Well, that took a while. I'm really hoping I can stop the semi-Fibonacci sequence of lengths between chapters. Or have stable, non-exhaustive employment. Or get more s so I don't have to. Anyways, big thanks to xTRESTWHOx and NaanContributor.
Chapter 92: Harbingers of Tomorrow
5th of Sun's Dawn
Yang watched as the cavalcade towed the imprisoned dragon away to Whiterun. It took some deliberation but, eventually, they all agreed that while most of them were going to be needed to guard over their new prisoner, it wasn't necessary to pull in everyone. The most significant factor was the injured. While most could be moved in a day or so, one, in particular, would be down for a while.
Kodlak had been laid low from a combination of his sickness and injuries. While the latter alone wasn't so bad, combined with his age and the progression of whatever disease he had, it was enough to put him out of commission for a few days. No one wanted to risk him falling from horseback or getting jostled in a cart, which would have only made things worse. Even Farkas with a crack in his femur could be transported, but their Harbinger was far worse off than the relatively young and spry man, even with healing potions working their magic.
The Companions had talked about what to do, and Yang volunteered to stay behind until he was ready to move. Her argument for Ruby and Blake was that she could easily catch up while they worked on getting everything prepared with Weiss and Serana. Besides that, she was still healing as well, and trying to grab anything with her injured hand sent shocks into her arm and up into her shoulder that were enough to make her tense up for a split second. Not wholly debilitating, but not great for transporting oneself via horseback. If, Gods forbid, they ended up getting into combat against anything even remotely dangerous, her injured arm wouldn't make things any easier.
When the army disappeared over the hilly horizon, Yang went back into the inn and checked in on Kodlak, knocking on the door and entering when she heard him grunt positively in response. Thankfully, he was taking his need for rest and recuperation seriously and had stayed laying down, though with a book in his hands.
"Yang," he greeted the blonde upon seeing her and set the book down with a twig sitting between the pages he was on, serving as a bookmark. "They manage to get that dragon rolling?"
"Yep. They're all heading back to Whiterun," she confirmed while taking a seat across from the old man. "Tail first and with a muzzle, to keep him from suddenly blasting everyone in front of him."
"Hm, the first dragon captured since Olaf One-Eye." He laughed, then squinted in mild pain. "Heh, they'll put you in the history books for that one, at least."
"Hey, you'll be right there on the next page," she told him encouragingly. "You hammered a sword right through that other guy."
Kodlak didn't respond much other than to smile and nod, his head falling back onto his pillow. For a moment, the two remained quiet, but then the Harbinger leaned back up and looked to his fellow Companion.
"I really thought it was close to being over there, for a moment," he admitted to her, quietly. It took Yang a second to process that, but the worry on her face let Kodlak know she understood. "I felt I was moments away from being claimed by the Hunting Grounds, but I had enough strength in me to run up and strike that blow. I was just hoping to buy everyone else some time…but it looks like my swing landed true."
"Heh, I'd say, but hey, you…" Yang stopped herself from finishing.
She wanted to say he had plenty of time, but looking at him and knowing what she did, he likely didn't. He wasn't plagued the same way that Reachman Ruby and Weiss helped was. There, Weiss was sure the man had tuberculosis or something similar. On Remnant, it could have been treated and cured, maybe even at his advanced stage. For Kodlak, however, the symptoms and the fact he had his 'rot' despite the lycanthropy all pointed to a form of advanced lung cancer. It didn't spread to others, but it couldn't be cured, either. Even the best tech in Atlas could only hope to extend the time he had.
Knowing what they knew, their best estimate of how long he had was five years. And he was going to end up permanently bedridden soon.
"I don't have long," he said, confirming her fears that he understood his predicament well enough. "But I will reach Sovngarde."
"I'll make sure of it," Yang promised, reaching over and patting him gently on the arm. "We'll get this whole situation under wraps soon, and I'll make the Glenmorils cure you, or else."
He smiled again. "Thank you, Yang. You know, you'd make a great Harbinger."
The woman laughed at that. "Come on, I'm not even a Nord."
"There's been non-Nordic Harbingers in the past. As early as - No, before the First Era, even." He chuckled at that. "Perhaps one of my greatest inspirations was Henantier the Outsider. An elf, if you can believe it."
"Huh, an elf?" Yang blinked and thought it over. Sure there were a couple of elves in the Companions. There were plenty of non-Nords in general, and they even had the recent addition of Gihrer the Giant. She had always assumed that was a more modern trend, not one stretching back to antiquity.
She shook her head at that. "I don't know, though. Even if I didn't have to worry about…an entire culture, I don't know if I could lead the Companions."
"No one leads them, Yang," he corrected her. "Councilor, arbitrator, and guide, but not the leader. The Harbinger may set others on the right path, but walking it is their choice. And I have seen how you speak and act with your battle-sisters and shield-siblings. You have the potential, I believe, to set them all right."
"I just don't know."
The young woman felt as though she had a lot on her plate as it was. Alduin and the dragons, her thanedom in the Reach, not to mention just looking out for her team in general. Plus, it would perhaps be better for someone more experienced with the Companions to take Kodlak's place, like Vilkas. Perhaps if a few more years passed with them there, she could more confidently take up such a mantle, but the thought of being unable to return home for so long was not a kind one.
The trip back to Whiterun felt far more dragged out than Ruby expected. True, they did have some injured to worry about, as well as the people who needed to walk due to their horses being used to draw the prisoner. Then there was the matter of their prisoner's 'cart' not being the most effectively constructed transport. Sure, they managed to get some featherweight enchantments on the logs, but the wheels were rudimentary, and Qomotaadmindol was not exactly light, either.
Still, after a day and a half, they reached the outskirts of Whiterun. Runners were sent ahead earlier to bring word of their approach and what they happened to be bringing, so it was expected that a crowd of people might hear about what was going on and come out to see. Even if the runners didn't let loose the secret, people would have spotted the approach of the soldiers and the curious cargo they were escorting from a mile away, and word would have gotten out like that. What wasn't expected was a huge crowd that needed guardsmen to hold them back. Neither did anyone think that Jarl Balgruuf would head outside of the city to meet the procession before they made it to the gate. Weiss, Serana, and Gilly were out with him, along with his immediate court and a priest with a short, red beard wearing red and yellow robes with winged hourglass sigils stitched and dyed into his clothing on the arms and back. As the procession came to a pause, the priestly man approached with awe-filled eyes focused upon the dragon.
"So it is true!" he cried out before rushing forward. Soldiers barred his way at first, but a mere gesture from Balgruuf had them letting him through. Curious, Ruby hopped off to investigate the man's interest.
"Oh, Great Child of Time!" the man said to Qomotaadmindol as he bowed his head in reverence, the dragon looking at him curiously as he did. "Never did I think I would lay my eyes upon one of Akatosh's own children!"
"Hm, what is this? What- Ah, I see. Zeindodov. No, Bormahu alone, perhaps? I did not expect such to be allowed in these lands. Time truly changes mortals."
"Uh, sir," Ruby tentatively said to the man. "Please be careful with the dragon. He's been behaving so far, but we wouldn't want you to-"
"Please, young lady! I merely wish to… to see and speak with one of the greatest symbols of the Father of Time's eternal power. For a Priest of Akatosh, there could be nothing more sacred than communing with a dragon, something we have not been able to do for over two centuries!"
"Oh, okay."
Thinking it over, Ruby realized that she was speaking to someone who had dedicated their life to the Dragon God, and now he was getting a chance to speak to what was basically a child of his god. It would be like if Granny Xiao Long got the chance to see a real Child of Ash. Only here, she was, in effect, a Daughter of Dust.
"I just wanted you to know that I'm here to help," she quickly got out. "I'm the Dragonborn."
He gasped at that, then started moving oddly, looking like he didn't know whether he should bow, kneel, or reach out to her for something. Luckily, he was saved from his awkward situation by Balgruuf's arrival.
"Thane Ruby, this is Chanter Vasula Berarel. He was sent by the Chantry of Akatosh along with members of the Order of the Hour to…look into the situation with regard to dragons." His eyes scanned over the rowdy crowd, some of whom looked more hostile than others. "Not without some controversy."
"I swear, we're not here to excuse the atrocities a dragon may commit. Er, not to say you have committed atrocities, Great One," he quickly apologized to Qomotaadmindol.
Ruby interjected there. "Uh, well, I guess his crime would be considered… Not banditry. Hostaging?"
"Hostage-taking," Blake and Weiss said at the same time as they joined the group, pausing to look at each other after their simultaneous words.
"Kill it!" someone from the crowd shouted, getting some cheers for their exclamation. Vasula gasped at that and stood in front of Qomotaadmindol defensively.
"No! You cannot kill one of the Eight's children as though putting down a rabid dog!" there were jeers at that, but the Chanter faced down the crowd with nary a twitch. There was a thrown cabbage, which the apparent owner objected to, but not much actually threatening.
"Whoa, hey, hey!" Ruby called out, trying to calm the increasingly rough crowd. This seemed to have the opposite effect. "Let's be civil here about this."
At that, it seemed the mass wanted nothing more than to not be civil. Someone pushed against a guard, and the guard shoved back, knocking them into others. Most of those began pushing. Agitators suddenly got the bright idea to push people around in order to stir up anger, much of which was getting directed at the imprisoned dragon. The guards were being pressed, and Balgruuf's attention was going towards his soldiers, making plans to keep the riotous citizens in line. Ruby didn't catch much, but she heard something about 'swords with maces', and the reality of the situation quickly deteriorating and getting people hurt or worse was becoming stark.
Swallowing, Ruby looked at the crowd, wishing for peace, then immediately felt a part of her crush the mere wish for it.
'Pray not for peace,' she remembered reading. At the time, she thought it was cynical, but another part of her recognized a hidden meaning. Maybe the author of those words was cynical. But she wasn't.
'Peace isn't granted,' she told herself.
Weiss grew worried when she saw Ruby's eyes shift, matching the likes of the dragon chained down nearby. She knew what it meant, but deep down, she still trusted Ruby, even as she felt her arms and legs tense to respond to the worst-case scenario. Qomotaadmindol felt a shift in the world and did his best to get a view of the young Dragonborn as she walked in front of the increasingly unstable mass. Something told him that there had been a change almost unnoticeable to mortal perception. To the sensibilities of one intertwined with time, however, it was rather clear.
"Kaan!"
Kyne, Kynerath, Kynarthi, Kaan. Names given to the entity which metaphysically embodied nature, storms, soft winds, and the rage and serenity in mortal hearts.
"Drem!"
Peace. The absence of conflict is filled with a sense of tranquility, when there is no disorder, and feelings of calm take hold.
"Ov!"
Trust. The firm belief in the reliability of someone or something else beyond one's control. Faith and confidence in another combined.
The wave of the Shout washed over the crowd, frightening some at first, including those not in its wake, but as it passed, all calmed. Especially those hit by it. Their previous anger was seen in a new light, and they now stopped to think over what they were doing. Calm, rational thoughts turned into mutters as some began to feel embarrassed about the silliness of their attitude. Why were they so angry before? The dragon hadn't harmed them, was already captured and awaiting punishment, and their hero, the Dragonborn herself, was overseeing the whole thing. Surely, they could trust the one destined to defeat the dragons to do it properly.
One odd man out did manage to hold onto his anger, but he was surrounded by a crowd of people who, rather than join his angry yelling, stared at him somewhat contemptuously. Public shame and peer pressure made him self-consciously stop what he was doing and slowly move away from his previous spot in the crowd.
"By Akatosh!" Chanter Vasula muttered as the citizens slowly began to mill around as large crowds do, all of the previous hostility and anger dispelled.
"I… I didn't want to do that, but…" Something about forcing people to think a certain way didn't sit right with Ruby, but as she looked over the crowd, she didn't see mind-controlled drones. They weren't even in a haze like Calm spells tended to put people in. They seemed to all be perfectly normal, as though they weren't seconds away from forming an angry mob mere moments ago.
"You calmed them," Qomotaadmindol said, catching the attention of the nearest humans. "The Shout you used does not force thoughts upon others. It mutes rage and passion alike. What is left is peace, for that is what happens when you feel nothing strongly."
"And it saved the people many a bruise," Balgruuf added while patting Ruby on the shoulder. "Well done. Let us hope that everyone behaves from here on out."
Ruby nodded to that and looked at what she did in that light. Perhaps overusing it wouldn't be good, but she did prevent a good deal of violence. Denying people's passion wasn't always a good thing. They quite literally had a war over that on Remnant, and the Anti-Expressionists proved that one didn't need passion to do horrible things. Still, a shortcut to peace when conflict would otherwise be inevitable was a good thing to have.
'I can't just wish for peace,' she reminded herself. 'We have to make it. And doing it with a Shout is probably far better than…a lot of the alternatives.'
"Well, that got a little frightening," Serana admitted. "When I heard you yelling Kyne's name, I thought everyone was going to get knocked around by gale winds or struck by hailstones. That seemed to be a lot better. Didn't work on everyone, though."
"Th-the man still yelling. He st-st-started it," Giledie informed them. "He must have…r-really wanted to be angry."
"So…I just did the dragon equivalent of 'hush'?" Ruby rhetorically added. A loud sound like sliding rocks rang out, then a deep laugh. Everyone turned to see Qomotaadmindol guffawing.
"That…was hilarious, Dovahkiin!" the dragon got out between laughs. "A dragon…telling something…to HUSH!" And then his laughing became even more uproarious.
"Okay, so he's going to jail, once they dig the hole," Ruby explained as she, her two present teammates, and their companions headed out to where some Giants had set up a trading post outside the walls, close to where the Khajiit caravans would often set their own. "We figured we can't really keep him in Dragonsreach long-term. Jarl Balgruuf doesn't really enjoy the idea of a dragon being that close to where he sleeps, and it's kind of cruel to keep someone in a stockade for that long."
Giledie stopped to look at a Giantess in the process of preparing mammoth milk and what looked like flour to be made into something.
"Did they decide on a sentence?" Weiss asked her partner, her own visual attention going to the large bowl of pachyderm dairy product.
"There's still some debate on that. They want to keep in mind the fact that he's immortal, and that it might influence how the sentence affects him and a bunch of stuff like that. Balgruuf said something about not wanting to set a bad precedent, though, so he doesn't want to give him more than fifty years."
"That's…still a lot of time," Blake considered.
"He took an entire village hostage," Weiss reminded her. "If someone did that back on Remnant, most judiciaries would be ready to give them ten to twenty-five easily. Potentially more if they did other crimes while holding those people against their will."
Blake's ears went back. "Do you really think people who force a crowd to sit in a building for a while are as bad as second-degree murderers?"
"That's not…" Weiss opened her eyes wide and looked over to the Faunus in sudden introspection. "Sorry. Blake, I swear I wasn't insinuating anything by that. I…"
"It's fine," Blake responded with a sigh. "Just…sometimes I get reminded of what I've done here and there and… I just don't… I don't know."
"You don't w-w-want to be the vil-lain in your own mind," Gilly suggested.
"Yeah, that," Blake admitted. "Yeah. No one wants to be the bad guy. Even when they objectively are."
Weiss frowned and cupped her hand over her chin. "I don't believe it was so objective."
That seemed to catch the Faunus off-guard, and she looked to Weiss in interest.
"It's a known fact that my father's business practices are… No, I won't sugar-coat it anymore. They're wicked. Evil by every measure of the term. After what we dealt with concerning the Silver-Bloods, I've seen what a business like the SDC can be at its worst." She shook her head. "Arguments about providing jobs and paying employees equally and enough to live on… Well, to be frank in a way no one can misinterpret, it's horseshit."
Blake smiled and then began to chuckle.
"Whoa, Weiss!" Ruby exclaimed in astonishment, recoiling back as though she was physically struck, and Weiss released a sigh while shaking her head.
"Ruby, I am almost an adult. …As much as I can be one, now."
"Yeah, but hearing you say it," Blake got through her giggles.
"It's true." Weiss crossed her arms. "If my father could get away with not paying his workers, he would. The wages exist solely because no one will work for nothing unless they're forced to. Even prison workers get paid… It's a pittance, but it's required by law all the same. And even there, it's set to the minimum. If a government body approached the SDC and offered them free prison labor, they would take it without a second thought. I'm certain if he thought he could keep the company afloat on such slave labor alone, he'd try."
"Well, let's be glad we don't have that back home," Ruby said. "And we kinda showed everyone in Markarth why it's a bad idea."
"It's one of Yang's biggest pushes as their thane. We should certainly make it a part of our political agendas," Weiss affirmed. "It doesn't seem horribly endemic, but that might be because we haven't looked in the right places. Or wrong places, as it were."
"We'll definitely do that once evil dragons and vampires stop being the priority," Ruby said before looking over a stack of large iron ingots. The Giant clans' smelting wasn't the best, but they could certainly cart a decent load around.
"Speaking of…vampires," Serana spoke up, "Weiss was talking about…prepping me and Gilly here for the next stage of our little Scroll hunt."
"Oh right. Aura. Yeah, we'll call Yang then get right on that."
"For it is in confidence that we find our voice. Through this, we become a vessel of passion and purity to be heard by all. Foretold by the winds and unbound by doubt. I uncage your soul, and by my song inspire thee."
Weiss was ready for the redoubled effort it would take to unlock the Aura of a Nirnian, just like with her unlocking her college classmates' Auras. She also half-expected that it wouldn't work with Giledie, or maybe even vampires at large, especially when she noticed that there was also a slick, almost sick feeling that leaked through the girl's soul. It wasn't really a part of it, but rather, felt like something tied to it. If she had to guess, it had something to do with her vampirism. There wasn't much else it could be, in her mind.
But, to her great relief, it worked, albeit after sapping away much of the heiress' Aura to the point where it was flickering dangerously. Weiss felt like she wanted to fall on her face and stay wherever she landed for a few hours, but she managed to resist the great urge and instead pulled out the White Phial and took a deep draught. Her energy was almost instantly revitalized, with only an edge of weariness. Gilly, meanwhile, was looking at her hands in awe as she tested the new power that appeared over her skin in a misty grey corona.
"So, Ruby, do you think you can do it now?" Weiss asked the younger girl as she turned to face her partner, wiping away a sheen of sweat on her forehead.
"Yeah, I think I get it, but…" Ruby looked over at the vampiric princess and offered her a smile. "Well, are you ready?"
"As much as I can be," Serana answered as she rolled her shoulders and neck, as though loosening up for something. "All right. Let's touch souls."
Ruby winced and groaned before begging, "Don't make it awkward," and then reaching out and placing her hands on Serana.
A long stretch of silence followed. Weiss could feel that something was going on and could see Ruby's Aura briefly pulsate, but initially there wasn't any sign of success or failure coming from the two.
That is until Ruby yelped while red lances of electricity sparked around her and the vampire, particularly near where they were touching. The two jumped back from each other in surprise, with Ruby waving her hands through the air as though she had grabbed something particularly hot.
"Are you alright?" Lydia asked in concern.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Ruby answered quickly while summoning a small ball of ice to roll around in her hands. "Think I - Uh… I guess I pushed a little too hard there?"
"I…could feel it," Serana said with a wince. "It wasn't…exactly comfortable."
"Sorry." Ruby offered a smile with her apology. "Guess I haven't quite gotten it down yet."
"W-well, you aren't as close to Serana," Gilly said, causing the others to look her way for a moment, making her very aware of the metaphorical spotlight she had shone upon herself. "I… I mean… You, uh, haven't been around her as much as…W-W-Weiss has been with her…or me."
"Hm, that may certainly have affected the result," Weiss admitted while mulling it over. "That's not to say that someone can't unlock a stranger's Aura. But it could definitely make it easier to know the person you're bringing your soul into contact with. And I suspect the vampirism is making it even harder…"
"So…we're trying again?" Serana asked, a mote of apprehension in her voice.
"Is something wrong?" Weiss asked her.
"It's just… Well, I can't say I'm not a little uncomfortable with it." Her eyes shifted about uneasily at saying that. "Well, it… No, never mind."
"Serana, if you feel you need to say something…" Ruby started.
"No, it's fine," Serana insisted while waving the Dragonborn off. "Don't worry about it. Just…difficult to do something entirely new like this."
Weiss felt there was something a lot deeper that Serana was feeling but unwilling to express at the moment, yet she chose not to push. If the older vampire didn't want to share what was bothering her, that was her prerogative at the moment. It wasn't as though Weiss didn't have prior experience with something like that after all, a particularly poignant memory flashing through her mind centering around Blake. She would ask later, probably in a more private setting.
"Okay, so… Wanna try again?" Ruby asked.
"Maybe I should handle this," Weiss suggested. "We don't want to risk anything worse than a little sting to your hands if something else goes wrong."
"Ah, okay," Ruby replied while letting out a sigh of relief. She then stepped back to let Weiss take her place, muttering something under her breath about needing to practice doing that more.
Once Weiss was in position with Serana, she reached out with her Aura like she had with Giledie. Just like the other vampire, along with her own soul and its ember-like warmth, there was the foreign corruption. Unlike the oily tendrils hanging onto Gilly's, though, Serana's felt like it was chained and caged with freezing cold metal, all rough and ragged, painful to touch. The heiress felt her teeth grind as she pushed through the uncomfortable corruption, but as she met her goal, she began to relax.
"For it is from rebirth that we claim our legacy. Through this, we become an icon of defiance and temperance to overcome all. Redeemed by communion and absolved of dominance. I anoint your soul, and by my reflection uphold thee."
When Ruby went down to check on how Qomotaadmindol was doing, she half-expected to see the Chanter at the temporary holding place outside the walls. As she passed by the guards, she also spotted another figure near the dragon, talking in a language she hadn't expected to hear from him.
"[...which is why I was sent. There are agents with more experience, but not many with the right expertise like mine. Also, the queen just likes me,]" Capric Thorn, dressed in a blue and brown tunic, explained to the chained-down dragon in Dovahzul.
"What the heck!" Ruby exclaimed, causing the half-elf, Chanter, and dragon to all look her way.
"Oh, Ruby, I was about to come and see you," Capric said evenly.
"Since when could you speak Dovahzul?" the Dragonborn quickly asked him. Capric was about to say something, then paused and cast his eyes to the side as though questioning himself.
"I…didn't mention it?"
"No." Ruby was pretty certain she would remember him mentioning something as important as knowing the very language the dragons spoke. "You did not."
"I could have sworn… Well, no matter. If it didn't come up until now, it wasn't needed. I was just talking to Qomotaadmindol here."
"To varying degrees," the dragon said with a chuff. "I have counted thirty-eight mistakes in his speech whenever he tries using our tongue. Incorrect pronunciation of jud in that last sentence."
Capric sighed as the dragon laughed at him, and Ruby smirked a bit at that.
"The past few minutes have been very enlightening for me," Chanter Vasula said. "While we do have some texts in the dragon language, much has been lost since the Simulacrum and the Blades' ravaging of all things pro-dragon throughout Cyrodiil."
"That actually gives me a thought," Ruby said as an old question returned to her mind. "There were a bunch of dragons that were… I don't know if calling them Imperial citizens would be the right word, but they worked with the Empire and served the Emperors and stuff, right?"
"Ah, yes, it's a sad tale." The chanter nodded his head gravely. "There were dozens, maybe over a hundred dragons that were a part of the Empire at its height. They say that there were so many that you were as likely to see them flying over the rice fields or swimming the rivers as you were an Argonian walking the streets, if not more likely. However, Jagar Tharn's betrayal was the beginning of the end for that."
"Jagar Tharn? He sent Emperor Uriel into Oblivion and pretended to be him for, like, ten years," Ruby recalled.
"Speculation as to what he was trying to accomplish at the time runs a huge gamut," Capric inserted. "But we know that, to keep the Blades from looking too closely at him and to stop the dragons from sensing his…lack of dragon blood, he basically revoked all of their protections."
"He did what?" Ruby gasped, and the chanter sadly nodded in confirmation.
"For almost a decade, dragons had less protection than most wild beasts," Vasula continued. "While a dragon is a powerful entity, and normally does not need the laws of mortals to shield them, the Blades had training specifically geared to the slaying of dragons, on top of an insane desire to see dragons eradicated from Tamriel. The Chantry of Akatosh did our best to defend them, but dragons were…are proud beings. Still, the Sacred Grove of Dragons was created to give those who needed rest or simply did not want to fight, a place to remain safe. And yet, eventually that holy place was attacked as well, even after the Emperor had come back and tried to set the laws straight."
Ruby was rather astonished at the lengths the ancient Blades went to just to attack the dragons of the time. She could understand if they had been enemies not long before, but from what she knew, there were only two or three large, protracted wars between dragons and mortals.
"Mm, to be fair, the ones who attacked the Grove were renegades," Capric said to Vasula. The Chanter seemed surprised at the statement, likely because no one would ever expect a Thalmor Agent of any sort to have kind words for the Blades of all organizations. "Such a thing shouldn't be a problem anymore. I believe we only know of five different former Blades in Skyrim, and only two of those are of any issue."
Ruby stiffened a little. Esbern and Delphine were the only Blades she knew about. Who were those other three, and why didn't she know about them? Or was Capric even talking about those two at all and it was five she didn't know about?
"At least, in that way, integration should be far easier," Vasula noted with a bright smile.
"Not as easy as you may hope, mortal," Qomotaadmindol interjected. "These dragons may have sided with one mortal over others, but Alduin is still the master of all dragons in this world."
Ruby frowned at that. "There are dragons who sided with mortals against him," she reminded him.
"Few." He shifted under the chains. "And fewer after many met their ends during our…Kein."
The words left his mouth with hissing vitriol. Ruby wasn't sure where the hate was really directed, but it was readily apparent that he truly despised something about the War.
"But you must admit," Chanter Vasula said, "our people working together would bring about a better world for both. If Alduin is against unity, then he is simply wrong."
"Nothing so simple, mortal." The dragon wriggled, adjusting himself in what little way he could. "For the Dov, Alduin is second only to Our Father. Under Bormahu, we are possessed of the will to dominate through righteous rule, and to rule is what Alduin seeks. It is by that measure that he is the greater truth."
"Nothing about what Alduin is doing is righteous," Ruby objected. "He destroyed a whole town, he's been sending out dragons to burn the countryside and kill people, and now he's trying to gather up an army to conquer…everything!"
"Total dominion isn't a peaceful goal, Ruby," Capric said to her. "No conqueror ever established their dominion by playing nice. And it's not the same matter of right and wrong as we understand it. To dragons like Qomotaadmindol here, following the strongest is the right thing to do. Who knows what Auriel-who-is thinks? Maybe he'd let the dragons roam as threats for some big purpose we mere mortals can't comprehend."
Vasula frowned at that. "You don't seem to have much confidence in the Time Father."
"I feel a…greater separation from the Gods than most. Maybe I'm a fool and they'll show me one day," Capric confided to them. "Don't get me wrong, I respect them for what they are, but to me…it's like the respect you'd show any ancestor who did some great deeds. They're just the first of those lines."
Ruby found the idea a little odd, but then again, she had been on Nirn for less than a year and found herself thinking of the Gods in much the same way her grandmother taught her about Remnant's, except here she knew they were real. In Capric's case, though, he had been on Nirn for a century. He'd likely seen a lot more of what this world had to offer than she did.
Heck, she had yet to enter another country since coming to this universe!
"Talking of ancestry with mortals is complicated at best," the dragon groaned.
"True. I'll leave that there, then," the half-elf finished.
"Qomotaadmindol," Ruby began, "I get that you feel…strongly about needing to follow Alduin, but can't you see that stopping him, living in peace with mortalkind, would all be so much better?"
The dragon released a deep breath, punctuating it with a growl that sounded more exasperated than anything.
"Dovahkiin, while your soul is ours, your mind seems far from it. There is no going against Alduin's might for one such as I."
"We can't live in a might-makes-right world like that, though."
"We do not. We are dragons. Dov. Our right is what makes our might!" He sniffed at that. "Perhaps you are right. You defeated Lotgeindwiin, even if only enough to send him flying. Maybe you will triumph over Alduin and prove your truth over his."
Ruby felt her face go dark at the reminder. "So that's what it comes down to, in the end? Whether or not I can defeat him?"
"Is that the conviction that made Lotgeindwiin flee? No, it cannot be. That is despair I have witnessed only in mortals. Even prey surrounded by wolves will still try to run or fight."
She took in a deep breath at that.
"I'm not giving up!" she emphatically declared. "Even now, we're looking for a way to beat Alduin once and for all. I just… I hate how it all comes down to this. Everyone's lives, everyone's future… That shouldn't be all left to me."
"It really shouldn't," Capric agreed, putting a hand on her shoulder and giving her a reassuring squeeze. "It truly is not a fair burden, but it's one you have to carry. In the end, though, you don't have to carry it alone."
"Yeah," she muttered, taking a breath and thinking about all the people ready to help her journey down into what could well be their deadliest underground venture, as well as all the others who'd help once they returned. "I've got my friends."
"And I'm here to help as well," he said while letting her go.
"C'mon, you're a friend!"
"Oh, you hardly know me," he brushed off.
"Yeah, well someone once told me that strangers are just friends you haven't met yet, so you're halfway there already."
Capric just chortled at that, all the while Qomotaadmindol watched with something between curiosity and mild derision.
"Mortals."
Weiss had been going through a lot of paperwork. Normally, such an activity might be something she considered a pleasant experience. A reminder of a simpler time, when all they had to worry about was passing the next test or getting a date to the dance, not having to save everyone from a world-ending peril. Except here, there was a roadblock to her enjoyable satisfaction that comes with a job well done.
Their properties and finances were absolutely all over the place.
M'rissi and Inigo had been taking care of Lakeview Manor ever since they took up permanent residence a few months back. In fact, it seemed that M'rissi surprisingly had a knack for management, even if the documents written by her were a little messy and full of grammar and spelling mistakes. Other than that, Weiss was genuinely impressed. Hjerim, having been set up by herself, was going as well as she could expect, which was perfectly. The others, however, were mixed. She may have had a hand in Proudspire, but Ruby's personal management of the property made up for her own diligence and had it nearly in the red. Material expenses for what Weiss had to assume was Ruby's forging hobby alone made up a significant portion of Proudspire's expenses, among other things. Letters would have to be written to several people to get that straightened up.
Now if Ruby would only commodify the bespoke products of her pastime, then it would actually be turned around from a money sink to a significant profit in its own right. But trying to convince the weapon-smithing prodigy to give up her precious personal creations to strangers for something as base as money, was the hardest sell of all. She felt that turning the entire process into a routine chore would rob it of the purpose and passion she held for it, not to mention the fear of her works ending up in the wrong hands and being used for wicked deeds. So instead most of the expensive equipment just ended up being added to the collective armory for herself and the people she trusted, though it was at risk of turning into a hoard if she kept it up.
Then there was the minor fact that they apparently owned a meadery now, of all things. She knew about the Goldenglow apiaries, of course. Blake had made sure to inform her about that, but it seemed that Iceflower's employee had a lot of initiative. Too much, if she had anything to say about it, but at least the result was…decent.
The drama and conspiracy surrounding Honningbrew had become a curse disguised as a blessing for Sabjorn. While Blake's 'failure' meant he didn't have to sell off to the Black-Briar's immediately, people became curious about the place, which led to far more thorough investigations of his practices. The result was not to Sabjorn's benefit, to say the least. Mallus spilled a lot. Not enough to get him on Maven's list, but he made sure to do what he could to drag his former boss down with him. After a couple of months, the mead brewer ended up in near financial ruin. If Maven hadn't been experiencing a sudden bought of fires hitting some of her properties, she might have bought him out then. Instead, it seemed that Aringoth, in an attempt to ingratiate himself to Blake, had purchased and supplied it.
That meant that, in essence, every sale of Honningbrew mead since just a little before Ruby's birthday had been going to them.
"Can't believe I haven't checked this in a while…" Weiss muttered while looking over the bank statement.
At least, that's what she called it. Tamriel's banks didn't use the term, given how confused the teller had been when she'd asked for one. At least they understood 'like an invoice' even if having to compare two completely different things like that irked that part of Weiss' brain that had been training to work through every aspect of the family business since she could add.
The amount they had accumulated was no small number, though it was still nothing compared to the vast coffers of her grandfather's company, whether they took conversion into account or not. Her thoughts briefly strayed as she wondered what, exactly, the conversion rate between septims and lien would be, but she quickly shook her head and cast those thoughts aside. Still, here and now, they were wealthy. Not merely rich, but wealthy. And she still hadn't gotten into the parcel of land she was readying to lease in Yang's thanedom.
And there was another sigh. She needed a way to consolidate these business interests and get them running efficiently, otherwise it was going to bother her. Not to mention the infrastructural difficulty of setting up anything in a practically abandoned land. Sure, Yang was going to help set the nomadic locals straight with how they were allowed to interact with the incoming immigrants (who would also need work and lodging). Honningbrew, at least, had most of itself set up by the previous administration and the current employee who saw Blake as the deadliest boogyman he'd ever known (laughable, given what Weiss herself was).
A map of Whiterun Hold caught her eye, and she studied it for a little while, hoping to get her mind off the vexing mess in front of her. She would get it all straight, she just needed a break. As she looked over the relatively updated piece of information, a note written near a symbol for mines caught her eye.
Bandits, possible mammoth poachers, here. Defenses require mediocre force.
Halted Stream mines - iron
"More mining,"
she thought. Mining was the obvious first pick for the beginning ventures in the Reach, after ensuring sustenance, but she had gone over that with Yang. Culturally, and potentially religiously, mining was seen as distasteful at best by the Reachfolk, or heinous at its worst. They needed to wait for settlers to come in and figure out where Nords were and Reachmen were not. And then they would have to sift through the people who were okay with mining to find out who actually wanted to and/or was good at it.
"But what if it didn't have to wait?" she thought to herself, and her eyes focused upon the parchment in front of her.
Lines formed in Weiss' mind. Connections like the threads of a web weaved, and then she recalled another near-forgotten trade that could help fill in the blanks.
Pulling out an empty sheet of paper, Weiss began writing down ideas like a woman possessed. If this worked out, then not only would the mess of parchment disguised as bureaucracy begin to clear up into something manageable, but Iceflower would cease to be a front for Team RWBY's combined finances and start actually being a company. She couldn't stop herself from beginning to cackle in a manner some might call 'evilly', seeing it all come together before her very eyes.
"Weiss!" she heard Ruby call out from downstairs, stopping Weiss in her tracks. Luckily, she was just finishing up, so her train of thought wasn't derailed so much as stopping at the station quicker. "Weiss, we got a guest."
"Who is it?" she asked back while putting her quill aside. It was some enchanted quill Blake had found somewhere, the Quill of Gemination she called it, though they lacked the special ink it needed to actually use its enchantment at the moment. She really would have to thank that woman for all these bits and pieces, even if Weiss felt like she'd been given gold in the form of an ore pile.
"Capric Thorn," the Faunus man answered himself as he, Ruby and Lydia walked up the stairs. Weiss had to remind herself of his lineage upon seeing him again, as his head was still antlerless, thus looking every bit like a local Bosmer.
"Whatcha doin' there?" her partner asked, hopping over and immediately putting her nose in the papers.
"Just trying to tidy up our finances," She answered, then winced. "They were…all over the place."
"Ah, I know that feeling," Capric responded. "My grandmother's estate was a mess when I found her."
"Wait, your grandmother?" Weiss started, not sure how exactly to ask the question on her mind.
"My mother's mother," Capric clarified. "Found her a little way into my adventure. Got a lot of answers, and even more questions. My kids live there now."
"Kids?"
"Weiss, come on now, you're always telling me to have tact," Ruby said to her partner before squinting at something. "Why'd you write a reminder to send a letter to the…Shadowsilk clan?"
Weiss was about to answer, holding up a finger to make a point along with it, but then paused and considered how her friend might take it when she explained it all.
"Okay, so you recall how we needed that undersuit for Yang's special armor?" Weiss began, and when Ruby nodded she began to explain her plan. It was hard not to notice Ruby's and Capric's eyes widen more and more with every detail Weiss provided, as well as the nearly maniacal tone of voice the heiress began to use around the halfway point, but Weiss ignored those reactions and kept going.
"Weiss scares me sometimes," Yang said aloud after reading a text-turned-business manifesto.
"The white and blue one?" Kodlak asked from his own horse.
"Yeah, she's apparently about to start up a multi-layered corporation with stakes in mining, mead, and now silk of all things." Yang shook her head as she put the scroll away and put her hands back on the reins. Lucky Day shook his mane, and the blonde patted his neck.
Kodlak chuckled then said, "Quite the busy one, isn't she?"
"You don't know the half of it."
Yang took a deep breath while thinking over what her teammate was aiming for with this whole venture. It wasn't merely for money, they had that. No, she was outright saying that the goal was setting up stable and advanced infrastructure for Reachwater. Of course, some of it would be going toward supplying them, once things were sufficiently up and running.
"They're going to check out some piece of land called Halted Stream," she revealed. "Weiss used some weird terms here, but I think the gist of what she was saying was having a central place for goods to pass through before and after Whiterun. Y'know, the city doesn't exactly have wide open spaces for us to set up a warehouse or anything like that."
"I see, I see." The old man nodded in understanding. "She must be planning something big, in that case. I can't say I'm too surprised. From what little I've garnered of her, she has quite the mind for the mercantile trades."
"Yeah, just needed a little startup money," Yang said with a shrug. "Still, didn't think she would be starting something like it this soon. Thought we'd have to be here about a year before that."
The two turned a bend that slowly revealed Whiterun from behind the mountain they were traversing. The slowly sinking sun shone its light over the city on the plains, casting a long shadow towards the east. Yang couldn't help but smile at the sight and then looked to the city's outskirts.
"Man, hard to believe I own a quarter of that meadery now," Yang breathed out. "Feels like yesterday we were passing by them on our way to the city for the first time."
"And then you knocked a Giant unconscious," Kodlak reminded her with a grin. "Only wish I had seen that."
"Well, you got to see the dragon, at least," Yang told him with a laugh.
For a moment, she wondered if they could stop by and get some mead for free. She effectively owned it, right? Then again, she probably needed some kind of proof to start with and then get herself familiar with her employees. And that wasn't something she'd thought she'd ever have. Rather surprising that it still felt like a big deal now that she had subjects.
She began to get lost in her thoughts over the huge responsibility she was shouldering, wondering once again if she was doing enough or if it was way too little. As she started to think about whether or not she would need to send missives or whatever they were called and then over what she would even send them about, Kodlak began to look off to the sides. His palomino horse also began to buck its head, becoming a little spooked by something. Lucky Day grew restless as well, pulling Yang out of her thoughts just as Kodlak started reaching for his hammer.
"What… What's going…?" A shake in the forest caught her ears and eyes. A rustle here and there left its quiet wake in the world, letting them know that something was going on.
Suddenly, a loud wail echoed over the plains and mountains. Yang wondered if it was a moose nearby, but both realized that it was far too loud and coming from the wrong direction.
She looked up and gasped. High in the sky, among the sparse clouds, and above the mountaintops were massive creatures. All she could think upon seeing them was 'whales'. Their flippers more resembled wings, however, and they weren't an exact match for any single species she knew about, but that was what they had to be. One was relatively close to them, slowly floating downwards and letting its belly rake the mountainside. She could see birds flying with it, some of them daring to land on its back and nestle there or take off soon after.
"Sky whales," Kodlak said, only a little surprised. "Wasn't expecting them for another week or so. Ah, I see." He pointed to the third closest one. "That cow there. She's barely keeping herself up. She's probably going to fall soon. They probably hurried to the mountains here instead of hanging by the coasts a little longer."
"Whaaaa… How are they flying?" Yang asked, finally settling on where to start her inquiry.
"Magic, maybe," Kodlak answered her with a shrug. "I'm sure Vilkas knows. He read a bit about them as a boy. I'm just glad to see a few more calves this year. Everyone got worried about a decade ago when the number of sky whales seemed to-"
Kodlak cut himself off, and Yang's attention came back to the ground with them. There was a whistle, and then pelting as arrows came from the woods and hit his horse, thigh, and arm. The palomino screamed out as it fell, and Lucky Day squealed as well when an arrow hit his flank.
Yang immediately hopped off, ready to run to Kodlak's side, but the older man was already getting to his feet. Taking a moment to gather her bearings, Yang turned, grabbed her axes from the saddle, then quickly pulled out the arrow from her bucking horse before hitting him with a quick Healing Hand.
"Go!" she yelled while smacking his haunch the moment his wound stopped bleeding. The horse's training sent him flying down the road, and the blonde turned back to see Kodlak painfully removing his own arrows. She came to his side, eyes and ears open for another attack before grasping the one at his thigh.
"Barbs?"
He shook his head while holding a tight wince, and she pulled the arrowhead out. He let out a grunt and looked at the one he had removed from his arm.
"Silver," he cursed before hefting his warhammer. Yang paused as she reached out with a healing spell, but then went back to letting the golden energies flow into him as the implication sank in.
"Only one group would use silver on us," she muttered.
More arrows flew out towards them from a slightly different angle, letting them know their attackers had repositioned themselves. Yang cast a ward, feeling the missiles ping off against it and wincing when one bounced off near her palm. Her other hand gathered magical fire, and she threw the spell into the woods. It exploded, revealing several silhouettes ducking away. She quickly called up a pair of Firebolts and tossed them at a target, hitting him and sending him sprawling back with a cry of pain.
Her counterattack seemed to trigger the next phase of their ambush as several men and women came crashing out of the underbrush, silver swords and maces in hand as they shouted and tried to run the two down. Kodlak brought an end to their charge with a single swing of his hammer, smashing in the chest of the first Nord to nearly reach him and sending him flying back into his companions. Yang dashed in and picked out a woman with a parrying dagger in her left hand and smashed one fist into her kidney and then the other into her clavicle, sending her headfirst to the ground. She then came at the next man with an uppercut that likely snapped his neck while Kodlak batted away a stab at his chest and then brought the sharpened backside of his hammer into his opponent's neck.
An explosive punch sent another man flying through the air, dead almost as soon as he reached the height of his parabola. The five remaining fighters backed up and stood shoulder to shoulder before slowly spreading out. Yang made to engage with them but paused in her steps when ten more popped out of the woodworks and helped to surround her and Kodlak, a variety of weapons in hand that all held the wicked glint of silver on their heads or blades.
"They're not pulling their punches here," she noted. For a split second, she wondered whether she'd be more effective with just her fists and Ember Celica or if her axes would help, before reaching down and grabbing Fiery Kain, the axe feeling warm in her right hand.
The Silver Hand attacked as one. Yang knocked a mace aside with her axe and sent a shot at the offender, hitting his shoulder and ruining it with a Dust-propelled slug right through the pauldron. He screamed, and backed away, but didn't break off. Another woman tried slashing at her neck, and Yang blocked with her gauntlet, fighting against the hesitance screaming at her from getting so close to that hated element. As she pushed her away, she looked to see how Kodlak was faring out of the corner of her eye and saw the sickly elder struggling. As with her the Silver Hands were trying to overwhelm him, but unlike her, he wasn't empowered by the supernatural reflexes that Aura granted her. He was bleeding from several wounds already, some shallow, a few not. She tried to disengage, but a spear was thrust at her head. She ducked down and back, and the man tried to keep on her, so Yang grasped his spear, holding tight even as the silver haphazardly inlaid down its shaft stung at her. She yanked him forward and kicked, shattering his ribs and turning much of his torso to mush. One swordswoman's eyes went wide as saucers.
"Elg!" she screamed before someone grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back.
"Five, Tsun, Five!" a man shouted.
Yang wondered what that could mean as their attackers all began to back up, making sure to keep their encirclement while spreading out. As she tried to figure out what they were doing, the nearby sky whale made another call, its voice hauntingly echoing over the mountainside.
Something landed next to her, and it was with some shock that Yang recognized it as an arrow, sticking almost straight from the ground. With a slowly building pattering sound like rain, more arrows fell, and then Yang realized what was happening as some bounced off her Aura.
With sinking horror, Yang heard Kodlak cry out as one of the missiles hit his shoulder. A few more landed as she ran over to him, one striking his calf just as he took a knee and then one in his back. She quickly cast a ward pointing upwards above the two of them, and then the arrows really fell. For a split second, it felt like the sunlight was being blocked from reaching them, but then the rain of arrows began to let up.
Only for them to start coming from the sides again. Yang blocked the ones that nearly hit Kodlak and tanked any that hit her. On their own, they didn't do much to her Aura. They merely stung if they touched a bit of uncovered skin, of which there was only her face and fingers. Still, the number of silver-tipped arrows coming their way was beginning to grow steadily as the ones who had surrounded them took out a variety of bows and started gathering fallen arrows to shoot at them as well.
Figuring she wouldn't be revealing anything new to anyone, Yang reached for the beast inside of her and let it out. The transformation was almost instant, only slowed by her own will enough to let her armor and clothing keep up. With more mass, she was able to block the arrows far more efficiently for a moment, giving her a second to check on Kodlak. He was still in bad shape, but he was standing again.
With a roar of rage, Yang threw a wave of fire at the nearby enemies with a sweep of her claws, setting a few alight and causing the rest to pause in horror or fear. Grabbing Kodlak, Yang leaped toward the trees and set him next to the thickest one.
"Take cover and change," she told him.
"Don't worry about me right now," he grunted through the pain.
"I-"
"Take them down, quickly," he told her. "Get the archers out in the forest. I'll hold here."
Yang nodded and then turned back to the battle. Some of their opponents had recovered and were getting ready to start launching arrows again. Digging her hind claws in, she leaped for the closest one, her left claw aimed for his body. The man was rent into pieces, and his nearest comrade was left aghast at the sight. Her right then took him down, crushing him against the cobblestone road. A woman was backhanded away almost incidentally as she summoned a fireball and threw it into the woods. There was more screaming as someone was hit by the explosive spell directly and two more were caught in the blast. Yang dashed in their direction on all fours. The first she reached was trampled into the ground almost effortlessly, and the next was snapped up in her jaws, her back broken instantly. The dedicated archers could do nothing but try to run and scream as Yang systematically cut through them, her lupine gait letting her catch up to any of them even without the enhancement of her Aura.
Soon, there were no more in the woods she could sense, and she was rushing back to where she had left Kodlak. The old man was fighting off two of the Silver Hands, annoyingly enough not in his beast form. Before she reached them, a blast of cold hit her in the face, blinding and distracting her. She turned to the source and clawed toward it. Rather than hitting something, there was a swirl of magicka, with a twin coming up nearby and more cold magic hitting her Aura. She saw a Bretonnic man casting the frost spell, and leaped towards him. However, magic swirled about him and he disappeared just before she reached the spot he was at. Annoyed, she turned to where he had teleported, seeing him pick up a sword telekinetically before throwing it at her. The blade skidded off of her plated arm and she growled at the man before running at him again, only for him to repeat the same disappearing act as before.
"Come on!" she heard one of Kodlaks opponents yell in frustration. She turned to see he had managed to fell another, but now five were upon him. Luckily, it seemed like it was just them and the mage left.
"Show us your true form, beast!" A muscle-bound woman with a mace further taunted him before receiving the butte of his hammer's pole in her nose, cracking and bloodying it.
"This…is my true form!" the old man got out.
Yang tried to rush to his side but stumbled as she suddenly found her back legs cold and stuck, frozen to the ground by some spell. Her fear only rose when she saw the blood slipping out from between his teeth.
"I am a Nord, and I will die like one!" Kodlak declared. A man slashed at him with his sword, but Kodlak shoulder-checked him before bringing his hammer around, hooking the pole behind the other man's neck and then slamming his forehead into his nose. The Silver Hand fell like a puppet with cut strings, and Kodlak punished another trying to take advantage of his momentary opening by slamming his hammer's head into his guts, then bringing the hammer over and down on his back as he doubled over.
Yang pulled free of the ice with a flex of effort, shattering it, and tried to head to Kodlak, only for the mage to intercept her with a spray of electric sparks. Roaring and pushing through the pain, she snapped at him, forcing him to teleport again. She then reached back, grabbed much of the ice still stuck to one of her legs, ripped it free, and threw it as hard as she could toward where the mage was reappearing. The cold shrapnel tore through the man's body in several places, including through his left eye. He fell backward and Yang went back to her charge, only to stop as she saw something horrifying.
Kodlak was twitching in place and struggling to hold onto his hammer. A woman looking worse for wear had managed to sneak up on him with a spear and had driven it through him from behind. One hand had let go of his Skyforged hammer and grasped the speartip sticking out of his chest and through the plates of armor. The woman had let go, looking almost as shocked as the two werewolves, as though she hadn't expected it to work.
Yang stood motionless with her breath caught in her throat for what felt like hours. However, only seconds had passed before Kodlak fell, and Yang roared in rage. She leaped forward and turned the first man she hit into red mist and scraps. The second saw what was coming and tried to drive his sword into the charging werewolf, but it shattered against her Aura and she bit down on his head before ripping it off. The muscled woman screamed as she tried to meet her charge, and, for a moment, Yang felt something resembling resistance. The giant woman grasped her wrists and tried to push her, but Yang pushed back and easily won, turning her grip around and grasping her wrists instead. Yang then pulled and the woman screamed.
Joints and ligaments were popping, but Yang was already looking to where the next one would be, only to see the last woman running full tilt. She tossed the one before her away and readied herself to give chase, to run down this last one. The one that had killed-
An ugly, hard cough brought Yang back to her senses, and she looked back to see Kodlak moving. Instantly, she was at his side and helping him to turn over, a dog-like whimper coming from her as she tried to check him over.
"Kodlak! Oh god, Kodlak! Hold on! I-"
Yang left her werewolf form so fast that the armor made a noise like a thousand rusted hinges as it shrunk back down. Healing magic gathered and sprang from her hands onto the old man, but even as she hoped against all logic that she could somehow pull him from the brink, everything she saw told her it wouldn't be possible.
"Yang…" he somehow got out, perhaps due to her efforts if nothing else. "Yang…it's… Get me… Jorvask…
"No, no, no! Too far, it's… You… You're going to be-" She choked on her own words as she tried to find some way of righting this situation. Someone she knew and cared for was slipping away, dying in her arms even as she poured what should have been miraculous healing power into him to keep him alive.
"Room… Journal…" he got out before coughing up even more blood, ripping at Yang's heartstrings even more. "You have…to…me…home…"
"Kodlak, no! You- You have to live! We have to cure you!"
She could almost feel it. She wasn't even sure if it was her own personal dread or a real metaphysical manifestation, but she knew that as he was, Kodlak was going to pass on into Hircine's realm rather than the heaven of his forefathers.
He couldn't die here! Not when they were so close!
"Be brave…Harbinger."
A final breath left him, and Kodlak stilled. Yang felt her entire body clench as she witnessed his death, but kept pouring magicka into her healing spell, a part of her unwilling to accept it. Nothing but the light twinkle of magic made any noise as the last vestige of the day slipped away and her reserves ran out. Silence reigned as Yang knelt there while twilight turned into night. When she finally moved, it was to pull Kodlak close to her, a shuddering breath leading to a tear-filled cry.
The sky whales' calls were joined by the mournful howl of a golden wolf as night settled in on Whiterun, sending a chill through many a mortal soul.
7th of Sun's Dawn