I do not own the call of duty series, Skyrim or any of the elder scrolls series in any form. This is a work of fanfiction.
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Chapter 2: hearts and minds
Location: base camp near the city of Whiterun
...
The soldiers and Marines finished setting up their base camp, complete with fuel facility that was fed by the tankers that were driven through the gate. Sgt Foley had been walking around the immediate area, looking for signs of modern or similar weaponry or ammo. He found none, and went to head back to camp. He was stopped by a man who was dressed in what looked like leather armor and was carrying a sword and shield. "Beg pardon, sir. I just came from Helgen, the city to the south. We were just attacked by a dragon." He said.
" Oh, you survived that? We Were able to see it from here." Foley replied.
" I didn't survive by much. In fact, if not for that powerful spell which hit the dragon, I'd be a dead man right now."
" Spell? Spell, yeah. One of my men sent that spell. Anyway, who might you be?"
" I'm Charles. I come from the imperial capital of Cyrodiil. Who may you be?" He responded, shaking hands with Foley.
"Sergeant Foley, army rangers. I'm about to head into the city here to inquire about work so we can get some gold together. We don't know how long our stay will be, so we'll need food and such."
Charles pulled a coin purse from his bag and handed it to Foley. " There's little more than a hundred gold in here. It should be enough to get at least some food and drink. Take it as my thanks for your assistance."
" I appreciate the gold. It'll come in handy. Dunn, you got those MRE cases open yet?" He shouted.
" Just did. Anything in particular you might like?" He shouted back.
" Feeling like beef stew, if you see one. Grab one for you and one for me, and meet me near the city gates."
Charles and Foley walked together toward the city, with Dunn catching up to them soon. They saw a small camp near the city entrance, which turned out to be a Khajiit trading caravan. Foley and Charles separated, with Charles heading on so he may tell the Jarl about the attack on Helgen. "By the looks of things, I'm guessing you're a traveling salesperson." Foley asked. " I'm Foley."
" This one is named Ri'saad. And you are correct. We have a few things that you may need. Some weapons, armor, even potions and ingredients. We also trade, so if your purse is light, we can still deal."
" Dunn, take my MRE and trade with them. See if we can get a few more gold." Foley said before heading toward the city gates.
...
Charles made his way through the city, making his way to Dragonsreach, which was the building that housed the Jarl, his family, his court wizard, city officials and the like. As he approached the throne, he was stopped by a lady Dunmer, who was Irileth, the housecarl to Jarl Balgruuf the Greater. "Halt. What business do you have here?" She asked, in a low ready stance.
"I have news of the dragon attack at Helgen. I only survived thanks to the foreign soldiers camped outside the city."
Her expression changed upon hearing the news. "Dragon attack? The Jarl will be wanting to speak with you at once."
She escorted Charles to see the Jarl. She interrupted him as he was speaking to Proventus Avenicci, his court steward. "Irileth, if I'm being interrupted, it must be important." He told her.
She motioned for Charles to approach. "Jarl Balgruuf, I have news about the dragon attack at Helgen."
Balgruuf seemed to start paying closer attention to what he was saying. "Dragon? You mean they've returned?"
"Yes. I would surely have perished if not for the spell that was cast by the warriors by the road outside the city."
"Warriors? Do these warriors look like anyone from around here?"
"Not at all. They wear strange colors and patterns. Their weapons are small and appear light, but are powerful nonetheless. It would be wise to establish a line of communication with them, as they could be worthy allies."
Balgruuf took the presence of the soldiers into account. "I see. So long as they are not hostile to the people of my city or Skyrim in general, they may stay. And if they want to come into the city, they may, so long as they remain peaceful. However, they are not too maintain garrison in my city. I'll not allow the legion to do it, nor will i allow soldiers from strange lands to."
...
Dunn sat down and handed him the beef stew MRE. "This one is confused. The skin says meal, but i see, touch and smell no food."
" That's just the container. I don't know how you preserve food here yet, but these are made so they last longer than regular food, because they're made in a special way that they don't spoil." Dunn pulled his knife and cut his open. "Just cut it open and you can see what you've got in the bag."
Ri'saad used his claws to open the pack. He emptied the contents on the rug where he was sitting. " I'm starting to see it now. He said as he held up the main course pouch. "Beef stew? Sounds tasty."
"Beef stew is a good one. Nobody dislikes that meal." Dunn continued, pulling his canteen out. " Now, you can eat it like it is, but there is a way to heat it, without using fire. "
Ri'saad watched Dunn opening the flameless heater, putting the main course in it and pouring water in to activate it. It started heating and Dunn put it in the cardboard sleeve. "This technology is alien to me. You use water to make it hot, but water will extinguish fire." Ri'saad commented, but followed suit to start heating his own. "The smell they produce is very unnatural. Is it safe to eat?"
" Of course. The food is sealed inside the pouch. The only thing the heater does is make it hot. It just requires about ten minutes to be completely hot."
Ri'saad looked at the other content from the pack. He picked up the wheat snack bread and read the package aloud. " So, a piece of bread is in this?" He asked before opening it with his claws. " Oh, i see. The air is kept out to keep the food from spoiling."
...
Foley entered the gate to the city and started walking toward the blacksmith. He was stopped by a city guard. "Is there something i can help you with?"
"I'm a warrior from a faraway land and I'm looking for work. I thought i might ask at the blacksmith first."
" I don't think he'd have any work at the moment. Perhaps go look at the bannered mare. There's always a bard, warrior or mage who needs work done. Plus, they have good mead, which goes well with their cooked beef and baked potato."
" So, meat and potatoes is a common meal here as well? I can't say I'm surprised."
" By faraway, do you mean Hammerfell?"
Foley pointed at his name tape on his uniform. "No, I'm from America."
The guard looked closely. "US? I feel like I should know what that means. Anyway, bannered mare should have someone that can help you."
...
Charles spoke to Farengar Secret-Fire, the court wizard, and was off to Bleak Falls Barrow to retrieve the dragon stone. Balgruuf went with him to meet the soldiers along the way. He stopped to talk with Dunn, who was still showing Ri'saad the MRE. "Excuse me soldier?" Balgruuf said to Dunn. "I hear you saved this man from the dragon that attacked Helgen."
Dunn excused himself for a moment from Ri'saad. " Yes sir. One of our soldiers cast a spell that struck the dragon and made him flee." Dunn responded, as he shook the Jarl's hand.
"I would like to ask what your intentions are in Skyrim."
" I hope you can understand, but we're under orders from our generals to not tell anyone anything that's critical to our mission." Dunn answered, followed by taking a bite of his cracker with cheese spread.
"Can you at least tell me if you're planning anything harmful to the people of Skyrim?"
"I can tell you that. We're not planning on being hostile with anyone who is not hostile with us first. If we're attacked, we will defend ourselves, but we won't attack first. Unless it's another dragon, which we may attack on sight." Dunn said, finishing his cracker.
" Well, that puts me at ease. Tell the other soldiers they are free to come and go in the city and surrounding area, so long as they remain peaceful. I do not permit any military force, local or foreign, to garrison soldiers in the city, however."
" Understandable." Dunn continued, looking at Charles. " I suppose you're off on a mission? If you need, i can probably arrange some help."
" More than you've already done?" Charles asked. " If you want to send someone, you're free to do so. Whoever goes with me can keep any gold or supplies they find."
Dunn got on his radio. " Sarge, I've got Charles here. He's going on a mission. Requesting a soldier to assist him."
Foley soon replied. "granted. Ramirez, go meet Dunn at the camp by the city gates." To which Ramirez copied, then started running toward the camp.
"Knox here. I'll send someone as well. Sorenson, get your dumbass up there to the city gates and go with them." Knox said over the radio.
" Roger sarge."
Balgruuf looked perplexed. "These things can cast your voice well beyond the distance a voice can be heard. What manner of magic is this?"
"Standard equipment for our military. Anyhow, Help is on the way. Now, if you'll excuse me, i have a business deal with this one."
...
Charles went to Bleak Falls Barrow with the others and stopped just shy of the entrance. He saw some bandits guarding. He went to turn and speak with the others, but noticed they were gone. " Did i lose them?" He quietly asked himself.
He started approaching the entrance and a bandit noticed him. The bandit nocked an arrow and started pulling the string back. Charles raised and readied his shield. He saw some blood splatter from the bandit, followed by him releasing the arrow in a random direction and then falling to the ground. Charles saw no arrow and only heard a thump.
Sorenson came from beside a tree and Charles walked up, then crouched next to him. "That weapon is as deadly as it is quiet."
" That's the idea. The other part can be far more destructive." He said, pointing to the M203 grenade launcher.
They started moving closer to the entrance and the other bandits started charging them. Ramirez came from behind a pillar, grabbed a bandit, slit his throat and dropped his body. He quickly raised his rifle and readied to fire at another bandit.
One bandit made it to their position and tried swiping at Charles, who raised his shield and blocked, followed by running him through. Sorenson and Ramirez looked at each other and both said "nice" as they high fived.
"You're both quite skilled in the sign of the thief. Not to say you ARE thieves, but that you sneak as easily as one. It's rather impressive."
"All part of the training." Ramirez commented.
The three cautiously entered the ruin. They kept low and quiet, as they heard more bandits talking. Sorenson and Ramirez looked at each other, nodded and then split up. Ramirez threw a knife, hitting one bandit in the throat. The others looked in that direction, but soon stopped when another one took a shot to the leg from behind. They turned around to find Sorenson with his rifle ready and Charles running up to them with his sword and shield ready. A brief swordfight ensued, with Charles taking a few hits before finishing them off.
He checked their pockets and took out some gold and a couple of minor health potions. He drank one and his wounds healed quickly. "Did i see that right?" Sorenson asked. "You just had deep sword cuts and drank that stuff, then you healed right away."
"I can surely tell you're not from around here. What i just drank was a potion of minor health. It's a good potion for simple injuries."
"Do you think it'll work on us?" Ramirez asked.
"I see no reason it shouldn't. The crypt here will have more dangers to encounter, so you may yet get the chance to see for yourself." Charles said, followed by looking at the chest on the floor. " I don't suppose either of you would have a lockpick with you?"
Sorenson used the butt of his rifle to smash the lock and open the chest. " No but I'll let you know if i find any."
The chest contained more gold and a minor stamina potion. Charles motioned for Sorenson to take it and he did. "Anything you find while you're helping me is yours too keep. Gold, potions, food or whatever."
...
Dunn and Ri'saad finished their meals and were sitting together, talking about home and family. "This one thinks you would love my Homeland of Elsweyr. The sun is bright and warm, and the open lands and skies seem to stretch on forever."
" Sounds beautiful. In my Homeland, we have rivers and oceans that are great for fishing. We have farmlands which touch the horizons and supply food for entire countries." Dunn said, as he finished the coffee from his MRE.
They both sighed with warm thoughts of home. "Now, i would like to pay you for the wonderful meal. It was hot and filling, and delicious. I especially like this... How do you call it, coffee? It is tasty and would likely be even better to drink during the winter so as to warm you." Ri'saad said as he also finished his coffee.
" I can't ask you to pay for that. Think of that as a sort of gift, to establish a relationship. If you'd like more, i can sell you others."
Ri'saad thought about it for a moment. "I can see fifteen gold each. I imagine they will sell nicely for the soldiers and adventurers who may only carry water, but limited food supplies."
" That sounds like a good deal for both of us." Dunn replied as he shook hands with Ri'saad. " Beef stew isn't the only type of that meal. There are many different flavors."
" The beef stew alone is good, but you say there are more? What others are there?"
"Spaghetti with meat sauce, chicken burrito bowl, chili with macaroni, maple sausage patty, to name a few. There are also meals designed for colder climates, as the most of the moisture is removed so it cannot freeze. They don't all come with coffee, either. Some have tea, others have fruit juice powder."
Ri'saad reached into his bag and produced a potion bottle along with a map. "Since you have gifted me with a lovely meal and we have reached a business agreement, i would like to return the gesture. This is a map of Skyrim, with the Khajiit trade caravans and their routes, and with the major cities marked. Also, please take this potion of ultimate health. You can be one step from death and this will heal you. Being that you are a soldier, you may need it to recover from a battle."
Dunn accepted the offer. " We have other things that you may yet like or be able to trade or sell. Will you be here tomorrow?"
" Yes. We will be here until about noon, when we start packing to head West, toward Markarth. That's the big city of stone, made into what used to be a dwarven city." Ri'saad answered as he pointed to it on the map.
"If you'd like, i can bring you a case of these meals tomorrow morning. They come twelve to a case."
" This one would appreciate the offer. I'll have the gold in hand."
...
Foley was hanging out at the bannered mare, hoping to pick up work. He tipped Mikael the bard to play the age of aggression, much to the delight of the bar patrons. He approached the bar and asked Hulda about the menu. "I've been told by a city guard that you have good mead here. I'd like to buy some for my men."
" Yes, we have Honningbrew mead. It's made at the meadery just outside of town." She answered with delight.
Before the sale could be completed, Uthgerd the Unbroken approached. "You appear to be from Hammerfell, but your garb suggests otherwise. Who be you?"
" I'm Foley. Army rangers."
Uthgerd looked at his nametape. " US army? As in Ulfric Stormcloak army?"
" Ulfric who?"
" Don't be coy. Ulfric wants to take the city and he's moving troops in, isn't he?"
" Ma'am, i have no clue who this Ulfric is. You must be mistaken."
" You carry strange weaponry. Are you any good with your hands?" She asked, getting closer.
"I'm trying to remain on good terms here. I don't want to fight anyone."
Uthgerd placed a coin purse on the bar. " A hundred gold says i can beat you in a fight."
The entire bar focused its attention on the two of them. " It's against my personal beliefs to strike a lady."
She punched him on the side of his face. " What if one hits you first?"
Hulda butted in. "If you're going to fight, remember, you pay for any furniture you break."
" Well, I'll treat any woman with respect and equality."
Foley squared up and hit back. The first couple of blows, she managed to block. She swung and hit back, but left herself open. Foley grabbed her by the arm, kicked out the back of her knee and put her on the floor, followed by twisting her arm behind her back. " Ah, yield. I yield."
Foley let her go and she stood up, handing the bag of gold to Foley. "I'm a woman of my word. You won, so the gold is yours."
" You've got a mean right hook, though. That rung my bell. Tell you what. Let's celebrate with a drink." Foley said, turning to Hulda. " I'd like to buy two Honningbrew mead, please."
He paid and she handed them the mead. They opened the bottles, saluted each other and drank. "Some people say that Honningbrew mead is superior to even Black-Briar mead. You should try both and see for yourself."
" Well, this is tasty and it has a nice alcohol kick. I'm be sure to try Black-Briar."
" You'll probably have to travel as far east as the city of Riften to try it, though. That's where their meadery is. Well, southeast. I'm sure you can find a way there."
...
Charles, Sorenson and Ramirez reached parts of the ruin that were covered in large spider webs. The webs were easy to cut through with a knife or sword. Charles stopped them just shy of a large room. He looked up, then pointed to the ceiling. "That's a frostbite spider. They are quite dangerous, especially when they get that large." Charles told them.
Ramirez readied his rifle, but Sorenson stopped him. He loaded an HE round into his M203 and Ramirez smiled, followed by stepping back. He covered his ears and motioned for Charles to do the same. Sorenson fired the grenade and it detonated right next to the spider, which made it fall to the floor. It was wounded but not dead. The three of them charged the room, attacking the spider until it was dead.
During the fight, Ramirez was bitten. He pulled an antivenom syringe from his kit and injected himself. "Damn, i feel cold and really tired."
Sorenson gave him the minor stamina potion and Charles gave him a minor health potion. He drank both and seemed to come back to life. "I guess they do work on us." Sorenson commented.
" Hey, you there. Cut me down before something else shows up." Came a voice from the blocked side of the room.
"Who are you?" Asked Charles.
"Arvel the Swift. Now cut me down and we can enter the sanctum at the end. You wouldn't believe the power contained within."
The three of them cut him down. He pushed Charles, punched Ramirez and ran away, followed by Ramirez shooting him in the leg to stop him. It put him on the floor, but he quickly lost consciousness. Charles searched him and found the Golden Claw along with a journal. He read it and they continued on.
Along the way, they encountered several Draugr of varying strength. While they were strong, they still went down with enough strikes of the knife or sword. Finally, they reached a door with a puzzle to it. Charles looked at the palm of the golden Claw and matched the rings to the pattern on the claw, being bear, moth, owl. He inserted the claw and turned the lock, opening the door.
They entered the room and walked up to the altar. Charles felt compelled to get close to the word wall, which started releasing an unknown energy toward him. He felt as though he learned something, but lacked the ability to speak it. The sarcophagus had its lid thrown off followed by a Draugr overlord stepping out. The overlord looked toward them, shouting in an ancient and powerful tongue.
A force of unidentifiable strength pushed Sorenson and Ramirez down, making them fall into the stream that was inside the cave. Charles was lightly staggered by the shout, but wasn't knocked down like the others. He raised his shield just in time to block the attack from the overlord. The impact was still very strong, almost breaking his arm. Every chance Charles got, he would take another swipe with his sword.
Sorenson and Ramirez recovered, followed by firing shots at the overlord. Due to the size of the bullets and the toughness of the Draugr, the shots didn't have a very pronounced effect. It did draw the overlord's attention, though. It turned and shouted at them again and knocked them back down. "Charles, cover your eyes and ears!" Ramirez shouted, followed by throwing a flashbang grenade up near them.
Charles covered his ears and looked away. After a couple of seconds, the grenade went off and the effect it had on the Draugr was significant. It couldn't see for a moment. Charles looked back to it and started hacking away at it again. The overlord tried attacking where it was being hit from, but it was soon cut down, finally. After a quick search of the body, the dragonstone was recovered.
...
Balgruuf went to the US soldiers' camp to get a better look at them, as well as their weaponry. He was greeted by Dunn and Knox. "Jarl, sir. What can we help you with?" Dunn asked.
"I simply wish to inspect the troops posted here."
Dunn looked at Knox, who nodded his head, followed by Dunn walking away. "We have our usual complement of trucks, guns, mortars and missiles. We are currently equipped to fight and kill anything you may lay your eyes upon. Including dragons."
Balgruuf walked further into the camp with Knox. "What is a gun? Is it that thing slung upon your chest?"
"Yes. This is an M4 assault rifle. It is very well suited to combat in almost any terrain, any environment and can be adapted to any situation." Knox answered, followed by raising his rifle and firing a couple of suppressed shots at the mountainside. "The shots move quickly and can be fatal with just one."
"Much like an arrow. One may be deadly enough, if only it hits the proper target." Balgruuf stopped before the covered truck near the other side of the compound. "And what may this be?"
Knox signaled the Marines to uncover it. "This is what we know as a C-RAM. It means counter rocket, artillery and mortar. It can watch, track and shoot at any airborne threat. One of the soldiers here is trying to make it able to watch and hit a dragon. If the gun can see the target, it can hit it."
"This is frighteningly powerful weaponry, if it can do all of that." Balgruuf commented.
"It's very loud, as well. The amount of damage it can cause is equal to or greater than the noise it makes. Trust me, when the gun is working, you'll be able to hear it."
...
Just as Balgruuf was walking through Dragonsreach toward his quarters, he was stopped by Irileth, who returned with news of a dragon sighting. Balgruuf ordered her, the guard who was with her and Charles, who had returned with the others and the Dragonstone. Balgruuf asked about the dragon. "What was it doing? Had it attacked anyone yet?"
"No, it was just circling when I left." The guard answered.
"Okay, go to the barracks to get some food and rest. You've earned it. We'll take it from here."
Balgruuf looked to Charles. "Since you survived Helgen, you have the most experience of anyone here. I must ask that you help Irileth kill this dragon before it attacks Whiterun. There's no time to lose."
...
Charles left with the city guardsmen that Irileth had assembled at the gates. The lot of them ran as fast as possible to approach the Western Watchtower. A blaring siren was heard from the compound by the road, followed by the C-RAM tracking and firing at a target that was difficult to see due to it being late evening. Cheers and applause were heard from the compound as the system kept tracking and firing into the air, some of the 20mm HEIT-SD were hitting what looked to be a dragon.
The dragon, by name of Mirmulnir, landed near the watchtower due to his injuries. He shouted and released a wall of fire in the direction of the compound, even if he was too far to actually hit them. Charles, Irileth and the guardsmen ran up and started attacking. Their blows had little effect, but they kept going, knowing that their failure could mean doom for Whiterun. Mirmulnir took flight again, but was quickly engaged by the C-RAM again. One of his wings was badly injured now, preventing him from taking off again.
Charles tossed his shield aside and ran up to grab Mirmulnir by the horns, jumped on his head and started hacking away at him. Mirmulnir let out one final grunt as he fell to the ground, dead. His skin and muscle started dissolving and an ancient and unknown power enveloped Charles. He finally felt like he could say what he learned in Bleak Falls Barrow. He reached into his soul and let out a shout in the language of the dragons. "FUS" came from his mouth and a powerful wave of strength came out and pushed everything aside.
The guardsmen and Irileth looked on in wonder. "The stories are true. You must be the dragonborn." Irileth commented, still in awe at the shout she just witnessed.
As Charles started walking back toward Whiterun, a great rumbling was felt as an otherworldly force shouted down at the world below.