Chapter 103 When the World-Eater Grows Stronger
"ALEX, WHERE ARE YOU?!"
Astrid's voice cracked as she shouted his name, her hands cupped around her mouth. The sound echoed hollowly through the endless gray mist of Sovngarde, only to be swallowed whole a heartbeat later. She turned in a slow circle, boots scraping against the stone beneath her feet, eyes straining against the suffocating fog.
Her fingers curled into tight fists at her sides.
"Alex… answer me!"
The silence pressed in around her, thick and unnatural.
Frustration burned in her chest. She inhaled sharply, her lungs filling with cold, damp air. Then she planted her feet firmly apart, shoulders squared, and let the ancient power rise from deep within her soul.
"LOK… VAH… KOOR!"
The Thu'um Clear Skies erupted from her throat like a thunderclap. The force of it rippled outward, blasting through the dense fog. The mist tore apart violently, swirling and retreating in spirals as if afraid of her voice. For a brief, precious moment, the path ahead became visible stone ground, scattered rocks, and emptiness stretching into the distance.
Astrid's eyes widened as she scanned desperately left and right, stepping forward quickly.
"Alex?!" she called again, her voice softer now but laced with urgency.
But even as she searched, the fog began creeping back. Tendrils of gray slithered along the ground, coiling around her boots. Within seconds, the world was swallowed once more.
Her jaw tightened.
"This fog is different…" she muttered under her breath, brushing damp strands of hair away from her face. "It's stronger than ordinary mist."
She clenched her teeth, staring into the white void in front of her.
"But at least… for a few seconds, I can see the path ahead."
Refusing to give up, Astrid drew in another breath, chest rising and falling heavily. She shouted Clear Skies again then again. Each time, the fog exploded outward, only to surge back even faster, as if resisting her defiance.
After every shout, she would spin sharply, scanning the surroundings, taking several hurried steps, her heart pounding harder with each failed attempt.
"Alex! This isn't funny!" she yelled, panic beginning to lace her voice.
Her movements became more restless. She pushed through the mist, hand occasionally stretching forward as if she might suddenly grasp his sleeve. But her fingers met nothing but cold air.
Despite using Clear Skies repeatedly, despite straining her eyes until they burned, there was no sign of him.
And the fog remained unyielding, oppressive, and silent.
An hour passed.
The mist never thinned for long. It pressed against her skin like damp cloth, clinging to her armor, seeping into her hair. Astrid's breathing had grown uneven, her earlier shouts now reduced to hoarse calls that faded quickly into the gray void.
She slowed to a stop, shoulders rising and falling with exhaustion. Her hands rested on her hips for a moment before one of them dragged across her face in frustration.
"Where did he disappear to…?" she muttered, her voice trembling despite her attempt to steady it. Her eyes darted restlessly into the fog, as if he might suddenly step out of it. "I'm really worried…"
She bit her lower lip.
"He's not like me a Dragonborn with the Clear Skies Thu'um."
Her fingers tightened unconsciously around the hilt of her weapon. The thought gnawed at her chest. Without Clear Skies, the fog of Sovngarde could easily disorient anyone. It wasn't just ordinary mist it felt alive, oppressive, almost predatory.
She turned away, pacing a few steps before stopping again. Then, slowly, her expression shifted as a memory surfaced.
Alex's voice echoed in her mind casual, confident.
He had said he felt better here in Sovngarde. That his telekinesis was stronger. That using his power no longer caused that terrible backlash in his head.
Astrid closed her eyes briefly, exhaling through her nose.
"If that's true…" she murmured to herself, gripping that thought tightly. "Then he should be fine."
Still, doubt lingered.
"I should wait somewhere… a meeting point, maybe." She glanced around helplessly at the endless gray. "But where would that be…?"
The landscape all looked the same mist, faint outlines of rocks, nothing distinct enough to serve as a landmark.
Her jaw set with determination again.
"LOK… VAH… KOOR!"
She unleashed Clear Skies once more. The fog split apart violently, rolling back in waves. This time, instead of rushing forward blindly, she forced herself to remain still. Her head turned slowly from left to right, eyes sharp and calculating.
"There…!"
Through the briefly parted mist, she spotted it a stone road cutting across the land, ancient and solid against the pale emptiness.
As the fog began creeping back in, Astrid quickly memorized its direction. She stepped toward it just as the gray swallowed everything again.
"Hm…" She folded her arms briefly, thinking. "Maybe Alex will follow this path."
Her gaze softened for a fleeting second.
"I hope he's okay…"
With renewed resolve, she adjusted her grip on her weapon and began walking along the stone road, every step measured but urgent, her heart still heavy with worry as the fog curled silently around her once more.
Astrid stepped onto the stone road, her boots landing with a faint scrape against the ancient surface. The path felt solid beneath her feet a rare comfort in the endless uncertainty of Sovngarde. She followed it cautiously, her hand hovering near the hilt of her weapon, shoulders tense.
The fog coiled around her ankles and calves, drifting like living smoke. Every few steps she glanced over her shoulder, then ahead again, her breathing slow but alert. She had no idea where the road would lead but it was better than wandering blindly.
Then she froze.
Far ahead, through layers of shifting gray, something enormous moved.
At first it was just a darker shape within the mist. A distortion. A shadow that didn't belong.
Her eyes narrowed.
As the fog thinned for a split second, the outline became clearer a massive pair of wings, folded. A long neck. A crown of jagged horns.
Her heart skipped.
"Is that… Alduin?" she whispered, barely audible even to herself. Her fingers tightened around her weapon until her knuckles turned pale. "I have to get there quickly."
She leaned forward and began moving toward the silhouette, her steps light but urgent.
But she didn't shout.
She didn't dare.
Using Clear Skies now would scatter the fog and announce her presence like a beacon. If Alduin noticed her, alone and exposed, it would be suicide.
So she advanced slowly. Carefully.
Each step was deliberate. Heel first. Then toe. Her breathing shallow. Her eyes locked onto the looming shape ahead.
The air suddenly trembled.
A deep, earth-shaking roar tore through the mist, vibrating in her bones. The sound rolled across Sovngarde like thunder, heavy and ancient.
Astrid instinctively dropped into a lower stance, her pulse hammering in her ears.
The roar echoed again closer this time.
She continued forward until the sound seemed to radiate from just ahead. Spotting a large jagged boulder rising from the stone path, she quickly slipped behind it, pressing her back against the cold rock.
Slowly very slowly she leaned to the side and peeked around the edge.
At first, Alduin's form was still partially veiled by the fog. His massive body was a shifting silhouette, indistinct and ominous.
Then the mist around him began to thin.
Not because of her.
But because of him.
The fog seemed to recoil from his presence, peeling away inch by inch.
Astrid's breath caught in her throat.
Her eyes widened.
Alduin looked different.
Far larger than before.
His body was broader, his wings thicker, his scales darker like obsidian soaked in shadow. The very air around him felt heavier, distorted by the sheer force of his presence. Power radiated from him in suffocating waves.
Astrid's stomach dropped.
She immediately ducked back behind the rock, pressing herself flat against it. She covered her mouth with one hand to steady her breathing, forcing herself to remain silent.
(So the rumors were true…)
Her heart pounded violently against her ribs.
(After devouring souls in Sovngarde, he's grown stronger and bigger.)
She clenched her jaw.
(I can't defeat Alduin alone. Not like this. I have to find Alex. He might know the solution.)
The fog continued thinning in the surrounding area, revealing more of the desolate battlefield. Astrid remained frozen behind the rock, barely daring to blink.
Please… just leave, she thought desperately.
But Alduin did not move.
Seconds stretched painfully.
(What's happening? Did he sense me? Please… don't let that be the case.)
She heard the scrape of claws against stone. A low rumble vibrated through the ground.
Carefully, she peeked again.
Alduin's massive head turned slightly. His burning eyes scanned the area, sharp and calculating. He shifted his weight, his tail sweeping slowly behind him.
Astrid stiffened, pulling back instantly, her back pressed hard against the rock. She could feel sweat forming along her temples despite the cold air.
Then
A heavy beat of wings.
WHOOOM.
With a single powerful flap, the surrounding mist surged inward again, drawn toward him as though commanded. The air twisted violently.
Alduin lifted his head and unleashed a Thu'um. The ancient words rolled like a storm across the land. At once, the fog thickened dramatically, spiraling around his body until he was once again half-hidden in a churning vortex of gray.
Astrid squeezed her eyes shut briefly, bracing herself.
Another thunderous flap of wings.
The ground trembled.
Then the sound began to fade higher, more distant.
Slowly, cautiously, she peeked out once more.
Alduin was airborne now, his massive silhouette ascending into the sky before disappearing completely into the heavy mist above.
Astrid released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.
"…Looks like he's hunting for prey again," she murmured softly, straightening from behind the rock. Her legs felt slightly weak, but her resolve hardened.
"I have to find Alex. He must know how to defeat Alduin."
She adjusted her stance, eyes sharpening with determination.
"I need to hurry."
Without wasting another second, Astrid turned and quickly left the area, her footsteps echoing against the stone road as the fog swallowed her once more.
Cliffside Location
Loose pebbles tumbled into the abyss below as Alex's body slammed hard against the cliff face.
His fingers shot out on instinct scraping, clawing until they finally caught onto a narrow, jagged ledge. His body jerked violently as his full weight pulled downward. For a split second, his grip nearly slipped.
" Tch!"
His boots scraped uselessly against the vertical rock wall, searching for footing. Wind howled past him, carrying the faint scent of cold stone and distant mist.
He hung there, arms trembling, muscles straining.
A bead of sweat slid down his temple.
"Phew…!" he exhaled shakily, pressing his forehead briefly against the rough stone. "That was close. Way too close…"
He adjusted his grip carefully, fingers digging deeper into the crevice.
"I almost died because of that crazy woman," he muttered irritably, jaw tightening. "If I hadn't switched my ring to Fortify Alteration at the last second…"
He flexed his left hand slightly, feeling the faint magical hum of the enchanted ring.
"…I wouldn't have been able to use telekinesis properly with my low mana. I'd be a corpse at the bottom right now."
He swallowed and glanced down.
The drop below disappeared into fog. No visible ground. Just emptiness.
"…Yeah. Definitely dead."
Alex quickly looked back up at the towering cliff above him. The rock stretched high into the mist, uneven and full of cracks but climbable.
"Okay…" he murmured, steadying his breathing. "I need to try my telekinesis again."
He closed his eyes for a brief moment and inhaled deeply through his nose. His chest expanded, then slowly deflated as he exhaled.
Mana stirred within him faint, but stable.
"I really should practice flying with telekinesis too," he grumbled under his breath, lips twitching in mild annoyance at himself. "Tch. I'm so lazy sometimes."
A faint distortion shimmered in the air around his arms.
Invisible force extended outward from him like transparent hands reaching into the world. The pressure wrapped around a crack in the cliff above, gripping it firmly. Another invisible hold latched onto a protruding rock to his right.
Alex's shoulders tensed.
"Alright… slowly…"
With a subtle motion of his fingers, the unseen force pulled. His body lifted a few inches. His boots scraped against the stone until one found a small foothold.
He shifted his weight carefully.
Invisible telekinetic "hands" moved again reaching, gripping, stabilizing him. Pebbles rattled loose, but he remained steady.
"I hope Astrid is okay…" he muttered quietly, eyes softening for a moment as he climbed. "She's definitely stronger than that girl, but…"
His movement paused slightly.
Unbidden, an image flashed through his mind.
Emma.
Her toned body. The way her muscles moved. The sharp definition of her abs.
"…Her abs were seriously tempting…" he admitted under his breath, cheeks faintly warming despite the cold air.
His grip nearly faltered.
Alex immediately shook his head violently, as if trying to fling the image out of his mind.
"No, no, no, no, no!" he hissed to himself. "Alex, what are you doing? You already have a partner."
He tightened his jaw and refocused his gaze upward.
"As a man, you have to stay loyal."
He took another breath, centering himself.
The telekinetic force surged more steadily now, more controlled. One invisible grip after another latched onto the cliff face, pulling him higher in small, calculated movements.
His arms trembled, but his resolve hardened.
One careful pull.
One stable foothold.
Then another.
With slow, deliberate precision, Alex continued climbing the towering cliff determined not to fall again, and even more determined not to let his thoughts wander where they shouldn't.