Disclaimer: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim © Bethesda. I own nothing except original content.
Tales of the Dragonborn
Author's Notes
→ So, this is basically a collection of oneshots, miniseries, and 'what-if's' related to "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim" and its add-ons. Continuity is loose at best.
What-if #1: Not on the List
"You with one of the trade caravans, Khajiit? Your kind always seems to find trouble. I'm sorry. We'll make sure your remains are returned to Elsweyr." Alyssa looked down at the ground with a sullen sigh. She tried to hold her head up high, however. Her aquamarine eyes met with Hadvar's brown eyes. She tried to maintain a stoic gaze, but felt that anyone with half a mind could see right through the facade. Hadvar turned to the Imperial Captain, "Captain, what should we do? She's not on the list."
The Captain turned and opened her mouth to say something, but paused. "Let me see that list," Hadvar passed the paper in his hand to the Captain, who looked it over. Next to each name on the list was a brief, but specific description of the individuals they were looking for. Upon looking it over, she realized that the list did not, at any point, say the name 'Alyssa' nor the description, 'Khajiit female, fairly muscular, sleek white-gray fur, black ear tufts, and aquamarine eyes.' The Captain looked up at the Khajiit in question, then turned to Hadvar, "It seems my men need some additional training. But, it'll have to wait until after the executions. Hadvar, take the civilian and go stand over there with the carriages. And cut her bonds, she's free to go, after we get this mess sorted out."
"Follow me, civilian." Alyssa's eyes widened in pleasant surprise. At Hadvar's prompting, Alyssa followed him off to the side, the quiet breeze making her shiver. Hadvar led her to the carriages, away from the crowd. He unsheathed an iron dagger and gestured for her to hold out her hands. A strange sound, not unlike a roar, echoed through the area and everyone paused. Hadvar muttered aloud, "What was that?" The Captain insisted that it was nothing and they resumed the trials. Alyssa held her hands out, sparing a glance toward Ralof and the other prisoners. She saw the executioner raise his axe high above his head, before bringing it down on one of the Stormcloaks. With a quiet squeak, she turned away just before the axe hit. Hadvar took notice as he cut through the ropes. "I want to apologize for the 'remains' comment earlier. I'm glad you're here instead of on the block. After the trials are done, I'll help escort you back to Elsweyr."
Alyssa grinned a bit at the thought of returning home, but had business to do in Skyrim, and was about to tell Hadvar when Tulius yelled, "What in Oblivion is that?"
A massive, black-skinned, winged monstrosity flew toward Helgen, gliding down and landing on top of a tower. Everyone stood and stared, too awestruck to move, until the dragon opened its maw and unleashed a blast of wind-like energy that sent people and objects flying. Alyssa and Hadvar were struck by the blast and separated. The Khajiit didn't fly far before hitting the ground, and after a moment to recollect her senses, tried to get up when an arm wrapped around her shoulder, "Hey, Khajiit. Get up!" A second roar from the Dragon shook the very ground around them as the sky seemed to tear itself open to release fiery meteors.
Alyssa turned to the Nord holding her and came face-to-face with Ralof, "Come on, the gods won't give us another chance!" Taking her hand in his, Ralof pulled Alyssa along until one of the meteors struck close to them. The force of the impact stumbled Alyssa, causing her to let go of Ralof. He turned to yell behind him, "This way! Come on!" She scrambled back onto her feet and ran after Ralof. He dashed into the nearest open door, turned around and called to her, "In here!" She took a couple steps, then leaped, arms outstretched, through the door. Cold stone and hay broke her fall and she heard the door slam shut behind her. As she got back on her feet, she turned to see Ralof cutting through Ulfric's bonds, then removing the cloth around his mouth, "Jarl Ulfric! What is that thing? Could the legends be true?"
Ulfric spared a glance at the Khajiit in rags, before turning back to Ralof, "Legends don't burn down villages. We need to move. Now!"
Ralof directed Alyssa up the tower. Halfway up the stairs, the dragon burst through the wall. The two of them stumbled as the dragon exhaled fire in an attempt to burn the tower's occupants. The dragon then left the tower and the duo glanced up at the ruined staircase. Ralof glanced out the hole, then turned to Alyssa, "See the inn on the other side? Jump through the roof and keep going!" Alyssa paused for a moment, prompting Ralof to more sternly declare, "Go! We'll follow when we can!" Alyssa looked out the hole and for a moment, felt a bit disoriented, but mustered her courage, took a couple steps back, and leaped out of the building, crashing through the hole in the roof, and landing on her side. She did her best to ignore the pain and made her way out of the building. In her attempts to get out of the building, she ran into Hadvar again, who told her to follow him. They made their way through the burning village, dodging the dragon whenever it appeared, until they reached a brief clearing and made a bee-line for the keep and crossed paths with Ralof.
While Hadvar and Ralof traded words for a moment, Alyssa had to stop to think. 'Who should I go with?' The two finished their argument and ran to different doors into the keep, calling for Alyssa. She turned to Hadvar and thought, 'He saved me from the executioner.' She spared a glance at Ralof, 'He saved me from the dragon.' She thought for a moment when a meteor struck the ground right by her. Stumbling for a moment, she recovered, having made her decision. She started running and yelled, "Hadvar! Wait up!"
A/N
→ The idea behind this 'What-if' comes from the in-game fact that the player character is still sentenced to death despite not 'being on the list,' which I realize skewed player perceptions of the factions in Skyrim. This idea is basically, "What if the Captain didn't sentence the player to death as well?" My interpretation is that, outside of the initial differences, not much would change beyond making the Empire seem a bit more reasonable compared to the bloodthirstiness shown in-game.
