Wuunferth sat on his bed, waiting impatiently for someone, namely Terra, to come up and tell him that it was okay to come down. He had heard that the clanging of metal had stopped, but he could still hear voices both outside and inside the palace, either shouting at each other for help or the sickening howling of the injured. He heard the sound of tiny claws scratching at the stone. The wizard got off of his bed and waited to see what was coming towards him. A silver fox trotted up the hallway and Wuunferth noticed the little creature wander up to him and sit down.
"Who let you in here?" He asked. He looked at the fox's eyes and recognised them instantly.
"You? What happened to you?" He questioned in disbelief. The fox looked around and found a piece of paper sitting on Terra's bed. He jumped up and nudged it towards the edge of the bed and when it fell, he jumped down to the floor. Wuunferth realised that he was going to spell out what had happened to him, so he put an inkwell on the ground held the paper down so that the fox could use one of his little claws to write. He carefully dipped his claw in the ink and began to write on the parchment. The wizard mouthed the letters as the fox spelt out the word.
"Spell... Oh, a spell." Wuunferth said and the silver fox nodded.
"I can fix that." The wizard said and stepped back and cast a spell on the fox. A purple sphere enveloped the creature and in its place, Sephiroth stood in his normal form. Wuunferth nodded as Sephiroth inspected his own arms and hands.
"Thank you." He replied
"You're welcome." Wuunferth said and Sephiroth walked back down to the hall.
Ralof knelt down by Rikke's side and wiped away her dribble as he helped her drink a healing potion to help her with her bleeding. She was shaking, the poison was beginning to attack her system. Sephiroth stood over Kuja's leg and he stared at the paralysed pair with confusion.
"What happened?" Sephiroth questioned. Ralof looked up at him and he sighed with relief.
"Garland turned on the Legion. Hadvar and that... man are paralysed by a spell. She was struck by a poisoned dagger. Tullius, Ulfric and Galmar are dead. Terra and Lightning are still breathing, but not... awake." Ralof answered.
"I... I have a n-name you know!" She hissed and then scrunched her face as she began to convulse again.
"Then what is your name?" Sephiroth asked.
"Rikke." She replied with a wince.
"We need to do something. We can't just leave her." Ralof said.
"Thanks for stating the obvious." Sephiroth replied and the blonde Stormcloak huffed. Sephiroth thought as Ralof knelt back down beside Rikke. He looked into his satchel and pulled out two small red feathers that softly glittered. Their golden sheen caught the nord's eye and he smiled slightly as he stared at the glittering red feathers. Even Rikke was transfixed by the sparkling feathers, when she wasn't wincing or twitching that was.
"What are those?" Ralof inquired.
"Phoenix down. I've had these since the war of the gods, just in case I needed them. These are my only ones though." Sephiroth answered.
"What does it do?" Ralof asked.
"It revives people after they've been knocked out. Either Terra has a potion to help them, or Lightning knows a spell that can help." Sephiroth replied and handed Ralof a feather.
"What do I do with it?" He questioned.
"Wave it under her nose and it should wake her up. But it can only be used once." Sephiroth replied as he walked over towards Lightning. The blonde Stormcloak hurried over to Terra. Ralof knelt down beside the green haired mage and held the feather under her nostrils. She breathed in the magic dust and the vibrant red slowly fled from the feather as her eyes fluttered open. She groaned as Ralof glanced at the feather and then back down at her with awe.
"It worked! Sephiroth, it worked!" Ralof exclaimed as Terra tried to sit up.
"Of course it did." Sephiroth replied as he knelt down beside the pink haired soldier and pulled her onto his lap before brushing her fringe away from her eyes. Ralof helped Terra up and let her lean on him as he led her towards the table in the centre of the hall. He watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest as he placed the feather under her nose. The feather's radiant red gradually faded as Lightning's deep blue eyes emerged from behind her eyelids. He dropped the feather and smiled a little as he placed his hand on her cheek.
"You're alright." Sephiroth whispered. She blinked a few times before smiling back at him.
"And you're not a fox anymore." She replied. He laughed and stroked her face.
"Even though I am relieved that you're okay, Rikke, Kuja and Hadvar need your help." He said. Sephiroth helped her to her feet and led her over to where the twitching Legate sat.
Lightning still felt a little faint and she knelt down by the nord's side as Ralof rubbed Terra's back to try and ease her nausea. With a flick of Lightning's hand, Rikke was bathed in a violet light and her convulsing stopped within seconds.
"What was that?" The Legate questioned as she used the wall as a support to stand up.
"Esuna. It cures most ailments other than wounds." Lightning answered as Sephiroth held her forearm and helped her up. After a few seconds of steadying herself, Rikke wandered over towards the table and sat down next to Terra. Lightning cast esuna on the paralysed duo and they could finally move again. Hadvar moaned as he wiggled his fingers and toes to try and relieve the tingling in his limbs and Kuja tried to stand up, but he ended up back on the ground thanks to his numb legs. Rikke and Terra laughed as Kuja tried to untangle his silvery jungle and pulled his hair away from his face before straightening his feather.
"Oh stop laughing at me you two. You're just jealous of my beautiful hair." The narcissist said and fluffed up his hair, scrunching up his face in the process because his fingers were still recovering from their stasis. Hadvar had finished wiggling his limbs and stood up. He held his arms out for balance and he smiled when he didn't find himself toppling over like Kuja did. Lightning twirled her finger around Sephiroth's hair and Kuja found it odd that all he did was glare at her without even the slightest remark about never touching his hair.
"I think Sephiroth's hair is nicer than yours. Just saying." She replied and the assassin chuckled as he saw Kuja's face drop as she untwined her finger from his locks.
"You're just biased, Light." Ralof commented and left Terra's side to go catch up with Hadvar.
"How is she biased?" Kuja asked the nordic Stormcloak with suspicion.
"He's her husband. They got married quite recently." Ralof replied. Kuja stared at the two of them in disbelief.
"You two? Married? That was unexpected." The mage said and blinked as he still tried to wrap his head around what he had just heard.
"It doesn't surprise me, I've heard these two are as friendly as Maven Black-Briar is with the Thieves Guild." Rikke replied and Terra giggled.
"Or like Kuja is with his ego." The green haired woman joked and the Legate beside her tried to hold in her chuckles, but burst out into a fit of laughter. Lightning couldn't resist a smile as Kuja crossed his arms and pouted.
"You never told me you had a tail, Kuja." Rikke said. Sephiroth couldn't help but to smile when Kuja's eyes widened with surprise.
"You know about that?!" He hissed.
"I saw it. Why hide it?" Rikke asked.
"The same reason Sephiroth hides that wing of his! Because I don't want people to see it!" Kuja exclaimed. The assassin raised his eyebrow as the small mage flipped his hair.
"I only hide it because I don't like being called a monster." Sephiroth said and Lightning's hand grasped his and squeezed it tightly. He gave her a small smile as Rikke crossed her arms.
"Why did you join the Stormcloaks? If you joined the Legion, you could've helped us put a stop to Garland before this happened." Hadvar questioned.
"Because their enemies were there. Cloud and Sephiroth are enemies. So are Terra and Kefka and Lightning and Garland." Ralof answered with a shrug.
"That's a valid point. We wouldn't have wanted the Legion to be levelled by their fighting." Rikke added with a nod.
"There was also another reason that we joined the Stormcloaks. Yuna and I both thought that Ulfric was genuine, we were blinded by his heroic masquerade. When we found Lightning wandering around Dawnstar, we told her about what was happening and she wanted to help us out. As soon as she saw Ulfric, she knew that he wasn't really fighting for Skyrim, that he was fighting for himself and she told us immediately. From that point on, the three of us planned to make him realise that he needed to fight for Skyrim's freedom and independence instead. Obviously, we failed." Terra added with a pout.
Just as Hadvar went to tell them about Sigmund's capture, Brunwulf Free-Winter, the new Jarl of Eastmarch, burst through the doors.
"Thank goodness there are more survivors! The battlemaidens need a lot of help, there are too many wounded on both sides for the Stormcloak healers alone to handle!" He said. Lightning was the first to follow the Jarl outside and she saw nothing but the screaming wounded, the dead and the blood that slicked the stone and stained the snow. Lightning's hands began to glow with an almost blinding orange light that had begun to heal the two soldiers she had knelt down in front of. Once the spell began to falter, she cursed under her breath and stood up. The pink haired woman turned around to the green haired woman behind her and Terra had an inkling about what she was going to say.
"Terra, cura." Lightning instructed and the esperkin nodded. The soldier and the mage approached the next few wounded warriors and the two of them cast a blue orb which split into three and penetrated the chests of the casualties. Those who had no idea what cura was stared at it with awe. They had never seen anything like it before. Sephiroth and Kuja helped the newly healed to their feet as Lightning and Terra moved along. Ralof, Rikke and Hadvar snapped out of their daze and followed them. Once they got to outside of Candlehearth Hall, the two of them felt as overwhelmed as the battlemaidens did. There were bodies everywhere. The Cosmos warriors did their best to help the healers, but they soon felt useless as their spell ceased to cast and they began to feel worn out. Terra stumbled backward and Kuja kept her on her feet as Sephiroth gently supported Lightning's weight with one arm around her back and his hand holding her waist as she winced and wanted to continue healing, despite her tiredness. Terra winced as she drew a breath as she too tried to gather up her strength without letting it recuperate first to help the struggling healers.
"It's okay, no one here is a miracle worker." Sephiroth said with a shake of his head. Lightning sighed and took a few deep breaths as she tried to push past her exhaustion. Terra was able to cast another cura spell before the heel of her boot got stuck in the stone and Ralof managed to catch her and Kuja helped her regain her balance. The silver haired assassin recognised the figure cloaked in brown as she stepped over the pools of red essence. It was the woman with the phoney accent from the Temple of Mara.
She looked around and bowed her head when she noticed the battlemaidens' struggle as the amount of casualties they needed to attend to seemed endless. The woman placed her hands on her chest and closed her eyes before she released tiny balls of magic that coursed through the air and healed all those it came in contact with. Hadvar and Ralof's jaws dropped as Rikke's eyebrows almost rose off of her forehead. The warriors from the other world waited for the woman in brown to reveal herself. She removed her hood and pulled out her golden curls. Hadvar and Ralof stared at her as she tousled her hair.
"Cosmos..." Terra uttered. The goddess of harmony smiled and nodded to the esperkin.
"I knew there was something familiar about you." Sephiroth said.
"You saw right through my disguise. Was my accent really that bad?" Cosmos asked and the swordsman nodded.
"What are you doing here?" Kuja questioned. She wrung her hands and sighed.
"I was purified alone with my fallen. Shinryu brought me here, just like he did with you." Cosmos answered.
"Do you know why?" Lightning asked and the blonde shook her head, her golden curls bouncing as she moved her head.
"Kuja, if this is Cosmos... Then all is not lost. We can still stop Garland!" Rikke exclaimed. Lightning crossed her arms and looked at Rikke approvingly. Cosmos looked to the silver haired mage to fill her in on what Rikke was talking about.
"It seems you don't know what's going on right now so I'll fill you in. Garland plans to summon Chaos and use him to gain control of Tamriel. It seems that he has also kidnapped the Dragonborn. Trouble is, we don't know what to do next." Kuja said.
"You used to work with Garland. Once he took Sigmund and eliminated Ulfric and Tullius, what was his next move?" Lightning questioned.
"Challenge Elisif for the throne, keep up appearances, destroy the Thalmor and then use Sigmund to kill Alduin in order to summon Chaos." Kuja answered.
"Elisif doesn't stand a chance. Ulfric would've put up a fight, but even he wouldn't be able to topple Garland." Ralof commented.
"Or Ulfric would've run away with his tail between his legs." Hadvar suggested. Ralof was pleased to see that the war hadn't affected his wit or sense of humour at all.
"That was also a possibility." Ralof replied and Hadvar grinned at the blonde.
"I see... Then I guess that Garland needs a challenger who can defeat him. There's no other way around this. If his plan is to kill Elisif, the Jarls will have no choice but to elect him as High King. Jarl Elisif may not like this much, but we need another contender for the throne." Cosmos said and cradled one hand in the other.
"What about you, Cosmos?" Sephiroth questioned.
"That's a great idea! Challenge discord with harmony!" Terra exclaimed and the others nodded in agreement.
"I'm afraid not. There is no doubt that if I had to fight Chaos, he would win. I'm not meant for combat like him. I'm meant to keep balance." Cosmos answered with a sad smile.
"What about Rikke? She could lead." Kuja suggested. The Legate scoffed and shook her head.
"I relay commands, not give them. And besides, I lead armies, not provinces." She replied.
"But you have me. Falk trained me to be a queen's steward." Kuja announced with a flip of his hair.
"Then what about you?" Rikke asked and prodded Kuja's arm.
"As much as I would love to have the throne and the power that comes with it, I've realised that I don't think I'd be a good ruler. A good steward perhaps, but definitely not a ruler." Kuja replied with a roll of his eyes and putting a hand on his hip.
"What about Terra?" Ralof inquired.
"I'd prefer to keep to my spells and potions if that's quite alright." The green haired esper replied with a nod.
"What about either of you two?" Cosmos questioned and gestured to Hadvar and Ralof.
"No, we're just soldiers from a small town. We don't know anything about politics, nor could we challenge Garland and win." Hadvar answered with a shrug. The group looked at each other in silence as Brunwulf Free-Winter had finished looking around in awe, he had walked back towards them.
"Legate Rikke, explain the situation." He commanded.
"Yes, my Jarl. One of our own turned on us and killed Tullius after Ulfric was executed. He and his band of traitors kidnapped the Dragonborn and left both sides for dead. It was thanks to Cosmos that we were able to save as many people as we did." She replied. He turned to Cosmos and nodded to her.
"Thank you, Cosmos. We greatly appreciate your help." He said. She smiled gracefully and bowed.
"It's my pleasure to help those who need it." She replied.
"If you excuse me, I have a city to put back together." He announced and wandered back to the Palace of the Kings.
Once the new Jarl left, the group resumed their deliberation on who should be the person to challenge Garland and Elisif. Kuja watched Sephiroth and Lightning exchange words about his still standing contract that demanded the blood of the Emperor to be spilt.
"What about Lightning?" Kuja suggested. The couple's conversation ceased as Lightning glared at the narcissistic mage.
"Interesting..." Cosmos said with intrigue.
"It would make sense, you told Terra and I that Garland was your enemy." Ralof commented with a shrug. Rikke looked at the esperkin as Terra played with one of her green ringlets.
"Even in the war, Garland was your rival. It would make sense if you became his rival yet again." She added and Rikke nodded in understanding. Hadvar saw the Legate's nod and crossed his arms.
"Me? You've got to be kidding." She replied with a shake of her head. She looked up at Sephiroth who himself was seeing Kuja's suggestion as a possibility.
"No, I'm not. I'm perfectly serious." Kuja said.
"I know nothing of running a province." She argued.
"You have me. I can teach you what I know and help you along the way." He rebutted.
"I'm a warrior, not a show pony." She said.
"Skyrim doesn't need a show pony. She needs a leader who will fight for her protection. It's perfectly clear to most of us that you can do that." Sephiroth replied.
"So can most of us here, I don't see your point." Lightning rebutted.
"Sephiroth's right, Lightning. I agree with Kuja. And so does Odin." Cosmos said. The mention of her eidolon's name made the rose haired soldier look over her shoulder at the goddess of harmony.
"Odin?" She questioned.
"Yes, he knows you are strong enough to continue without him, which is why he let Garland banish him from Tamriel." Cosmos answered.
"He can talk to you as well?" She asked.
"He does. Unlike the you, I still have a connection to the war and everything in it. The perks of being a goddess, I guess. He speaks very highly of you. He remembers what Shinryu wanted you to forget. He believes in you." The blonde replied. There was a long silence before Terra spoke up.
"What happened to Yuna and Tifa?" Terra inquired.
"Safe. They exhausted their usefulness to Shinryu and they were sent home. Don't worry about them." She replied. The mage sighed with relief and Ralof patted her back with a smile spread across his face.
"I'm glad." Ralof said. Hadvar knew that Sigmund had helped Garland track down Yuna and decided that he should tell him that the summoner was okay to help put the Dragonborn's mind at ease a little.
Silence draped itself over the group as snow did on the roofs of the buildings in the city. Lightning felt quite uncomfortable because everyone was staring at her, deciding whether or not they agreed with Kuja's suggestion. Hadvar decided to break the quiescence.
"So... If Lightning were to become High Queen, does that mean that her husband will be High King?" He asked. Kuja's eyes widened and he pinched his brow as he groaned. He couldn't believe he could forget a piece of information he had just learnt that day.
"Right, I forgot about that. And yes, that is correct. If she does become queen, he will become king." Kuja replied. A smug smile crept onto Lightning's face as she looked up at Sephiroth, who was frowning.
"I can't be king, I'm the Listener of the Dark Brotherhood. It's my job to lead them, It's impossible to do both. And honestly, I'd rather be the Listener than king." Sephiroth said. Lightning's grin fell as she glared at him.
"You'll have to visit her and participate in her duties sometimes at least. Just to remind people who you are and what your relationship with her is. I hope you two realise that you'll need to produce an heir as well." Kuja replied.
"Excuse me?" Lightning questioned as Sephiroth nervously shifted.
"You heard me." Kuja answered and placed his hands on his hips. Terra, Ralof and Hadvar couldn't help but to laugh. Even Rikke couldn't help but to find their reactions a little funny. Sephiroth cleared his throat before he spoke up.
"That... will happen when the both of us are ready. Don't even think of pushing that idea further." He announced. Lightning smiled as he snaked his hand around her waist and pulled her closer.
"That's what I was going to say." Lightning added. Ralof and Terra exchanged a glance and a smile as Sephiroth brushed a piece of hair away from her eyes.
"Will the Empire be involved?" Sephiroth questioned. Rikke looked around the city with a raised eyebrow.
"The Imperial Legion? Garland killed the commander of the Legion's Skyrim regiment and almost wiped us out. I'm afraid the Legion can't help us, not anymore. Skyrim can't spare any more men and the Legion wouldn't want to station men from Cyrodiil here, especially with Garland running against Elisif." She answered.
"That means we're raising an army out of survivors?" Lightning asked.
"Yes, I believe it does." Ralof replied.
"Does that mean that you're considering running against Garland?" Rikke asked.
"I strongly suggest you do this." Cosmos said.
"I'm still skeptical about it..." Lightning replied.
During the short silence that followed, Ralof thought of an idea that might help the situation, as everyone seemed to agree that Lightning should challenge Garland. Everyone except herself that is.
"Where did Ulfric put the Jagged Crown?" Ralof asked.
"In the wizard's quarters. He trusted me to keep it. Ralof and... Hadvar, was it? Come on, I'll show you where I put it." Terra replied and led the two soldiers towards the Palace of the Kings. Wuunferth and Jorlief both stood next to the new Jarl to try and get to know him and how he'd like to run Eastmarch. She stopped and listened in on his ideas. Terra heard him talking about letting the argonians into the city and to get the dark elves out of the slums. She smiled at his ideas and aspirations, she found them inspiring and fair.
"Terra, why did we stop?" Hadvar asked. She hummed and then shook her head as she realised that she had been completely absorbed in what Free-Winter was saying.
"Oh, sorry. I was just listening to Brunwulf. That man has great ideas. Come on." She replied with a wave of her hand. She led them up the hallway and into the wizards' quarters. The two of them looked around the room and wondered where it could be. Terra knelt down beside her bed and stuck her hand under the straw. She poked her tongue out as she tried to feel around for a key. She grabbed it and pulled it out with a grin. The soldiers had no idea what a small, silver key had to do with the Jagged Crown. She pulled out a drawer and rummaged through the contents.
"What are you doing?" Hadvar questioned as she pulled out a strongbox and unlocked it. She opened it and there the crown sat all on its lonesome. Terra picked it up and turned around with a smile on her face.
"So that's what it looks like..." Hadvar said in awe.
"It really is something." Ralof added with a nod.
"Come on. Let's go." The esperkin replied and led them back to where the rest of the group were.
"Here it is!" She chirped and held the crown out towards the group.
"That old thing is what you were so worked up about?" Kuja asked. Rikke crossed her arms and rolled her eyes at Kuja.
"It's said to increase the power of its wearer. This is the crown from legend." She replied. Terra handed it reverently to Rikke and the nord smiled as the rough scales touched her fingers.
"Put it on." The Legate commanded. Lightning took the crown from Rikke and studied it carefully. As she did so, the others stared at her in wait. She closed her eyes and shook her head before handing it back to Rikke.
"I can't do this." She said. Ralof and Hadvar groaned as Kuja, Sephiroth, Terra and Rikke shared an annoyed glance.
"Why not?" Kuja demanded.
"Because I'm not royal material!" Lightning hissed in reply.
"Cosmos, can you do something to change her mind?" Terra pleaded. The goddess of harmony nodded with a smile and turned to the pink haired soldier.
"I can try. Come with me Lightning." Cosmos said and led her warrior into the temple of Talos.
Cosmos caught the faint scent of red mountain flower and breathed in deeply. The tranquility of the temple reminded her of the untainted calmness of Order's Sanctuary. She let the breath out and smiled slightly to find that the horrid stench of blood and death didn't penetrate the stone walls. She longed for the crystalline water to brush up against her toes and for the surroundings to be purely white instead of a dark grey.
"Brown isn't your colour." Lightning remarked as she approached the statue of the forbidden deity. The goddess looked down at her robe and pulled at the scratchy fabric before bathing herself in almost blinding light and her form-fitting white gown had appeared in its place. She cradled her hand in the other one and walked to Lightning's side.
"Kuja is right. You are the best choice to be Garland's challenger, whether you like it or not."
"And if I did challenge them, who would take me seriously? Galmar and Ulfric never did until just recently. A lowly soldier contending for the throne. Do you know how bad that sounds?"
"Ulfric was a soldier. Look how many people flocked to his side."
"He knew how to manipulate people into believing his act."
"But you saw through it." Cosmos rebutted and Lightning crossed her arms. After a small silence drifted over them, the blonde sighed and her exhale began to echo quietly.
"Do you think the Nine can hear us, just like you and Chaos can?" The rose haired woman asked.
"I'm not sure... But they probably can't." Cosmos replied with a small shrug. She reflected on her many futile attempts to communicate with Mara whilst she studied the ways of a priestess under Maramal's guidance.
"Then I don't see the point in praying to something that can't hear you. It's like waiting for a fairytale ending to come your way... never gonna happen." Upon sensing a hint of bitterness in Lightning's tone, Cosmos sat down on a bench.
"Do you know why people pray?" She asked and the soldier shook her head.
"Hope. It gives them hope. It's a powerful thing. For many, Ulfric gave them hope. For others, it was the Empire that gave them hope. Now that both are gone, they need something to give them hope again. Something that will make them believe that one thing, can change everything. Do you understand what I'm saying?" Cosmos questioned in reply.
"Yes, I do." Lightning answered.
"Good. Then will you be Skyrim's new source of hope?" Cosmos asked. The warrior stood in silence for a while, mulling over her answer. Finally, she came to a decision.
"Yes, I will." Cosmos smiled and stood up.
"Good answer. Odin asked me to give you this when the time was right. I believe now is that time." The goddess said and bathed her warrior in golden light. Her worn Guardian Corps uniform was transformed into an ornate silver armour with golden trim and a fall of white feathers cascading down her left hip. A silver shield decorated with gold and a dark green centre had appeared on her left forearm. She found it familiar, but she didn't remember where she had seen it before. A priest of Talos wandered out from behind the statue and froze in his spot when he saw the blonde.
"Lady Cosmos! You look... ethereal!" He exclaimed. Lightning looked at her with confusion.
"They believe that I am an incarnation of Mara, goddess of love and compassion." She explained.
"That makes sense." Lightning replied with a nod.
"Come on, the others are waiting." Cosmos said and smiled as held out her hand towards the soldier. Lightning took the goddess' hand and Cosmos led her outside to where the group was waiting.
Rikke, Hadvar and Ralof's jaws almost dropped as they saw the goddess of harmony walked out of the temple of Talos in her crisp white gown, embellished with gold and multicoloured stones. Sephiroth smiled slightly as Cosmos let go of Lightning's hand and stepped aside. He was almost transfixed by her. Terra noticed this and nudged Kuja. He scowled at her and she pointed at Sephiroth. The graceful glider's expression softened as he saw the way he looked at her. He couldn't describe the way he stared at her, but Terra had seen that look before. She recognised it from their wedding, it was the same look that was in his eyes when she was standing beside him in the ivory dress Babette had somehow sourced. Lightning's eyes connected with her husband's and she blushed slightly.
"You look like a warrior from a bard's tale." Ralof commented.
"You look like a queen." Kuja said and crossed his arms in approval. Sephiroth stepped forward and brushed his gloved hand against the feathers.
"White feathers? Interesting..." He commented. She glared at him as a warning not to comment any further on the colour of the feathers. He obliged and planted a kiss on her forehead.
"What's our next move?" Lightning asked.
"We need the support of the people. No point contending if people don't know who you are and what you stand for." Rikke replied. A Stormcloak soldier and a Legionnaire walked up to the group quite confused and unsure of what to do.
"Bone-Breaker, we've lost everything. What do we do?" The Stormcloak inquired.
"Legate, what's going on?" The Legionnaire questioned the nordic female. The two women looked at each other to try and get some idea of how to respond. After a few seconds, Lightning had some idea of what to say.
"What's happened is that Garland and his lackeys turned on the Legion and is now going to challenge Elisif for the throne. What we're going to do is both Stormcloak and Legionnaire alike are going to put aside our differences to save Skyrim from Garland's influences." Lightning replied. The two soldiers looked at each other with concern and Rikke decided to reinforce the idea that Lightning was the leader and she meant business.
"You heard her, gather what's left of both armies and head for Solitude. Meet us in Castle Dour. Now, move it!" Rikke barked and the soldiers saluted them both before scurrying off.
"Thanks." The rose haired woman said and the brunette woman smiled in reply.
"I think we need to find a headquarters and begin discussing how we're going to go about this. No point asking for support if we don't know what we're striving for." Terra said.
"Good idea, there's no better place than Castle Dour. We better get going then." Rikke replied.
"Wait, can I say goodbye to Wuunferth first?" Terra asked. Ralof raised an eyebrow as Terra inched towards the Palace of the Kings.
"I thought you too didn't get along well?" Ralof questioned.
"Doesn't mean I'm not going to miss him." Terra answered.
"Be quick." Kuja said and she nodded before she ran towards the palace and opened the great iron door.
Terra saw that Wuunferth and Jorlief were still talking to Brunwulf when she told the group that she had to speak to the wizard before they proceeded to speak with the Jarl. The wizard bid the new Jarl farewell and went to walk towards the wizards' quarters when Terra ran over and stopped Wuunferth before he opened the door.
"Ah Terra, it's good to see you're alright." He said.
"I think you can have the wizards' quarter back. I'm going to be working with the others. It was great to learn from you." Terra replied with a bow.
"Well, I think I'll miss you. Despite your untidiness and your childish habits, you've made the past few months exciting." Wuunferth added.
"Just don't try any of the spells I taught you without me present. We don't want another explosion or for the Palace of the Kings to burn down, do we?" Terra laughed.
"No we don't. Farewell Terra. You're welcome back anytime." Wuunferth said.
"Farewell Wuunferth." Terra replied and he opened the door before he walked up towards the wizards' quarters. She walked back outside towards the group.
"You okay?" Ralof asked as she wandered back with a hint of sadness on her face.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm going to miss the place though." Terra replied with a sad smile and a sigh.
"If Garland hasn't claimed it and we decide to make that our headquarters, I think you'll like Castle Dour. The stations are quite close to where everyone tends to linger, so it won't be lonely." Hadvar said and gave her a soft pat on the shoulder with a smile. Terra appreciated his concern and smiled back at him.
"That sounds nice." The esperkin replied.
"Come on, we better get moving if we want to claim Castle Dour." Rikke announced and led them towards the bridge connecting Windhelm to the tundra. Just as they were heading towards the carriage, Sephiroth noticed that they were going to be taking the carriage and he decided to try something.
"I know a quicker way to Solitude." He said.
"Are you sure you can teleport this many people?" Lightning questioned.
"No, but I can try." Sephiroth answered.
"Wait, did he say teleport?" Hadvar asked.
"He did." Lightning replied.
"Alright, everyone hold hands. I can't teleport anyone that I can't come in contact with." Sephiroth instructed. They all assembled themselves into a circle and Sephiroth closed his eyes to concentrate. Within a few seconds the entire group had vanished, leaving only a few black feathers to drift down onto the stone.
They appeared before the locked doors of the Emperor's Tower in Castle Dour. Sephiroth opened his eyes and was a little astounded that he could teleport that many people at one time. The group let go of each others hands as Rikke placed her hands on her hips.
"Are we missing anyone?" Rikke asked. She looked around and was pleased to see that they were all present.
"Everyone's here, good. That's a very useful ability, it could come in handy." Rikke said to Sephiroth.
"Right, let's go inside." Kuja said and went to open the door. He frowned when it was locked and he looked back at Rikke.
"I don't have the key for the Emperor's Tower, Tullius does... well, he did. I do have the key to the Legion's part." She replied and led them towards the other door across the courtyard. She opened the door and the others followed them in. As soon as she came in, Terra spotted the arcane enchanter and the alchemy lab and just as Hadvar told her, it was very close to where everyone seemed to gather.
"Hello?" Terra called and her voice rung throughout the castle. The others walked in slowly, waiting for somebody to come out of hiding and attack them.
"Everyone must still be in Windhelm or at the Eastmarch camp." Rikke commented. Once there was over a two minutes worth of silence, they wandered into the strategy room and gathered around the map.
Sephiroth leant up against the wall and crossed his arms.
"Do you know where any alchemy supplies are?" Terra questioned.
"There should be some crates of it behind there. Some of the ingredients we ordered for extra potions didn't get here on time." Rikke answered and pointed towards the door on the other side of the strategy room.
"I'll help her." Ralof said and followed the esperkin through the door. Lightning, Rikke, Cosmos and Kuja stood around the table in the centre of the room as Hadvar stood around awkwardly. Ralof wandered past with a crate in his arms and Terra tried pushing another across the stone, since it was a little too heavy for her. The brunette walked over and heaved the crate off the ground and carried it towards the lab.
"Thanks." She replied and followed him out of the room.
"Alright, with them occupied we need to figure out what it is you will stand for. We can't get the support of the people without it." Kuja announced.
"How about offering the protection the Legion offered and the freedom to worship who they want without being abducted and killed by the Thalmor?" Lightning suggested.
"I think that's a good start." Cosmos replied with a nod.
"Yes, but we've heard it all before from Ulfric. What would you do that was different?" Kuja questioned.
"Taking out the Thalmor and vanquishing the White-Gold Concordant, for real and not like what Ulfric was claiming he would do." Lightning answered.
"Do you know how difficult that is?" Rikke inquired.
"If it's assassinating anybody you need, the Dark Brotherhood can help. All Lightning has to do is ask, no Black Sacrament required." Sephiroth replied.
"Thanks Sephiroth." Lightning said and gave him a smile. The silver haired assassin wandered over to his wife's side and craned his neck down to gently press his lips up against hers. Kuja asked Rikke what the Black Sacrament was and the nord laughed as she saw the graceful glider's face become anything but graceful after she told him what it was.
"I'm glad she don't have to do that, because that is foul!" He exclaimed in disgust.
"I didn't create the sacrament, it's centuries old." The Listener said with a shrug.
"I'm sure there's something else you could do for Skyrim that would benefit it as a province." Cosmos commented. Hadvar and Ralof sat down at the bench beside the lab as Terra worked with the ingredients, overhearing the conversation happening outside. That was when she remembered hearing Brunwulf's plans for Windhelm and put the mortar and pestle down before she walked into the room with a smile on her face.
"If you want to be different, why don't you go talk to Brunwulf about his ideas for Windhelm. He wants the dark elves and the argonians to be accepted into Windhelm's society, so he's doing things to improve their living conditions." Terra suggested.
"That could work." Cosmos replied.
"I'll make the arrangements." Kuja announced and walked out of the room towards a desk and Terra followed him out back to her work.
"Do you think this will work?" Rikke asked.
"It has to. For Skyrim's sake." Cosmos replied.
