The Dragons Are Back (Miraculous Ladybug X The Elder Scrolls Crossover)

Chapter 11: The Meaning of Fade

Nino sighed in exasperation as his girlfriend dragged him by the arm to yet another Akuma battle.

"Alya, it's dangerous! Remember when you almost got sacrificed to an ancient sun god? Or when you were trapped by your Spiderman rip-off older sister Akuma?"

"Nino, it's for the blog! The people have to see this!"

This Akuma looked like a cracked marble statue that was wielding an enlarged set of sculptor's tools, and it was turning other people into cracked marble statues that followed its every command. Luckily it hadn't spotted them. Yet.

The Akuma leaped into the air and landed on the ground, sending a shockwave out from where it landed. Alya and Nino were thrown away from each other, the former, out in the open.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the Akuma turned to her, its frozen, emotionless face somehow more terrifying than any enrage snarl or psychotic grin as its cavernous mouth opened to release a blast of yellow light.

He had to save her. But if he did, he would get turned into a statue too.

If only he could fade away...

"Feim Zii Gron!"

Nino's body turned transparent and intangible. Thank Akatosh that Become Ethereal was a Shout and that he had fully mastered it.

He darted out into the open, drawing the Akuma's attention away from Alya, every blast phasing right through him. He ducked behind a building just as the effect gave out. Alya seemed to materialize right beside him and peeked around the edge of the building.

"Zul Mey Gut," she whispered.

Off in the distance, a phantom of her voice shouted "Hey, ugly!"

The Akuma turned in the direction of the fake voice, yelling, "I am a beautiful, majestic being of the purest marble! I shall uplift you to become as such!" and charged at it.

At least the statue-Akuma didn't get called a skeever-butt.

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Nino sat down on his bed crosslegged, removed his glasses, and shut his eyes. Paarthurnax had told him that his Thu'um would become strong through meditation on the Words of Power.

"The word is 'fade' in your tongue - mortals have a greater affinity for this word than the dov. Everything mortal fades away in time, but the spirit remains."

He was Carapace. The hero of Protection. It was his job to personally guard and protect others, which in battle usually translated to tanking attacks. He and Paarthurnax had been working together to create a Shout that would allow him to do that in civilian form as well, but for now it was a work in progress.

"Ponder the meaning of spirit. Unslaad zii. Where mortal flesh may wither and die, the spirit endures."

He was the one who was supposed to remain, to endure what no one else could.

"That is Feim. Let that meaning fill you. Su'um ahrk morah. You will find that your spirit will give you more strength."

He opened his eyes and put his glasses back on, his vision coming back into focus, and looked at the clock. Half an hour had passed. He had a bit of a habit of losing track of time and meditating for longer than he thought he was.