DIE VIGNAR DIE

Danika stalked the moon-lit streets of Solitude silently. She wore her usual hooded corset, hiding her face from the moonlight. Her boots made no noise on the cobblestone path as she passed through the gates. Despite being part of the army that brought Solitude to her knees, she was still thane. Elisif the Fair was indeed quite fair.

However, the fires were doused and houses rebuilt. New stone was laid down on the paths throughout the city, and Solitude was brighter than ever. Life in Solitude seemed quiet again... But it wouldn't be for long. After she circled the city once she found herself in the Winking Skeever. She hadn't planned on sleeping this night, but apparently, she would be drinking. Vinius, the bar keep, recognized her upon a glance. The Skeever seemed to be exactly the same: The filthiest hole in the city, filled with drunks and skeevers and cold mead. The good bard was working that night, Lisette. Perky and smiling as usual.

'Well I'll be damned. I don't normally let a Stormcloak in my bar, but I'll make an exception for such a pretty lady.'

'Keep your comments to yourself, Vinius. I'm here on business,' she said, rolling her eyes.

'I'll give you a drink if you give me a smile, Dragonborn.'

Danika shook her head, but Vinius handed her a drink, regardless. 'You know, if my father saw you, he may try to decapitate you.'

'Tell him to get in line.'

Nearly half the night passed by, and Danika found herself dancing with people she'd never met before, singing songs she didn't actually know the lyrics to her. Of course, it had occurred to her that perhaps making it known she was even in Solitude the night before the assassination wasn't a good idea, but neither was joining the Dark Brotherhood in the first place. Besides, who would suspect the Dragonborn?

When she had tired, she sat down in one of the many tables, leaning her head on her fist. She smiled and hummed along with the music, until she was interrupted by a man sitting before her.

'Danika, I'm surprised to see you here. Doesn't the Thane have her very own house?'

She looked up to see Balgruuf sitting before her. She cursed under her breath as she shifted in her seat. 'My lord. I just came for a drink,' she said, bowing her head. After the incident in Whiterun, when Vignar took his throne, they seldom spoke. In fact, this was only their second time being in the same room with each other since that day, and the first time he had a blade to her throat.

'No need for formalities.' His voice was flat, hateful. Of all the time that they spent together, she'd only ever heard him speak as such when he spoke of Ulfric. 'You need to leave.'

'Pardon me?' She asked, tilting her head. She felt heat rising in her already flushed cheeks.

'I said, you need to leave. I came for a night out of the castle, and the last thing I want to see is you.'

'I offered you my home,' Danika said, trying to keep her voice down. She didn't want to accidentally send him flying across the room. 'I offered you gold, I tried everything I could to help you, and you spat in my face.'

'You chose him over me, and that was reason enough.'

'Stop being so selfish, you fool. I chose the Stormcloaks!' With her rising voice, she nearly tipped over the flagon of mead, but she didn't care. She slammed her hands on the table and stood, slipping her leather arm guards over her sleeves.

'You deserted me, and my people, when we needed you the most!'

'In case you forgot, I was in the middle of a war with dragons, as well!' She turned from the table to storm off, but looked back at him to speak again. 'You were simply too proud, and the fault for everything that happened, and everything that did not, is entirely your own.'

Without waiting for his response, she fled from the Skeever, pulling her hood over her face once again. She needed to sober up for the morning.

The sun rose high up in the skies, beaming down on the bride Vittoria Vici, the newest contract to come across Danika. She hated to kill a woman on her wedding day, but after that altercation with Balgruuf, she was in a mood to spoil someone elses day, too. She lurked in the high spires of the town square, above the festivities. Astrid, being the cruel woman she was, told Danika that if she were to kill Vittoria while she addressed the crowd, she would get paid extra. The idea of taking the woman down while she spoke to the crowd made Danika smile. She, too, had become cruel, after the end of the war between the dragons, and the men. What she did to fill her time would have repulsed her a year ago.

Finally, Vittoria stood from her velvet chair and climbed the tower stairs to address the guests. She looked quite flawless with her dress, a beautiful wreath in clean hair, and of course her well tailored husband next to her. Danika drew her arrow and aimed from behind a pillar. With no thought she released the arrow, and in flew right into the bride's chest. Danika watched long enough to see dark red blood spoil the white dress and then ducked, crawling toward her escape route. She scaled down the wall behind a house and threw away her bow-she wouldn't miss it anyways. She waited until a cluster of people fled the square, and followed them out of the city.

Eventually, Danika found herself headed to Whiterun. After she left Solitude, she ran into several guards who asked her what she say. She simply would pout and maybe shed a tear, recounting how horrible it was to see something so lovely slaughtered in cold blood. No one even questioned her, either for fear or stupidity, as if they forgot who she was, and what she had done. Of course, most people only knew half of the full story. Off a nearly invisible path on the main road out of Solitude, she recovered her favourite bow and daggers. She hid the small blades in her sleeves, boots, and one on her back as usual, but she swing her bow across her back as if it were a badge of honour. That bow had seem more death than most people in Skyrim.

As she sauntered into Whiterun, she was flooded with memories of when she first arrived. Scared and alone, she ran up this very path to find a man who... Well... A man of whom she accumulated too much history with. Her train of thought was interrupted by a guard calling her name.

'I wondered when you'd come back to save me from this boring town,' Caleb said, taking off his helmet.

Danika drew back her hood, shaking her head. 'I'd like to know how you always recognize me, Caleb. Even when I'm trying to hide from you.'

'It's because you are trying to hide from me, is why I find you.' He laughed along with her, and walked beside her. 'Where are you headed to?'

Danika shrugged. 'I'm not even sure why I'm here,' she lied. 'I thought of going to see the Companions, but they don't seem to be seeking my counsil anymore.' She knew exactly why, but refused to admit it to herself. She was sure everyone else knew why, too.

'I thought you might've come to speak to Vignar,' Caleb said, quietly. He had told Danika a lot of what had been happening while Vignar Gray-Mane sat on the throne. It had been rumoured that he had been killing of people of a rival family, within Whiterun or not. he had also raised taxed and chased merchants away, effectively ruining Whiterun, while he complained about mutton stew and Imperials. Caleb pulled Danika onto a smaller path behind the main square of the plains district, and went on to tell her about how he had a woman publicly beat by several guards for stealing food for her children, and had a man beat near to death for hiding some of his gold, so he could pay for dinner that night.

'He is like a vampire,' Caleb said, spitting the words out of his mouth. 'He is just sucking people dry, and leaving them behind.'

Danika scoffed. 'Come with me.'

The two of them marched up to Dragonsreach, where they found Vignar sitting at his throne. He seemed all too happy to see her.

'I'm glad to see you here, Harbinger,' he said lightly. Even the sound of his voice grated her ears in a horrible way.

'I hear you've raised the taxes since I've left.'

Vignar nodded, grinning. 'Oh yes.'

Danika nodded, as she approached the throne. She leaned in, to speak quietly to him. 'I hear you've been having the Battle-Borns killed.' Vignar didn't respond, but his chest seemed to puff out, and his brow furrowed. 'I also hear that you had men and women beat before the town.'

'For that, I am not sorry. You-'

Danika cut him off, raising her hand. She leaned into closer to him, speaking directly into his ear. 'I also hear you send someone to kill Ulfric Stormcloak, and the Dragonborn.'

Vignar froze in his chair as Danika leaned back from him. His grin faded from his lips as did the colour in his cheeks. One of the guards asked him if he were okay, but he shook his head.

'Arrest her!' Vignar yelled.

Some of the guards hesitated, but the ones that advanced to Danika hadn't made it far.

'ZUN-HAAL-VIIK' She hadn't hesitated when she turned, and used a Thu'um to disarm the men in the path of her voice. She turned back to Vignar and grabbed the collar of his shirt before he could take off. She took a knife she hid on her back and raised it to his throat, using him as a sheild. She looked up, seeing archers prepare to shoot her.

'If I see a single arrow fly, I will slit his throat!' She shouted, dragging Vignar out of the castle. No one stopped her, though many guards followed her, closely. She told them to step back, and wait in the castle, cutting Vignar's cheek to show her conviction. Her hands shook with anticipation, as she'd waited for nearly a month for this moment. Several people had attempted to kill her in her sleep, as she traveled, but none could have ever hoped to succeed. She had an idea of several people it could be, but when she finally left someone alive long enough to talk, she killed them out of spite. Then, when Ulfric told her that people had been coming after him, as well, she knew she had to take action.

'You know, I can see a reason why you would want Ulfric gone, but what have I done to you lately?' She asked him, as they backed toward the door.

Vignar groaned, his blood tricking onto his shoulder. 'I hate you, and everything you stand for. I knew you were poison the moment you stepped into Jorvaskrr,' he replied quietly, struggling against her.

Undisturbed, she pulled Vignar down to town square before the Bannered Mare. She called for everyone's attention. Naturally, people fled around her-When the Dragonborn calls, people tend to follow.

She threw Vignar down to his knees as people surrounded them. 'I hear this man has been killing some of the people that you love!' She called out. Some people shouted back to her, agreeing. 'I've also heard he has been taking your money, and beating people,' she said again, looking to the peoples' reactions. Many of them suddenly started to get angry. She could pick out what some of the people were saying; One man claimed to lose his house, and another his business. One woman claimed her child starved now and is sick, and she can no longer afford her medicines.

'Perhaps I can fix this problem for you,' Danika said, picking Vignar up off the ground by his collar. He did not fight against her anymore, and only responded when someone shouted in protest.

'Vignar has always been a good member of this city!'

Danika wasn't sure where the voice came from, but she scoffed. 'I'm sure at one time, he was,' she yelled back, her voice carrying over the crowd. 'But this man also tried to have me killed. And that is a very big problem.'

The crowd became angry again, throwing their fists in the air. She decided she shouldn't mention anything about Ulfric, as many people still did not like or support him in Whiterun. Her fist tightened as she gripped at his shirt, looking down to him.

'Punishment be damned, Vignar, I will end you this day.'

Vignar spit at her, trying to pull away. 'You're a fool if you think you can get away with this!'

Danika laughed. 'You're a fool if you think people care about you.' She thre in a deep breath before he could respond, pulling his face near hers.

'FUS-RO-DAH.' she shouted at Vignar at point blank, causing his head to snap right off his shoulders. There were a few screams as his head bounced off the ground and rolled away, but after a moment of silence, the people started to cheer. Danika dropped his body, and headed for the gates.

'Get her!' Someone shouted behind her. The guards came after her, but many of the people told her to run, and get to safety. They blocked the guards from catching her, and she ran straight out of the gates.

She snuck up to the stables and took a horse, riding out toward Falkreath to collect her money from Astrid. She wished she could see the look on Balgruuf's face when he would learn what she had done, but one day he would repay her. Hopefully, with a pardon.