Post by Darkstorm Zero on Feb 28, 2015 10:20:35 GMT -5
The voice of the Dragonborn, a Song of Ice and Fire.
Prologue 1: The History of the First Dragonborn
The Dragonborn's soul-sworn oath, to keep evil forever at bay. From the first Dragonborn to the last, this oath was bidden to all of them, yet only some ever followed it's silent decree.
Miraak, the first Dragonborn, was also the first to stray from the path. It was his maddened desire to conquer, dominate, and break the chains of his masters, the Dovah; Dragons. The first Dragonborn embarked on a quest of forbidden knowledge, desire for power, and in pursuit of this knowledge, his rage consumed the then hold of Solstheim. His depravity, evil, and violence were the equal of his former masters, and many the people of Solstheim fled the hold, some so gripped by terror where they, that they had abandoned Tamriel altogether, fleeing to the distant reaches of Nirn. For they knew that the retribution of the dragons would be swift, cruel, and destructive beyond reckoning.
It was a time of sadness, despair, and violence, as the Dragon War had entered an uncertain phase. Mortal Nordic warriors had been given the gift of the Dragon Voice by the Goddess Kyne, the thu'um, and were trained in it's use by a traitor Dragon named Paarthurnax. Many mortal heroes rose and fell during this time. And when the powers of a Dragonborn were revealed, the 3 senior masters of the voice, known as Tongues, approached Miraak, and pleaded with the former Dragon Priest to slay Alduin, the Firstborn Dragon, and their leader. Miraak arrogantly refused their request, stating he would walk his own path, and slay Alduin when he believed the time was right. It was also at this time that Miraak had declared his secession from the Dragon Cult, slaying Dragons by the dozens as he departed the ancient capital of Bromjunaar, the heart of the Labyrinthian, and set off for Solstheim.
In retaliation for the slaughter of his kin, and in a rage and perhaps in fear, Alduin ordered the Dragon Priest known as Valok the Jailer, and a legion of Dragons five score strong to lay siege to Miraak's temple, burning the edifice and slaying those who followed the traitor by the hundreds. The siege culminated in a titanic battle that lasted several days, in which the powers Miraak had aquired at the behest of his new dark master proved to be superior to any individual amidst his foes. However, where Miraak's strength was superior to any individual foe, he could not maintain his advantage against many powerful foes simultaneously. And so, he fell before his enemies, exhausted, beaten, but unbroken.
Before the final blow could be struck by his opponent and former brother in the Dragon Cult, Valok, Miraak's new master revealed himself. Hermaeus Mora, the Daedric Prince of knowledge, fate and destiny, had appeared at the climax of the battle, and before his champion was snatched away by the claws of death, Mora had taken Miraak from the battlefield, and into his own realm, the plane of Oblivion known only as Apocrypha, the endless library of forbidden knowledge. There Miraak remained safe from his enemies, rebuilding his followers, gaining more knowledge, and biding his time to return to the known world. Having earned immortality from the knowledge Hermaeus Mora had provided, Miraak had patience enough to gather his full strength, and master his powers.
However, much to his chagrin, Miraak was forever forbidden to return to Nirn by his new master. Thus, for the next eight thousand years, the first Dragonborn continued to accrue his power, explored the deepest depths of the forbidden knowledge of Apocrypha, looking for ways to escape Mora's enslavement. The solution, ironically, would come from the very knowledge Mora had granted his champion from the very beginning.
So great and terrible was the battle that Solstheim was sundered from the mainland of Tamriel and cast adrift. Now forever known as the Island of Solstheim, only a few of the former holds original inhabitants remained. The Nordic tribal village of the Skaal remained loyal to Valok and the Dragons, for the Skaal practiced a variation of the ancient Atmoran religion of animal worship still, and were thus spared the cruelties of the Dragon War that had swallowed much of the rest of Tamriel.
However, outside of the Skaal, only a few isolated encampments remained. The vast majority of the people fled Miraak's cruelties, and the devastation of the war that followed. This included deserters, and former servants of Miraak.
Among those that had fled, were some of the personal consorts of the first Dragonborn. Some of these women unknowingly carried the seed of Miraak as they fled. And with them, the blood lineage of the first Dragonborn endured.
To escape Miraak's seemingly god-like reach, many fled far to the west, east and south, as far as the ships could carry them. Many died upon the high seas and oceans of the world, pirates, monsters of the deep, and bad weather all conspired to erase the deserters. Yet some managed to find refuge, and settle in a new land, far from the reach of their former master and his enemies. They avoided the continent of Akavir by sailing southeast, and continued onward. This continent was the far reaching continent of Essos.
Far across the Padomaeic Ocean and the Sunset Sea, rounding the southern coasts of Dorne of Westeros, and continuing east, bypassing the summer islands, landing on the southern tip of Essos. Here on the other side of the world, the people finally felt safe enough to live and began to settle into a new, uninhabited land. Ringed by no less than fourteen volcanoes, the survivors found livable fertile lands. They began anew, as farmers, gatherers, and hunters, as their ancient Atmoran ancestors once did. Within only a few months of settling this new land, during the first days of First Seed, many children were born, including the offspring bearing Miraak's Dragon blood.
Without the Dragons, or anyone to teach these children the powers of their blood, knowledge of the thu'um passed into legend, then myth, and before long it was all but forgotten.
However, the blood remembers…
Close to a thousand years later, a relic of the past was rediscovered. Dragons existed. A small conclave was discovered living among the volcanic craters. These Dragons were not like the Dragons of their past however. These Dragons, survivors of the scourge of Akavir at the hands of the Vampiric Serpent race known as the Tsaesci, had fled in the opposite direction from Alduin and his Dragon Lords, and had lost much of what they once were. Knowledge of their own language and their power of the Thu'um had faded in the thousands of years since the scourge, and thus, the proud beasts degenerated, becoming more primitive, and animalistic, also losing the vast majority of their immortality, these Dragons of the new world now had finite, though long lives.
However, in this regression, these Dragons had gained an ability that was denied to the Dragon Lords of Alduin; The ability to reproduce. The only power left to them from the days of old was the ability to produce fire through their dragon breath. But without the powers of the Thu'um to empower and sharpen their flames, as their kin once did, the strength of their Dragonfire was limited at best, yet still more than powerful enough for their purpose.
The Dragon blood of Miraak that had intermingled within most of, if not all the descendants of the settlers, stirred with familiarity, and the dragons responded in kind, allowing them to tame the mighty beasts. And with this, the descendants of the settlers began to rise to prominence. Naming their lands the Valyrian Freehold, and constructing the capital city of Valyria in it’s center.
In the following century, the power of the Valyrians climbed dramatically, aided by their tamed Dragons. Through their use of Dragonfire, the Valyrians could forge steel that rivaled that of the Skyforge. Some lost magics were rediscovered in a limited fashion. And indeed, the construction and expansion of the Valyrian cities, towns and other settlements became the envy from the farthest reaches of Westeros and Essos.
However, the rise of the Valyrians, their fall, and the Doom of Valyria, is a story for another time.
~Chapter End~
Miraak, the First Dragonborn in full rainment.
Miraak's Dragon Aspect Shout.
Miraak Unmasked, a sight few have ever seen.
roar of the first Dragonborn, during the ancient battle of Solstheim.
Apex of the battle for Solstheim against Valok the Jailer.
Miraak, when he first appears in Apocrypha.
Also now on Deviantart!
Prologue 1: The History of the First Dragonborn
The Dragonborn's soul-sworn oath, to keep evil forever at bay. From the first Dragonborn to the last, this oath was bidden to all of them, yet only some ever followed it's silent decree.
Miraak, the first Dragonborn, was also the first to stray from the path. It was his maddened desire to conquer, dominate, and break the chains of his masters, the Dovah; Dragons. The first Dragonborn embarked on a quest of forbidden knowledge, desire for power, and in pursuit of this knowledge, his rage consumed the then hold of Solstheim. His depravity, evil, and violence were the equal of his former masters, and many the people of Solstheim fled the hold, some so gripped by terror where they, that they had abandoned Tamriel altogether, fleeing to the distant reaches of Nirn. For they knew that the retribution of the dragons would be swift, cruel, and destructive beyond reckoning.
It was a time of sadness, despair, and violence, as the Dragon War had entered an uncertain phase. Mortal Nordic warriors had been given the gift of the Dragon Voice by the Goddess Kyne, the thu'um, and were trained in it's use by a traitor Dragon named Paarthurnax. Many mortal heroes rose and fell during this time. And when the powers of a Dragonborn were revealed, the 3 senior masters of the voice, known as Tongues, approached Miraak, and pleaded with the former Dragon Priest to slay Alduin, the Firstborn Dragon, and their leader. Miraak arrogantly refused their request, stating he would walk his own path, and slay Alduin when he believed the time was right. It was also at this time that Miraak had declared his secession from the Dragon Cult, slaying Dragons by the dozens as he departed the ancient capital of Bromjunaar, the heart of the Labyrinthian, and set off for Solstheim.
In retaliation for the slaughter of his kin, and in a rage and perhaps in fear, Alduin ordered the Dragon Priest known as Valok the Jailer, and a legion of Dragons five score strong to lay siege to Miraak's temple, burning the edifice and slaying those who followed the traitor by the hundreds. The siege culminated in a titanic battle that lasted several days, in which the powers Miraak had aquired at the behest of his new dark master proved to be superior to any individual amidst his foes. However, where Miraak's strength was superior to any individual foe, he could not maintain his advantage against many powerful foes simultaneously. And so, he fell before his enemies, exhausted, beaten, but unbroken.
Before the final blow could be struck by his opponent and former brother in the Dragon Cult, Valok, Miraak's new master revealed himself. Hermaeus Mora, the Daedric Prince of knowledge, fate and destiny, had appeared at the climax of the battle, and before his champion was snatched away by the claws of death, Mora had taken Miraak from the battlefield, and into his own realm, the plane of Oblivion known only as Apocrypha, the endless library of forbidden knowledge. There Miraak remained safe from his enemies, rebuilding his followers, gaining more knowledge, and biding his time to return to the known world. Having earned immortality from the knowledge Hermaeus Mora had provided, Miraak had patience enough to gather his full strength, and master his powers.
However, much to his chagrin, Miraak was forever forbidden to return to Nirn by his new master. Thus, for the next eight thousand years, the first Dragonborn continued to accrue his power, explored the deepest depths of the forbidden knowledge of Apocrypha, looking for ways to escape Mora's enslavement. The solution, ironically, would come from the very knowledge Mora had granted his champion from the very beginning.
So great and terrible was the battle that Solstheim was sundered from the mainland of Tamriel and cast adrift. Now forever known as the Island of Solstheim, only a few of the former holds original inhabitants remained. The Nordic tribal village of the Skaal remained loyal to Valok and the Dragons, for the Skaal practiced a variation of the ancient Atmoran religion of animal worship still, and were thus spared the cruelties of the Dragon War that had swallowed much of the rest of Tamriel.
However, outside of the Skaal, only a few isolated encampments remained. The vast majority of the people fled Miraak's cruelties, and the devastation of the war that followed. This included deserters, and former servants of Miraak.
Among those that had fled, were some of the personal consorts of the first Dragonborn. Some of these women unknowingly carried the seed of Miraak as they fled. And with them, the blood lineage of the first Dragonborn endured.
To escape Miraak's seemingly god-like reach, many fled far to the west, east and south, as far as the ships could carry them. Many died upon the high seas and oceans of the world, pirates, monsters of the deep, and bad weather all conspired to erase the deserters. Yet some managed to find refuge, and settle in a new land, far from the reach of their former master and his enemies. They avoided the continent of Akavir by sailing southeast, and continued onward. This continent was the far reaching continent of Essos.
Far across the Padomaeic Ocean and the Sunset Sea, rounding the southern coasts of Dorne of Westeros, and continuing east, bypassing the summer islands, landing on the southern tip of Essos. Here on the other side of the world, the people finally felt safe enough to live and began to settle into a new, uninhabited land. Ringed by no less than fourteen volcanoes, the survivors found livable fertile lands. They began anew, as farmers, gatherers, and hunters, as their ancient Atmoran ancestors once did. Within only a few months of settling this new land, during the first days of First Seed, many children were born, including the offspring bearing Miraak's Dragon blood.
Without the Dragons, or anyone to teach these children the powers of their blood, knowledge of the thu'um passed into legend, then myth, and before long it was all but forgotten.
However, the blood remembers…
Close to a thousand years later, a relic of the past was rediscovered. Dragons existed. A small conclave was discovered living among the volcanic craters. These Dragons were not like the Dragons of their past however. These Dragons, survivors of the scourge of Akavir at the hands of the Vampiric Serpent race known as the Tsaesci, had fled in the opposite direction from Alduin and his Dragon Lords, and had lost much of what they once were. Knowledge of their own language and their power of the Thu'um had faded in the thousands of years since the scourge, and thus, the proud beasts degenerated, becoming more primitive, and animalistic, also losing the vast majority of their immortality, these Dragons of the new world now had finite, though long lives.
However, in this regression, these Dragons had gained an ability that was denied to the Dragon Lords of Alduin; The ability to reproduce. The only power left to them from the days of old was the ability to produce fire through their dragon breath. But without the powers of the Thu'um to empower and sharpen their flames, as their kin once did, the strength of their Dragonfire was limited at best, yet still more than powerful enough for their purpose.
The Dragon blood of Miraak that had intermingled within most of, if not all the descendants of the settlers, stirred with familiarity, and the dragons responded in kind, allowing them to tame the mighty beasts. And with this, the descendants of the settlers began to rise to prominence. Naming their lands the Valyrian Freehold, and constructing the capital city of Valyria in it’s center.
In the following century, the power of the Valyrians climbed dramatically, aided by their tamed Dragons. Through their use of Dragonfire, the Valyrians could forge steel that rivaled that of the Skyforge. Some lost magics were rediscovered in a limited fashion. And indeed, the construction and expansion of the Valyrian cities, towns and other settlements became the envy from the farthest reaches of Westeros and Essos.
However, the rise of the Valyrians, their fall, and the Doom of Valyria, is a story for another time.
~Chapter End~
Miraak, the First Dragonborn in full rainment.
Miraak's Dragon Aspect Shout.
Miraak Unmasked, a sight few have ever seen.
roar of the first Dragonborn, during the ancient battle of Solstheim.
Apex of the battle for Solstheim against Valok the Jailer.
Miraak, when he first appears in Apocrypha.Also now on Deviantart!
