Chapter 5

Whiterun and Dragon Attack

After the harrowing events in Bleak Falls Barrow, Hiccup and his companions were finally at the outskirts of Whiterun. It was mid-afternoon when they've arrived and not even the setting sun could cast a shadow over Hiccup's amazement at the sight of the city. Whiterun was a walled city surrounded by farms and a stable near the gate. Although he couldn't see what was behind the walls, he did see the parts of the city looking over it.

The second section of the city was comprised of homes; the taller ones no doubt belonged to those of wealthier families. At the eastern section of the city was a building that looked like an overturned boat. Even though he had never been to the city before, Hiccup felt that building had some significance for him.

And high above the city on the tallest plateau was a great building of foreign design to Hiccup's eyes. Its elegance and might could be seen for miles across the great plain and left an incredible impression on those who gaze upon it for the first time. Such as the gazes of Hiccup, J'Kiir, and Rahm-Ku while Renee looked on.

"There it is. Whiterun. Capital of the entire for which it is named."

She then pointed to the boat-building.

"That is the mead hall of Jorrvaskr. It is the oldest building in the city and the city itself was built around it and the Skyforge for which the hall was founded. It is the home of a band of warriors called 'The Companions.'"

Seeing Renee's glistening look as she gazed at Jorrvaskr, Rahm-Ku smirked.

"I take it you wish to join them, Renee?"

The young warrior chuckled as she answered the Argonian.

"Hmm. Yes. It was common for other guilds to join another one. And even though I love the Sabre Fangs, my Nord blood just dreams of joining the Companions."

Returning her attention to Whiterun, Renee became super serious as she pointed to the highest building.

"And that is where we must go. That is the home of the Jarl of Whiterun: Dragonsreach."

As they were about to leave, Hiccup told Toothless to wait in the woods until they have permission from the jarl to bring him into the city? The Night Fury silently protested as he made off to a nearby clearing to rest.

But as they were about halfway to the first of the city's gates, J'Kiir saw something from the corner of his eye. Turning his head, he called to his companions.

"Wait! Over there!"

Turning to J'Kiir, the remaining three saw what he saw: a group of warriors fighting a large being at one of the nearby farms.

"A giant!" Rahm-Ku called out as Renee charged forth, sword and shield in hands.

"Come on! They might need our help!"

As Renee charged at lightning speed and Rahm-Ku following behind her, charging his spells, J'Kiir readied his bow and began to fire from a distance. Seeing how his companions charge into battle like this made Hiccup think they might be crazy and experience guilt at the thought at how weak he was compared to the others.

Her warrior blood boiling in her veins, Renee hacked at the giant's knees with such ferocity that she almost appeared demonic. It was a miracle that with all her flailing that she didn't get hit by any of J'Kiir's arrows nor the archer of the small band of warriors. The giant waved his club in anger, not caring what it would hit. The giant thrashed furiously until Renee leaped up and impaled the creature in the heart with her sword.

With a loud CRASH, the giant fell down dead.

As the Warrior began to catch her breath, her companions began to gather at the gate as the archer of the other group approached her. She was a fiery redhead that wore the revealing clothing, her bow withdrawn.

"Impressive. I have never seen anyone fight like you. By chance are you looking to join the Companions?"

The question was like a slap in the face for Renee. She had just told her company that she was thinking about joining the Companions only minutes ago.

With honesty in excitement, anxiety, and exhaustion, the young Warrior spoke.

"I-I was actually thinking about doing so for a long time. But I am not sure the Companions would take a member of the Sabre Fangs just like that."

She didn't know why she mentioned the Sabre Fangs before this stranger. But then again, stranger things have been happening lately.

The archer didn't seem alarmed. In fact, she was even more interested than before.

"The Companions will let anyone with skill in. Even from a renowned warrior faction like the Sabre Fangs. In fact, it would be an honor if you and your Khajiit friend come and join us."

Immediately, Renee realized what she was talking about.

This woman was one of the Companions.

"Renee! We've got to go!"

The sudden voice of Hiccup snapped Renee out of her stupor and made her remember that she was in Whiterun for something very important. A Life-and-Death situation. Returning her gaze to the archer, Renee spoke.

"I have to go. My fellow travelers and I need to see the jarl. It's urgent."

The woman raised her eyebrow, but nodded.

"Very well. Besides, if you do decide to join us, speak to a man named Kodlak Whitemane. He's the one who will decide if you're Companions material or not."

Thanking the archer, Renee rushed to join the others. Once she did, the group headed to the main gate, but was stopped shortly by a guard.

"Halt! The city's closed with dragons about. Official business only."

Rahm-Ku stepped forward and spoke up.

"This is official business. Riverwood calls for the jarl's aid!"

Upon hearing this news, the guard spoke, his helmet hiding his astonishment.

"Riverwood's in danger too? You'd better go on in. You'll find the jarl in Dragonsreach, at the top of the hill."

The guard then took out a key and unlocked the massive door that granted access to the city and ushered them in. But as they walked in, the second guard there reached out and stopped J'Kiir from entering the city, forcing the other three travelers to stop and look.

"You know the rules, Khajiit. None of your kind in the city."

But Renee approached him and removed the arm.

"It's alright. He's with us."

The guards were still wary until Hiccup spoke.

"Don't worry. We're keeping an eye on him."

It was enough to allow J'Kiir to pass through, but left Hiccup wondering about the relations between the races of Tamriel.

Now that he was actually in the city, Hiccup marveled at how beautiful and civilized the city was. As he and his fellow trekkers walked on, the Viking took in all the sights and mentally asked question after question.

Yeah, he was quite the tourist.

As they reached the section of the town where there were market stalls, stores, and an inn; Renee pointed to a set of stairs that lead to an upper level of the capital.

"To get to Dragonsreach, we need to make our way to the Cloud District."

"Cloud District?" Rahm-Ku asked, also a foreigner in Skyrim.

Renee answered as she turned to the others.

"Whiterun is divided into three districts. We are currently in the Plains District. This is where the marketplace is and is called the Plains District because it the plateau closest to the plains of Whiterun Hold."

She continued her lecture as they walked up the stairs into the next district.

"This is the Wind District. This is where the people of the city who don't have a home above their stores live. This is also where you can find the Temple of Kynareth, the Hall of the Dead…" She then pointed to the mead hall that she gestured to when they were outside the city. "…and of course, Jorrvaskr."

"Kynareth?" Hiccup asked.

"The goddess of air, sky, and wind. She is considered one of the strongest of the Nine Divines." Rahm-Ku answered.

But J'Kiir scoffed. "You mean 'Eight' Divines."

He turned his attention to Hiccup and pointed to a priest shouting at the base of a statue of a warrior Hiccup almost thought of as a Viking.

"Since the signing of the White-Gold Concordat, the Empire was forced to oblige to the Dominion's demand that the worship of the man-god, Talos, be banned. While it is not a big concern in some of the lands, it's a big deal in Skyrim." "Why?" Hiccup asked. "Because according to the legends, Talos was born in Skyrim and was born as the first of the Septim Dynasty: Tiber Septim."

"But why does the Dominion want to ban Talos?" Hiccup asked.

"No one really knows, but personally, I think it's a plot to destroy the Empire indirectly with the Stormcloak Rebellion going on."

This caught Renee's interest, who, like all Nords, strongly believed in Talos.

"Do you think so?"

J'Kiir shrugged his shoulders.

"It's just a theory."

"But a plausible one." Rahm-Ku admitted as they continued onward to Dragonsreach.

But not before taking notice of a giant, dead tree growing in the Wind District. Like before, Renee answered the boys' mental questions.

"That is the Gildergreen. The sacred tree of the Temple of Kynareth. Supposed to bloom year round."

She then touched the tree, her eyes glistening with worry.

"But why is it dead?" "I don't know, but we need to get to the jarl and warn him about the dragon." Rahm-Ku told her.

After a moment of silence, the travelers then headed to the last district: the one Renee called the Cloud District. The warrior looking back at the Gildergreen with concern.

Dragonsreach was a building that reminded Hiccup of the Great Hall in Berk, only it sat on top of the highest plateau in all of Whiterun. And the interior furthered the Viking's memories. There were two long tables that sat on each side of the pyre in the center with various doors and archways that led to various parts of the building. And ahead of them on the other side of the fire were a throne and three people around it, one of them sitting in it: the jarl.

As the quartet approached the pyre, the third person, a female Dunmer, drew her sword and approached them, looking angry.

"What is the meaning of this interruption? Jarl Balgruuf is not receiving visitors."

Holding up their hands, the travelers held still as Renee spoke.

"Alvor and Gerdur sent us. Riverwood's in danger!"

But the Dark Elf did not remove her defenses.

"As housecarl, my job is to deal with all dangers that threaten the Jarl or his people. So you have my attention. Now, explain yourselves."

Hiccup answered her.

"A dragon has destroyed the town of Helgen."

Now THAT caught the elf's attention.

"You all know about Helgen? The Jarl will want to speak to you personally. Approach."

As she said that, the Dunmer withdrew her sword and ran up to the jarl just as the four let their hands down and approached them. As soon as they reached the steps that led up to the throne, the jarl looked them.

"So, you four were in Helgen. You saw this dragon with your own eyes?"

The four of them nodded as Rahm-Ku spoke.

"The dragon destroyed Helgen. And last we saw, it was heading this way."

The caused the Jarl's eyes to widen.

"By Ysmir! Irileth was right!"

The jarl then turned his gaze to the second figure; a man the teens figured was his advisor of sorts.

"What do you say now, Proventus? Shall we continue to trust in the strength of our walls? Against a dragon?"

The elf, Irileth, spoke up to the jarl.

"My lord. We should send troops to Riverwood at once. It's in the most immediate danger, if that dragon is lurking in the mountains…"

But Proventus interrupted her.

"The Jarl of Falkreath will view that as a provocation! He'll assume we're preparing to join Ulfric's side and attack them. We should…"

"ENOUGH! I'll not stand by while a dragon burns my hold and slaughters my people!" The jarl bellowed, making all around him, including the four travelers, flinch.

He then turned his attention to Irileth.

"Irileth, send a detachment to Riverwood at once."

"Yes, my jarl." Irileth replied in approval.

In annoyance, Proventus spoke before he walked away.

"If you'll excuse me, I'll return to my duties."

With Proventus gone, the jarl returned his attention to the teens.

"Well done, young ones. You sought me out on your own initiative. You all have done Whiterun a great service, and I won't forget it. But please, explain to me who all of you are and how was it you've come to Helgen at the time of the dragon attack?"

Deciding to leave the incident at Bleak Falls Barrow and the fact that J'Kiir was a thief out, each member of the four travelers explained in their own words about the incident and who they were. Hiccup was the last one to explain him and truthfully told the jarl about his life on Berk and of course, Toothless. The sound at what the boy did surprise the jarl as he looked toward the others.

"Is all of this true?"

Rahm-Ku was the one to answer.

"We have only met for one day and so far, he had not stated any lies. Personally, I find Hiccup's talent extraordinary. Unfortunately, it's not enough to pacify the dragons that have begun to plague Skyrim."

Hearing this, the jarl sighed as he leaned back on his through.

"An unfortunate matter, indeed. But maybe all four of you, not just you lad, could help someone who would be in need of your particular talents."

Then Balgruuf stood up.

"Come, let's go find Farengar, my court wizard. He's been looking into a matter relating to these dragons and…rumors of dragons."

The quartet then followed the jarl to an adjoining chamber, where a man dressed in a navy robe paced back and forth, only to stop when the jarl approached him. He whispered something to the wizard before leaving them with him.

Farengar then looked toward the teenagers with an analytical eye.

"So the Jarl thinks you four can be of use to me? Oh yes, he must be referring to my research into the dragons."

He examined the four before speaking again.

"Yes, I could use someone to fetch something for me. Well, when I say fetch, I really mean delve into a dangerous ruin in search of an ancient stone tablet that may or may not actually be there."

"But what does this have to do with dragons?" Rahm-Ku asked the wizard, expressing the curiosity of himself and his fellow companions.

Farengar raised his eyebrow before answering the Argonian.

"Ah, I take it none of you are mere brute mercenaries, but thinkers-perhaps even scholars?"

He then proceeded to explain.

"You see, when the stories of dragons began to circulate, many dismissed them as mere fantasies, rumors. Impossibilities. One sure mark of a fool is to dismiss anything that falls outside his experience as being impossible."

This reminded Hiccup of when Berk fought against dragons instead of training them, which they thought was impossible. He returned his attention to Farengar as the mage continued.

"But I began to search for information about dragons – where had they gone all those years ago? And where were the coming from?"

"So what do you want us to do?" J'Kiir asked.

Farengar gave his answer.

"I, ah, learned of a certain stone tablet said to be housed in Bleak Falls Barrow – a 'Dragonstone,' said to contain a map of dragon burial sites."

Remembering the tablet they had found in Bleak Falls Barrow, Renee and J'Kiir helped Rahm-Ku unstrap the tablet from his back and carried it to the senior sorcerer.

"We were just in Bleak Fall Barrow this morning and found this. We actually planned to hand it over to you anyway." Renee spoke up.

Hearing this, Farengar examined the tablet as it was being placed on one of the chamber's tables.

"Fascinating. Luck must be on your side. This indeed the Dragonstone that I seek. You all are defiantly cut from a different cloth just like I thought."

He then turned his attention to Hiccup.

"Now then. The Jarl said that you have trained an actual dragon. I'd love to exchange notes with you on the subject."

"Farengar!" The familiar voice of Irileth echoed as she entered the chamber, gaining the attention of the teens and the wizard.

After turning to see her in the archway, the teens and the wizard listened as she spoke again.

"Farengar, you need to come with me at once. A dragon's been sighted nearby."

She then looked to Hiccup and his companions.

"You four should come, too."

And if that wasn't surprising enough, the four looked at Farengar and were surprised that he looked excited rather than exasperated.

"A dragon! How exciting! Where was it seen? What was it doing?"

But Irileth locked his excitement away with what she said next.

"I'd take this a bit more seriously if I were you. If a dragon decides to attack Whiterun, I don't know if we can stop it."

As Irileth ran on ahead, Farengar followed her up the stairs. Wondering why should this concern them, Renee, Rahm-Ku, J'Kiir, and Hiccup headed up the stairs after them. When they've reached the top of the stairs, the found Jarl Balgruuf speaking to a Whiterun guard.

"So, Irileth tells me you come from the western watchtower?"

"Yes, my lord." The guard replied.

Irileth turned to the guard and spoke.

"Tell him what you told me. About the dragon."

The guard then proceeded, though it was clear that he was curious why there were four 'children' in the meeting with them.

"Uh…that's right. We saw it coming from the south. It was fast…faster than anything I've ever seen."

"What did it do? Is it attacking the watchtower?" The Jarl asked, concerned.

The guard shook his head.

"No, my lord. It just circling overhead when I left. I never ran so fast in my life… I thought it would come after me for sure."

"And you are certain it was flying, right?" The Jarl asked, his gaze secretly turning toward Hiccup.

"Yes, my lord." The guard replied.

Sighing in relief, the Jarl spoke to the guard one more time.

"Good work, son. We'll take it from here. Head down to the barracks for some food and rest. You've earned it."

Thanking the Jarl, the guard bowed and headed to the barracks. Once they were alone, the Jarl took his attention to Irileth and the teenagers.

"Irileth, you'd better gather some guardsmen and get down there."

Irileth was quick to respond.

"I've already ordered my men to muster near the main gate."

"Good. Don't fail me."

The Jarl then turned to the quartet of teenagers, all of them mentally groaning, knowing what the lord was about to say.

"There's no time to stand on ceremony, my friends. I need your help again."

"Our help? What can we do?" J'Kiir asked.

"I need you four to gather your dragon and help Irileth and help her fight this dragon."

"But…why us, my lord?" Renee asked warily.

The Jarl answered in sincerity.

"The four of you survived Helgen, so you have more experience with dragons than anyone else here."

He then looked at Hiccup.

"Especially you, lad. Your clan has actually succeeded in training dragons. I know this dragon will be untrainable for you, but you do know what dragon weaknesses are. If anyone, we need your knowledge the most."

Hiccup gulped, being one of those times when he dismayed in discovering how to train dragons.

The Jarl then looked to all four of the Helgen survivors.

"I would never ask anyone outside my services, especially ones so young. But I believe that you four have a better chance than anyone in taking down a dragon."

The quartet wanted to protest, but remained silent. If it were anyone else, they would've voiced their concerns. But this was the Jarl of Whiterun. It's almost impossible to say no to a lord of a hold, especially when he was clearly counting on them.

Sighing in defeat, Renee spoke.

"Alright. We will, milord. But I wish to purchase a better sword and shield from the local blacksmith quick before I join."

"And I have Toothless waiting on the outskirts of the city. I'll collect him and meet the others at the watchtower."

The Jarl nodded at the humans' requests and thanked them.

"Thank you, young ones."

After retrieving Toothless, Hiccup rode him on the cobblestone path to the rendezvous point where Irileth and the others were waiting. Before he left Dragonsreach, Hiccup was assured by the Dunmer that she would explain that Toothless was on their side instead of attacking them. That, of course, did not remove the apprehensive looks the soldiers gave off when he arrived. Renee, now donning a steel sword and a steel shield, approached the foreigners and spoke.

"No sign of the dragon yet. But as you can see…" She then pointed to a ruined tower, parts of it in flames. "…he's defiantly been here."

Compared to Helgen, the damage at the watchtower seemed only like a minor scratch. Was it really the same black dragon that attacked Helgen? The Viking had to put his questions aside as Irileth ordered the troops to move out. Renee joined Hiccup with Rahm-Ku, his hands ready to shoot some sort of lightning attack; and J'Kiir, who had purchased a new bow and some steel arrows for the battle.

But as they approached the tower, a single guard came out of the ruined building, calling out to them and not seeing Toothless.

"No! Get back! It's still here somewhere! Hroki and Tor just got grabbed when they tried to make a run for it!"

But a sudden chorus of roars caught EVERYONE'S attention. The guard, seeing where the roar came from, spoke in panic.

"Kynareth save us, here he comes again! And it looks like he's brought back friends!"

Sure enough, leading the way was a single dragon, followed by three more of its kind. And if one was a challenge, imagine what three could do.

"By Ysmir!" Renee called out as the soldiers began to fire arrows like madmen, Irileth barking orders as she fought.

To the surprise yet relief of the youth of the fighters, the black dragon wasn't among their ranks. But what further surprised them was that, like the last one, the dragons called out a battle cry in an unknown tongue.

"Thurri du hin sille ko Sovngarde!"

Only one word were the able to translate: Sovngarde.

Instinct took over the teenagers as they saw the dragons. Renee was the one who voiced her opinion.

"This may be risky, but we can take them down faster if we each take one dragon!"

"Are you a madwoman? How are we supposed to do that?" Rahm-Ku yelled as he fired his spells.

"We'll have to figure it out on our own on that! Just find a weak point and take it down!"

With the chaos ensuing, the boys didn't have time to argue and charged at the nearest dragon toward them. Renee fought against the white dragon that was the leader, slashing and hacking viciously while using her shield to deflect the dragon's attacks. In the middle of their fight, the dragon spoke to her in its unknown tongue as well as her native tongue.

"You are brave. Balaan hokoron. Your defeat brings me honor."

On the eastern part of the battlefield, Rahm-Ku furiously fired his spells, taking a break only to recharge his magika. Only his breaks were short and few that he had to ingest a blue potion that was made to restore magika quickly as he fended off a finned green dragon. Unlike the others, Rahm-Ku figured out the pattern of words the dragons use to attack. So when the dragon called out "Yol…", he was quick to fire a Frost spell, opposing the dragon's fire. After a few rounds, the dragon laughed at the Argonian mage. Surprisingly, he spoke in both his and the mortal language.

"Brit grah. I had forgotten what fine sport you mortals can provide!"

Elsewhere, J'Kiir was firing arrow after arrow at a brown dragon furiously. The Khajiit was beginning to curse the day he was captured and forced into this predicament. He cursed further when his supply of arrows went empty and his dragon was still alive. Bringing out his knife, the Thief charged at the dragon, swinging his knife around. The dragon laughed.

"Krif krin. Pruzah!"

It angered J'Kiir further when he immediately figured that last word sounded like praise and began to stab the dragon furiously.

And in the sky, Hiccup was trying to figure out how to defeat his and Toothless' enemy dragon. All they did was dodge and miss four time when they fired at the brown scarred dragon they were fighting. As they managed to strike the dragon's shoulder with their fifth shot, the dragon barked in outrage.

"Mal mey kiir. I will make sure neither of you will see your next Koor!"

Immediately, they knew that didn't mean good. Seeing the dragon's maw, Hiccup wondered if he could pull the stunt that enabled him to kill the Red Death three years ago. It was worth a shot.

"Pull up, Toothless! Let's show him what we can do!" Hiccup shouted as the Night Fury flew upwards, the scarred dragon following them.

As soon as they were up high enough, Hiccup maneuvered the saddle reins so that the dove downward. The Viking looked back and waited for the scarred dragon to open its maw. Just as he was about a half a mile to the ground, Hiccup finally saw the dragon about to fire. "Now!" The Viking shouted. Immediately, Toothless turned and fired his last shot into the scarred dragon's mouth.

Just like with the Red Death, the shot caused a chain reaction, severely damaging the dragon's interior. And at that moment, Renee just impaled the white dragon in its skull with her sword; Rahm-Ku just performed a similar version of Hiccup's stunt with his lightning magic; and J'Kiir slit his dragon's throat. As the four dragons fell, the realized who these children really were.

"Dovahkiin! No!"

With loud thuds, the dragons were finally dead. Relieve, the four teens looked at each other from their dragons. But before any of them could do anything, a sudden jolt in all four caused them to look back their dragons, whose fleshes were disintegrating like burning paper. As they witness this, Hiccup called out to his dragon, keeping his eyes on the dragon that he killed.

"Toothless! Get back!"

Just then, ethereal threads came from the dragons and wrapped themselves around our four friends before vanishing, the quartet suddenly feeling a warm power flowing into their throats.

The memory of the word they found in Bleak Falls Barrow came back and, curious, each of them tried it once the threads have vanished.

"Fus!"

Immediately, a powerful force, similar to the one that the black dragon used back in Helgen, came from the four, the force knocking Hiccup flat on his back. Stunned, the four regrouped at the center of where their dragons have fallen.

"Tell me you just witness what I did." Hiccup spoke in surprise.

"I've seen it, but I don't believe it." Rahm-Ku answered in astonishment.

"What in the names of Ysgramor and Talos happened to us?" Renee called out in shock.

"I don't know, but I think we're about to find out." J'Kiir spoke as he pointed to one of the surviving guards approaching them, astonishment in his eyes.

"I can't believe it! You four…. You're Dragonborn!"

Confusion came to the travelers minds as Hiccup asked the question.

"Dragonborn? What do you mean?"

The guard answered.

"In the very oldest tales, back from when there were still dragons in Skyrim, the Dragonborn would slay dragons and steal their power. That is what you just did, isn't it. Absorbed the dragons' powers?"

"I don't think any of us knows exactly what happened to us." Rahm-Ku spoke, still trying to get a hold of the very idea.

The guard answered him.

"Well, all of you can Shout now, right? None of you ever had before now, am I not correct?"

As the four went over what happened in their minds, the other guards, who had joined them in the conversation, began to speak amongst themselves. While Irileth spoke to the youths.

"I, for one, do not trust in legends, but here are four dead dragons. And to me, it means that we can kill them." She then looked to Dragonsreach. "You better return to the Jarl and tell him about what's happened. Good work, you all."

After giving instruction for where to have Toothless land, the quartet headed off to Whiterun. But just as they were close to the town, an explosion of sound echoed from the tallest mountain, its force planting the five travelers and forcing them to cup their ears in agony with a single word. A word that would come to mean everything.

"DOVAHKIIN!"