A/N: Welcome to Skyrim, folks! Here we'll follow the Dragonborn on his quest to defeat Alduin the World-Eater; Bane of Kings! But this isn't just a written version of the game. For those of you who've already seen "Nightshade: The Oblivion Crisis", this is technically the sequel. But you could consider this the main story if you want to. But I'm not here to make you read my Author's Notes. So without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, I give you "Nightshade: The Last Dragonborn"!
Unbound
"Hadvar, I really think we should've left her back in Solitude. Why did you invite her to this?" An Imperial soldier asked his superior.
"Believe me, friend. Had we left her, she would've wreaked havoc." The superior, a Nord named Hadvar, replied.
"But here? To an execution? She's sixteen years old. She should be at home learning to be a proper woman." The Imperial lowered his voice for the last bit, but it didn't stop the girl they were talking about from hearing. The two heard her clear her throat from behind them.
Trotting along, rather miffed, on a palomino horse, was a young mixed-blood elf girl wearing Imperial light armour. At her waist was an Imperial sword, with an Imperial light shield hanging from the hilt. On her back was an Imperial bow and a quiver of steel arrows. A copper-and-ruby circlet adorned her head in the place of a helmet. Her light brown hair was in wind braids, and her golden-hazel gaze practically bore a hole in the back of the head of the Imperial riding in front of her.
"This is Skyrim, friend. The women here have more guts than an entire squad of your kind's men combined. Nightshade is far from an exception. Tougher than Skyforge steel, she is. She is much happier, and much better off here with us." And Hadvar left it at that.
"Hadvar's got a real soft for ya, huh Nightshade?" A Breton soldier trotted up to the elf and nudged her in the arm.
"I guess so." The girl shrugged.
"Maybe it's because Arturia hates you so much." The older boy suggested.
"Maybe..."
"Nightshade!" Hadvar barked suddenly. She snapped up to the closest one can get to attention while riding a horse. "Do a routine check!"
"Yes, sir!" The elf replied without hesitation. She trotted past the two soldiers in front of her and both carts to stop about a metre in front of the first one. She looked inside to see four Nords with lowered heads, silent. She let it pass her, and looked into the other one.
Inside sat three Nords and a pale Redguard who was sound asleep. She kicked her horse into a walk, and tapped one of the Nords on the shoulder. Ralof, if she remembered correctly.
"Hey, why's he sleeping?" She nodded at the Redguard.
"Maybe because he's tired." Ralof retorted.
"Well, wake him up! We're almost to our destination!" She snapped before turning around and trotting back around to her spot behind Hadvar. Rotten Stormcloaks... she thought.
xXxXxXxXx
The Redguard opened his eyes slowly. He was sore everywhere, and his hands were bound. He forced his stiff muscles to move as he sat up, attempting to shake off his fatigue. He was in a cart with three Nords, all with bound hands just like him. The one beside him, to his right, was gagged.
"Hey, you" The Redguard was pulled into reality by the Nord in front of him. "You're finally awake. You tried to cross the border, right? Ran into that Imperial ambush, same as us. And that thief over there." He nodded to the man sitting diagonally across from the Redguard.
"Damn you Stormcloaks. Skyrim was fine until you showed up. Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn't been looking for you, I could've stolen that horse and been halfway to Hammerfell." The thief growled before turning to the Redguard. "You there. You and me- we shouldn't be here. It's these Stormcloaks the Empire wants."
"We're all brothers and sisters in binds now, thief." The Nord in front of the Redguard said.
"Shut up back there!" An Imperial soldier commanded.
"What's wrong with him, huh?" The thief nodded to the gagged Nord.
"Watch your tongue!" The first Nord barked. "You're speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King!"
"Ulfric? The Jarl of Windhelm? You're the leader of the rebellion." Suddenly, the thief looked terrified. "If they captured you... Oh gods, where are they taking us?!"
"I don't know where we're going, but Sovngarde awaits." The Nord sitting in front of the Redguard replied sombrely.
"No! This can't be happening! This isn't happening!" The horse thief's head whipped around, his eyes as wide as dinner plates.
"Hey, what village are you from, horse thief?"
"Why do you care?"
"A Nord's last thoughts... Should be of home."
"Rorikstead. I'm... I'm from Rorikstead." The thief appeared to calm at the thought of his home.
"General Tullius, sir!" A soldier yelled suddenly. "The headsman is waiting!"
"Good. Let's get this over with." A man, presumable the general, replied as the wagon passed under a wooden archway.
"Shor, Mara, Dibella, Kynareth, Akatosh... Divines! Please help me!" The thief prayed, panicking again.
"Look at him. General Tullius, the Military Governor. And it looks like the Thalmor are with him. Damn elves. I bet they had something to do with this." The Stormcloak that wasn't gagged muttered. Then he looked around. "This is Helgen. I used to be sweet on a girl from here. I wonder if Vilod is still making that mead with juniper berries mixed in." The Nord sighed. "Funny. When I was a boy, Imperial walls and towers used to make me feel so safe."
xXxXxXxXx
"Uh-oh. Nightshade, you aren't gonna like this." The Breton soldier warned the elf he was riding beside.
"What?" She asked.
"Look." He pointed, and her eyes landed on an Imperial captain.
"No..." Nightshade breathed.
"Yup. Captain Arturia Lost-Saint of the Imperial Legion." The Breton confirmed.
"No, not her! Anyone but her!"
"Nope. And it doesn't look like Legate Rikke is here to help you."
"Oh gods, just kill me now." All through Nightshade's initiation into the Legion, Arturia Lost-Saint had tormented her at every opportunity available. When it was time to determine who Nightshade would serve under, Arturia had stepped forward.
Hadvar had been faster.
Hadvar had guided and mentored Nightshade, and had shielded her from Arturia's hatred as much as he could. So when the time came, Hadvar had moved faster than Arturia to have her drafted into his squad. But now that Arturia was a captain, Hadvar had no means of defending Nightshade. Since General Tullius didn't get involved with the squabbles of those below him, only the legate would help her.
But Rikke was back in Solitude.
"She seems pretty focused on the execution. Maybe she won't even notice you're here." The Breton suggested. Not if my luck gets any say in the matter. Nightshade thought.
xXxXxXxXx
"Why are we stopping?" The thief asked as the cart pulled to a stop.
"Why do you think? End of the line." The Stormcloak says. "Let's go. Shouldn't keep the gods waiting for us." They all stood, and the thief began to plead.
"No! Wait! We're not rebels!" The thief pleaded.
"Face your death with some courage, thief." The other Nord capable of coherent speech scolded.
"You've got to tell them! We weren't with you! This is a mistake!" The Redguard shook his head at the desperate Nord. What a fool. He thought as he jumped from the cart. Now before him stood a Nord man in Legion light armour, and an Imperial woman in Legion heavy armour.
"Step towards the block when we call your name! One at a time!" The woman barked.
"Empire loves their damn lists." The Stormcloak from the cart muttered.
"Ulfric Stormcloak, Jarl of Windhelm." The Nord Legion soldier read from the list. The Nord with the gag walked towards the block.
"It has been an honour, Jarl Ulfric!" His follower announced.
"Ralof of Riverwood." Ulfric's follower was quick to follow his leader to the block when his name was called from the list. "Lokir of Rorikstead."
"No! I'm not a rebel! You can't do this!" The thief protested. He broke into a run past the two soldiers in an attempt to escape.
"Halt!" The woman called uselessly.
"You're not going to kill me!" Lokir yelled.
"Archers!" The woman ordered. Lokir the horse thief was taken out by a young elven girl mounted on a golden Skyrim horse. The Imperial scowled at the elf, who shrugged. "Anyone else feel like running?" The woman asked. She nodded at the man with the list to continue when no one answered.
"Wait. You there." The Nord addressed the Redguard. "Step forward." He did so, and the man examined him. "Who are you?"
"I am Caesar, of Hammerfell." The Redguard replied.
"What're you doing here, Redguard? You a sellsword? A sailor from Stros M'Kai?" The Nord turned to the woman next to him. "Captain. What should we do? He's not on the list."
"Forget the list. He goes to the block." The captain ordered.
"By your orders, Captain." The man turned back to Caesar. "I'm sorry. We'll make sure your remains are returned to Hammerfell. Follow the captain, prisoner."
xXxXxXxXx
Nightshade shrugged at Arturia's scowl. You're the one who said 'archers'. She thought. Then she watched as the Redguard she'd seen sleeping was called forward. A moment passed before the Redguard followed Arturia to the block.
"Ulfric Stormcloak," General Tullius began, standing before the rebel. " Some here in Helgen call you a hero. But a hero doesn't use a power like the Voice to murder his king and usurp his throne." Ulfric attempted to speak through the gag, but all that came out were muffled grunts. "You started this war, plunged Skyrim into chaos, and now the Empire is going to put you down, and restore the peace!"
Suddenly, a roar sounded in the distance.
"What was that?" Hadvar asked.
"It's nothing. Carry on." The general ordered.
"Yes General Tullius. Give them their last rights." Arturia told a priestess of Arkay.
"As we commend your souls to Aetherius, blessings of the Eight Divines upon you, for you-" The priestess was then suddenly cut off.
"For the love of Talos, shut up and let's get this over with!" The first Stormcloak put to the block yelled.
"As you wish." The priestess complied, though clearly miffed about being interrupted.
"Come on, I haven't got all morning!" The Stormcloak soldier complained. Arturia walked up behind him, and pushed him down onto the block. "My ancestors are smiling at me, Imperials. Can you say the same?" The Nord lost his head with a grin on his face.
"You Imperial bastards!" A Stormcloak woman shouted.
"Justice!" A civilian man called.
"Death to the Stormcloaks!" A woman added.
"As fearless in death as he was in life." Nightshade heard Ralof say.
"Next, the Redguard!" Arturia ordered.
The roar from earlier sounded again.
"There it is again. Did you hear that?" Hadvar noted.
"I said, next prisoner!" Captain Arturia barked. Hadvar muttered something to the Redguard, and the prisoner walked calmly to the block. He's so young, and obviously not a rebel, yet he accepts his fate quietly. Nightshade thought. That's admirable. She watched in sympathy as Arturia shoved him down like the Stormcloak before him.
Again, the roar sounded, directly above them
"What in Oblivion is that?!" Tullius exclaimed. Above, a large shadow flew through the clouds.
The headsman levelled his axe with the Redguard 's neck.
"Sentries, what do you see?" Arturia called.
"Its in the clouds!" A soldier shouted in response.
The headsman raised his axe above his head.
A huge winged reptile landed on the nearby tower.
"Divines help us." Nightshade breathed, eyes widening. The black creature roared at the headsman with such force that he stumbled and fell over himself.
xXxXxXxXx
"DRAGON!" The female Stormcloak cried in terror. Everyone began panicking all at once. Chaos erupted around the event. Meteors and fire fell from the sky and crashed into the earth, destroying everything around them.
"Don't just stand there! Kill that thing! Guards, get the townspeople to safety!" Tullius began barking orders in an attempt to bring some stability to the panic. At his command, Nightshade snapped out of her shock and leapt from her horse.
"Lucem, you need to get out of here!" She told the mare. Lucem whinnied in protest. "I'll be fine, but I'm not gonna let you stay here and become dragon chow! Meet me in Whiterun! Go!" The girl smacked the horse on the rear, and, hesitantly, it turned and bolted away.
"Nightshade, run!" The Breton from before yelled. Nightshade pulled her shield off of her sword hilt.
"The general wants that thing dead? Fine. I'll bring him its head on a platter." She reached into her boot, and drew an unusual dagger. It looked as thought a bronze dragon head was attempting to eat a semi-transparent blade.
The dagger suddenly combusted into flames, and those flames grew in length. When they vanished, the dagger had transformed into a full-sized sword.
"I meant away! You're not actually thinking of fighting that thing, are you?!" Nightshade's fellow soldier called. She turned to him.
"He told us to kill it, right?" She grinned, and then raced towards the dragon.
xXxXxXxXx
"Hey, Redguard! Get up! Come on! The gods won't give us another chance!" Caesar felt someone lifting him by the arm, but he was too dazed to figure out who it was. Only one thing was clear in his mind. Run. He scrambled to his feet and followed someone, who yelled, "This way!"
They ran into the tower the dragon had first landed on, and stopped. The Redguard took deep breaths and tried to gather his thoughts.
"Jarl Ulfric. What is that thing? Could the legends be true?" Ulfric? Caesar went from confused to understanding completely in the time it takes to snap your fingers. Ralof had been the one who pulled him up, and now they were in the tower with Ulfric Stormcloak, who was no longer gagged. But more importantly, the Redguard hadn't died. That dragon saved his life.
"Legends don't burn down villages." Ulfric told his follower. Outside, the black dragon roared, but Caesar swore he could distinguish more than just one, senseless sound. It sounded as though the creature was shouting words. "We need to move, now!" The Jarl of Windhelm warned.
"Up through the tower, let's go!" Ralof urged heading up. Caesar followed, racing up the steps. But halfway to the top, the wall burst open, and the dragon shot fire into the hole. And this time, the Redguard knew he heard words.
"Toor... Shul?" The words sounded familiar to him, but he couldn't place them. He shook his head and looked down through the hole. There was a burnt building with a large part of its roof destroyed.
"See the inn on the other side? Jump through the roof and keep going! We'll follow when we can!" Ralof said. Caesar leapt out of the tower and landed on the upper level of the inn. He raced down the steps in front of him and and left the building only to find himself on a street covered in Imperial soldiers. He was about to try and reason with one of them when he heard someone cry out.
"Ah!" It wasn't a shrill screech, but it was definitely a woman. And a second later, a girl fell from the sky and slammed into one of the soldiers, dropping him like a rock.
"Sorry, Hadvar..." She said sheepishly, getting up. She was a mixed-blood elf in Legion light armour. That's the girl that shot the horse thief. Caesar realized.
"Wha- Nightshade?! What in Oblivion?!" The soldier she hit, the Nord that had been reading names off of the list, apparently named Hadvar, got up and looked at her like she was insane.
"The dragon yelled at me." She replied plainly, as if it were some that happened every day.
"The dragon- Nightshade, do not tell me you tried to fight that thing head on!"
"Hey, the general said to kill it, didn't he?" The elf looked around as if looking for someone to back her up.
"I think he meant kill it with arrows, not to take that freaky blade of yours and charge at it like a bear." Hadvar shook his head at the girl. Meanwhile, Caesar spotted the blade he had referred to. It was unlike anything the Hammerfellian had ever seen. It looks as though a dragon's head made of bronze was attempting to eat a clear, semi-transparent blade.
"Well sorry, he didn't exactly specify how he wanted the thing to die." She rolled her eyes before noticing the Redguard watching them. Her golden gaze was striking. "Hey, you're that prisoner that was sleeping in the cart."
"And you're that soldier that killed the horse thief." Caesar narrowed his eyes at her. She simply shrugged.
"I was just following orders." Suddenly, everyone jumped, as at that moment, the black dragon slammed down right in front of them.
"Gods... Everyone, get back!" Hadvar ordered.
"Help!" Caesar saw a young Nord boy well within the blast radius of the dragon's fire.
"Shit!" The elven girl swore, and raced towards the boy.
"Nightshade!" Hadvar called after her.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" The Redguard yelled. The dragon took a breath as the elf grabbed the boyand held him close to her, turning so her back was facing the creature, shielding the young Nord.
"Toor... SHUL!" The dragon shouted, intense flames shooting out of its mouth and engulfing both the soldier and the boy completely.
"Shit..." Caesar muttered. Then the flames died down.
xXxXxXxXx
Nightshade, completely unscathed, straightened up and turned to face the black dragon. "You wanna say that to my face?" She challenged. But the large, winged reptile simply flew away.
"What in Oblivion...?" Caesar was beyond shock, his mouth hanging open. Meanwhile, the young boy, also unscathed, raced towards the soldiers, his eyes as wide as dinner plates. Both of them should be ash piles right now.
"That was too close." Nightshade muttered, dusting herself off and returning to the group.
"That was reckless!" Hadvar shouted. "You need to be more careful!" But Nightshade was having none of it.
"And what if I had been?! That boy would be a pile of ashes right now! There'd be nothing left of him, Hadvar!" She shouted right back. The Nord opened his mouth to speak again, but seemed to think better of it. Caesar was still standing there in shock. The girl looked over. "What, never seen a fireproof person before?"
"I... Thought they were just myths." The Redguard replied after a moment. He shook is head to reorient himself.
"Hear that, Hadvar?" She elbowed her fellow legionnaire in a friendly way. "I'm a mythical creature. Guess me and that dragon have something in common." She looked back to the Redguard. "Anyways, if you value your life, I suggest you stick with us. Hadvar, we gettin' outta here?"
"Yes. Gunmar, take care of the boy! We have to find General Tullius and join the defence." Hadvar pushed the boy Nightshade had saved towards the another legionnaire.
"Gods guide you both." The man told them.
"Come on, prisoner. I'll help you find a place to hide before I help out the general." Nightshade told Caesar before following Hadvar past a building.
"Stay close to the wall!" Hadvar ordered as the dragon flew over the group, blasting fire. They got free of the enclosed space and raced down the street. "Quickly, follow me! It's only us now!" They reached an intersection, and Caesar spotted the Nord that he had followed to the tower. Everyone stopped. "Ralof! You damned traitor! Out of my way!"
"We're escaping, Hadvar." The rebel sneered. "You're not stopping us this time!"
"Fine. I hope that dragon takes you all to Sovngarde!" Everyone began moving again, running. "With us, prisoner! Let's go! Come on! We need to get inside!" Hadvar ran forward as Ralof passed by. Ralof yelled something Caesar couldn't make out, and the Redguard was unsure of where to go.
"Hey, prisoner! Let's go! Do you want to be burned to a crisp?!" His vision cleared and he saw Nightshade waiting for him, waving for him to hurry. Having lost sight of Ralof, he followed the elf.
xXxXxXxXx
"Looks like we're the only ones who made it." Hadvar panted once they were all indoors, safe for the time being. They were in what seemed to be barracks. There were multiple beds with chests on the end of them, and a few other pieces of furniture. "Was that really a dragon? The bringers of the End Times?"
"Sure looked like it." Nightshade's checked herself for injuries, then looked at Caesar. "Hey, prisoner. C'mere. I'll get those bindings off ya." She waved him over. Slowly and cautiously, he approached her. She hefted her sword, and Caesar took a step back as it combusted into flames. The flames shortened in length, and then vanished. The sword that had just been before them had shrunk down into a dagger, which Nightshade used to cleanly slice the ropes binding his wrists. Then she stuck the sword/dagger into her boot.
"Thank you." The Redguard rubbed his wrists, red and raw. "I apologize if I'm not as grateful as you'd prefer. My belongings were taken from me by you people while I was unconscious." For some reason, this caused Nightshade to smirk.
"What did you have?" She asked, still smirking.
"Banded iron armour and shield, iron gauntlets and boots, and a scimitar, the traditional curved blade of the Redguards, among a few other minor things." Nightshade's smirk only grew as he listed off items. When he finished, she abruptly turned around and headed to the farthest bed from the group, on the left. She threw open the chest and pulled out something.
"Would these be yours?" In her hands were a banded iron shield and a curved steel sword. Caesar was almost in shock.
"Why are they here?" He asked. Nightshade shrugged as he walked over to examine the objects.
"When we hold an execution, we take the belongings of our prisoners, and pawn them off when the event is over. But usually that's because the previous owner is dead. Since you're alive, I suppose you can have these back." Nightshade explained, handing them over and moving out of the way of the chest. Inside was everything Caesar had been carrying when he got caught in the Imperial ambush, right down to his coin pouch.
"Thank you for returning these to me." Caesar smiled at Nightshade before removing the dirty, ragged shirt he had on. Nightshade was practically on him in an instant.
"What the heck is up with all these bruises? Did they beat you up before throwing you in the wagon? Jeez..." She examined the multiple purple, green, and blackish spots on his body. "Here, let me help you." She lifted her hand, and the Redguard instantly backed off.
"No, it's alright. I'm fine." He said. Nightshade burst out laughing.
"If you have a healer at your disposal, Redguard, you should use her." She stepped forward and placed her hand on his chest. She felt magicka surge through her and saw a golden light begin to surround her patient. Both of them watched as in only a few moments, all of the bruises disappeared. "See?" Nightshade removed her hand. "Hadvar, get over here. Knowing your luck, you've probably got burns all the way down to the tip of your dick." Contrarily, she walked over to him and, without waiting for any response, immediately began healing him as Caesar changed into his armor.
"Thank you, Nightshade. Ready to go, prisoner? We have to get out of here as soon as possible." Hadvar asked.
"Asap, dude. A.S.A.P." Nightshade confirmed.
"Yes. I'm ready." Caesar nodded, fully geared up.
"Then let's mosey." Nightshade said easily, as if there wasn't anything catastrophic happening. Hadvar opened the gate on the other side of the room.
"Better down here than out there." The Nord said before leading the way down the hall before the group.
xXxXxXxXx
"We need to get moving. That dragon is tearing up the whole keep!" A man's voice said.
"Just give me a minute... I'm out of breath..." A woman replied.
"Hear that? Stormcloaks. Maybe we can reason with them." Hadvar whispered.
"Yeah. And maybe I'll get a second-degree burn." Nightshade scoffed. "Worth a shot, though." She pulled the lever next to the gate between them and the next room, and spun out of her hiding place on the wall into plain sight, walking confidently into the room. "Hey there!" She called happily.
"Imperial!" The woman shouted, drawing her axe and charging the overt elf. She swung it with incredible speed down towards Nightshade's head.
"Nightshade!" Hadvar warned. Suddenly, there was a 'thud', the sound of a weapon hitting a sturdy shield. Nightshade's Imperial shield was in her left hand, raised up, blocking her head. She near-effortlessly held it up, blocking the attack, as the Stormcloak tried to push her axe down uselessly. Caesar didn't even see the elf move.
"So that's how this is gonna go down, huh? That sucks. We were planning to negotiate with you guys so we could all get out of here alive, but if this is what you want, so be it." Nightshade sighed dramatically. "One more chance. You can either die here by our hands, or we can team up and have a better chance of surviving this ordeal."
"Never!" The male Stormcloak drew his battleaxe and swung upwards towards the elf's stomach. Again, Caesar saw no movement, but heard sound. This time, the sound of metal ringing against metal. Nightshade had drawn her own sword, the Imperial one, to guard against the oncoming attack, and was now easily blocking two attacks.
"That's unfortunate. But fine. Have it your way." She pushed both of her opponents away from her simultaneously, staggering them. Then she did a three-sixty turn and slashed both of them across their torsos, not enough to severely wound them, but enough to make them have to catch their breath. She rushed forward and bashed the woman backwards with her shield.
"Die, Talos-shunner!" She turned just in time to take what would've been a foot to the kidney in the gut. The force was enough to lift her up off her feet and throw her a metre away. She landed squarely on her shoulder blades and rolled backwards to a kneeling position, all the while still holding on to her sword and shield. She coughed, and blood spattered on the floor.
"Nightshade, look out!" She heard Hadvar yell. She looked up to see the man who kicked her raising his axe to swing it down towards her head. Suddenly, his body lurched forward, and an Imperial blade appeared from the front of his chest. There was a sickening crunch as the blade tilted upward, and then it retreated back through the body. The Stormcloak dropped to the floor, blank-faced and still as a rock. Behind him had been Hadvar, his blade now dripping with crimson blood.
"Bastard!" The female Stormcloak screamed, racing towards Hadvar with her axe in the air. Caesar met her halfway, and flat-out punched her in the face with his shield. She crumpled to the floor like a ragdoll, and the Redguard flipped his sword in his hand and plunged it into her heart.
"I told you they wouldn't listen, Hadvar." Nightshade said as the Nord helped her to her feet.
"I'm not the one who burst out to test it." He replied.
"Touché, Hadvar." The elven legionnaire sighed. "So the Stormcloaks would rather die fighting against us over working together for just a little while so we can all escape here with our lives, huh? Man, what a pain."
"So who are these Stormcloaks, anyways?" Ceaesar asked as the group moved on.
"Rebels against the Empire." Nightshade explained. "They think that the Aldmeri Dominion are attacking their way of life here. And while I won't deny that, I don't believe that fighting them is a good idea. The High Elves are a force to be reckoned with. We'd be obliterated if we tried fighting with them. Y'know, kind of like how the Stormcloaks are being obliterated by us for that exact reason." The party of two legionnaires and a prisoner descended a long flight of stairs. At the bottom was a long hallway with a door just off to the left. On the other side of said hallway were two Stormcloaks. Suddenly, the whole hallway shook violently.
"Look out!" Hadvar warned as the ceiling right in front of where they were trying to go collapsed. When it settled, Hadvar approached the rubble, looking frustrated. "Damn. That dragon doesn't give up easy."
"Hadvar, the side passage!" Nightshade moved to the door as voices from the other side of rubble shouted about getting out of Helgen. Hadvar and Caesar followed her quickly.
When they entered the room, the two Stormcloaks from the hall were entering as well, and suddenly all five people in the room in the room were locked in combat. The Stormcloaks were outnumbered, however, and were quickly dispatched.
"An old storeroom." Hadvar mused aloud. "Nightshade, see if you can find some potions. Might come in handy."
"Right on." The elf nodded and began searching through barrels and on shelves. She came back a few moments later with various coloured bottles. "Got some!" She grinned.
"Done then?" Hadvar asked, and his subordinate nodded. "This way!" The Nord ordered, and exited through the door that their opponents from moments before must have used to get in. They found themselves at more stairs leading down, and from below, fighting could be heard. "Hear that?" Hadvar whispered. His companions nodded. They raced down the stairs to find even more Stormcloaks, fighting against an Imperial Legion torturer and his assistant. With the help of the newcomers, the two dungeon dwellers both managed to keep their lives.
xXxXxXxXx
"You fellows happened along just in time." The torturer said nonchalantly. "These fellows seemed a bit upset at how I've been entertaining their comrades."
"Gee, I can't imagine why." Nightshade rolled her eyes.
"Don't you even know what's going on?" Hadvar asked the man. "A dragon is attacking Helgen!"
"A dragon? Please." The man scoffed. "Don't make up nonsense." Then he paused. "Although, come to think of it, I did hear some odd noises coming from over there."
"Come with us." Hadvar pleaded. "We need to get out of here."
"You have no authority over me, boy." The torturer rejected the plea.
"Are you kidding me?!" Nightshade couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"Didn't you hear me?" Her superior shared her surprise. "I said the keep is under attack!"
"Forget the old man. I'll come with you." At least the torturer's assistant seemed to have a brain.
"Wait a second. It looks like there's something in this cage." Hadvar began inspecting one the torturer's prisoner cages.
"Don't bother with that." The torturer told the legionnaire. "Lost the key ages ago. Poor fellow screamed for weeks." Caesar cringed at the thought of that. Although Hadvar didn't seem fazed, by either the screaming prisoner or the lack of a key. He just looked at Nightshade.
"Can you get in?" He asked. The girl produced a lockpick from her pocket and spun it in her hand.
"Can I? Come on, Hadvar, what do you take me for? Let me see that." The higher ranked legionnaire made way, and the lower ranked one knelt down, producing a shiv from her pouch. Not five seconds after she started fiddling with the equipment and lock, the cage door swung open. "Done."
"Sure. Take all my things, please." The torturer rolled his eyes.
"Grab what you need and let's go." Hadvar ordered. Nightshade rummaged through the remains of the dead guy in the cage. She came out with a few small blue bottles and an ever-so-slightly fuller wallet. The group made their way down the only other passage, but the torturer felt he should torment the party further.
"There's no way out that way, you know..." He said. Despite his words, they continued through the narrow passage and into another chamber, this one with hanging cages, holding various torture victims. The wall on the opposite end of the room was smashed through, leaving an opening into a dirt tunnel. There was another chamber at the end of it. Inside? More Stormcloaks. Obviously.
xXxXxXxXx
"Where in Oblivion are we supposed to go? Where's the way out?!" One asked, obviously panicking. But before any of his comrades could respond, the whole group of enemies noticed the escapees, and attacked. While outnumbered, Nightshade, Caesar and Hadvar were easily better fighters, and soon the enemies lay dead on the wooden paths and in the water below.
"All right. Let's see if we can find a way out." Hadvar panted when the fighting was over. They made their way to the other end of the small cavern, where another hall awaited them. "Let's see where this goes." At the end of it, a raised bridge blocked the way forward. Nightshade was quick to find the lever needed, and pulled it. The bridge fell and led into a more open cavern, where a stream flowed. When the party entered the cave, the whole place shook again. The path behind them became blocked off fro more falling ceiling.
"Damn it. No going back that way." Nightshade cursed. The team moved on, making their way through cave tunnels, following the stream until another path arrived. Taking that path proved treacherour, however, as the next cave to open up was a nest of frostbite spiders. Nightshade made short work of them with fire magic, but Hadvar still seemed a bit shaken by them.
"What next, giant snakes?" He muttered. They made their way further down, and their path once again met up with the stream. In the next cavern, there was a wagon, and further in, a sleeping black bear.
"Hold up. There's a bear just ahead. See her?" Nightshade pointed out. "I'd rather not tangle with her right now. We might be able to sneak by. Just take it nice and slow, and watch where you step." Nightshade crouched down and started moving silently around the sleeping beast, followed by Hadvar and Caesar, and then the assistant torturer. They worked their way up the path above the creature, and down into another tunnel. Nightshade could feel a strong draft coming from below, and hurried down. Two corners later, and a bright light could be seen.
"That looks like the way out!" Hadvar exclaimed. "I was starting to wonder if we'd ever make it." The whole group moved towards the cavern exit, and into the bright sunlight of Tamriel's northernmost province: Skyrim.
A/N: That took me a long time to make, so I hope you all enjoyed it. If you decide to keep up with both entries in the series, I'll be giving a warning before every chapter that has elements that might spoil "The Oblivion Crisis". Can't tell you when the next chapter will be out, but I hope you'll bear with me. Please, tell me what you thought, and leave a review for me! Bye!