4E 202, High Hrothgar
Delphine
The trembling had ceased the moment the Vampire Mage took the battle away from High Hrothgar. Delphine stood at the courtyard's edge, her Blades katana in hand, though her eyes were fixed skyward.
Beyond the veil of clouds, flashes of light emerged. Scarlet flares, blue lances, sudden bursts of gold. Every thunderous ripple in the air was a reminder that the battle between gods was not yet finished.
Kiera was up there.
Delphine kept her gaze steady. The moment she had arrived here for the Peace Summit, she realized the fledgling Dragonborn that she had expected to meet was nowhere to be seen.
She had risen to become the fated warrior in full, without Delphine's guidance, without the Blades. That thought should have left bitterness in her chest. Instead, something like pride stirred, though she pushed it down.
"You were the one who taught her, weren't you?" she asked quietly, gaze flicking to the massive form sprawled across the stone.
Paarthurnax rumbled low in his throat, the sound half-chuckle, half-cough, ending in a wet hiss of blood. One wing hung in ruin, its membrane burned to ash.
"I am not the only one," the dragon rasped. "Arngeir guided her steps as much as I. As did her friends."
Delphine's gaze went back upwards. "Then I commend you. She grew into something greater than any of us expected."
"Indeed she did."
His voice was heavy with pride, and for a moment Delphine saw not a monster of war but a teacher, a guardian. Still, the doubt gnawed. Her hand clenched on the hilt of her katana, her tone hardening.
"You spoke of the atrocities you committed when you were Alduin's lieutenant. Tell me, Paarthurnax, aside from you and Vermithor, how many of your kind would ever choose to fight for mortals?"
Paarthurnax paused. "Not many," he admitted. "Only us."
Delphine exhaled sharply through her nose. The answer was no surprise. Yet as her gaze lingered on him, she realized. He was wounded, battered, yet remained unbowed.
She remembered the sight of his ruined wing shielding Kiera from Alduin's shout. There was no hesitation on his mind, only the instinct to protect.
Despite every instinct telling her otherwise, Delphine sheathed her blade back in its scabbard.
'In the end, I can only trust what the Dragonborn has chosen to do.'
Footsteps drew her attention as Isran, Tolan, and Arngeir appeared with the other Greybeards. Arngeir gave her a glance before all four monks bowed in perfect unison toward Paarthurnax, their reverence unshaken even by ruin.
"Hey, big guy. Let's see what we can do." Isran strode forward, gauntlets glowing faintly as he reached for the dragon's side.
Golden light spread over Paarthurnax's wounds, knitting torn flesh, easing shattered scales. But when Isran pushed further to try and regrow the limb, the magic resisted, bouncing away from the ragged stump of the dragon's wing.
Paarthurnax shook his head. "That is enough, Champion of Stendarr. What is lost cannot be restored. Save your strength. Vermithor needs it more than I. Alduin's cursed shout eats at his lifeforce as we speak."
Delphine turned at the guttural sound behind her. Vermithor, the bronze dragon, struggled to stand, his body trembling. His great eyes dimmed, voice rasping with fury. "That coward Alduin…" He tried to rise, but his hind leg buckled, sending his snout crashing into the snow.
Tolan was already at his side, hands aglow, sweat pouring down his brow. "It's no use. Not even Expert Restoration spells are working."
"Then how do we fix him?" Delphine demanded, stepping forward.
Esbern's voice was the one that answered. "History records only one force capable of undoing Alduin's power. The power of the Divines themselves." His gaze fell to Isran. "He might be able to do it. You are the Champion of Stendarr, are you not?"
Isran scowled, as though that name was a burden he despised. But he moved without argument. Planting his boots firm in the snow, he held one arm against the Vermithor's snout. He closed his eyes.
There was silence for a while, until a light bloomed.
At first, a soft glow, then a radiance so fierce Delphine had to squint, lifting her arm to shield her eyes. The air thrummed with divine power, a pulse was released with Isran as its source.
Stendarr's light poured from Isran, bathing Vermithor in a mantle of blinding gold.
For a breathless moment, it felt as if the Divines themselves looked down upon the mountain.
When the light faded, Delphine lowered her arm, and her mouth fell slightly open.
Where moments before a dying dragon had faltered in the snow, now Vermithor stood tall, bronze scales gleaming in the sun like hammered metal fresh from the forge.
His wings stretched wide, whole and unbroken, each beat sending torrents of wind through the courtyard.
The sheer force of it nearly knocked her from her feet. She planted her sword in the ground to steady herself, cloak whipping about her as snow and dust scattered.
Above, he unleashed a defiant roar.
Delphine's eyes tracked him as he ascended, breaking through the clouds, joining the storm of light and fire above.
And for the first time in years, she allowed herself to feel awe.
…
4E 202, Skies above the Throat of the World
Serana Volkihar
Despite the hole that was punched through Alduin's chest, they knew the battle was far from over.
Serana and Gerron froze, their gazes locked on Kiera and the World-Eater as both tumbled through the skies. Serana's sharp eyes saw as the last wisps of her Dragon Aspect unraveled into smoke and vanished, leaving Kiera frighteningly small and vulnerable against Alduin's massive size.
"We have to get over there!" Serana said, though the problem remained. Neither of them could fly.
That's when a familiar roar rumbled through the skies. A bronze colossus broke through the clouds, the light from the now setting sun catching on his burnished scales.
"Vermithor!" Serana cried, her heart lifting.
"Come!" the dragon thundered.
Without hesitation, Gerron swept Serana into his arms, his sudden grip making her eyes widen in surprise. Before she could even protest, he bent his knees and leapt with all the strength his frame could muster.
The ice pillar beneath them shattered under the force of his jump. In the next instant, the two of them landed hard onto Vermithor's broad back. The great dragon staggered but did not falter, wings beating furiously to right himself.
Settling in the saddle and locking themselves to the chains on Vermithor's back, Serana looked up as her eyes locked onto the humongous black dragon.
The bleeding beast's gaze blazed red in pure unyielding hate. His roar split the air, a sound of madness and fury that rattled her very bones.
Colossal wings spread wide as the World Eater surged forward in a blur of black scales, mouth open wide in an attempt to devour Kiera before she could recover.
Vermithor was there first, ramming into him mid air. The impact boomed like thunder.
"Vermithor!" Kiera screamed in joy and relief. "Perfect timing!"
"You again?!" Alduin howled. "Betrayer! Traitor of your kin!"
"I'm not the traitor here, Alduin!" Vermithor bellowed back, grappling claw to claw with his ancient brother.
Serana wasted no time. She conjured a long, glittering chain of ice and hurled it towards Kiera's wrist. The spell caught, locking fast, as Gerron grabbed the other end of it. The momentum had him stumble before he reoriented, yanking the chain and pulling Kiera's body upwards across the air.
"Hold on!" Gerron screamed.
The chain swung violently as Vermithor and Alduin spun and twisted, two rulers of the air locked in a death struggle. The only reason that they haven't fallen yet was due to the chains set up on the saddle of Vermithor that anchored both her and Gerron.
But even then, they weren't created for a fight such as this. Already she could hear the metal straining under the force.
Alduin smashed his horned head against Vermithor's skull, sending the bronze dragon reeling. But Vermithor struck back, his fangs raking cruelly across the ragged hole in Alduin's chest. Blood sprayed across the snow-filled air.
The aerial battle had taken them lower and lower in altitude, already meeting the western face of the mountain that Alduin slammed Vermithor into, gouging the mountainside and sending avalanches of ice and stone crashing down below.
"We're falling!" Gerron shouted, bracing himself.
In desperation, Serana stretched her arms wide, unleashing waves and torrents of snow in hopes of cushioning their fall. She could feel her magicka burning away, but it would be worth it if it gave them even a semblance of chance in surviving.
At the last moment, Vermithor twisted, wings folded as his body curled protectively around them.
They hit the ground hard.
The chains snapped, flinging riders in every direction. Serana tumbled, the world spinning, snow and ruin battering her until she finally skidded to a stop. Pain throbbed through her body, her head ringing. She forced herself upright, blinking through the haze.
They had landed in what looks to be an abandoned town. Half of it was buried under snow while the other half showed clear signs of destruction and decay.
A snow mound burst open, Gerron staggering out with a cough, his armor covered in dents and scrapes. "Where are we?"
"I don't know," Serana rasped, then spotted Vermithor's hulking bulk. He was alright from the looks of it, as the bronze dragon shook his body like a cat to disperse the snow from his body.
Nearby, Kiera pushed herself upright, nursing her head. Her skin faded from the blackish tint that took it over.
"Is everyone okay?" Kiera asked, her voice hoarse.
Serana managed a nod, as did Gerron, though they knew everyone here was worse for wear.
Then Kiera's eyes widened as she took in the shattered ruins around them. "This is… Helgen."
"You mean the place Alduin first torched?" Gerron asked, confirming.
Kiera nodded slowly, "It's where the Empire captured me when I first returned to Skyrim.
That was when Alduin himself showed himself once more. From the ruined battlements, he rose, his black form battered as blood continued to ooze from the hole in his chest. The scales all across his body were cracked and wounded. Yet his eyes still burned with hatred, scarlet coals of undying wrath.
All four of them tensed, readying themselves for another grueling fight.
But instead of a Shout, Alduin spread his wings. With a thunderclap of air, the enormous black dragon launched skyward, battered body surging higher and higher as he escaped to the horizon.
Silence fell as they stared at the World Eater's figure grow smaller and smaller until he disappeared behind a mountain.
"He… ran?!" Gerron shouted, disbelief cracking his voice.
"Kiera, shall we make chase?" Vermithor whirled.
Kiera shook her head, letting out a weary breath. "No. Even injured, he's still faster than you with us weighing you down. We'd never catch him."
The dragon growled in reluctant agreement.
Serana exhaled, relief mingling with unease. "I never thought a creature as prideful as him would flee." Truthfully, her limbs felt like lead. She wasn't sure she could have endured another minute of that fight. Her magicka reserves were completely spent as the lethargy that she hadn't felt for a long time began to settle in her bones.
Gerron flopped backward into the snow, laughing breathlessly. "Man… we just kicked the World-Eater's ass! Hah!" His booming laugh echoed through the dead town.
Serana found herself smiling despite the ache in her bones. A soft chuckle escaped her lips, her tension finally easing.
It wasn't a total victory. Alduin still lived. But for the first time, truly, they had forced the World-Eater to retreat.
That, Serana knew, was a victory in its own right.
…
AN: For the first time in eons, Alduin suffers a physical defeat. Though he certainly made them work for it.
I really had fun with all the different elevation and environment elements in this fight, I hope you guys enjoyed it.
More chapters are available on my Pat_reon. Chapter 72 should be available by the time this chapter was posted. Just look up my name and you'll find me.
Cheers guys and see you next time!