The Last Holy-Scale: Book One: Part Ten: The Last Holy-Scale

  • The Last Holy-Scale: Book One: Part Ten:

    The Last Holy-Scale

    We're in a bit of a predicament last story...the Sanctuary is under attack by a coven of conjurers and the daedra that they wrought forth. One of them, the leader, was a familiar face...Tetras, the brother of Festin, the malignant spirit that possessed Gavarik's body and threatened to destroy Black Marsh, is now locked in combat with Rekuuk. All of this is happening because he had mercy...

          Rekuuk starts off with a shield toss at Tetras' legs. Tetras jumps and shoots an Ice Spike at Rekuuk's legs. Rekuuk blocks it quickly with his other shield, "I ain't fallin' for that again!" he said. Tetras then flashsteps backwards, leaving a trail of ice behind him.

          Rekuuk runs right through that ice as if it were frail snow and takes hold of Tetras' arm. "UNHAND ME!" yelled Tetras before he shot a lightning bolt at Rekuuk's face. He stumbles back and Tetras fires a fire spell at Rekuuk. The flames are ended quickly by a black buckler. 

          Tetras then summons a daedra, a Flame Atronach to be certain, and sends it at Rekuuk whilst firing various ice spells at him. Rekuuk takes the defensive and dodges every ice spell thrown at him, all while killing the Atronach. As fast as the daedra dies, Tetras manages to keep Rekuuk close enough to the Atronach's corpse for it to explode and send Rekuuk flying.

          But a little fall won't slow him down, Rekuuk tried to get to his feet. Tetras was quick next to him and used an Icy Touch spell...Rekuuk just stood there and endured it.  He took Tetras by the hand and rose up over him. Rekuuk then bashed Tetras' teeth with his shield...again and proceeded to fight.

          Rekuuk was battering Tetras with all he had, ensuring that this time...he would kill him. Tetras can do little to stop Rekuuk's assault, so he resorts to a dire strait. He opens an Oblivion gate and takes Rekuuk in with him. 

          They fall in Oblivion and Rekuuk is frozen in shock, Tetras takes the opportunity and binds Rekuuk in flaming chains. Rekuuk wails from the pain of searing hot metal links squeezing him. Tetras back up to the gate and says, "Enjoy Oblivion you hulking bastard." 

          Before he could back out of Oblivion, a Xivilai is standing right behind him. Tetras bumped into it and the Xivilai is now looking down at him. Tetras backs away from the daedra and gets near Rekuuk and unbinds him. Rekuuk noticed the Xivilai and looked it right in the eyes.

          They were the same height and the daedra quickly drew an axe from a sheath on his back, all the while, summoned a Clanfear to attack Tetras. Rekuuk quickly dispatches the Xivilai and grabs Tetras while he's still dealing with the Clanfear and throws him out of Oblivion.

          The Clanfear tries to attack Rekuuk, but he stomps on it and walks out the gate. Once outside, Tetras is surrounded by every other Holy-Scale and is cowering under them. Rekuuk walks out and says, "Close the gate...now." It was with a very serious voice, but Tetras said, "You think I'll close the-" Rekuuk interrupts and screams in his face, "CLOSE THE GODDAMN GATE!!!!!"

          Tetras jumps back in fright and immediately closes the gate. Then Rekuuk picks up Tetras by the collar and punches him in the face. Tetras falls to the ground and smiles sinisterly. He gets up slowly and pulls out a glowing black soul gem. The Holy-Scales are frozen at the sight, then strands of aura appear around us, they're binding us in place. 

          Tetras laughs maniacally and says, "Damn...that was too easy!" Tetras then focusses an incantation...to this day, I know it was daedraspeak, but then...I had no idea. He lifts his hands and forces them back down to earth. A Giant Oblivion Gate pops up from the sky and tons of daedra just pour out of it.

          The Anchor Chains that keep the Gate there burrowed in the ground and some even hit the Sanctuary. Tetras is just standing there laughing and ranting, "THE END OF BLACK MARSH IS AT HAND!!! I WILL FINISH MY BROTHER'S WORK!! EVEN IF I MUST GO TO JOIN HIM ONCE AGAIN!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"

          Rekuuk grabs Tetras by the throat and breaks his neck with his sheer grip, while Tetras cannot scream in pain, Rekuuk finishes him off by bashing his teeth with a shield. Not only does this kill him, the top half of Tetras' head is severed from the lower half. The semi-headless body of Tetras falls to the ground while blood is shooting out of the "wound".

          We all rushed inside the Sanctuary to defend the Sun-Hist. Then daedra of all kinds stormed the Inner Sanctum. We fought with all we had in us, but the swarm was to great, we had to retreat to the Underroots...

       Semkil: (hunched over and exhausted) We....need....to hold them off.

       Rezmor: (leaning on his shorthammer) But...Oblivion Gates...can...only be destroyed by removing its Sigil Stone. 

       Semkil: No...there is another way.

       Delaki: (on the floor, enervated) How then...

       Semkil: At least one Anchor Chain has to be broken to retract the Gate.

       Shavra: (catching her breath) How are we gonna break a chain!? Let alone get out of the Underroots with all of the daedra running about!

       Rekuuk: I don't know...but surely magic can break it...right?

       Stands: Magic can only do so much Rekuuk...I've never heard of magic breaking an Oblivion Anchor Chain. 

       Jumps: Even if it couldn't...no axe can cut through that much metal.

       Rezmor: Perhaps...

       Semkil: Perhaps what?

       Rezmor: Perhaps we can- 

          I was interrupted by a crashing chain going through the roof of the Underrots...an Anchor Chain had broken through! Daedra begin to dig around the crash site to try and get in the Underroots. With what little strength we had left, we fought the daedra to keep the Sun-Hist safe.

          We fought and fought and fought...but the daerdra just kept coming. We held off as much we could for 7 hours. I used my earth magic to seal the hole and buy time, but the daedra break through over and over again.

          Not even Stands' unleashed power could hold them off for long.

           We're all exasperated, but we still fight...the respite from both mine and Stands' Restoration Magic ensured that. But even that seemed futile for the moment. The daedra's number went down as far as we knew...but their size and strength kept rising. Soon, Giant Daedra were storming the Sanctuary. 

          Amidst the turmoil...Semkil saw that this was going nowhere. Rekuuk was at his limit, he was leaning against the wall and panting. Suddenly, a molten lance went straight through his chest. A Spearhand Daedra, daedra that have huge lances from their forearms down, had managed to dig behind the Underroots and lanced Rekuuk.

          I was as angry as I could ever get and Rekuuk grabbed the lance, as if getting impaled didn't hurt him at all. He looked up slowly and nodded at Semkil.

       Semkil: You're certain of this?

       Rekuuk: (at death's door) Very.

       Semkil: And the rest of you?

       Everyone else but Rezmor: (nods)

       Rezmor: Wait, what are you all nodding for?

       Stands: While we were fighting...we all came to an agreement.

       Jumps: One that would decide the fate of the Xal-Eix.

       Rekuuk: That you- (lance digs further in his chest) ghlg...

       Shavra: That you are to bear the Sun-Hist...

       Semkil: You will be the Sun-Seed.

       Rezmor: (stands shocked) But....I....no, I cannot!

       Delaki: Dammit! Yes you will!

       Rezmor: If I do the ritual now, what will become of the rest of you!?

       Rekuuk: (begins to glow a bright-yellow, almost blinding)

       Rezmor: No......no......Rekuuk, you can't possibly be-

       Rekuuk: I am...my only form of magic...Holy Sacrifice!

          Holy Sacrifice is the only magic most Bulwarks are capable of learning. Like how most power attacks are tolling on the body, so magic tolls the mind. But in Rekuuk's case as of that point...his life. The spell takes all of Rekuuk's life energy and releases it in one massive burst, killing him...and so many others.

     

       Rezmor: NO! I won't allow it!!

       Rekuuk: It isn't your decision. (lance twists in chest) NNgh! Bastard. (punches daedra in face) 

       Rezmor: All of you will DIE if I go in there! I can't do that to you!

       Jumps: (tearing up) What part of, "we all agreed on this", did you not understand?

       Rezmor: What if I refuse?

       Stands: You cannot refuse...you must...for all our sakes.

       Rezmor: But-(slapped by Shavra, then puts his hand on his cheek)

       Shavra: If even agreed to it...you have to do it...if not for everyone else, then do it for me.

       Rezmor: (crying) I-I can't do it! It's because of your life I cannot let you all give away your lives for one person!

       Rekuuk: You must do it (stabbed by another Spearhand Daedra) GAAH! DAMMIT REZMOR!! I BEG OF YOU!! DO THE RITUAL!!

       Rezmor: WHY!? I'm not fit for this title!?

       Semkil: You're the only one who would fulfill the duty of Sun-Seed to the letter! Rekuuk is too clueless, Jumps- too stubborn, Delaki- too literal, Shavra- too picky, Stands and I- too old...far too old. You...you're the only one who knows his duty above all else. THAT is why you are to be Sun-Seed! You place the well being of others above your own life...you would sacrifice yourself just as Rekuuk is doing if you knew the Hoy Sacrifice! 

       Rekuuk: Which...*gasp*...is why...you, nngh...must do it.

       Rezmor: (face is pouring out tears) I...*sniffle*...I can't bring myself to do it! I CAN'T!!!

       Shavra: (grabs Rezmor's face with one hand on each cheek) Rez....I have grown to like you, you know (starts to cry) and I'm not ashamed to show that I do.

       Rezmor: Then why?...Why give your life for me? ...That's the man's job!

       Shavra: Hmph...it matters not Rez....but no matter what....whether we die or not...we will always be with you, (touches his heart) In here. (touches his head) and in here...we will never leave you. We will be your strength. Especially me...I love you (kisses Rezmor for about 5 seconds)

       Rezmor: (falls to his knees and puts his head in Shavra's hips) I'm so scared of losing you...of losing any of you. How can one mortal take so much pain?

       Rekuuk: You endure it.

       Rezmor: (lifts his head)

       Jumps: Then rise from it.

       Rezmor: (slowly gets back up to his feet...and wipes his tears)......*sniffle*......And you fight back.

       Semkil: Yes...now...have you made your peace......are you ready to undertake the Azeez-Xeech?

       Rezmor: As ready as I'll ever be....*sighs*....do it....open the Sun-Hist's main sap chamber.

       Semkil: So be it. (places his hand on a thick part of the Sun-Hist, and it opens up a massive pool of dark, yellowish-brownish-purpleish sap) Go...may the Hist ever guide you.

       Rezmor: (steps to the entrance of the storage and looks down, then turns around)

       Everyone else: (places their fist over their heart...except Rekuuk....he held on the lance in the same fashion)

       Rezmor: *small chuckle*...(looks back and down at the sap)

          As I stood at the edge, watching my friends see my way into the chamber, the wood began to close in. Semkil as letting the Sun-Hist's bark close over me so that it would protect me from the blast radius. As my line of sight got narrower and narrower, more daedra burst in through the ceiling.

          They managed to dig a hole big enough to fit full-size Valkynaz. As they poured in, Jumps was the first to take action, he said that he always wanted to die fighting; so he drew his axes and slaughtered two of the Valkynaz. As Rekuuk reached the peak of his shining brilliance, his last words were...

    The Roots are your shield, your sword, your soul...make it count Rezmorzirrik

         Then he exploded with a giant flash of sun-like light. The force of the blast, even though there was about a 2 centimeter diameter hole in the Sun-Hist, knocked me back across the inside of the Sun-Hist so hard it knocked me senseless. The Sun-Hist's Inner Chamber is about 12 feet across, if that gives you an idea of how powerful the explosion was.

          As the explosion occurred, Rekuuk felt a familiar feeling on his face...he was smiling...he had died happy for his sacrifice.

          When the flames hit Jumps, he was digging his axe out of a dremora's neck, and died fighting...just as he always wanted...he died winning his last fight

          Stands and was the next to be hit, he died praying...a peaceful death, so he desperately needed.

          Delaki died with his finger on his forehead...he was thinking about what The Roots would be like...he always wondered...now he'll know soon enough.

          Semkil died casting a spell...to know what spell he cast...I wouldn't know until after the three months of the ritual.

          And Shavra...my love...she died watching the flames come at her...eyes open, and heart vulnerable...she spent her very last seconds with her hand on her belly.

          As I fell in the sap, it slowly enveloped me, like quicksand. I couldn't move, the impact I took from Rekuuk's explosion rent me dizzy and slowly slipping into unconsciousness. 

          The intensity of the explosion was well over 500 feet in radius alone. Several Anchor Chains were incinerated, causing the Oblivion Gate to close. To think...we almost suffered another Oblivion Crisis, but ONE ARGONIAN stopped it...at the cost of his life.

         And here I lie...on the surface of the Sun-Hist's sap...waiting for it to take over. I'm at a loss for both words and a reason to live...who do I have to turn to now? I could only remember after I have awoken from this accursed ritual.

          When the sap finally covered my head, I fell into a deep sleep, followed by searing pain all over my body. I couldn't help but scream, though no one would hear me. I did think one thing afore I sank into this dreadful coma:

    My fate is sealed...I am now the very entity that built all Holy-Scales...I am the Sun-Hist Incarnate...I am one with my now dead brothers and sisters, and they will look after me while I fulfill my mission...

    I am...Rezmorzirrik...the new Sun-Seed...and the Last Holy-Scale.

    To Be Continued...

           

Comments

2 Comments
  • ChandlerBeach
    ChandlerBeach   ·  April 18, 2016
    What?
  • Sotek
    Sotek   ·  April 17, 2016
    Oh bloody hell!!