Stepstones, Grey Gallows
Neferion
The masks they wore he would recognise anywhere, especially their magical signature, which reeked of Alduin from a mile away. He wondered if the old lizard had given them the names of their predecessors. The masks belonged to Ahzidal, Vokun, Krosis, and Morokei.
"Did your master not warn you against confronting me, or is he still so arrogant as to believe you have a chance against me? He should at least send all of you," he asked, trying to provoke them into an answer.
"No Dovahkiin. We are not here to fight you, but merely to observe. Know that you have made many enemies. One of them is approaching." The one wearing Ahzidal's mask replied, his voice distorted.
Neferion widened his senses and indeed felt them then. Thousands of silhouettes cutting through the deep waters surrounding the not-so-small island on all sides, and behind them came the dark, slimy Will of their Master.
He burst out laughing, which carried through the island like a thundering wind. Calming down, he looked once more at the priests surprised by his behaviour.
"Why do you think I ended up on the rocky islands, inhabited only by pirates? Of course I knew that this drowned idiot wouldn't stand for how I made a fool of him and killed so many of his followers." He explained, stepping closer to them.
"But I must say I am surprised at how much either Alduin or you underestimate me. I may be weaker now, but my will, tempered by constant struggles with the bonds imposed on me, tempered in the fire of constant battle, has never been so strong. So thank you for this gift. I assure you I will use it well." He stopped perhaps 30 feet away from them. Then he opened his mouth once more, from which a Bend Will shout escaped.
"GOL HAH DOV" (Earth, Mind, Dragon)
His mighty Will clashed with the Will of the World Eater, who controlled his priests, in a deafening cacophony of sound, probably carrying for dozens of miles. The air screamed, the earth shook, and the seas churned like the greatest storms. The Dragon Priests stood rooted to the spot, the combined power of their two minds holding them in place.
Just as he felt he had begun to dominate, the other responded from thousands of miles away, striking with increased force, unwilling to accept the loss of his servants. Furiously, Neferion shouted once more.
MUL QAH DIIV (Strength, Armor, Wyrm)
The power of the Dragon Aspect practically doubled his attributes and the capabilities of his body but also the strength of his soul, which also translated into the power of his shouts, and although he couldn't last more than a few minutes in his current state, it was a game changer.
"GOL HAH DOV" (Earth, Mind, Dragon)
He felt Alduin's Will weaken and begin to be replaced by his own. A roar of fury rang out, and the dragon's presence disappeared completely, allowing him to take control of the minds of his priests.
The Isle of Grey Gallows was unrecognisable. Although he and the priests were unharmed, a cataclysm seemed to have passed through the area around them. The earth was cracked for miles, creating a network of deep crevasses; any elevations or rocks ceased to exist, creating simply a cracked plain. The sea around was only just beginning to calm, finally allowing the creatures hiding there to come ashore.
The Dovahkiin looked at the priests, who now fell to their knees before him. "Master. We live only to serve. What do you command?" They cried in one voice, lowering their heads.
He looked at them intently, deep in thought. Plans began to form in his mind. Finally he commanded, "Rise. And take off those foolish masks, for they are only replicas."
They immediately did as he told them, revealing the startling young faces of three men and one woman. All appeared to be no older than thirty and had characteristic valyrian features, silver-gold hair, and purple or blue eyes, and they were extremely beautiful.
Krosis stood out from the crowd because of her gender, and Morokei was missing his left eye. Vokun and Ahzidal, on the other hand, seemed to be twins, with the difference that the former had blue eyes in contrast to the latter's violet ones.
'Time to create my own order, I guess? It would behove my priests to be as good as the originals, or even better, to be much better,' he thought. But that was already a goal for the future.
Four masks made of iron, steel, moonstone, and ebony appeared in his hands. Each of them vibrated with the magic contained within them.
He handed them to them one by one. Krosis's mask gave a large bonus to skills related to archery and alchemy, as well as thievery, perfect for a specialist in assassination and espionage.
Vokun reduced the cost of magic for spells from the schools of Alteration, Illusion, and Conjuration.
Morokeia gave twice the speed of magicka regeneration, and Ahzidala gave very high resistance to fire and a boost to fire-based magic.
Of course, some of these powers were based on access to magic, but he already had a solution for that. He had been planning how to solve this problem since his arrival, and he had a plan that he intended to implement in the near future.
They put on the mask they were offered, then waited patiently for further instructions.
"Meet me at the palace in Susnpear within seven days," he said after a moment of thought. "There I will give you further instructions."
Then he nodded at the sky, where four winged figures circled, keeping their distance after the earlier show. "I understand that these are your mounts?"
"Yes, my Lord. These are our drakes, as our previous master ordered them to be called."
He nodded at these words, "I have to agree with Alduin on one thing; there are no other dragons except Dov. Summon your mounts and leave for now. However, we will not meet in seven days but in three."
"In the meantime, clear all islands except Bloodstone and Torturer's Deep of human activity. I'll take care of those two, because if they're keeping slaves and prisoners anywhere, it's there, and I don't want you burning innocents. Go; those water monsters are close."
And indeed, hundreds of disgusting hybrids of humans and sea creatures began to pour out of the sea from the south. Every one practically his size or larger, even on land, moved at speeds beyond the reach of a normal human.
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Riverlands, Raventree Hall
Roland Blackwood, Lord of House Blackwood
Roland had spent the last fifteen minutes reading over and over the letter that now lay before him on his desk. A letter that had given him a lot to think about, and above all, it had given him a glimmer of hope for change.
With a heavy sigh, he adjusted his long, dark brown hair that fell over his face, then fixed his dark grey eyes on his wife. Agnes was not only an extremely beautiful woman with blonde hair and blue eyes, but she was also as strong as Valyrian steel and much more intelligent than the two of them. That was why he consulted her on almost everything.
"So what do you think, my love?" he asked, wondering who he could trust with this information. "Do you think there is any truth to this, and if so, what should we do?"
His wife thought for a moment, then approached him, sitting on his lap, looked into his eyes and replied, "I think this is our chance. Nymeria is not stupid and hopes to get rid of or at least weaken one of her two greatest opponents."
"But even if this Dovahkiin, who from what the princess writes may be like a living god, we do not exchange the rule of the Durrandons for something worse that we cannot even dream of winning. How to rebel against a deity?" he asked, embracing Agnes and resting his head on her shoulder.
"My dear husband. The entire existence of the Riverlands is one big gamble; for millennia we have been struggling with enemies from all sides. Maybe it is time to roll the dice and risk everything for the future of our sons. I do not want to watch them grow up under the regime of the kings from Storm's End or fear constant invasions of the Ironborn."
He smiled slightly at her words and replied, "From the letter, it appears that we shouldn't worry about the latter for long."
"Princess Nymeria claims that this Neferion didn't even want any reward and took on the defence of Dorne from pirates out of pure desire to protect the people. I doubt he's a worse ruler than Arrec and his predecessors, and with someone like that, no kingdom around would dare attack us," his wife said, her voice much more confident than his own, riddled with uncertainty.
"But what interest does Dorne have in all this? If he is so powerful, should they send him straight to the Stormlands?" He asked, his mind, accustomed to the turbulent politics under the rule of the Storm Kings, searching for a second meaning in all this.
"Oh, Roland. That's obvious. He can't control him, and he wouldn't fight anyone's wars without good reason. Therefore, we should present our cause as liberation from oppression. Explain what is happening here." His wife pointed out, and he had to admit that perhaps this simple explanation made the most sense."
"You should write to Lords Vance, Piper, Mallister and Frey. Explain the situation and wait for a response. I will go to Darra and explain the matter to Lyman. Then I will go to Dorne on one of the merchant ships; it will be safest."
"Are you sure, dear...? You know I have no doubt that you are better suited for this type of arrangement, but the road is long, and what about the boys?" He asked hesitantly; he didn't like it when his temperamental wife risked her life.
Agnes just put her hand on his cheek, tilting his head so that he looked her straight in the eyes. "Trust me... and as for the boys, they will manage without me for a few moons. Our future and theirs are more important. And at all costs do not let the news reach Bracken... He will betray us without hesitation."
"I would sooner cut my throat than trust that snake Lothar with anything." He was outraged at her words, to which she only laughed.
"Get started writing those letters; I have to get ready for the journey," she told him, standing up and walking briskly towards the door, filled with energy he hadn't seen in her for a long time. He himself was starting to feel more and more hopeful, so he reached for the pen and ink.
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Westeros, Sea of Dorne
Storm God
Since he had only sensed the presence of this stranger, he had slowly begun to awaken from the long slumber into which those damned Seven had led him. Wanting to avoid their attention, he made cautious movements here and there, not wanting to draw attention to himself before he was ready, but now there was an opportunity to strike at the Damned One.
His very presence in this world made him uncomfortable, and he realised that the longer they allowed him to move freely, the greater the threat he would become.
So seeing that even this damned Drowned One decided to act and sent his cruel servants, he came to the conclusion that he could use this to his ends.
The skies above the Stepstones began to darken under a mass of storm clouds, until there was total darkness, lit only by thousands of branching lightning bolts. A mighty wind began to blow with incredible speed. A Storm came... A Storm like Planetos had not seen in millennia, all that anger... all that power directed at one person.