The Tale of Zooryuvokogan.
I don't own Skyrim or anything involved with it.
"Gag her and put her in irons. Not the wraps. She must be contained." One Imperial says to the other. The Imperials are battered to the point of bleeding.
"Ag-" is all I can get out before the gag is stuffed in my mouth. Next is the irons. As they are harshly slammed on my wrists, I take in my last sights of home. The trees are still green with their leaves, the brook babbles as it expands north. I'm going to miss these sights.
But worst of all was the expression on my dog's face as he was slain. All he was trying to do was protect me. Now all that's left of him is his cold, dead body, scrounged up against a rock. My valiant protector, I shall see thee in Sovngarde for I am surely headed there next.
They throw me into the wagon like a rag doll. I lunge for the side but they already thought of that. My vision goes dark and my hands are tied to the bench.
Crimson blood drips from the fresh wounds of Zinzii the Maiden. Her blue eyes lie open as she chokes on her blood.
"Hehehehe."
It's as almost she could hear the beast laugh. The mother and fatherless child sits in the corner. Her eyes are watery and she cries loud enough it sounds like a shout.
The huge wolf is slightly impressed. He was pushed about a foot away from his kill. As he turns back, he ponders weather he should bring the kid back to the Brotherhood or kill he on the spot. The contract was set only for Zinzii. He smiles a toothy smile and strides over to the little orphaned girl.
"Maybe when you get older, you can join the Dark Brotherhood." He snarls as he slices his palm. With his other hand, he pried the child's mouth open and made her drink his blood.
The change is almost instant. As she tries to push him away, she is compelled to satisfy her new blood lust. Her limbs become larger and her vision is clearer. She can hear the sound of horses a mile away.
More blood is spilled. She is too quick for her predecessor. In one swift slash, he is dead. His head rolls around and his body lies limp on the floor. Just like her mother's.
The change back is instant too. As she rummages for new clothes, a nock is heard. She throws on some rags as best she can and searches the headless man's body.
She pulls a worn letter from his front pocket and tucks it in her clothes. It will be read later but for now, she must survive.
The nocking is heard again and this time, three Stormcloaks in their blue attire, hold their weapons high as the door clatters to the floor. All they see is a murderer's mess and a small child curled into a ball. Barely even eight years old.
"Please don't kill me." She squeaks out in a voice that would make people fall to their feet to serve her. The little girl starts to cry and the Stormcloaks know for sure. Zinzii is dead and Ulfric Stormcloak has a new heir.
The wagon jolts me conscience and I realize my life has been spared. For now. As I look around, I see three others with me. Not in irons but in prisoner bindings. The lucky ones.
The hill is steep but the horses, bred for endurance, keep at a steady pace.
A blond nord notices my rousing and speaks up. "Hey. You! You're finally awake." The nord stares at me and probably wonders what crimes I have done. Crimes horrible enough to be gagged, held in irons, and tied to the wagon. Pretty bad. "I probably won't get an answer from you with that gag in your mouth." He reaches over as if to untie it but the Imperial on horse back notices.
He charges the horse to the side of the wooden wagon that holds the nord and puts him in a headlock. "Try that again and I'll cut your hands off. She must stay gagged." The Imperial lets loose of him and trots back to the wagon's rear.
I take in my surroundings a bit more clearly and realize where I am. Snow covered pines, cobble stone roads. And and unmistakeable bridge in the distance. Helgen. I identify the nord as a Stormcloak and what looks to be a bandit or something next to him. Then I look down and sure enough, I'm in rags and not my clothes I was knocked out in. There are also ankle shackles. Whoopee.
A guy to my right moans at the nord's stupidity. I turn my attention to him and sure enough, my luck gets worse. Ulfric Stormcloak. Leader of the rebellion. Oh Divines kill me now. At least it seems like he doesn't know who I am. All I get is a glare and a noise that sounds like a scoff. He's gagged too. This evens out the playing field a bit.
The dirty horse thief, as I am told, starts complaining like it will get him out of this hell. "Damn you Stormcloaks! Skyrim was fine until you came along. Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn't been looking for you, I would have stolen that horse and been half way to Hammerfell." He curses and looks in my direction. "You there. You and me, we shouldn't be here. It's these Stormcloaks the Empire wants." The horse thief and the blond Stormcloak glare at each other but come up with a temporary truce for the time being. You can still see the hate for each other in their eyes.
"It doesn't matter now. We're all brothers and sisters in binds now, thief." The Stormcloak spits out like the words are poison.
An Imperial looses his patients with their consistent ramblings and discourses. "Shut up back there." He yells to all of us even though two fourths of us are incapable of speech at the moment.
The horse thief looks at Ulfric Stormcloak, obviously ignorant to who the man is. "What's wrong with him, huh?" He questions halfheartedly as he stared.
"Watch your tongue! You're speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King!" The nord lashes out fiercely.
Right now I hate them all.
The thief looks at the Stormcloak leader again in astonishment. "Ulfric Stormcloak?! Jarl of Windhelm? You're the leader of the rebellion!" His astonishment over the man in front of him is disgusting.
I turn my head and sure enough, there is one of Helgen's wall and guard bridge.
"If they captured you... Oh gods, where are they taking us?!" He knows the answer but refuses to come to it as the truth.
To his right, the Stormcloak looks down sadly. "I don't know but Sovngarde awaits." He probably knows too but is in denial.
"No! This isn't happening! This can't be happening!" The truth hits the thief hard. True fear.
"Hey, horse thief." He is more pleasant now this blond nord. "What village are you from?"
The dirty thief turns his head sharply. "Why do you care?"
"A nord's last thoughts should be of home." I now recognize this Stormcloak soldier. His name is Ralof and he has about a good ten years to my age.
The thief ponders a bit at Ralof's sudden change in demeanor. "Rorikstead. I'm from Rorikstead." He manages as he tries to hold his tears.
We all soon turn our attention to the talking Imperial. "General Tullius sir, the headsman is waiting."
General Tullius sits atop his brown horse. "Good, let's get this over with." He rides out of sight and the thief starts to ramble off the Divines' names.
"Stendarr. Mara. Dibella. Kynareth. Akatosh. Divines, please help me!" He speaks out in great fear. The Divines won't help him. Unless they save him or kill him.
Ralof stares at the thief like he he was crazy. The thief hyperventilates and the wagon keeps moving on to our doom. "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." True hate. Ralof seems to truly hate them. And he should. If he wants to follow Ulfric, then he must hate what Ulfric does too.
He then exhales and calms down a bit. "This is Helgen," he starts, "I used to be sweet on a girl from here. I wonder if Vilad is still making that mead with juniper berries mixed in. Funny, when I was a boy, Imperial walls and towers use to make me feel so safe." Ralof takes in his surrounding as he remembers his past.
"Gunjar, go inside." A parent says to his child urgently. He must know what happens after this dread ride stops.
"Why?" The child pries wanting to stay outside. "I wanna watch the soldiers."
"Inside the house. Now." The father commands and the child obeys. He gets up off the porch of his wood and straw house. That's what most of the buildings are made of around here. That and the looming stone towers.
An Imperial stops the parade of wagons and we all get up, knowing our fate by looking at Tullius's smug look and the headsman's axe.
"Get them out of the carts! Move it!" One extremely bossy Imperial shouts. She reminds me of the Imperial who killed my dog.
"Wait! Why are we stopping?!" The thief is freaking out more hysterically now.
Ralof answers like it happens everyday. "Why do you think? End of the line." Even he wishes it was untrue. We all do. "Let's go. Shouldn't keep the guards waiting for us." He is more casual then afraid.
Ulfric is off of the wagon first. Next is the thief. "No! We're not rebels!" He shouts while trying to convince the guards to no avail.
I'm off next but I can't move. Ralof goes ahead of me.
"Face your death honorably, thief." Ralof hops down and stands at the wagon's side like every other prisoner except me.
Someone comes from behind and unties me from the wagon. They also loosen my ankle shackles enough to let me walk. I hop down as well and join our little death party.
"You got to tell them we weren't with you! This is a mistake!" The thief pleads over and over but no one cares.
"Step up to the block as we call your name!" A higher ranking Imperial shouts. She is probably a Legate.
Ralof sighs. "Empire loves their damned lists." It seems that his anger was aimed more towards the Imperial holding the list with his quill in hand. He is about Ralof's age. Late 30's mid 40's.
The man with the list begins calling off names. "Ulfric Stormcloak, Jarl of Windhelm." He scratches the name off and Ulfric is on his way to the waiting line for the chopping block.
"It has been an honor, Jarl Ulfric." Ralof says farewell to his leader, truly honored but also sad.
"Ralof of Riverwood." The Imperial begins again and crosses the name off. Ralof leaves to take his place with his Stormcloak brethren and leader. "Lokir of Rorikstead."
The horse thief steps forward and starts freaking out again. "No! I'm not a rebel! You can't do this!" Out of desperation, he runs.
"Halt!" The high ranking officer shouts but Lokir keeps on running.
Lokir is about half way between my standing point and the way out of Helgen. "You're not going to kill me!" He shouts back at us.
"Archers!" The archers take their positions and shoot the thief. The officer is pleased as Lokir's body deadens and his cold, stiff body hits the equality cold cobblestone road. "Anyone else feel like running?" She sounds smug at her small victory.
"Wait, you there. Step forward." He says almost gentler than with the others. I step forward for what am I else to do? "Who are you?"
The officer moves unexpectedly and smacks the man behind his head. "Idiot! That's Hunbrii. The one we've been searching for for two years. The cursed nord." She moans at the man's ignorance and continues with her duty.
"Follow the captain." His response is short and timid as if he is trying to keep in any other words that may get him scolded or fired.
I trudge behind the captain to the space left for one last doomed soul. Me.
She takes her place next to a priestess of Arkay.
Ulfric is center stage with General Tullius. The General is a darker man. Most likely a Redguard and has signs of old age. His gray hair estimates him to be about 50 or so.
"Ulfric Stormcloak, 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 moans at his enemy's speech. "You started this war! Plunged Skyrim into chaos! And now the Empire is going to put you down and restore the peace!" The General starts to continue but he is cut off by a strange sound. A roar of some sort but no one can be sure. Everyone looks to where it came from but there is no evidence.
"What was that?" Someone asks, finally breaking the unnerving silence.
General Tullius assures that it's nothing and to carry on.
The captain salutes by banging her shoulder with her right fist. "Yes General Tullius!"
Ulfric glares at me. He knows what he wants to do and so do I. I glare back at him with as much hatred I can muster. We both will die today. He's lucky my hands aren't at his throat.
General Tullius walks up to me next and grabs me by the hair violently. "It's time for you to die you vile creature. You or any of your family shall never walk this ground again. I will carve my name into your corpse and hang you outside Castle Dour." He spits at my shoes and walks over to the captain's side.
The captain turns to the priestess and says to give us our last rights.
She lifts her arms and begins her prayer. "As we commend your souls to Atherius, blessings of the Eight Divines upon you."
"For the love of Talos will you shut up and let's get this over with!" One of the more impatient Stormcloaks interrupts and walks forward to the chopping block.
"As you wish." The Priestess says annoyed that her prayer was interrupted.
He stands in front of the cold stone with a basket at the end. "Well, come on! I haven't got all morning!" He complains again.
The captain pushes him to his knees and presses him forward with her foot. "My ancestors are smiling upon me Imperials, and you say the same." He finished and places his head ready for the axe.
The headsman swings and the Stormcloak's head is sliced clean off. His head falls into the basket and the captain kicks his lifeless body to the side.
"You Imperial bastards!" A woman shouts from around our group that will surely die.
Another man shouts for justice.
An Imperial shouts back with her own comment. "Death to the Stormcloaks!"
"As fearless in death, as he was in life." Ralof comments, knowing all of his brethren and himself are here to die.
The captain shouts something but I dare not hear it. "Next, Hunbrii!" Again, we hear the strange roar but they pay no mind to it.
"There it is again! Did you here that?" The man with the list inquires while he waits to check off my name when my head rolls.
"Get your sorry ass over here!" The captain shouts now annoyed.
"To the block Hunbrii. Nice and easy." It sounds like the list man is trying to assure me everything will be alright. I doubt it. As soon as all of our lifeless bodies hit the ground, he will go home with no regrets. He'll probably even kill some bandits on his way home.
As I take in what will be the last thing I see, I think of possible escape routes. Running straight ahead would end up with either me tripping in my shackles or getting swung at by the headsman's blade. If I run to my left, I will be slowed down by the band of Stormcloaks and any Imperial enforcements. If I run to my right, I will be shot. I can't turn back because of the wall that divides me and freedom. All options will fail with either me getting shot or hacked to pieces. I look up and sure enough, there are archers on every tower.
Better enjoy the scenery but I doubt I can. Blood, Imperials, some small trees, houses, towers, and mountains. I step forward and face the block. The captain pushes me down violently and steps on my back, pinning me to the cold stone. They could have at least taken the Stormcloak's head out. Lazy Imperials.
My vision is focused on the headsman and one of the towers and mountains. The roar is heard again and this time, a dragon flies into sight. Dragons were supposed to be dead! He flies closer and General Tullius finally notices.
"What in Oblivion is that?!" He shouts loudly, ready to take cover. The headsman pulls his axe up in both of his hands and gets ready to swing. Then the dragon flies over the tower and into view of everyone here today.
"Sentries, what do you see?" The captain asks worried for the worst. The dragon lands on the tower with ground shaking might. The headsman swings but the the force of the shaking causes him to fall at my feet.
The dragon is black. Black. There is only one black dragon who's wings come unfurled when brothers wage war. The verse is true. Alduin, Bane of Kings!
His glowing red eyes are focused on me. Someone shouts "dragon" from the crowd. The headsman gets up and Alduin shouts. My head is to fuzzy to make out what he is saying. The archers shoot arrows and an enormous amount of fire falls from the sky as the clouds swirl into large red, gray, and white masses.
The next shout from Alduin's gaping maw is aimed at me. My vision becomes blurred as I get up and try to clear my head.
General Tullius is shouting orders for people to evacuate but he is barely audible against the sound of Helgen's end. Rocks fall and the fire burns houses.
"Come on! The Gods won't give us another chance!" Ralof is crouched and the destruction around him is massive. Burned corpses of Imperials and Stormcloaks line the streets. "This way!" He runs for one of the towers and I follow. Before he walks in, he takes a brief look at the chaos before heading inside.
I run inside too and he shuts the door. Damn it! Ulfric's still alive and in the tower with us along with three other Stormcloaks. One bleeding is heavily. Before anyone can even react, my strength from my beast form comes out without actually changing me and my chains snap in half. I pounce and knock over Ulfric, pinning him to the ground.
"Jarl Ulfric!" Ralof shouts at his leader's predicament and tries to pry me off. My hands close tighter around Ulfric's neck.
"Fus!" Ulfric shouts at me once his gag is loose.
I slam against the wall and tear my gag out. It's my turn to shout back at him. "Krii Lun Aus!" His body is weakened but I dare not attempt to kill him. I run up the steps and a Stormcloak starts to charge at me. Alduin shouts and the wall crumbles. The Stormcloak's body flys and I make my escape. I jump from the hole and into a burning building. The smoke is thick but I ignore it.
I run to a hole in the house and jump down. The same Imperial with the list is now in action. He is calling for the boy to be calm. The boy runs to his father just before Alduin appears right where he was standing.
"Still alive, Hunbrii?" He questions like it's unbelievable. "Stay close to me if you want to stay that way. Gunnar, take care of your boy. I have to find General Tullius and join the defense." He turns and starts to run in the places less inhabited by fire and rubble.
"Bless you Hadvar." One older man says to the list Imperial. So that's his name. Hadvar.
I follow him as he shouts at me. "Stay close to the wall!"
We are sandwiched between the wall and one of the buildings that still stands. Alduin lands on the wall above our heads and his scaly wings are inches from my face.
"Quickly! Follow me!" Hadvar brandished his sword and runs once Alduin flies again.
Alduin begins to talk in his ancient dragon tongue but I can't translate over all the screaming and sounds of death.
Once again, Hadvar shouts back to me. "It's you or me Hunbrii!" We pass archers that pay no attention to me or Hadvar. Soon, we run under a bridge that is still standing.
"Ralof! You damn traitor!" Sure enough, Ralof appears still alive and also brandishing a weapon. "Outta my way!" The two stand face to face only six feet away.
"We're escaping Hadvar! You can't stop us this time!" He retaliates back while ready to strike any second.
"Fine! I hope that dragon takes you all to Sovngarde!" Alduin swoops down and the two scatter. I follow Hadvar and he tells me to get into the Keep.
The Keep is silent save for the war and destruction outside. "Looks like we're the only ones who made it. Let me get those shackles off you." Thankfully, he has the key and takes his merry time unlocking me.
His eyes pause at my breasts and I yell. "Pervert!"
"Sorry. Was that really a dragon?" Hadvar's lame apology and subject change doesn't undo what has been done.
I ponder weather I should tell him or not. "Yes. Alduin, the World Eater." My voice sounds grim and the look on his face is also.
"The bringer of the end times." Hadvar comments quietly and starts looking around. "See if you can find any armor." He starts commanding me again for the fourth time.
"Found some." I rummage through a chest and find a helmet along with some gold. With the helmet placed on my head, I search the Warden's chest. I find Imperial armor along with a sword. My eyes search for Hadvar. "Turn around and don't look." He obeys and I swiftly change into my new clothes. I take a few good swings and summon my Familiar then switch to healing. He howls and his blue form trots along my own. He reminds my of my dog.
We run into the hallway after Hadvar pulls the entry chain. Then we come to another room closed off by bars. Two Stormcloaks are talking about escaping Helgen but if seems impossible right now.
"Maybe we can reason with them." Hadvar suggests as he sneaks up to the wall chain.
I sneak to the other side and reply with an edge to my voice. "Damn Stormcloaks are all the same, there's no reasoning with them." Hadvar seems taken aback at my proclamation and comes to a conclusion that I may be on the Imperial side. He pulls the chain and the Stormcloaks are alerted.
I dash in and slit their throats in a matter of seconds just before Hadvar has time to strike. "How are you so fast?" He questions and opens the door to the next room. I search one of the Stormcloaks and take his fur gauntlets and iron greatsword. "How are you so slow?" I throw back at him with a smirk on my face.
We continue to run down deeper and deeper under Helgen. Just ahead of us, the hall collapses and you can hear Alduin's rage. Hadvar takes cover and so do I. "Damn, that dragon doesn't give up easily."
My wolf Familiar disintegrates and we open the door to a room where two more Stormcloaks are prying a barrel open. I rush in and Hadvar and I send them to Sovngarde.
"Look for some potions." Hadvar's constant commanding is driving me insane but I comply and find a stash of potions in a barrel. He waits by the exit as I finish my search for potions and alchemy ingredients. "This way."
We exit out the door and turn right. Behind us is the blocked hallway so there was no going that way. There is the sound of fighting and screams in the air.
"The torture room. God, I wish we didn't need these." Hadvar complains and he is right to. There are is no need for them.
We jump into the fray and cut down two more Stormcloaks. It seems like they come in pairs. "A dragon is attacking Helgen. We must get out of here!" Hadvar urges the torturer and his assistant.
"You have no authority over me boy." The torture spits out as if he though he was being ordered around.
"Didn't you hear me?! I said the Keep was under attack." Hadvar presses again but the torture walks away.
His assistant is more interested in living. "Forget the old man. I'm coming with you." The assistant is battle clad and ready to go.
Hadvar walks over to me and places some picks in my hand. "Try to find something useful."
"Oh, take all my things won't you?" The torturer says sarcastically as the door swings open. I grab the gold, potion, spell tome, and any other thing I deem useful from the mage's cage.
Next, I go over to the table and raid the knapsack and take the dagger. I look at the book on the table and see it tells of the dragonborn. After I briefly read its contents, I tear a few of the pages out and stuff them in my armor.
The three of us run down deeper into a bigger and older torture chamber. Soon, the smooth cobblestone walls turn into uneven rock masses. "We should stick together down here." Hadvar suggests as we follow the path down deeper.
Then we come to an even bigger chamber with five Stormcloaks. I kill mostly all of them before the other two have a chance. Unfortunately, the torture's assistant is killed in the brawl and we continue on to a bridge that Hadvar activates. We make it across the bridge just in time to see it be turned to splinters by the falling roof.
Then we run down the stairs and to a shallow river which we follow to a dead end but has a path to the right. We follow it into a Frostbite Spider chamber where we deal with them quickly and I take their eggs.
Hadvar starts sneaking and so do I. He hands me a bow with a couple iron arrows. "We can either sneak past but if you're feeling lucky, you can try and shoot the bear." The bear lounges peacefully as we sneak past it. I switch to my two handed sword and we quietly make our way past the slumbering bear.
We continue on down the path and the cave starts to widen. Soon, we see the light of day and head out of this hell hole. Alduin flies up above past us and we hide behind a rock. "Looks like he's gone for good this time. But I don't think we should stick around to see if he comes back." He looks towards me like I owe him an explanation. "Closes town from here is Riverwood. My uncle's the blacksmith there. I'm sure he'll help you out." Hadvar begins as we walk together down the hill, following the path.
"It's probably best if we split up though. Good luck. I wouldn't of made it without your help. I owe you my life." Hadvar says sincerely and I know he means it. I probably owe him my life too.
"You didn't kill me and I didn't kill you. We're even." I say to square the deal. While running along the path, I let him be in the lead as he talks to me.
"Listen, you should go to Solitude and join up with the Imperial Legion. It seems like you have a hatred for the Stormcloaks. We can put that to good use on the Imperial side." He suggests and I ponder the thought a bit as our feet meet cobblestone and there is a direction post.
Off in the distance you can see a large, looming structure with many dark arches. Hadvar stops and sees where I am looking. "See that ruin up there? That's Bleak Falls Barrows. When I was a boy, that place always used to give me nightmares. Draugr walking down the mountain to climb into my window at night. That kind of thing." He starts running again and so do I. "I admit, I still don't like the look of it." We travel off the path and come by Embershard Mine.
I walk down there and spy a poster. My face is on it. "Wanted. Preferably Alive. Reward: 10,000 gold pieces." I read aloud. My face is pretty accurate on the poster. They even used color. Same long black hair, light skin, deep blue eyes, and clear complexion.
"Well well well. What do we have here?" One bandit says to another as they corner me to the wall.
"I'd say at least 10,000 gold pieces." The other bandit smirks and in a moment, I'm unconscience. Again.
Be gentle. It's my first Skyrim fic. If I spelled any of the names wrong, please give me the correct spelling and some of the dialog isn't exact but this is a story, not the game guide. Thanks for reading!