Chapter 2: Quiet No More

With little Alvie bouncing on his shoulders, Hoenreid ran toward the town of Helgen to escape from the dragon and to report what had happened.

"Just hold on, Alvie! We'll be safe in town in just a little while!"

Though he knew it would take a little longer, he stayed in the woods as he ran rather than taking the regular path, hoping to keep out of sight in case the dragon flew overhead again looking for one more Hoenreid and Alvie-sized snack.

While he ran, his mind was churning. The flock was gone and Master Ricketsen would likely never believe his seemingly outlandish tale of the dragon attack; it would be long gone and the man would want to take the loss out of Hoenreid's pay, if not out of his hide. Hoenreid would have to work for months or even years to cover the loss.

Even worse, the boy knew he'd never, ever get another job as a shepherd so he didn't know what he would do to support himself after Master Ricketsen finally released him. He didn't want to end up in the orphanage in Riften. He'd heard horrible tales of that place and believed he might rather face another round with the dragon rather than being forced to go there.

Finally, he was also worried about little Alvie, since the lamb's mother was one of those who unwillingly participated in the dragon's feast. What would Master Ricketsen do with the little lamb?

Hoenreid's imagination about the situation was churning as he neared the town, but he suddenly drew up short. He sniffed the air a couple of times to confirm his thought. Something nearby was on fire. While there was always the smell of smoke from fireplaces and pits near towns in Skyrim, this smell different. It was sharper, thicker, and painful to his nose. He slowed to a walk, looking up, peering up through the trees and trying to see if there was smoke in the sky above. When he finally caught sight of the black smoke, he confirmed that it appeared to be coming from the direction of Helgen.

When he reached the edge of the wood, saw thick smoke pouring out of the town. Always a danger in such towns, it looked like something had caught fire and it appeared to be spreading. Knowing he would be needed on the bucket brigade, he took a quick look upward to make sure there was no dragon overhead and then started sprinting for the town gate.

When he arrived at the town gate, he was surprised that the usual guard wasn't present. Even more surprising, the gate was cracked open. Alvie, on his shoulders, wasn't happy about it but Hoenreid leaned into it and eventually succeeded in opening it just enough that he and the lamb could slip through. When he did, he was shocked at what he saw. The whole place appeared to be in flames. Even worse, there were several charred hulks on the ground that he suspected might be burned people. Feeling sick at his stomach at the sight, he squawked, "Alvie, the Stormcloaks must have attacked!"

Knowing he had to get Alvie and himself somewhere safe, he did what people in the little town knew to do. He rushed toward the keep. He'd only gone a short distance, however, before another thought struck him. What if it wasn't the Stormcloaks? What if it was the dragon?

With flames seemingly everywhere, he rushed onward, first down an alley, and then into the courtyard. He was just crossing it when heard a roar. Stopping where he was, he turned to see the same giant dragon overhead. Alvie's frightened bleat caused Hoenreid to hold the lamb on his shoulders tighter as he backed away, hoping the dragon hadn't seen or heard him.

He'd backed up several feet when he turned to run, only to trip over the handle of giant axe. He fell forward, squeezing his eyes closed and throwing one arm forward to try to slow his fall while the other held tight to the lamb on his shoulders. Alvie's plaintive bleat registered his complaint.

Hoenreid's fall was somewhat cushioned by the body of a dead, young Nord woman whose hands were tied behind her back. Hoenreid received a surprise when the dead body grunted and suddenly came back to life. The woman, who'd apparently only been unconscious, pried her eyes open and looked up at the kid, who was struggling to get up off of her without dropping the little lamb.

"Kid, quick! Cut me loose."

Hoenreid looked at the woman, in her late teens or early twenties, who appeared to be a rough sort, covered with dirt, soot, and a tangled mop of hair. The boy struggled to one knee and reached for his knife when he remembered having dropped it while escaping from the dragon's blast. "I...I don't have anything to cut with!"

"The bloody headsman's axe is right behind you, fool. Drag it over here and tilt it up so I can use it."

The dragon shot another gout of flames at something nearby, and Hoenreid could feel the heat from that and the fires burning all around him. He knew that time was short; the dragon's gaze would catch them in seconds and they would be the target's of its next blast. Therefore, he hurried, pulling on the axe with one hand and still trying to keep Alvie in place with the other, and then tipping the blade up. "It's right behind your hands. I'll hold it while you cut yourself free."

The woman cursed as she cut himself on the sharp blade before it ever connected with her bonds, but they fell away seconds later. She rose unsteadily to her feet and then said to Hoenreid, "You better run find somewhere safe, kid. If you want to live, anyway. I know that's what I'm doing." The young woman limped away without even thanking him.

Hoenreid frowned as he looked around the courtyard trying to find that "somewhere safe" the woman had mentioned, but he saw nowhere that gave him that impression, no place that looked like a refuge. Remembering that the woman had said she'd be going somewhere safe and figuring that the woman must know something he didn't, Hoenreid turned and said, "Hold on, Alvie!" as he started running after her.

~ESV~

It was little while later when, in the Helgen keep, the young woman finally caught sight of Hoenreid following her. She was holding a bloody blade in her hand but did nothing to conceal it. "Kid, you're following me. Did you see what happened here?"

"Yes, m'lady. You handled them well."

"Listen, kid, I ain't nobody's lady. You ever call me that again and you'll be sorry."

"Yes, ma'am."

Looking at the little bastard and realizing that he didn't even understand what he'd done, she huffed and turned away, only to have the kid with the lamb follow along behind her.

~ESV~

The woman looked lost when they emerged from the cave system that passed under the Helgen keep. She was running through a stream of expletives when Hoenreid spoke up, "Ma'am, excuse me. I know where we are."

She gave him an incredulous look, but then said, "Kid, don't call me that sh—oh—that crap. My name's Brigitta. If you're gonna' call me anything, call me that, okay?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

The woman didn't try to control her curses this time, but then she turned back to Hoenreid. "Okay, kid, if you're so smart, where are we?"

When he told her and then described the surrounding features, including a nearby spot where he sometimes grazed the flock, Brigitta slowly accepted his analysis.

"If we keep going that way," added Hoenreid, pointing, "we'll get to Riverwood before long and then we can go on to Whiterun to tell the yarl about what happened in Helgen."

Shaking her head, she laughed. "Kid, let's get this straight. I ain't no lady, no miss, no ma'am, or anything like that. I don't deal with yarls, and I'm sure as hell not going anywhere near Whiterun. You do it if you want, but the only place I'm going is Riften."


Author's Note:

Thanks for reading and for any reviews, follows, or favorites. For those reading Arc 2 of "ESV—A Face in the Crowd", that story will be resuming for the final couple of chapters in a few weeks when my schedule gets back to normal following a significant family event.