Chapter 101 - 7000!
"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven..."
"Will you keep counting all of them?"
"Yes!"
"Won't you get bored?"
"Nope!"
"If you lost count we are not going back!"
"Eeh! Why?"
"Seriously now! We need to hurry!"
"But if their number is incorrect, it means we got cheated."
"I don't care! Nefertiti doesn't care! We just need to get going before the guards notice that the man is missing!"
"Don't worry about that, the body got taken by the waterfall and we have a solid alibi. If they found the corpse, they will think that the man was washing in the river and got attacked by a bear!"
"Aha! That's why you told me to steal some of his clothes and towels. And also told Nefertiti to finish him with her claws."
"You seem to be learning."
"But why all the trouble?"
"Well, I don't want to cause trouble for Narfi and Reyda."
"Sometimes I am not sure if you are a good person or a bad person."
"Huh! Are you insulting me? Of course, I am a psychopathic person with a tendency to be a hypocrite."
"I bow to your lowliness, O' Evil One!"
"Haha! Praise me more… One hundred and thirty. Oh, look! An Etched Tablet!"
"What is an Etched Tablet?"
"Oh! You will love this one. On the path we are walking there are 10 Etched Tablets, each one of them tells a part of the story of the 'Dragon War' that happened in the 'Merethic Era'. There is a secret about these Etched Tablets that few people know."
"What is it?"
"These tablets were built in the glory of the goddess Kyne, Goddess of the Storm, Widow of Shor, and mother of all men. She is also the one who taught men how to use the Thu'um to fight off the dragons. Kyne later became the goddess we know today as Kynareth goddess of the Sky, but this place we are walking in can be considered her holy ground. Therefore, if you read the tablets, you will get a blessing from Kyne called 'Voice of the Sky'. It allows your Thu'um to be stronger, the weather to be less harsh on you, and the wild beasts will not harm as long as it doesn't get harmed. This is one of the trails my teacher gave me."
"To read all the tablets?"
"Yes!"
"Who is that teacher of yours by the way?"
"An old hunter who used to be a friend to Nurina but he now lives alone in the woods. After I manage to finish this trail, I will return to him one day to take the true 'Trail of Kyne'."
"Good luck! What does this table say by the way? I can't read it."
"Oh! Wait a bit. My Ancient Nordic is a bit rusty…"
"It says;
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Emblem I – Before the birth of men, the Dragons ruled all Mundus; Their word was the Voice, and they spoke only for True Needs; For the Voice could blot out the sky and flood the land...
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… that."
"Mhm! Interesting let's keep going."
We went going the road we are taking and I kept counting.
"Four hundred and three! Another tablet!"
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Emblem II – Men were born and spread over the face of Mundus; The Dragons presided over the crawling masses; Men were weak then, and had no Voice…
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"Sounds sad!"
"Yeah! Lucky me, didn't get to reincarnate there!"
"Fine, let's keep moving!"
We kept moving while reading the tablets!
The more we go forward, the colder it got. Of course, we are climbing a mountain so it will get so damn cold at some point.
"Another one!"
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Emblem III – The fledgling spirits of Men were strong in Old Times; Unafraid to war with Dragons and their Voices; But the Dragons only shouted them down and broke their hearts…
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"Told you dragons are scary!"
"Nefertiti shall protect me and fluff them down."
"Yes, Hooman! Meow is strong."
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Emblem IV – Kyne called on Paarthurnax, who pitied Man; Together they taught Men to use the Voice; Then Dragon War raged, Dragon against Tongue…
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"Kyne be praised!"
"You sound like a religious idiot!"
"I just like Kyne."
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Emblem V – Man prevailed, shouting Alduin out of the world; Proving for all that their Voice too was strong; Although their sacrifices were many-fold…
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"Hooray!"
"Let's camp here for the night! Nefertiti, leave that nerd alone, come and gather berries with me."
"Stupid Hooman is right."
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Emblem VI – With roaring Tongues, the Sky-Children conquer; Founding the First Empire with Sword and Voice; Whilst the Dragons withdrew from this World…
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"Told you dragons ain't that scary!"
"Say that to one of them in the face."
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Emblem VII – The Tongues at Red Mountain went away humbled; Jurgen Windcaller began His Seven Year Meditation; To understand how Strong Voices could fail…
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"This is a sad story. You know it, Jull?"
"No!"
"Okay, History Lesson! 'Jurgen Windcaller' was a Nord chieftain and hero from the First Era who was believed to be the mightiest of all the Tongues (Voice Masters). He was the founder of The Greybeards. During the War of Succession, in the middle of the Battle of Red Mountain, Jurgen Windcaller helped his fellow Nords in a war against the Dwemer and the Chimer. During the battle, the Dwemer and the Chimer completely annihilated the Nordic armies, forcing them out of Morrowind and back to Skyrim. After the aforementioned disastrous battle, where his army was annihilated, he spent seven years pondering the meaning of his defeat. He finally came to the conclusion that the Gods had punished the Nords for their arrogant and blasphemous misuse of the Thu'um. Following this revelation, Jurgen developed a pacifist creed called the 'Way of the Voice' that preached the Thu'um should only be used for the worship and glory of the gods rather than martial exploits. After he converted to pacifism he became known as "Jurgen the Calm"."
"What happened next?"
"Let's just kill that damn troll first!"
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Emblem VIII – Jurgen Windcaller chose silence and returned; The 17 disputants could not shout Him down; Jurgen the Calm built His home on the Throat of the World…
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"Continuing the History Lesson! Jurgen's philosophy prevailed, largely due to his unshakable mastery of the Voice. His victory was sealed in a legendary confrontation, where The Calm is said to have "swallowed the Shouts" of seventeen Tongues of the militant school for three days until his opponents all lay exhausted. These Tongues later became his disciples. It was after this confrontation he founded the [Greybeards], a monastic order dedicated to mastering the Way of the Voice. He also built [High Hrothgar Temple], located near the peak of Throat of the World, which served as the monastery where the Greybeards meditated and perfected their voice."
"Sounds like a man of quality! Unlike someone."
"Everyone is a scoundrel at some point!"
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Emblem IX – For years all silent, the Greybeards spoke one name; Tiber Septim, stripling then, was summoned to Hrothgar; They blessed and named him Dovahkiin…
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"Tiber Septim, when he was known as Hjalti Early-Beard, was summoned to the Throat of the World by the Greybeards after his victory over the Reachmen at Old Hroldan. By that time he was still called General Talos of Atmora."
"Look at the passion in your eyes. You said you hated history."
"This is not just history. This is a dream. I know a few million people who would load their game with more than five hundred mods to get to do what I do."
"I don't understand what you meant but... this place is beautiful!"
"Yeah! The world is so damn tiny from here."
"How much left?"
"Not much!"
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Emblem X – The Voice is worship; Follow the Inner path; Speak only in True Need.
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"How much did you count?"
"Seven Thousand Steps!"
"So it's true?"
"Don't mind that now. Look at that?"
"How did they build that up here?"
"Ask Todd Howard!"
"Who is he?"
"God... I guess."
"So what now!"
"I don't think the Greybeards have noticed us yet."
"I would be scared if they did."
"Don't get cocky! These people are not some elderly monks living up on a mountain for nothing."
"What do you mean?"
"These guys are pacifists and all but they are monsters beyond my understanding."
"Come on!"
"To tell you the truth, I don't dare to even compare Nurina to them."
"Are you serious?"
"Just don't do anything funny for the time being."
"How are we going to sneak past them? You said they won't allow us to pass!"
"Yeah! They are overprotective when it gets to that thing in particular. But there is a weak point all the overwhelmingly strong people have. They always 'Overlook' the weak."
"Yes, the mammoth would never mind the ant."
"That's why I developed this 'Thu'um'!"
"Are you finally using it?"
"Yes, I will!"
Hehe! It has been a month since I used this damn shout! I hate it so much.
"Here, let's tie ourselves together! We can't lose each other after that 'Thu'um'."
This 'Thu'um' I developed is a bit annoying. It is dangerous and very flawed but effective so tying ourselves together is the best way to avoid its aftereffect.
This 'Thu'um' is not a shout like most shouts, it's a whisper like 'Aura Whisper' Thu'um.
I called it the 'Disregard Whisper'.
Its words meant [Disregard, Ignore, Forget]. A Thu'um that would make its user disregarded, ignored and forgotten during the 'effect time' of the shout.
The words are… "VONED NIBOR DUZRAH!"