Chapter 12: The Test of Vilkas

The group of fighters known as the Companions were almost a centerpiece of the city of Whiterun. They'd set up shop in a large longhouse, which had been given the name of "Jorrvaskr" by the locals. Katie had passed it several times before, without realizing what it was, because it was almost in the very shadow of the Jarl's house. Still, the building looked almost nothing like an ordinary longhouse from the outside. The first floor seemed to have been designed like every other building in town, or else an old building had been torn apart, and only the first floor left behind, It was a normal series of wooden walls, complete with normal doors and windows, in the style that was popular in Whiterun. However, above the first seven feet or so, Jorrvaskr seemed to have been made by simply laying the hull of a good-sized ship upside-down on top of the first floor walls, then adding additional supports diagonally around the hall in order to hold the extra weight in place. Of course, it was possible that the roof had only been made to -look- like a ship. There was no way to be certain which was true.

However, the more that Katie looked at it, the more she questioned that conclusion. It was odd, because there was evidence for it, but also evidence against it. For one thing, parts of the roof stuck up above the hull of the ship, more roof-like than ship-like, which seemed to indicate a deliberate design. However, there were small sections of the roof, where boards had come loose as well, and that seemed to imply that it really -had- been a ship at one time, and had been patched and used for a roof once it had fallen into too much disrepair to be used for sea travel.

The only question that Katie had on the subject was how a boat that big could have been gotten all the way to Whiterun if it had once sailed an ocean. Whiterun was almost in the dead center of Skyrim, and towering mountains surrounded it on most sides. Moving something that heavy must have required teams of horses, and taking teams of horses over the mountains was a difficult task for something as trivial as building a roof.

Then again, she thought, it was just possible that whoever had built Jorrvaskr had been the previous owner of the ship, and had come to attach sentimental value to it, being unwilling to let it go. Such a person might separate his old ship into boards and nails, then take it, piece by piece, to his home and reassemble it there. It would still be a difficult task, but at least she could understand why someone might go to the trouble.

Those were the kinds of thoughts that Katie had going through her head as she walked up the series of short, stone steps leading to Jorrvaskr, with Lydia following close behind, pushed open the front doors and stepped inside.

The outside of Jorrvaskr had looked as though it had fallen into some disrepair, with some of the boards missing from the roof and all, but the inside was positively lavish. Tables surrounded a fire pit in the center of the hall, and wooden pillars surrounded those, with ornate carvings set into the wood. hanging from both the pillars and the ceiling were a series of wool tapestries, dyed red, and the carved, stone floor had several throw-rugs on it, colored red and yellow, to match the tapestries and flames. There were also tablecloths made in the same design. Trophies of successful hunts; the stuffed heads of deer and elk had been hung on the pillars as well, and there were even chandeliers hanging from the support beams of the ceiling on thick chains. Then, of course, there was the food and drink. The food was piled high, on trays and platters all across the table; a large assortment of cheeses, breads, pies and especially meat. The series of small kegs that sat off to one side of the room seemed to indicate the source of the drink that the companions used. In a certain sense, the place almost felt like home to Katie, since it reminded her of the Slow Sabrecat. However, if anything, it was even bigger, and -much- more richly-adorned.

The moment that Katie arrived, though, something else happened, which reminded her, once again, of the Slow Sabrecat, though really, it could have been any bar or tavern. A fight had broken out between a couple of the people there.

She could hear someone announcing "Are those two at it again?" and soon, the other inhabitants of Jorrvaskr had gathered around the two combatants to watch. However, that made Katie smile when she saw it. She'd been present at numerous bar-fights; even served tables during several, and indeed, that was one of the reasons why the people of the Slow Sabrecat had never minded having her there, even in her off hours. Whenever a fight began, she wouldn't try to interrupt it; she'd just stand off to one side, between the fighters and whatever they seemed most likely to damage, and catch anyone or anything that flew in her direction. Of course, Katie had had certain advantages when it came to a job like that, but anyone could really have done it, and she was pleased to see that the inhabitants of Jorrvaskr had learned the technique so well, encircling the two combatants to keep them from damaging anything.

Soon, one combatant had knocked the other to the floor with one last punch, and the other fighter yielded. The whole thing was over in less than a minute, though both fighters seemed pretty tough to Katie. Finally, as the fight ended, those who'd been watching it dispersed, going back to their tables and meals, or to whatever else they'd been doing, and that was when she realized that the time had come to start asking about joining.

The first person she asked wasn't, it seemed, even a Companion, but had simply started hanging around Jorrvaskr for some reason. However, the second person at least gave her a direct answer.

"Look, if it were up to me, I'd never let you join," he said, "but it's not up to me. The one who decides who gets to join is Kodlak Whitemane. You talk to him, and maybe you'll get a proper rejection, if you're lucky."

Katie felt like challenging the man to an arm-wrestling match, right then and there, but she soon reminded herself that she was there to learn how to follow orders, and could pick fights later, if she had the time. Soon, taking indications from a few more of the people in the main hall, she proceeded down a series of steps off to the right side of the main hall, and found another door down there, opening it and slipping inside.

The door opened out into a refreshingly-large hallway, with small tables, chairs and the occasional piece of pottery lining the edges. There were doors, up and down each side, but fortunately, Katie could already see a white-bearded, old man in armor, through a door at the far end of the corridor, sitting at a table and talking to someone.

As she got closer to the old man, she felt a slight nervousness creeping up on her. She was a little scared that he might just turn her away on the basis of her appearance, the way the warrior upstairs would have, but then again, if he did, she was off the hook, in a sense, and it was possible that Eron might still be willing to teach her, even if the Companions refused to accept her.

However, the full implications of those thoughts hadn't even traveled all the way through her head when she was standing in front of the white-bearded man, and a taller man who was sitting next to him; just as heavily-armored, but a good deal younger. Not having any good reason for hesitating, Katie spoke up at once, and both men, who'd been watching her as she entered, continued to look oddly at her while she spoke.

"Are you Kodlak?"

"Yes. That's me." the old man in the white beard replied with a friendly smile, "You don't strike me as a messenger girl, though, and I've paid my tab at all the local taverns and businesses already, so you wouldn't be here about that. This can't be an advertisement. Heh heh. Certainly not. So, you're here to ask about joining the companions. Am I right?"

Just like that, Katie found herself amazed. The man's wit, it seemed, had only sharpened with age, and for a moment, she was herself a bit envious of it. Still, she stood up straight and nodded silently, not sure what else to say.

"Well, the very fact that you're even asking is a positive sign." Kodlak replied with a smile, "It proves you've got heart. I can also tell that you've been in many fights before; perhaps even some very large and dangerous fights. Most of the people we get here start out as hunters by profession, but something tells me that's not the case with you."

"Back home," she said quickly, though a bit regretfully, "I was a waitress, and a blacksmith's assistant."

"So tell me something." Kodlak said at last, "What's your name, and what's the largest animal you've ever killed?"

Those, of course, were easy questions to answer, although she didn't expect the old man to believe the answers that she had to give.

"I'm Katie, sir." she said with a short bow, "The biggest thing I ever killed was... Well... It was a dragon, sir."

Sure enough, the moment that those words escaped from her mouth, Kodlak's eyes widened, and his friendly smile vanished. Suddenly, there was a look on his face, like someone who'd just seen a unicorn, and was searching the distant landcape with all his might, desperately trying to catch sight of the rare beast again. However, after a few seconds, he looked into Katie's eyes again, then asked her the question she'd been expecting.

"This wouldn't happen to be the same dragon from two nights ago, would it? The one whose death prompted that nice, big celebration?"

Katie just nodded, not sure what to say, exactly.

"You're not serious." the other man remarked disbelievingly, "Master, you don't really believe this, do you?"

"I'm nobody's master," Kodlak replied with a chuckle, "and if the Jarl believes it, I suppose I can too. I'm sure that's the reason he appointed her to the position of thane. Yes, Katie, I saw you last night, with that circlet on your head. You can't fool me. You're the thane, whether you like or not, though if it gives you any consolation, that won't make you too many friends around here. Having killed a dragon, though? Well, that might earn you some respect. We'll just have to wait and see if you deserve it."

Before Katie could reply, however, the younger man objected.

"Kodlak, you can't really be thinking of letting her join."

"Why not?" the older man asked, however, "She's decided to put herself in danger, and she's proven that she's good at it. Even if she can't fight at all, the worst that'll happen is that she'll die on a mission or something."

"What if she gets us noticed during an infiltration mission?" the young warrior asked disappointedly. However, Katie felt like it would be appropriate to respond to that.

"I suppose I could hang back during missions like those." she said, trying to smile.

"Once she's through with the initial training process, we can decide what kinds of missions to send her on, based on her skills." Kodlak began explaining, as though Katie hadn't even said a word, "If she can fight, that's ideal, but you should never make these kinds of choices on the basis of first impressions. One of the most dangerous men I've ever known was less than four feet tall, with a bent back and a long, white beard."

The younger warrior just sighed by that point, tilting his head back to look at the ceiling, and remarking "Fine, fine."

"You'll be going with Vilkas here, to test your skill, and the strength of your arm." Kodlak continued, turning back to face her again, "How are you in battle?"

Some part of Katie wanted to start talking about her various battles and victories; especially her victory over the dragon, but another part of her had soon decided that it wouldn't be appropriate, and in a few moments, she was speaking a bit more softly.

"Well, I came here to learn how to take orders and fight properly, and I probably have a lot to learn."

"That's the spirit!" Kodlak replied, his expression brightening quite a bit when he heard her say that, "What about your friend? If she's going to be coming on missions with you, I should at least clear..."

However, Kodlak's voice trailed off once Lydia actually stepped forward, and he got a good look at her. For a few moments, the two just looked at each other sternly, but at last, Kodlak was the first one who spoke up, and his words seemed to indicate that he knew Lydia already.

"You're not planning to join the Companions yourself, are you?"

"No, although as Katie's housecarl, I may follow her on missions, if she allows it."

"Her housecarl? I'm surprised the Jarl was willing to let you go."

"It's not my place to speak ill of the Jarl." Lydia just replied a bit stiffly, "You know that."

"Yeah. I know." Kodlak muttered, then turning back to face Katie again, apparently in a somwhat dampened mood, he said, "I'd sent a small child on dangerous missions if Lydia was in their company. Alright. You two can head out back now. Katie; you'll be having your abilities tested."

"Not Lydia?" Katie asked, starting to feel just a little left out, as though she was missing something that the others had been discussing in secret. However, it seemed that Kodlak, at least, didn't care to expand on what he'd said already.

"No." he merely said, "It's not necessary to test her."

Then, with a slight scowl on his face, he sat back down and started looking at the floor.

It was only once Katie was well out of earshot of Kodlak that she dared to ask Lydia any questions about what had just happened, and Lydia, fortunately, was very forthcoming with her answers.

"I've never been tempted to join the companions myself, in the past." Lydia explained with a dispassionate look on her face, "The whole outfit is a bit too... informal for me. Kodlak and I did meet once before, however, when he and his men approached the Jarl over some dispute about a little girl hurting herself near Jorrvaskr, or something of the sort. As I understand it, the judgement eventually turned against them, and Kodlak started to raise a bit of a commotion, insisting on the outcome of the case being changed. I believe there was even a threat that they wouldn't leave until they got what they were after. The last time I saw Kodlak, the Jarl had instructed me to show him and his men the way out."

"So what happened?" Katie asked, already feeling intensely curious about the story, and what it would reveal about her new housecarl.

That, however, was when the hint of a smile started to creep across Lydia's face, and she simply replied, "I showed them out."

"Whoa..." Katie remarked, opening the door to the upper hall, but not daring to look away from her housecarl, "Didn't you get hurt? I mean..."

"I do remember getting a bruise on my left shoulder at the time, and a scratch on my right cheek," Lydia admitted, "but those are the risks you take in my line of work."

It was just then, however, that Katie began to realize just what Lydia was implying, and asked her, "Did they get hurt?"

"Nothing too serious." Lydia replied with a shrug as she entered the main hall after Katie, "The big one didn't guard his neck properly, and the youngest had a glass jaw. Kodlak was by far the strongest. He's old, but he knows how to fight. I had to knock him on his back three times before he realized there was no point in fighting me anymore."

"Wow." Katie remarked in utter amazement, "I can see why he reacted to you like he did. Maybe you should spar with me sometime."

"Certainly, if you wish it." Lydia replied, starting to really smile at last, "Just tell me the proper time, and I'll do my best to keep from injuring you."

The comment made Katie want to chuckle just a little, but if anything that Lydia had just said was true, it might have been entirely justified.

Before too long, the two were back outside again, behind the actual longhouse, and it was perfectly clear that the place had been intended as a training ground of some kind. The ground was made of stone, but there were wooden dummies with target symbols on them all up and down the far side of the property, which bordered a thick, stone wall. Obviously, the place had been intended to serve as both a training ground for archers, and also a large enough, open space for fighters who used swords or axes to practice their art.

In spite of his clear dislike for Katie, it didn't take Vilkas long to follow her outside, and once he'd stepped through the back door, he reached her position in seconds.

"Okay." Vilkas said as he stepped around Katie, and eventually stood facing her, "If you've been in battle before, this shouldn't be hard for you. When I say the word 'now,' I want you to attack me with everything you've got, and I when I say 'enough,' I want you to stop. Got that?"

"Are you kidding?" Katie asked, horrified by the very idea, "If I do that, you'll..."

"Look, you said downstairs that you wanted to learn how to take orders and fight properly. Well, take orders! Fight me now!"

In a flash, the man in front of her had drawn a sword, and Katie had just enough time to whip her spear out, before he could strike, but he would have hit her right in the left hip if he hadn't stopped short at the last second. It was only just then that Katie realized that Vilkas hadn't intended to attack her, and for a moment, she wondered if he'd intended for her to attack him with her full power either, but just at that point, he paused, and said, "I said 'attack with everything you've got.' Don't make me repeat myself again."

That, Katie decided, was enough. Even if Vilkas -didn't- mean for her to try to injure him, he'd been pushing her too far, and he still hadn't said "enough" yet.

In a flash, Katie's spear shot out, slamming into the armored man's shoulder, and knocking him back for a moment, but he responded by twisting his body downward, out of the way of the blow, and drove his sword upward, into her.

Katie winced in pain as the blade penetrated her skin, and for a moment, Lydia's eyes widened, though she didn't advance to try to rescue her thane. Apparently, Lydia was a very good soldier indeed, and would wait for an order from her commander. She, it seemed, had already mastered the art of taking orders. However, Katie just had one more decision to make; whether to continue the fight, knowing full well that her life might be on the line. The man in front of her was an expert fighter, but then again, she had to take orders from him, and she still hadn't given the fight everything she had yet.

"That's the danger of leaving part of your body unarmored during a fight." Vilkas said, backing off a few feet, "I've heard of some folks who trained their bodies to compensate for it, but in youuugh!"

Once again, Katie's spear had made contact, bridging the distance between the two of them easily, and striking one of her enemy's legs hard. His armor had blunted the blow a bit, but it was clear that he hadn't expected her to continue fighting.

"Say 'enough,' and you're off the hook." Katie suggested; a remark which she suspected would make the man angry, but rather than getting mad, he actually seemed to be smiling just a little. In a flash, he'd darted forward and attacked with his blade again, but as before, the blade didn't dig in very far, and soon, her spear had made another clean strike; that time on the opposite shoulder.

They continued trading blows for a few seconds, but when Vilkas' blows continually failed to do much, and Katie's attacks continued to knock him back, again and again, the truth of his situation seemed to dawn on the fighter. At last, just as she was about to drive her spear into his armor again, Vilkas exclaimed "enough!"

After she heard that word shouted, Katie had just enough time to pull back on her spear, and stop it from connecting. The two had been delivering blows to one another with their weapons for several dozen seconds already, and yet, while Vilkas looked half dead, Katie's injuries were no worse than a collection of minor cuts and scrapes around her torso. However, in spite of her clear advantage in that fight, it seemed that the fighter of the Companions wasn't about to admit that he'd been beaten.

"There's... a reason I've... held back until... -aah!- until now." Vilkas stammered out, digging a small bottle out of his belt and starting to drink the formula inside. It seemed that it was a healing potion, since the moment he downed it, his injuries began to disappear, though of course, he didn't offer any to Katie.

"I just wanted to see... what kinds of moves you knew how to use. You don't get to see that when you attack your enemy full-force. Anyway, your moves are very basic, but you know how to use them to your advantage. That counts for something. Alright; you're in. Just remember that even if you did kill a dragon, you're still a rookie to us. Here's your first job; I want you to take my sword up to Eorlund Gray-Mane at the skyforge over there. Tell him I sent you, and get him to work on the sword. It's going to need some sharpening, as I'm sure you've noticed firsthand."

Then, with those words, Vilkas handed his sword over to Katie and started off for the back entrance of Jorrvaskr. However, she couldn't help but notice that in spite of how much his body had healed, he still had a slight limp in his stride.

Once Vilkas had re-entered Jorrvaskr, Katie took a short sip from one of her own healing potions, then turned to look at Lydia again, who was still watching her with a sort of puzzled expression on her face. It almost made Katie laugh again, to see that expression, but in the end, she looked at her housecarl with a smile, and spoke up.

"Well?"

"I'm sorry, my thane." Lydia replied a bit stiffly, "I was unaware that you wanted me to interfere in your duel."

"Oh, no. I didn't want you to do that at all!" Katie exclaimed, raising both hands with a slightly embarrassed smile, "I'm just asking what you thought of my fight. That's all."

"Oh. I see." Lydia noted, putting one knuckle under her chin and closing her eyes, as if picturing the fight in her mind. Finally, she replied, although her words drove the smile from Katie's face for a moment.

"You're rather sloppy, and you waste a lot of energy. I could have disarmed Vilkas in two maneuvers, if I'd been in your position. You also seem to move your weapon, either in simple, jabbing motions, or large, wide arcs most of the time. Is that something you can help?"

"No. Not really." Katie replied with a brief shake of her head, "My arms don't move as far up as yours, and they obviously don't move as far down either, so I have to sort of twist in mid-swing to do my spear moves. Not much I can really do about that. As for wasting energy, it's mine to waste, isn't it? If I've got the energy, why not put it to use?"

"Because you never know when you might be ambushed, while exhausted from a previous fight." Lydia explained, still without missing a beat, and without smiling, "Remember, it doesn't matter how much punishment you can take. If you get too tired to defend yourself, you've lost."

"In that case, maybe you can show me how to conserve energy while we're sparring later." Katie suggested, but Lydia started to turn away when she said that, and her next words were very unexpected.

"I'm starting to have second thoughts about that. Your fighting technique is very effective, but very different from mine. I'm not sure how much I could actually teach you."

"You're just worried you'll lose." Katie joked, but the moment she said that, Lydia turned back to face her again, looking very upset at first. At last, after a few seconds, she just sighed, folded her arms, and looked up into the sky for a few moments without saying a word. It was, Katie thought, a little odd. Lydia was the ideal professional in a lot of ways, and yet, she seemed to have virtually no understanding of normal, good humor or how to relax. In a way, she was a tragic case.

Still, somehow, Katie got the impression that an attempt to probe the depths of her problems just then would be unwelcome, so for the moment, she just headed up the nearby stone steps that Vilkas had directed her towards; in the direction of the place that he'd called "Skyforge."

Beyond the mods addendum; Things you can't do in-game

1. Kodlak doesn't recognize any of your past accomplishments in Skyrim; not even the killing of a dragon. Even if you're the head of the college of Winterhold, the thane, the winner of the war and the Dragonborn, Vilkas still says that he's never heard of you, and Kodlak still says that not everyone who joins the companions needs to be famous.

2. Kodlak's relationship to Lydia is nonexistent in Skyrim. They don't know each other, and Kodlak doesn't even react to Lydia's presence. In fact, almost no one in the entire game does.

3. Vilkas doesn't actually try to drive you off in Skyrim. He does so in this story because he -really- dislikes Katie in a way that he wouldn't dislike any other main character in Skyrim.

4. You can't hold conference with Lydia about anything. You can give her directions, ask her to trade with you, or even part ways with her, but regardless, Lydia will never give her opinion about anything that happens in the game, which means that I have a lot of freedom in terms of how I write her character in this story.