Chapter 4: Harbinger of Destruction
Slowly they walked through the cobblestone streets. The hushed voices of the civilians met their ears as onlookers murmured amongst each other. They felt stares on their backs as people openly gawked and glared at them. The tension in the air was so thick it could be cut with a blade. Their hearts and bodies felt heavy, each and every step forward took an incredible amount of effort to make. What was only a short walk seemed a lot longer, finally they reached the block where the others were waiting.
General Tullius stepped toward Ulfric with a heavy gait. "Ulfric Stormcloak." He greeted with contempt, and disdain. "Some here in Helgen call you a hero, but a hero doesn't use a power like the voice to murder his King and usurp his throne." Hearing his words Ulfric scowled at the Imperial General, a low growl escaping his throat. Infuriated by Ulfric's defiance he cried out in anger. "You started this war, flung Skyrim into chaos! And now the Empire is going to put you down and restore the peace!"
At that moment something bellowed from within the clouds. It's powerful cry could be heard throughout all of Skyrim. The Arisen heard it clearly, a sound which was all too familiar. A feeling of dread weighed upon her heart, and it wasn't from fear of execution.
"What was that?" Hadvar asked, his eyes darted to and fro as he searched for what could have made that noise.
General Tullius looked up when he heard it. He wouldn't admit it, but there was something about that sound which shook him to his very core. A small bead of sweat formed on his forehead and slid down his cheek. "It's nothing." His words were both an answer to Hadvar's question, as well as reassurance for himself. He tore his gaze from the sky and turned to his subordinates. "Carry on."
"Yes General Tullius!" The Captain exclaimed. She turned to a robed woman. "Give them their last rites." She ordered.
The robed woman stepped forward and raised her arms in praise. "As we commend your souls to Aetherius, blessings of the eight divines upon you -"
A Stormcloak soldier stepped forward, halting her speech. "For the love of Talos, shut up and let's get this over with." He marched up to them adamantly with unfaltering determination. "Come on! I haven't got all morning!"
Arliss watched the Stormcloak in confused horror as he walked forward. 'Why?' He glanced at the Arisen, then turned back to the Stormcloak who was now kneeling. 'Why are you so eager to die?' Humans were supposed to try to live, to fight or flee in the face of death. Arliss watched as the Stormcloak spoke his last words, and was quickly and easily silenced by a single swing of the executioner's axe. Seeing the man's severed head roll into the basket sent his mind reeling. 'If I do naught the same will happen to Master.' The image of her lifeless form appeared in his mind. 'No! I mustn't allow it!' Her words resounded in his head reminding him of her orders and the promise he made. 'If I do aught I'll be disobeying her orders.'
The first execution brought cheers and applause from the Imperials and townsfolk alike. The prisoners watched with mixed expressions of sadness and anger, the death of their comrade adding more grief to their sorrow. One Stormcloak soldier cried out bitterly against the Imperials, tears forming in her eyes.
Ralof spoke of their newly deceased comrade solemnly, yet loudly enough for the other prisoners to hear. "As fearless in death as he was in life."
Silvana decided to add on to the statement out of respect. "He faced his death with valour." She was sure she heard it said once long ago.
Kriger was a bit surprised that even a stranger who fell from the sky would have something to say. He let out a small chuckle. 'In that case I should offer my piece too.' He looked up with a twinkle in his eye, and smirked. "He was a True Nord who died for the honor of Talos, and I'm proud to call him my brother!" He shouted as loud as he could, getting surprised looks from everyone.
The Stormcloaks then let burst their cries of rebellion in honor of their fallen brother in arms. The Imperials tried to quiet them, but were unsuccessful. The enraged captain pointed at Kriger. "Next the Nord in the rags! Seize him!" Imperial soldiers immediately grabbed him and shoved him in front of the other prisoners, as their cries slowly died down. The captain took slow deliberate steps as she sauntered towards him. "You said you were proud to call him your brother?" She spoke calmly and had a small smile on her face, but her eyes held an unbridled fury. "Then you should be proud to join him." She snarled. "Execute him!"
From within the clouds something let out another cry. "There it is again." Hadvar looked around, checking the reaction of his comrades. "Did you hear that?"
The captain ignored him. "I said; next prisoner." She ordered through clenched teeth.
"Guess it's my time huh?" Kriger muttered to himself.
"Hey you, wait a moment." A familiar voice called.
Kriger turned to Ralof in confusion. "It's Kriger." He said somewhat coldly. "What is it?"
"Let's share some mead in Shor's grand hall later." Ralof said with a grin.
Kriger couldn't help but let out a small chuckle as he went up to the block. His smile faded, when he stood in front of the executioner. Without a word he kneeled.
The Arisen had a queer feeling since first she heard it. That faint distant sound which was so familiar. She was sure she knew what it was. The wind picked up, and the feeling grew stronger. The headsman raised his axe, and she turned away, lifting her gaze to the sky. She knew she was right, but when she saw it her breath caught in her chest. 'That is one large-'
"Wyvern!" Arliss' voice interrupted her thoughts.
"No." She breathed. 'That's no Wyvern.'
"Dragon!" A cry echoed, and it was heard by all in Helgen.
"By the nine divines." Kriger's voice was a whisper, his mouth agape, and his eyes wide. He never thought he would see such a sight. 'A real Dragon.' The creature let out a powerful roar, and fire fell from the sky.
'It cast Grand Bolide?!' Arliss was taken aback by its display of power, before realization struck. He eyed the Arisen's daggers which were secured to her waist, and cut his binds on the blade's exposed edge. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a Stormcloak run into a tower. "Come Master!" He pulled the Arisen, and they rushed into the tower. Once they were inside he cut her bindings with a knife.
"Thanks Arliss," she said while rubbing her wrists.
"Of course Master," he replied. "What should we do now?"
The Dragon Unleashed another cry of unrelenting force. A heavy gust of wind threw Kriger from the block. He fell with a heavy thud. 'I'm not going to stay down.' He grit his teeth, and pushed himself to his feet. He stood unsteadily on shaky ground. 'What now?' He frantically looked around, completely disoriented. Ralof came and grabbed him by the shoulder.
"Come on, the gods won't give us another chance!" Ralof took off towards a tower. "This way!" He called.
"You don't have to tell me twice!" Said Kriger as he followed. Once they were safely inside Kriger noticed the presence of Ulfric, several other Stormcloaks, and a certain pair of strangers whispering amongst themselves. 'What are they talking about?' He wondered. He was then taken out of his thoughts when Ralof asked Ulfric what everyone wanted to, or already knew. Everyone turned to Ulfric eagerly awaiting his answer.
Despite the chaos outside, and the tense atmosphere inside Ulfric spoke calmly. "Like you I don't know much about what's going on, but I do know that legends don't burn down buildings." A few soldiers who were in denial seemed to become even more tense. "The return of the dragons may be a bad omen, however it did give us another chance." As soon as he finished speaking, the dragon let out another roar which shook the tower. "We need to move. Now!"
"Up through the tower, let's go!" Ralof ordered as he hurried up the staircase. Kriger, and the two strangers followed. A couple of Stormcloaks were clearing a pile of rubble at the top. One turned to Ralof and began to shout something when the wall shattered. "No way." Ralof stared wide eyed as the dragon poked it's head in. It opened it's mouth. "Watch out!" Fiery breath flowed from it's massive maw into the tower. They pressed themselves against the wall to escape the passing flames. Hot air brushed against their skin fiercely, like a maelstrom. Finally the dragon took back to the sky, and the fire vanished.
Silvana let out a relieved sigh. "That was far too close for my liking."
"Yeah, I'll say." Kriger agreed.
"Is anyone harmed?" Arliss asked, staff ready.
"There's no time for idle chatter." Ralof interrupted. "Come on." He waved them over, and pointed out the new window. "See the inn on the other side? Jump through the roof, and keep going."
Silvana examined what was left of the building below. 'There's not much left of it, but tis' not much of a jump either.' She noted. "Alright, let's go Arliss." She leapt off the tower, and landed gracefully in the inn below. Arliss jumped after her, sending energy to his staff. It began glowing a familiar light, Kriger narrowed his eyes as he recognized it.
"Is he flying?" Ralof asked in awe. Kriger ignored him, and jumped after them. "Friendly folks." Ralof sarcastically muttered to himself. Just when he was about to follow, a loud crash resounded. Ralof whirled around. "By Yismir's beard!"
Kriger landed with a heavy thud. "Urgh," He grunted. 'Hope I never have to make another jump like that again.'
"Kind of you to join us Sir.Kriger." The Arisen woman greeted.
Kriger raised an eyebrow. 'Sir?' Choosing to ignore the greeting he said. "Shouldn't you be moving? There's a dragon out there."
"There may be aught here." She defended. "If you're in a hurry you can go ahead."
He shook his head with a sigh. "If you're planning on getting burnt to a crisp that's your problem." He said before jumping to the ground below.
Once he was gone Silvana looked down at her hand. Opening her palm revealed a small, golden coin. She knew it wasn't the best time, but she brought it up to her eyes anyway. Observing it she noticed that it had the profile of a man with the words 'The Empire is Law, The Law is Sacred' engraved on it. At first she was relieved that she could read at least one of this world's written languages, but then a thought hit her. 'Empire, this must be of Imperial make.' She wondered if the rebels had another currency, and if they'd accept it. 'I still have gold from Gransys as well.' She thought. 'Would that be worth aught here?'
"There Master, I've spotted Ser.Ralof." Arliss' voice took her from her thoughts. She pocketed the coin, and looked to where he was pointing. Ralof could be seen in the midst of battle. "Shall we join him?" Arliss asked. She gave an affirmative nod, and with that they were off.
Ralof found himself in a tough spot. He, and a few other Stormcloaks were surrounded by a group of Imperials. "Damn you!" Ralof yelled. "Even in the midst of a dragon attack you wanna fight?!" An imperial soldier charged at him with his sword. Ralof jumped aside, and brought down his axe. It cleaved through the poor man's arms, and he let out a shrill cry. Ralof swung again, this time decapitating him. Two more imperials glanced at each other with a conspiratorial nod. The first one charged straight on. Ralof blocked easily, and their blades locked. They fought against each other with all their strength. Ralof pushed forward. His blade inched towards the Imperial's throat, despite this the soldier smirked. Ralof looked at him in confusion, unaware of the incoming slash at his open side.
"Watch your flank!" Someone yelled. Ralof turned his head to see another Imperial coming at him with a ready blade. His eyes widened, and he broke into a cold sweat. He knew he couldn't block this attack. The imperial raised his blade, and stopped. His eyes opened wide in shock. His mouth went agape, and blood spilled out. The soldier fell revealing the one who killed him. "Don't leave yourself open like that, brother." The Stormcloak said.
"Thanks, Gunjar." Ralof said, as he finished off the Imperial he had locked blades with. "Have you found Ulfric?"
"Not yet." Gunjar spoke through grit teeth. He blocked an attack, and shoved forward, stunning his foe. Bringing down his axe, was all it took to finish her off.
"Watch 'your' flank!" Ralof warned as he cut down another soldier who was aiming for Gunjar.
Gunjar let out a grunt. "They keep coming."
"You're right." Ralof agreed. "What should we do?"
"Let's escape through the keep!" Gunjar killed two more soldiers, and broke away from the formation.
"Hold on!" Ralof yelled. "What about Ulfric?"
"For now we can only hope he escapes. Over staying our welcome, and dying here will only help the Empire." Without another word, Gunjar charged forward. A swing of his axe cleared his path, and he fled out of sight.
Although he hated to admit it, Gunjar was probably right. Unfortunately Imperial soldiers were blocking the way, and they weren't about to let anyone else pass. "It's not going to be easy, but we'll fight our way through." Said Ralof raising his axe and cleaving through soldiers. He pressed forward determined to make it through the Imperial barricade. An arrow whizzed in front of his eyes, nearly grazing his nose, and hit an Imperial to his side. He quickly turned to see the one responsible. "You nearly hit me!" He reprimanded.
"Ralof, get back!" The Arisen ordered, as she lowered her bow. Hearing the urgency in her voice he leapt back, right in the nick of time.
"Comestion!" Arliss yelled, and fire erupted from the ground, enveloping a few soldiers in a fire wall, separating the Stormcloaks and Imperials. Everyone stepped back away from the flames.
"Tis' just a temporary fire wall, it'll die down afore long." Silvana informed.
Ralof nodded. "When the flames go out, move quickly!" He ordered. They waited and soon the flames began to dissipate. "Now!" The Stormcloaks let out a battle cry as they rushed forward. They were met in kind with Imperials intent on stopping them. Numbers were cut down on both sides, but all pushed forward with great conviction. Ralof hacked into a soldier, and kicked away the body. "This way." He gestured to a few of his comrades, and the two strangers, who followed, leaving behind the sound of clashing blades.
Kriger had just jumped from the inn when realization struck. 'My hands are still tied. I should've had one of them cut the rope.' A loud thud, and the trembling earth got his attention, and there the dragon stood. He watched as the Imperial soldier, Hadvar, called out to a child. The boy ran as the Dragon opened it's maw and flames flew. The boy managed to escape unscathed, but behind him a body burned.
"Father!" The boy cried. Hadvar held him back from running into the flames. "No! Papa!" Tears streamed down his face as he screamed.
Kriger looked downcast as he listened to the boy. The cries were so similar, to his own from long ago. He shook his head to stop his thoughts. "Talos guide him." He said softly.
Hadvar whipped his head around. "Who's there?"
'Damn, looks like he heard me.'
Not receiving an answer he became wary. Brandishing his blade he called out once more. "Show yourself!"
'Hmph, looks like I have to.' Reluctantly Kriger stepped forward. "It's me." He held up his still tied hands. "I have no weapons either."
Hadvar was momentarily surprised. "Still alive Prisoner?" Without waiting for an answer he turned, and began moving. "Keep close to me if you wish to stay that way." He ordered.
'Can't believe I'm taking orders from someone who was about to cut my head off.' Kriger thought as he followed. "Hey, how about cutting off this rope?" Hadvar ignored his request, and continued moving. 'This is just great.' Kriger thought bitterly.
"Stay close to the wall!" Hadvar warned. Just as he said that, there was a great crash, and they pressed themselves against the wall. The dragon's massive arms nearly crushed them. Looking up Kriger saw it atop the wall. Kriger held his breath hoping it wouldn't look down. It breathed out another fiery breath, and took to the sky as quickly as it landed. The two let out sighs of relief, before pressing on.
As they neared the keep he spotted familiar faces in the distance. Ralof, and that strange pair. Kriger quickly rushed to join them. "Where are you-?" Hadvar stopped when he saw him. His brow furrowed. "Ralof! You damn traitor. Get out of my way!"
Ralof met him with a glare. "We're escaping Hadvar. You're not stopping us this time."
Hadvar eyed Ralof and his company, and scowled. "Fine, I hope that dragon takes you all to Sovngarde!" He yelled before storming off.
"Come on, into the keep." Ralof ordered. "Through here, let's go." He held open the door, and they rushed inside. Ralof was the last to enter, when he did his eyes widened. "Gunjar." He kneeled next to his dead comrade. "We'll meet again in Sovngarde brother." After a moment he stood. "Looks like we're the only ones who made it."
"Tis' not over yet." Silvana said.
"What do we do now?" Arliss asked.
"First, someone's gonna have to take care of this." Kriger held up his still tied hands in exasperation.
Ralof looked at him surprised. "You're still bound?" He asked in disbelief. "I'm impressed you've managed to survive like that." He laughed. "The divines must have blessed you with luck." Kriger gave Ralof a deathly glare. "Alright, I get it." Ralof said. "Come here, let me see if I can get those bindings off."
Kriger rubbed his newly free wrists. "That's much better."
"Why don't you take Gunjar's gear?" Ralof suggested. "He won't be needing it anymore."
Kriger looted Gunjar's body, and took off his ragged tunic. The Arisen looked away. Kriger laughed. "I'm not shy you know."
When he was done, he took a few practice swings with the axe. "Now, this is more like it." He grinned. With a weapon in his hands he felt as if he could almost taste freedom.
"Someone comes," Arliss warned. The sound of footsteps and hushed voices approached. They hid, weapons in their hands. Arliss hid farthest from the gate. Quietly he whispered an incantation.
Kriger could see them from his hiding spot. A group of Imperials. He recognized two of them. Giving out orders was the woman who ordered for his death. Then, among the group he saw, 'him'. His hand clenched tightly on his axe. He was eager to spill some blood. It was no sooner than the gate opened when he let out his own roar. "You!" He charged forward with his axe.
Chapter 4: Harbinger of Destruction End
Author's Notes:
Hey guys, I'm back. I'm sorry for taking so long to return to this. I was feeling bad about my writing and was really unmotivated to continue this for a while. I forced myself to come back and write because I know what it's like to get into a story that's discontinued and I felt bad about not completing it. Luckily when the Dragon's Dogma trailer dropped it hyped me up enough to get me motivated to continue writing.
Originally I planned to do "Unbound" in a single chapter, but since I've kept you waiting so long, and I'm having some trouble with the next scene; I've decided to cut the chapter into two parts.
I also managed to make a few adjustments to the previous chapters as well. Hopefully they should be less exhausting to read now, even if it's just a little bit. Also I know that some parts are probably still a bit strange, I'm sorry. If you notice anything odd, or think of ways to improve it please let me know so I can fix it. I hope to continue improving my writing, and I hope you all enjoy reading.
Thank you for reading, and thank you for your reviews. -