Chapter 9: An Unconventional Welcome to Whiterun.
Hello everyone, before we begin, I want to apologize for my elongated absence. I have been preoccupied with collage, work, and games and other things that had me preoccupied. Do not worry about me though. If I ever do end this story prematurely, I will be sure to tell you about it and possible future plans. And more about the plot that I have laid out. But I can tell you, I have a solid idea of where I want to drive the story to. And keep in mind, you already know my Discord Which I had repeatedly repeated for a repeated amount of times, but that is me complaining about not talking to enough people n' stuff.
[IMPORTANT NOTICE!]
There is a particular scene that I want to know about that could possibly be make this story from a Rated T to an M. And as a heads up, there are just going to be mentions of a possible 'lemon' and 'situations'. I am unsure weather to put this as a 'M' since I won't be doing anything 'too far-fetched', Just described small details, kinda like light Ecchi anime if you get that meaning. In the end, I just want to do comedy skits and won't really do much unless I know that I am not going too far.
Let me know if it should be rated T or M for now on.
With that being said, lets move on with the story!
The ride on the way to Whiterun was almost double or even triple our speed. Even though it was almost night, we made it to the city in record time. The time spent on the caravans was interesting. The land of Elsweyr, the Khajiit's homeland, sounded interesting to say the least. I have learned a few things from Ri'Saad about trading and how to be weary of more asshole merchants who want nothing but to drain the coin out of my pouch for over-priced goods. Bartering was a basic essential to getting what you want for the good items at a fairer price, especially with the land going at war and the pricing skyrocketing for weapons and smithing materials. I, in return for the trading tips told them about the 'harrowing' adventure in Bleak falls barrow. But left out the 'me breaking down' and the 'infighting with Nora' parts for the purpose that is not bringing up my depression and lose the motivation for continuing the story. Hadvar and Ralof pitched in to help me with some parts that I was not there for, so I guess that was nice of them to do so.
Overall, the Khajiit caravan very much enjoyed my story. Surprised at Trok's origin but accepting of him after the story.
But all of that was to pass half of the time. After the story ended, I took notice that there were more Khajiit in the caravan then what I originally remembered.
There were 2 kids… or Kits? Kittens? Fuck it. The Khajiit kids who were talking to Ralof and Hadvar about what it is like to be in the army, and how they aren't killing each other and who was better. A few more body guards for better protection against the dangers of Skyrim, and even a young Khajiit woman who kept looking at me out of the corner of my eyes when I looked away from her. But whenever I do look over to her, she turned her head away, like she wasn't even looking at me in the first place. Even looked like she wanted to say something to me.
This was happening for the entirety of the trip.
I wonder… Was there something on my face? Or was I imagining things and it is just a coincidence?
I wiped my face for anything that might have been on it.
"Something bothering this one?" One of the mercenaries Khajiit asked me from across the cart.
"Oh, no. I just…" I quickly glanced at the Khajiit that was looking at me, who was having a quiet chat with an older Khajiit woman about something. "Nothing. Thought there was…I thought I felt something on my face." I lied as I averted my gaze out the window.
The view to Whiterun was clear, and night was approaching quickly. We would have made it to our destination without problem and even get to the city without fail.
It's around eight… nine…seven-fuck it, I can't tell what time it is without a damn clock. But it looks like that we have about ten minutes left until we get to our destination. If only I had my phone to pass the time…
…I miss playing chess on my phone…
As I heard a foreign language going about, which I am going to assume the Khajiit language, from the older woman to Ri'Saad, as I heard a good amount of chatter in their language, but I was deep into my thinking about how much I miss my old life to really care what was going on.
Moments passed and I was remembering scenarios in which I was cornered in a few chess games that I had miraculously turned the tides with a few brilliant moves that won me games, or incredibly redundant moves that caused my downfall in some others. When suddenly the cart stopped, and the driver called out to everyone that we have reached our destination.
We all exited the cart and stretched our limbs. Traveling by cart is really slow compared to cars, but in comparison to walking, you won't get any complaints from me.
After Ralof and Hadvar said their goodbyes to the kids, and Ri'Saad. we were about to head off, when a feminine voice had called to my attention.
"H-Hey, J-Jester?" I heard an unfamiliar 'feline' feminine voice call out to me as I turned around to see that it was the one who kept looking at me.
She had a what you might call a 'casual wear' on. A white tunic with her fur being mix of a gray and black pattern. She also had bright green eyes that had a look of kindness in them.
"Can I…help you?" I unsurely said as she was hesitating to say what she wanted.
"Uh…Jenna. This one's name is Jenna… Jenna l-l-liked the story that you told…and if…possible…" Wait, is she blushing through her fur? "Could you-"
"Jester, quit trying to flirt with the Khajiit girl, and hurry up already! We have to get to the Jarl quickly!" Ralof called out to me, making me sputter in surprise and had Jenna looking away in embarrassment.
"F-F-Flirting?! RALOF! Don't say stuff that people can misinterpret immediately and get the wrong idea!" I shouted back with a notable blush on my face.
Clearing my thoughts, I had taken a deep breath and faced Jenna for an apology.
"Jenna, I'm sorry for the sudden rudeness from my quote on quote, 'FRIEND'" I directed my annoyance to Ralof. "But hey, if I get the chance, I will come back and tell you all more stories about my adventures. See you later." I said my goodbye to Jenna as I caught up with my group who were at the Whiterun gates.
"…(sigh)… Jenna was too shy to say what she actually wanted…" Jenna sighed in defeat with her ears flattened.
Atahbah, the older Khajiit woman who she was talking to earlier came from behind her and placed her hand on Jenna's shoulder. "This one will get more chances. Only time will tell when you have a shot for this one's crush." Atahbah pitied.
"Jenna doesn't have a crush!" Jenna got defensive as her tail spiked straight up.
"Heh. For now, help the others set up shop. And Atahbah will teach you a few tricks to understand how men work." Atahbah suggested as they both got to work with the shop set up.
When we arrived at the main gates of Whiterun. We were stopped by the usual guard who kept the gates locked due to the rumors about dragons. We got through with my way of talking and got through the gates with no problems… But Trok still seemed on edge…
When we were about to step foot into the city, one of the guards said a line that I knew all too well.
"Wait. I know you…" One of the Whiterun guards said to Trok as he stopped him from entering the city.
Uh oh-…
"No sir. Trok thinks guard is making a mistake…" Trok said as he turned his head away from the guard.
"A giant orc. Strange way of talking. And you said it yourself, your name is Trok. There is no mistaking that you are a part of one of the notorious bandits groups that has been giving us some trouble. The Wildside Gang. By the order of the Jarl, you are under arrest! Now, will you be coming with us quietly, or will we have to drag your lifeless corpse to dragon's reach?" The guard said as he pulled out his sword with 3 other nearby guards taking the same action as they approached us.
"Woah-Woah-Woah. Hold up one minute officer!" I cried out, putting myself in between the 4 guards
"You with the Orc bandit? I don't recognize you. If you continue interfere with the guard's duty, this will result in your arrest, this will be your first and last warning if you continue to defy the Jarl's order." The gate guard warned me.
"Let me explain first before you make the arrest-(CHOP)-GAH!" I was trying to explain myself, but somebody chopped the back of my neck, knocking me out.
"What are you-!?-" The guard was confused at the sudden event but stopped immediately when he recognized who did the person who attacked me. "…Nora."
"Yeah, sorry about my idiot companion here. He is new to Skyrim and acts before he thinks most of the time." Nora said jokingly as she grabbed the back of collar, picking me up as she slung my arm over her neck. Foam was coming out of my mouth as I was barely conscious.
Ralof and Hadvar stayed out of the conflict as they knew the repercussions of making things more complicated then they need to be.
"Keep him in check next time." The gate guard excused my disruptions.
"Now, we going to do this the easy way, or the hard way?"
"…Trok… Will come quietly." Trok said as raised his hands up.
"Good. We will confiscate your weapons for now, come with us to dragon's reach and we will continue from there." The guard said as he confiscated the steel greatsword from Trok as he willingly followed the guards.
"…(Sigh)…I can hear Jester complaining already…" Nora quietly grimaced as she walked into Whiterun with Hadvar helping out Nora by getting the other arm with Ralof following.
A few minutes later…
As I shook my head to get a grip of myself as I then realized that we were no longer at the gate of Whiterun, but at the Bannered Mare Inn. I was in a chair at a corner of the establishment, and I saw many of the city folk in the inn. Blazing fire in the center of the room that held the warmth of a warm welcome, the local bard Mikal was playing his lute and singing to the audience of ladies, Helga was talking about rumors with someone, something about a new Daedric cult rising up, an arm-wrestling competition between Uthgerd the Unbroken, and a Whiterun guard who I assumed was on his break, or slacking off on his job… Oh, and there was the Daedric Prince, Sanguine, sitting across from me in his 'Human form'.
Overall it was a bustling place fit for a tavern.
"Hey, you are finally awake. After I had finished one of my bottles of ale, you were plopped at my table by your friends. How was the nap young man? Want a drink" The 'cloaked man' asked me while taking a sip of his ale as he passed a filled tankard filled with the gods know what.
"Ugh, one headache after another keeps popping up, one moment you just want to go home and take a nap, next thing you know, shit hits the fan and you are fighting for your life with everything wanting to kill or rape you at a drop of a hat. And now one of your friends is taken away by the guards, and you are left with wanting to kill yourself for not realizing the stressful situation sooner. And no, I don't drink." I said in a scornful tone as I fixed my arm to support my head on the table getting a better look at who I am speaking to.
On the outside of my façade, I looked like I was annoyed. But deep inside, I was almost panicking about who I am speaking to.
"…W-What…?" Sanguine asked dumbfounded at the response I gave out.
"(Sigh…) Let's just say that I have been though, A LOT of things in the past two days and keep it at that." I monotoned practically ignoring the fact that I am casually talking to another Daedric Prince.
Normally, I would be panicking at the thought of talking to a Daedric prince, with all of my bad past experiences and what not. Despite being the Daedric prince of mortal sins and debauchery. He is one of the more 'chill' Daedric assholes that I know of. Just bored out of his mind and trying to find some way to pass the time. And I doubt that I would really be on his radar of his pranks and parties. Especially after this conversation.
I just spotted Hadvar, Ralof and Nora were with the inn keeper, Helga at the front desk, seemingly giving them rooms with an exchange of gold.
I was just about to go up to them when my memories flashed back to the events that happened earlier.
"Well… Either way, thanks for watching over me for the short time and not doing anything to me… See you hopefully never. Stay sober, don't do anything stupid like kidnapping a goat and selling it to a giant, and safe travels I guess." I said to the cloaked Daedric Prince as I got up and left the table and the inn to dragon's reach.
Sanguine had a grin on his face as Isaiah left the inn.
"Now this is a surprise… Who am I to NOT be curious about the new Daedric champion of Entertainment now? We will meet again mortal. And sooner than you think." Sanguine said as he took another sip of his ale silently laughing to himself at one of the pranks that he has bestowed upon him as he put away a black marker into his pocket.
[Whiterun Streets]
Even though I want to go to break Trok out, I know that there is law and order in this city. And I can't just complain about everything that doesn't go my way. Otherwise, I would end up getting myself into trouble, jailed, or worse case killed… And the reason why he was quiet and uneasy about going to Whiterun was now clear. I will pay Trok a jail visit when we get to Dragon's Reach before I go to sleep though.
As I made my way through town, I took notice that it was slightly bigger than usual. More houses along the way up to dragon's reach, and there was oil lamp posts everywhere lighting the way through town. Fireflies were decorating the city streets, and some of the Guards were making their nightly rounds keeping the city safe and in check.
As I arrived at the Dragon's Reach entrance and headed to the right side of the building. I saw that there was a guard stationed at the prison entrance as I went up to the guard.
"Hold it there. What is your purpose for walking about near the prison, and near midnight no less? The only people that walk the night are either vampires, thieves, or troublemakers. So, which are you?" The Whiterun guard said as he held his hand up in a stopping motion.
"I am here for a small visit for a recent Orc named Trok. Nothing more than to check up on him." I answered the guard.
"The Orc bandit? And who are you, one of his bandit buddies?" The Whiterun guard said while slowly placing his hand on his sword.
Uh oh… I better be careful with what I say next…
"No sir." I said calmly. "I am but a humble adventurer. My path has crossed with his, and we ended up saving each other's lives. I just want to see him, and I will be off on my way after my visit. You can even see the interaction should you wish. I don't mind." I told him the basic truth of my visit.
"Hmmm… Alright, fine, but after that, you go. But no funny business." The guard said as he allowed me passage through.
"Thank you." I replied following the guard.
Leading me to Trok in his cell, I saw that he was stripped of all his gear and was replaced with prisoner rags. He was laying on the bed that barely fit his height. I had a small conversation with Trok and told him that I was going to find a way to clear his name, which greatly boosted his sulky mood. But when I asked about Trok's bail, it was over 1500 gold… which I don't think that is in our budget, and I doubt that is going to be in our budget… Cursing myself being pitifully poor at this stage of the game, I left Trok saying that I will find a way to get him out, one way or another through lawful means (Because of the guard).
Trok then asked about my apparent new face tattoos, to which the jailer guard then started to take a closer look at me and started to uncontrollably laugh at me.
I found that through a VERY CONVENIENT mirror that I had inappropriate drawings of… Well, I'll let your imagination fill in the rest of the blanks, but I'll give you a hint of the male genitalia being a prominent theme. That being said, I was way beyond pissed about what as on my face as I stormed out cursing with a sailor's mouth.
I made my way to the center of town to the Guilder Green Tree and looked into the water pathways. Seeing that it was definitely clean, I sighed as I looked myself into the pitiful reflection of the water and took some of the water and washed my face off of the ink on my face.
"Goddamn fucking Daedric shithead, why the fuck did I believe that he wouldn't do anything to me?" I asked myself as I saw that all of the marks were off of me.
I heard someone nearby approach, and saw that it was a familiar boy, Lars Battleborn from the Battleborn family.
From the looks of it, Lars was sniffling into his arm over his eyes supposedly crying from either a loss fight from Braith, the local girl bully, or his family, who constantly belittle him and tell him to simply to get over his 'milk drinker attitude'. Overall, he is kinda pathetic…Like I am…
As I got up, he bumped into me, and fell backwards.
"Ah, s-sorry sir. I wasn't paying attention." Lars apologized as he got back up on his feet.
"No worries kid, I often get distracted when I am thinking about my troubles… speaking of, are you ok?" I genuinely asked, now noticing a darkening around his left eye.
"I'm fine, I just… want to go home and sleep…" he said as he sighed depressingly.
Something inside of me is eating at me to help him. If I am right, I can take a guess that Braith is bullying him again and gave him a small beating for whatever reason.
A bit of recollection about Lar's situation.
Braith, the child bully of Whiterun, is bullying Lars because of a bit of a misunderstanding. She doesn't actually hate Lars or dislike him. She actually has a crush on Lars and doesn't know how to really communicate her feelings well, and because she is a child, she often does the childish fights to interact with him through the one way she knows how.
Through fighting.
Her parents consists of a mercenary and a stay at home wife who BOTH actively ignore her when she wants to talk about her recent activity with Lars, and assumably wants to know how to fix her outlook on herself. They literally tell her to talk to the other parent about the matter because they couldn't care less about her. (It's true! If you don't know about this now, look it up on YouTube.)
Terrible parenting, and that would explain why she is a bit of a terrible child. She is misguided and misunderstood to be a hated character throughout the Skyrim community.
"I know that look of self-pity. Wanting to hide away your current problems and give them to your future self to worry about later. I will tell you now that it won't work, and it will just continue to pile up." I told the boy.
"What do you know about me?!" Lars snapped immediately.
'Oh? This is a new reaction.' I thought to myself in surprise.
"I bet you never had a family that doesn't believe in you. To have someone bully you constantly and calls you pathetic and beats you for it. What do you know about being weak and powerless?!" Lars finished as his voice was shaking in frustration.
"…I know about weakness more than anybody else in Skyrim." I solemnly said as I had small flashbacks to all the times that I couldn't fight back or do much.
Lars looked at me unconvinced of what I said.
"I am physically too weak to protect my friends from bandits and the dangerous wildlife, and I am often being saved by my friends. I have nearly died to many stupid decisions I often make because of my spontaneous actions. I can't use magic in any way shape of form to help my friends... the list just goes on." I listed off a few of my imperfections with each one listed had Lars's face change to a more understanding one.
"O-Oh… I'm sorry for lashing out at you… It's just… I have been moody lately because of everything that has been happening." Lars said as he looked away in shame.
"…Want to talk about it?" I suggested.
"Huh?" Lars's head shot up.
"Would you like to talk about it? Your problems?" I asked again as I sat at a nearby bench gesturing him to sit with me as I stretched my legs to unwind a bit. Lars followed and sat with me as he spilt what was bottled up in him.
He told me about Braith and how she constantly beats him up and makes fun of him with petty slurs, like milk drinker or something about not being a true Nord like his predecessors. Extorts gold out of him from time to time.
And there is his family that constantly belittle him. Saying that he should simply 'be better'. That he is embarrassing the Battleborn name. It is more like a constant burden that he has to carry as the youngest heir of the Battleborn family.
Then there is that fortune that has been told to him by Olga, the seer. She has seen a future that things will definitely get better once he starts sticking up for himself, but that also weighs heavily on himself.
"I just don't know what to do. I just want to read my books, have fun with my friends… What would you do if you were in my situation?" He asked.
"While I do sympathize with you, the answer is clear for what you have to do." Lars's eyes then dulled as he almost knew what I was going to say next.
"However, I am not going to tell you to pull yourself together like all of the other assholes you call 'adults', since that would just bring you back to the beginning of the cycle of depression you are currently stuck in."
Lars's eyes widen in surprise as he continue to listen.
"What you need, is a path to follow. Not to be told what to do, and how to follow it by other people's standards." I told him.
"What do you mean by path? And how do I pick one to follow and know that it is right for me?" Lars inquired.
I was about to answer, but I paused myself… how do I explain such a concept without sounding like a monk at a temple and being cryptic as fuck?
Just then, the clouds have cleared, and the stars shined upon us… almost like the answer was given to me.
"Lars, take a look up at the stars… I want you to envision the stars like they are like paths. Doors to open. Choices to make. And there are many choices to go down. Many will always be available to go down. Good and Bad. Great and Miniscule. Each choice to make has its own advantages and consequences behind them varying from each choice. For one path, there could be nothing but consequences, or another path nothing but advantages. And you have been on the neutral path. The path that you refuse to get off of because you are afraid of making a choice that you might regret. But I will tell you now. That there will always be uncertainty on each path. Remain true to who you are, and who you ideally want to be, and follow that path and embrace both the good and the bad that comes with it. Do that, and I can promise you, that you will get of the cycle of depression that you are on. And on to a new life."
Lars looked in amazement as he then began to picture all sorts of possibilities in his mind.
"Now. I will ask you a question, Lars."
Lars snapped out of his imagination as I got his attention.
"What are you willing to change about yourself, to become who you want to be?"
After hearing Lars answer, I have saw him off as he went home happily, finally seeing the boy look a bit more confident… something that I myself am envious of him having.
I began to walk back to the Bannered Mare, when I bumped into a frustrated Nora who was looking for me. Little to say, I was scolded for wandering off, and punched in the face for telling her to 'shut up'. I didn't get knocked out, but I think I will try to hold my tongue in preference to feeling pain.
~So lesson learned~
As we got back, I can see a few things happened while I was gone.
One. The horny bard, Mikael has been knocked out cold, so I can assume that either Nora or some other pissed woman knocked the shit out of him when he tried to get into their pants by flirting with the wrong kind of girl.
Two, another fist fight is in progress with Uthgerd the Unbroken and Ralof, both sides are being cheered on as they throw their punches-Oh Spoiler alert, Uthgerd won that fight, but she congratulated Ralof for putting up a great fight. They were having another match, but with drinks.
And three, I can see that 'Sam' is still in the tavern with a smug grin emanating from the bastard. I promptly flipped him off. To which he had a frown or a glare upon his face of which I think-Oh shit… He might be a bit pissed at me.
"A-Anyways, where do I sleep? I assume you guys got me a room here?" I nervously asked Nora, averting my gaze from the hooded Daedra.
"So, it turns out, this place is booked. Except for a large two-person bed upstairs, so unless you want to sleep outside, that is the only bed available here." Nora said with a slight annoyance in her voice.
"Wait-wait-wait, there ISN'T another bedroom?!" I whispered a shout to Nora.
"Oh quit complaining, what are you, seven or something? A bed is just a bed. So long as you don't do anything stupid to me as I am sleeping, you and I have nothing to worry about. And if you have a problem with it, then find a chair to sleep in." Nora replied as I followed her, rolling her eyes as she went upstairs.
"Who the fuck do you think I am? Somebody desperate?! Why, the ever-living fuck, would you ever see me want YOU of all people?" I retorted, to which she paused for a bit, but continued to ignore me.
As we entered the door, I saw that the room was exactly as it was in the game. Giant bed for two, small dressers to both sides of the large bed, with lit candles for the dim lighting of the area. It was a nice looking area overall at first glance… But that if it would be if it was a NEW room.
And from the looks of it, it doesn't really look like a 'Ready for the next customer' from the messy bed sheets, ruffled pillow-…Is… Is that a woman's underwear poorly swept to the side of the bed?!
"(Tsk) That's why the room was half off…" I heard Nora muttered.
For some apparent reason, I feel that there is a 'lustful' feeling in the room, and it REALLY was a turn off me to think about who I am with.
Me and her? Doing the nasty? Oh hell no! There could be STDs or something on that bed for all I know. She can have the bed, no questions asked!
Immediately walked out through the double door that had a small balcony overlooking the tavern from above that had a REALLY NICE looking sofa chair that captured my eyes at first glance. It even had a banket on it! Hell yeah!
"I call dibs on that one!"
"I'll take that one!"
Two voices echoed through my mind as I am almost certain that one of them was not mine. I looked at the origin of the voice as I could have sworn that my eyes were deceiving me.
"Oh, I'm sorry Nora, I could have sworn that I was under the impression that I was going to be sleeping on the chair while you were going to take the bed." I put on a fake smile, having a cheery outlook.
"No-no, it is only polite that I finally treat you with… some respect and let you take the bed. After all, I have been so rude to you." Nora replied to me in the exact same manner I had.
I can feel a few tick marks forming on my head as I tried to keep the fake smile as I can feel that she is somewhat mocking me.
"It is important for a man to practice chivalry, and to let a… (almost choaks) 'fine lady' as yourself to take the bed, while I, take the dirty chair." I almost gaged and broke character at the thought of seeing her as anything but a violent gorilla.
"As if you have an ounce of chivalry in you." Nora insulted me, breaking character. "Look, I will hurt you if I don't get that chair. And I am not sleeping in that bed."
"Bitch, I've almost been killed on a multitude of times, your threats mean nothing to me now." I got closer to Nora not backing down.
I can see her lips tighten up and heard her take a deep breath through her nose.
"I will give you this one chance of forgiveness, if you take the bed, right now." Nora threatened.
"I already called dibs on the chair. You got to respect the dibs, it's the rule to respect the dibs! You have the dirty fuck bed."
"Fuck your dibs and that dirty fuck bed."
"(GASP!)" I gasped in horror and astonishment.
We both have thought in unison.
'This Bitch…'
'This Bastard…'
My instincts flared up as I barely dodged a grab, and I used her momentum to throw her off the ledge of the fence. But to my surprise, she had also grabbed me, taking me with her over the edge.
Falling into the Tavern, I couldn't remember what happened soon afterwards… as the last thing I felt hit me was a splash of liquid on my face.
In face of seemingly unwinnable battles, one of two outcomes will arise to the minds of those who are involved.
The Fight or Flight response.
To fight means that you are fearless or outright stupid to oppose the force that comes your way. Be it with a plan of action, or not.
To Flight, means that you know that battle will not be in your favor and your preservation instincts tell you to run and live another day in hopes to have a better standing against the force, or to hide from it to never see it again.
But there is a third response that many don't accept. And that is to do nothing. When faced with an unwinnable scenario, you see that no matter what you do, no matter what you try, the inevitable will always get you in the end. So why prolong the inevitable and just accept what fate has to offer?
When the time of action comes… What choice will you make?
What choice will be your path of regret?
Think about your choice wisely.
Think about your choice carefully.
{[(Because This is a Choice of Life and Death)]}
[Next Morning…]
My body shot up in a state of panic. My heart is racing, as I started to feel a rush of adrenaline. My head felt like it was going to be torn apart from the pain and suffering-Wait, that is just a big splitting headache… Ow….
"(Groan…) What… happened last night?" Mumbled as I got up slowly in a bed.
It took me a second to adjust to the morning light that hit my eyes, which was not doing my damning headache any favors.
My vision was a bit dazed, but I soon realized that I recognized that I am hungover from drinking if the bottles of ale and clothes that littered the room that I was in was any indication of partaking of alcohol and a party.
"Wait, since when did I fucking-(urp)" I almost threw up a bit. "…drink last night?" I asked myself.
I couldn't think straight. I needed water to clear my head… nice cold water to wash away the poison that is blurring my body and vision.
As I shifted my legs over to the side of the bed, kicking some bottles in the process, and took notice that it was a bit cold.
Looking down, I had realized that I was wearing nothing.
NOTHING
I immediately covered myself by yanking the blanket from embarrassment and revealing a certain brunette-haired warrior who is also in the same 'bare' situation as I was. She was just awakening from her slumber as I unintentionally and uncontrollably scanned all of her well-toned, yet surprisingly womanly body. But instead of eyeing the parts that a normal healthy male would be looking at. I saw something more unsettling. Something that I couldn't take my eyes off of as I stared in dumbstruck.
An eerie number of scars that covered a specific part of her stomach. A multitude of old stab wounds with a sword or a dagger that mutilated her stomach area ranging from small to large cuts around the stomach area. Like a wild animal was trying to tear into Nora's gut.
Something tells me that she carries a burden of trauma with the big, hell-like scar she has. All that I could think of is, what exactly happened to Nora of all people to obtain such a gruesome scar?
Fixated on looking at nothing but the scar, I failed to notice a heavily blushing and pissed off Nora that threw a punch that my instincts told me to dodge, but being heavily distracted by the scar, I took the strong right hook to the face that snapped me back to reality.
"First off, I'll give you one chance to explain yourself. Why, in the nine divines, am I naked next to you of all people and what did you do to me? If I hear an answer that I do not like, then I am going to be tearing off your family jewels." Nora pressured me while giving me a death glare while covering her chest with one of her arms while clutching her other hand with her hand making cracking noises, simulating the crushing of said 'jewels'.
Still shocked about what I saw, all I could say was one thing.
"What… happened to your stomach…?" I asked uninterested in what is going to happen.
Pausing for a moment, Nora looked at herself, and back to me, making the eye connection and saw that I had no interest in her privates. She instantly grabbed the blanket that I had and covered herself, snapping me out of my stupor as I realized the situation that I was in.
"What-wait-when-" I stopped myself from talking to think about my situation. "Oh no… please don't tell me that I lost my virginity to you of all people, on that dirty bed of all places…" I groaned in disappointment, cursing my bad luck.
"Wait, you were a virgin? I mean, I am not surprised, but…" Nora took a pause to think about what I said.
"D-Did I-" I paused in shock of what I just admitted. "Don't tell me I said that out loud!" I panicked as I gripped the sides of my head. Nora gave a small nod to me in confirmation. "Just kill me and get it over with…" Curled up in a ball of shame, losing all hope of having a beautiful first time.
Nora took a moment to think about what is happening and came to a conclusion that she was unsure of.
"Wait, did you, or did you not do anything me?" Nora asked in confusion.
"I don't know!" I admitted looking at Nora straight in the eye. "At least I hope I didn't. But even if I had a choice, I would have gone for literally anyone else who had a womanly charm to them!" I remarked.
Nora had a few tick marks grow on her head to my answer as she heard the response. She had immediately grabbed me by the neck, and pinned me to the wall, ignoring the fact that the blanket cover had fell off her.
"Oh? then please, tell me what is unwomanly about me?" Nora said angrily as I was struggling to pry her hands off my neck.
Slowly but surely, I was failing in trying to escape. My strength was fading with time going by. As I felt that I was about to pass out, I heard the entrance door open.
"Hey, Nora? Where did Jester wonder off to-" Hadvar wondered in as he then stopped dead-sentence to see to witness the unlikely scene before him.
The silence would have been deafening if not for the choaking noises emitting from Jester.
"I must still be drunk…" Hadvar said as he left the room with a hand on his head and closed the door.
Nora dropped me immediately and started to get dress as I started to cough and gasp for air.
I really should learn to hold my tongue when my life is in, or is going to be in peril… I am going to really get killed by Nora one day…
After we both gathered and got dressed looking away from each other with a sense of awkwardness in the room, the picture of that scar still hasn't left my mind and the result situation we are in is jarring. But something tells me that she isn't going to tell me about it till later. As for how long until I find the bastard responsible for all this, I do not know, nor do I have any leads on where, or who to find… and this really could have been prevented if I wasn't really that selfish.
"…I'm sorry…" I said loud enough for Nora to hear.
I can hear the shuffling from Nora's clothing stop.
"I'm sorry that I got us into this situation in the first place. I should have just let you have the chair as I slept at a table in the inn. I'll be waiting around the entrance of Dragon's Reach." I said as I buckled my leather tunic and strapped down the loose ends as I left the room.
As I left the room, I can see a text show in front of me.
(New Quest Started: A Night to Remember)
-Find out what happened last night.
(New Quest Started: Scars of the past.)
-Find out more about Nora's scars.
I shook my head from the hallucination that was happening. That was a bad idea since a headache came afterwards due to the alcohol still being in my system and the text faded away quickly afterwards.
I quickly recovered from the headache as I stumbled into the inn lobby.
There are people passed out Drunk EVERYWHERE. Some were just getting up as the innkeeper and the servant worker, Hulda and Saadia, were handing out water to the drunks or splashing water on their faces. I spotted Hadvar trying to carry a hungover Ralof carrying someone's…bra?
Dear god… What did happen?
"Everyone, get up. Its already morning. Half of y'all have jobs to get back to. Oh-YOU!" Hulda then raised her voice at me, that made me flinch.
'Oh god. What did I do. What did I do. What did I do?!' I frantically thought expecting the absolute worse-case scenario to happen.
"I was wondering where you were, still can't believe that you managed to outdrink everyone in this tavern, including some of our heaviest drinkers! How is the hangover doing you in?" Hulda jokingly asked me, seemingly not mad.
"Wait you're not… mad at me?" I asked dumbfounded at the surprise.
"Mad? Why would I be mad at the person who brought me in more gold last night then I could have ever raised in half a decade? Sure, I would have been pissed off at you if you didn't hold your liquor and lost to that wealthy drunk man and his friends, I would have been bankrupt with the amount of liquor you outdrank everyone with."
"…Hulga, you can stop joking around, lets just get the scolding over with, how big is the tab I owe?" I pleaded, not believing her.
"Oh, you were serious? Wow, you really did get messed up. Nothing! You have a squeaky-clean bill thanks to that rich man's payment. As a matter-of-fact Jester, I should pay you to drink here more often for drinking contests." Hulga joked as she handed me a tankard of ice-cold water and walked away to the next person.
"…I… don't drink alcohol…" I slowly said as I stared at the filled cup that almost had a frosty aura spilling over the rim. I can feel that I was going heave out something, and I don't want to do that just yet. I forced myself to drink the cold water to drown the vile coming up.
My mind blurred briefly to last night as I saw myself chugging down a mug of a powerful alcohol with some other guy that vaguely looked Daedra of some kind as cheering had sounded. Seeing person after person fall over after drinking the strange drink.
I could feel my stomach turning, and I felt really sick.
I left the inn quickly through the back and heaved my guts out in a bucket of the inn. It wasn't a pretty sight as I can see that it looked like a worse-case scenario multiplied by 100, as the sludge that I puked out was some type of still bubbling black tar like substance that smelled like toxic waste.
Ugh! What the fuck did that bastard put in the fucking drinks!?
After clearing my gut of the volatile substance, I weakly left the inn, and walked towards Dragon's Reach. But little did i know, the substance began to move on its own...
[One Hour Later…]
[Location: Talos Shrine]
After sobering up to some success and hearing this guy's speech about Talos for the 12th time in a row. I can definitely say that I hate this guy's ramblings.
He has a mouth on him that won't shut up! But he isn't really doing anything wrong. And I am punishing myself for the stupidity of last night. I kept a constant lookout for Nora, Hadvar and Ralof. And they had yet to show up. I really had half a mind to just about find them, but as soon as I got up, I just saw them at the stairs to the Guilder Green Tree, assumably looking around for me.
I got up to greet them, but when I got to the group, I took notice of a right bruised eye on Ralof that Nora was trying to heal.
Heh. Seemed that Ralof gave the bra back to the rightful owner.
"Took you guys long enough." I mumbled.
"Sorry about the wait. I wrote a letter to the General about taking a temporary leave of absence. Carrier was a bit late for mail." Hadvar explained.
"Is everyone ready for what's next? Because after this, every part of the land of Skyrim is going to be on high alert about dragons after this. And we will be fighting our very first dragon soon after." I asked the group.
"Not… Really sure if we are that prepared to fight the dragon that decimated an entire town…" Hadvar said as he was a bit hesitant on the idea of fighting with Ralof nodding his head in agreement.
"Guys, as much as I would originally agree with you, the dragon we are going to fight is not going to be nearly as strong… (Probably…)" I said turning my head away not being sure myself.
"See! Not even you are sure about that fight! Jester. How many people are going to die in this battle?"
"Huh?" The last comment threw me off.
"How many people, are going to die to defend their homes from this dragon? How many guards will have to sacrifice their lives in order to save those behind these walls Jester? This isn't a game, this isn't a theoretical scenario, this is Real Life!" Hadvar got a bit close to me as he kept direct eye contact with me.
"…" I remained in silence for a good while before turning away and going up the stairway to Dragon's Reach.
Hadvar looked at Jester in disbelief as Nora and Ralof followed Jester upstairs.
"I don't think I will ever understand that guy…" Hadvar grimaced as he followed with the group.
At the top of the staircase, was a palace like structure… It had a Viking theme to it or however you are able to describe a place like this. There were two guards that stopped us and asked for our business, which was the dragon attack at Helgen. They let us through and came with us inside.
Entering the building, we saw the grand entrance with the local old made keeping the area clean. The pillars and tall ceiling held a meaning of a certain kind of power of intimidation, yet welcoming. We walked towards the main area, which breakfast was being held for the occupants of the palace, except for the Jarl, a Dark elf, and an Imperial discussing matters about the war effort or something.
The first one to react to our presence with an unsheathed sword was an all too familiar dark elf named Irileth. Long story short about her character for those who don't know, she is a hot-headed Dark elf who has her loyalty to Balgruuf the Greater. She means well, but she is pretentious with her guarding about Jarl Balgruuf.
"Guards, what is the meaning of this, and during a council of all times. Who are they and why are they here?" She instigated as she began to look us over.
I continued to walk over to the jarl to skip the dialog. Any conversation with her is pointless and boring.
"Stop." A sword was now at my neck, and I stopped dead in my tracks.
"One step more, and I will take that as a threat towards the Jarl's life. What is your purpose here, and make it quick." Irileth barked, threatening me.
"Jester, what are you doing!?" Ralof said in a tense tone.
My instincts weren't flaring up, so I know that I am good for now at this time. I lazily turned my head towards the dark elf and said the reason why we were here for.
"We are here with news about Riverwood being in danger." I lazily said.
"Hm… You need to speak to the jarl immediately. The others stay where they are. But keep your distance. I am watching your every move."
'Yeah, sure, whatever.' I thought as I continued to the Jarl.
"Jester, don't say anything stupid." Hadvar warned me as I waved him off.
As I approached the Jarl, he sat steadily on his throne in his 'in thought' posture.
"Jester, if that is your name… Well. I trust you have something vitally important to tell me. Important enough to interrupt me in the middle of council?" Jarl Balgruuf said as he seemed a bit agitated.
"Well, considering your mood, I can get to the point immediately, or give you the worthless details, and waste more time." I casually said.
"Get to the point." The Jarl replied.
"Hoping for that answer." I grinned. "Well in a nutshell, the Dragons are returning, Helgen has been completely destroyed by a dragon, and Riverwood is in need of a detachment of guards to defend it from said dragons." I said loud enough for the whole court to hear.
The entirety of the hall was silent as all eyes were on me. A glass of wine was dropped out of shock that broke the silence and murmurings began to circulate.
"W…what?" Balgruuf barely comprehended what I just told him.
"Dragons are returning. Helgen is destroyed. Riverwood needs guards." I repeated.
"Ok, I think you need to explain yourself a bit." He replied a bit uneasily.
"I thought you wanted to get to the point?" I looked at him weirdly.
"You speak of destruction across my land, and you think that isn't going to make people ask questions?"
"Many people often deny the truth, so I will ask you one question. Will you believe what I have to say should I tell you the truth, and nothing but the truth?"
"That… depends on what you have to say." The Jarl replied.
"Eh, close enough to a yes." I shrugged my shoulders as I then continue to tell him the story.
"So, after I fell from the sky and onto an imperial ambush that was set for the Stormcloak leader, Ulfric Stormcloak, I had been immediately captured along with another bystander who had absolutely no reason of being captured in the first place. We were all going to be executed by beheading, and just as it was my turn for my head to be lobbed off, a black dragon few down from the mountains and stopped the whole fiasco in its tracks and shouted up a storm of flaming rocks from the sky. Many soldiers and citizens died in the destruction of Helgen within the hour, and all that remains is burnt down houses, and destroyed towers and walls. These three over here will tell you a similar story, confirming what I said to be the truth." I looked back to my group.
They all nodded in sync to my claim.
"…You are awfully straightforward about all this… and did you really fall from the sky?" Balgruuf commented in which I nodded.
"Yeah, it's more of a personal and lack luster story, but that would be off topic for this conversation. I like to get boring shit over and done with then get to the fun parts. Anyways, when you going to send that small detachment to Riverwood?" I casually spoke.
"I suggest that you watch your tongue when speaking to the Jarl. Skyrim is at war, and we cannot risk any more advancements without repercussions!" Proventus Avenicci snapped at me.
I just smiled at him while I maintained direct eye contact. And just as he was about to say something else…
"ENOUGH!" Balgruuf interrupted Avenicci.
"I will not have a dragon burn down my holds and slaughter my people! Irileth, I need you to send a detachment down to Riverwood at once." Balgruuf ordered his Housecarl, to which she saluted, and left immediately.
Avenicci was left Dumbstruck as i was still grinning and turned back to Balgruuf.
"Jester, as much of an oddball you are, I thank you on behalf of the people of Whiterun. You sought me out on your own initiative. You have done Whiterun a great service, and I won't forget it." Balgruuf thanked me as he got up and shook my hand.
"It was nothing, really." I honestly answered.
"It was, and to show my appreciation, I will gift you something out of my personal armory. But before that, I would like to ask you something."
"No."
"N-No?" Balgruuf asked in confusion.
"Before you ask about Farengar and his dragon project, it can wait a bit. I need to talk to you about an important matter. We already have everything anyways, so you don't have to worry about recruiting me and my friends for it." I honestly said.
"How did you…" Balgruuf was shocked that I predicted what he was going to say next.
"I would tell you, but I would prefer to be in a more secluded place, if you catch my meaning. Too many eyes and ears that I don't want to tell people about. You can bring your steward with you for assurance, but I would prefer the least number of open ears as possible."
"…Sure, Avenicci, come." Balgruuf ordered his steward to his side.
"Nora, I need you to come with us, Ralof and Hadvar… uhh… Talk to Farengar about dragons or whatever he would want to know more about the subject. Don't cause any trouble." I said to the Nords.
Farengar's head popped up at the mention of his name and dragons.
"That's rich, coming from someone like you." Hadvar mumbled.
"So what, does that make us chopped liver?" Ralof complained.
I ignored them as I followed the Jarl upstairs to the map room.
"So, Jester, I've been meaning to ask, but how did you manage to convince both an Imperial soldier and a Stormcloak trooper to get along with each other?" Balgruuf asked.
"They were childhood friends, and I rekindled their friendship. Making them see the wrong in the war and to not kill each other. The dragon rampaging kinda helped in that regard as I helped saved them both from killing each other." I answered.
We entered the room, and all of us took a seat around the war table.
"What did you want to talk about? I am a busy man with a full schedule, so let's make this quick." Balgruuf said in a serious tone.
"Ok, same result as before. I basically know about the future and its outcomes. Oh and she is dragonborn." I said directly to the Jarl, who had another shocked look as he looked at Nora and me.
"By Talos… You are sure- and what about…?" The Jarl was (Again) at a loss for words.
"Yes and yes. She is the last dragonborn that can use the Thu'um with little to no training, and she is one of the answers to the problems of Skyrim. And for me, I am here to help prevent problems, or stop them in track with my 'what to do's, and 'know how'. I basically did predict that you were going to send the detachment to Riverwood, did i not?" I answered.
"You are a Seer? An Oracle?" Avenicci asked.
"Eh, something like that, but less complicated and vague. But for your sake, we will say that I am. Now, back to the dragonborn business. Nora over here is Dragonborn. And she is going to be one of the key components to beating the dragons by devouring it's soul. Permanently killing it."
"I… see. But why tell me this information of all people?" Balgruuf asked.
'Because I know I can trust you. You are a true leader who cares about your subjects. Unlike the other Bigots that are Jarls, they are either too stupid, senile, stubborn, or corrupted to trust.' I thought in my head.
"A hunch." I grinned at him to his confusion.
"That, and the Dragonborn needs to have powerful people who she can trust and not to use her for war. Just seeing the future can only do so much." I added.
Nora had a thoughtful look on her face when I said that.
"So back to business and the reason for this talk. There will be a dragon attack on the West Tower of Whiterun. But we are able to prepare for it with careful planning."
""An attack?! When?!"" Both Balgruuf and Nora said in unison.
"Well, that we don't have to worry about that yet. So long as we don't do one incredibly specific thing." I replied.
"And what exactly is that?" Balgruuf asked worriedly.
"That fetch quest that you were about to tell us about. Farengar was going to send us to Bleak Falls Barrow to retrieve a stone tablet." I explained. Nora eyes widen and begins to sweat. "After we give said tablet to Farengar, a soldier is supposed run in here and tell us about the attack." I finished.
"Wait, why the tablet specifically?" Avenicci asked.
"(Sigh) I don't question anything so long as I know it happens after a specific requirement happens to trigger the event. Just know that so long as we have the tablet, and we don't give the tablet to Farengar, we have time to prepare for it." I replied.
"And you have this dragon tablet with you?" Balgruuf asked unsure weather to believe me, wanting to see the tablet.
"Of course sir. Nora. The tablet please." I asked Nora while snapping my fingers to annoy her.
"…" Nora remained silent.
I was expecting an annoyed response or anything out of her. But she continued to remain silent. I looked at her, and I can see a bit of sweat on her. Why is Nora is sweating?
"Nora… The tablet please…" I repeated the question in an uneasy notion.
The sweating grew more notable. Nora looked like she was caught red-handed. I NEVER SEEN HER LOOKED PANICKED!
"What is going on, what happened?" Balgruuf asked sensing the situation.
"Nora… What happened to the tablet?" I pressed forward, hoping that she is pranking me. If this was a prank, this is not funny anymore.
"I… Gave it to Ralof." Nora confessed.
In response, I grabbed Nora by her shoulders and wildly shook her.
"WHY WOULD YOU GIVE RALOF THE TABLET?!"
"IT WAS GETTING HEAVY FOR ME TO CARRY, I AM SORRY!" Nora poorly excused herself as she pushed me away.
I then remembered that I told Ralof and Hadvar to talk to Farengar about dragons, and I dashed out of the war room as I when into Farengar's lab just to see Ralof pass the stone tablet to the wizard.
"Ah, the dragon stone of bleak falls barrow! You already found it! You guys are a different cloth then the usual brutes the Jarl foists on me." Farengar said before grabbing the tablet and setting it on the table with his other equipment.
"Oh no…" I said while falling to my knees in despair.
We might actually die if we face that dragon now…
{Chapter End}
[Author's Notes]
Hello to all once again! Once again, I am sorry about the long delay about the story. Had some people check on me over discord to see if I was still alive. Sadly I am still breathing, and the story has not got 105 chapters, 4 separate stories to go with A Jester's Guide to Skyrim, and 1000+ followers and favorites on said stories, so I guess I am shit out of luck.
But enough with shitty luck and what not! You guys are here for another choice to make, are you not?
Well, I have several to make for you guys. So make good of it and help me keep you guys entertained! You guys will control weather if the scared shitless guard enters through the doors right away, or after one of the other choices, so, lets see what we have!
Choice 1: Continue main story with no delay. (YOLOOOOOOOOOOOO)
Choice 2: Go on to prepare for the dragon attack. (Summarized series of jumping around the area of Whiterun to get shit together in a timeframe of 15 minutes.)
Choice 3: Stay out of the fight. (Story continues with Jester staying out of the fight because of fear. Consequences will arise.)
With these choices being laid out before you, I was REALLY tempted to add a 4th choice, a wild card of recommendation from you guys in what Jester should do, or how the story would be controlled. But knowing how most freedom of choice works, like In Dungeons and Dragons, that would likely lead to disaster REAL quick. I'll save that for a more… 'freedom friendly' part when we get to it. I will tell you guys a bit more about it when I submit more chapters.
So be sure to drop a review and give me a choice to write out. Surely I won't come to regret it! (Anxiety Intensifies)
With that being said, Thank you guys for reading. Like I said before, my writing schedule will be randomized. So the next chapter could be a week from now, or it could be a few months. But keep in mind that you can always contact me through Discord (RedTokyo95#4424). This is RedTokyo, signing out.
{Transmission End}