (MAX LEVEL), Destruction (Fire(+2)/Lightning(+1)/Frost) (Level 62/29/89), Restoration (Healing/Purify(+1)) (Level 76/36), Alteration (Level 35), Alteration (Level 20), Illusion (Level 42), Conjuration (Necromancy/Summoning) (Level 37/MAX), Persuasion(+1) (Level 30), Smithing (Level 22), Sneak (Level 41), One Handed (Level 85), Two Handed (Level 65), Lockpicking (Level 35), Archery (Level 72), Enchanting (Level 66), Light Armor (Level 53), Block (Level 70), & Pickpocket (Level 8)
Shouts: Fus (Force), Tiid (Time), Krii (Kill), Feim (Fade), & Su (Air)
[Inventory Panel]
1x Small Sack, Poacher's Axe, Mammoth Tusk, the Golden Claw, Calm Spellbook, Arvel's Journal, Inkwell & Quill, Thief Book, Scroll Of Summoning (Wolf), Scroll Of Healing, Weak Potion of Paralysis, Dragonstone, Golden Staff of Flames, Parchment Rolls Of Mammoths Farm And Loan, Ebony Claw, Orcish Dagger, Jagged Crown, The Mirror, Glass Sword, Ring of Pure Mixtures, Grand Soul Gem (Filled), Reanimate Corpse Tome, Staff of Lightning, Deed to Tundra Homestead, Garnet, Sapphire, & Ruby
2x Potion Of Ultimate Magicka, Common Soul Gem (Empty), Black Soul Gem (Empty), & Elven Sword
3x Glowing Mushrooms, Potions of Minor Stamina, Black Soul Gems (Filled), & Common Soul Gem (Filled)
4x Potions of Minor Magicka, Spider Eggs, & Lesser Soul Gem (Filled)
5x Lesser Soul Gem (Filled)
8x Iron Arrows & Ancient Nord Arrows
9x Potions Of Minor Healing
Weight: 73.84 KG / 510 KG
Septims: 79,201