Valie didn't even need to ask Kyrike to let her ride Varos to Windhelm. The auburn man knew she would need to conserve energy, especially with the loss of her entire left arm. Valie had trouble balancing on Varos at first, but she slowly got used to the feeling of using one arm for grasping the reins and keeping balance. Everyone remained silent for the duration of the trip, including Mac.
Windhelm was warmer than usual. It was the first time any of them had seen it without ice and snow covering the city. "It's been a long time, hasn't it, Ysgrig?" Reea'th reminiscently asked. "Indeed it has. The last time we were here was before…" He closed his eyes, pushing the memories of Lyvette, Marcurio, and Sarila's deaths out of his mind. His mind then drifted to Caehir. He sighed. "It's a shame Caehir had to miss this. He would've wanted to come back, too."
Kyrike, seeing his father's mood worsen, suggested they all get rooms at the nearby inn, Candlehearth Hall. Ysgrig's frown grew even more; Candlehearth Hall was the site of Qattindra's murder. Instead of showing further signs of upset, Ysgrig agreed, and the group of Stormcloaks and Stormcloaks-to-be settled at the inn for the night.
The next morning, they reported in to Galmar Stone-Fist bright and early. The war general was bent over his desk, poring over the documents and war orders, placing each in a tightly-capped scroll as soon as he finished reading it before he moved on to the next.
"General Galmar, it's been far too long." Galmar looked up to see Ysgrig, Reea'th next to him. Behind them were Mac, Kyrike, and Valie. Galmar let out a guffaw of pleasant surprise, leaving the tactical map table to greet Ysgrig and Reea'th. "It has been too long, fellas. You came back just like you said, when you said! I see you've brought some hopefully aspiring recruits." Galmar remarked, giving a hopeful glance to the trio behind his two soldiers. "Is that Caehir fella coming in behind you? It's been a while since I've seen him, too, you know."
Kyrike watched over Reea'th's shoulders as Ysgrig broke the news of Caehir's unexpected death to Galmar. Galmar's jaw tightened, and he looked down at the ground. "May Talos look proudly upon him. Though he wasn't of Nord blood, that man was a hell of a soldier."
"So, about these three recruits." Galmar turned to the trio behind Ysgrig and Reea'th, who turned to face them as well. "I can trust they're strong. You fellas wouldn't bring them to me if they weren't strong. I mean, damn, they're practically all muscle." Galmar approached Kyrike, looking him up and down. "Your son, I can assume." He briefly turned back to face Ysgrig, who nodded. "He's a keeper. This boy—no, man—has the build of a warrior." Kyrike proudly straightened his posture after hearing the general's words of approval for him.
Galmar stepped up to Mac and sized her up. "You've got some pretty good arms on you. Not to mention, there's a fine line between small and large, and your form falls perfectly on that line, so you'll be able to move quicker while being able to stand your ground. Very versatile." He gave a nod of approval to the woman.
Galmar finally approached Valie, repeating his routine of sizing his potential recruit up. He turned to face Ysgrig before looking back at Valelia. "Are you joking?" He asked, his face stoic and emotionless. "Are you joking?!" He repeated, yelling at Valie, who merely blinked. "You're missing your entire left arm! Are you joking me, woman?!" "No. I'm here to join the Stormcloaks." Valie replied.
"Forget about it. You're a liability without two arms. You'd best go back to where you came from, because you're not going to last five minutes in the life of a Stormcloak soldier." Galmar ordered. Valie stood straighter. "No." "What?" Galmar snarled, his face snapping back toward's Valie's. "I said," She leaned in closer. "NO." Galmar jumped back in surprise, and Valie returned to her normal position. "I'm not going to just give up because some old bastard with a withered willy told me to get out. Just because I lost my arm doesn't mean I'm weak. I cut the damn thing off after a bandit couldn't cut all the way through the bone. It wasn't my choice to lose this arm. It is my choice to join the Stormcloaks, and you're not going to stop me. You want to fight me, you old codger? THEN COME ON!"
Galmar's face reddened as he gritted his teeth, clenching his fists. He menacingly edged closer to Valie, the rest of the group looking on out of fear of the angry Galmar. "You have the gall to parade into this palace and tell me what's what, and expect a fight. You are the most resistant, stubborn little bitch I've ever met." Valie's facial expression never changed, and she didn't back down when Galmar was barely an inch away from her face. "A true Stormcloak is persistent…a true Stormcloak never gives up." Galmar eased away from her before clapping her on the back. "Welcome to the Stormcloaks, Red-Braids."
After the trio had taken their oaths and had been formally recruited as Stormcloaks, Galmar addressed all five of the soldiers. "It's no secret that the Stormcloak Rebellion is in a very bad position on the war. Every hold except Whiterun, Riften, and Windhelm has been taken over by the Imperials. More and more of our forts are being garrisoned by Imperial troops each day. The worst part is that General Tullius has possession of the Jagged Crown. With all these things going wrong, our cause is going to fall to the Elves and the Imperials. Thankfully, I have a plan." He smiled.
"Ysgrig, you're going to retrieve the Jagged Crown. Tullius has been keeping it under heavy guard in Castle Dour before he hands it over to Elisif to legitimatize her ascension to the Throne of Skyrim." Ysgrig nodded. "I'll leave right away." Ysgrig replied. "Be careful out there, soldier. You're important to the cause. We can't lose you."
"Reea'th, Kyrike, I've got a special assignment for you." Galmar declared, Reea'th and Kyrike stepping forward. "Ever since that old Imperial Puppet Balgruuf died, his daughter, Dagny the Daring, has been running the show in Whiterun. Ever since she claimed position of Jarl, she hasn't chosen an allegiance. You're going to want to speak to Ulfric for the rest of the details."
Galmar turned to Mac and Valie who waited patiently for their orders. "As for you two, you're going to be heading to our camp in Hjaalmarch. We're going to need to perform some…eh…engineering on the Imperials' orders. I'll explain once you arrive at camp. Look for the biggest tent with the tactical map table. I'll be waiting."
As Mac and Valie scurried out of the Palace of the Kings, Reea'th and Kyrike approached the mighty throne Ulfric Stormcloak sat upon. "Ah, Reea'th. Good to see you back." Ulfric gave a curt nod of respect before looking down at Kyrike. "Well, well. Glad to see Stormcloak patriotism runs in Ysgrig's blood. Kyrike Cairn-Spring, I knew you were a sensible lad the moment I found out Ysgrig had a son." Ulfric gave another respectful nod of acknowledgement to Kyrike. "I presume Galmar sent you here on account of the concerns for Whiterun's allegiance?"
The two men nodded affirmatively. "The time has come for Dagny the Daring to choose her side on the war. Her father, sly man that he was, managed to avoid the question of Whiterun's allegiance. Though he worshipped Talos, he never made his support for our cause clear. He made nothing clear. His evasion of allegiance has carried on to his heir, and she can no longer escape what must be known." Ulfric removed his war axe from his sheath and stepped down from his throne, handing it to Kyrike. "You two are to deliver my war axe to Jarl Dagny the Daring." "Shall we deliver a message with the axe?" Reea'th asked. "No. There is no need for words between two Nordic warriors. She'll understand."