So, I work a night job. Thing about a night job, when you have a day off, you can either choose to stay up that day and mess up your sleep pattern, or you can keep it up and stay up at night instead, and not be tired as hell at work the next night. When you have four days off in a row after a full week of back to back work days? That messes you up. Guess who has a RWBY/TES crossover and got that very situation?
Enough about me, you guys are here for RWBY and a Wonderful World of Wizardry, Vikingry, and Draconian battles!
So here's a chapter.
"I don't feel so good," Ruby muttered before suddenly lurching, struggling to hold back the contents of her stomach. In seconds, Blake was on her, inspecting her leader for any sort of damage that must have occurred.
"Ruby, are you okay?" Blake comforted the young girl as she continued to look her over. Spotting no signs of trauma, she turned and pointed at the guardsman who made the declaration. "You! What's happening?"
Seeing how he was being directly called out now, the guardsmen meekly replied. "It's…your friend. I think she might be Dragonborn."
"What're you on about?" Irileth asked the guardsman. At this point, all eyes were on the Nord, who nervously glanced around the survivors and cleared his throat.
"Well, it's like the Dragonborn of old. She killed the dragon, and took its soul!"
"What!?" Blake and Weiss both screamed.
At this, Ruby felt her throat lurch once again and, unable to hold it back this time, ran a few paces, and doubled over as her dinner escaped her. Some of the survivors were disgusted and backed away, but most kept themselves steady. A few began to debate with the man. Blake and Weiss, however, stayed rooted in place in silent shock and horror at the implications of what Ruby accidentally did.
"No… I didn't…" Ruby whimpered as she went back and sat next to her sister with a thud. At the sudden movement next to her, the blonde finally stirred. Ruby only barely noticed.
"…Hey, Rubes… We win?" She groaned as soon as she was fully conscious. Attempting to pick herself off the ground, Yang grunted in severe pain, forcing her onto her back. She couldn't see it, but Yang could tell that her legs at this point were useless.
"Mmhm." Ruby barely acknowledged her sister, causing Yang to raise an eyebrow in worry, before redirecting her attention to the increasing volume of the debate going on around her.
"I'm telling you all, she's definitely Dragonborn. Like Tiber Septim used to be."
Another man shook his head. "Don't recall Tiber Septim ever killing any dragons."
"That's because there weren't any dragons then. They're just coming back for the first time in…ever."
"No, that's not true," a woman pointed out. "Tiber was said to have granted some dragons amnesty for working for the Empire. Ever heard the tales of Nafaalilargus?"
"I thought it was Nahfahlaar," the first wondered.
"Was he the one some Redguard killed?" she asked him.
"What're they talking about?" Yang grunted out as she tried to sit up, trying to fight through the pain.
"Yang, don't," Ruby object as she pushed down on her sister's shoulder. "You might be seriously hurt."
"I still feel my legs. Wish I didn't. Hey guys," she greeted the other two teammates as they drew closer.
"Are you all right?" her partner asked in concern.
"I'm alive. How about the-" She completely stopped when she saw the smoldering skeleton. "Whoa! How'd we pull that off?"
"Um, going by what everyone's saying…" Blake wasn't sure where to take that thought.
"They think I'm a…Dragonborn or something," Ruby responded quietly. Before Yang could ask what exactly a 'Dragonborn' was, one of the guards suddenly shouted over to the girls.
"Hey, you should try Shouting!"
"She should what?" Yang asked, confused.
"You know, Shout! When you say a word in the dragon language and…cause things. I don't really know how to explain it."
"Dragon…language?" Ruby began thinking back to the Word Wall that she had read. 'HET NOK FaaL VahLok DeiNMaaR DO DOVAahGOLZ ahRK aaN FUS DO UNSLaaD RahGOL ahRK VULOM! Here lies the Guardian, Keeper of the Dragonstone, And a Force of unending Rage and Darkness!' She tried thinking of which word seemed powerful. Rage? Guardian? Unending? Darkness? Force?
'Fus,' something tickled in the back of her mind.
'Fus,' it repeated. 'Force. My Voice…pushes at the world. Fus.'
Ruby closed her eyes and breathed in. Her lungs expanded to their fullest, her throat tingled in anticipation.
'The world pushes at me. I push at the word. Our Force collides.'
She opened her eyes and her lips formed a Word.
'I will push back harder!'
"Fus!"
A wave of kinetic energy leapt from her lungs, through her throat, and out of her mouth, slamming against the Nord in front of her, who grunted as he was thrown onto his back. Cries and gasps of astonishment came from all around, and her team looked at her in a mixture shock and curiosity.
"Whoa!" the guard said before coughing and picking himself up. "That was amazing!"
"So it's true. You really are Dragonborn," the one next to him said.
"H- how?" Ruby asked as she seemed to shrink down.
"Everyone, listen up!" Irileth demanded of the crowd. "I understand your excitement about some ancient Nord hero appearing. I can imagine my mother was excited when the Nerevarine appeared." She looked over at Ruby and back at the Nords. "But, as you can see, the girl is not feeling well. I would ask that you all keep this to yourselves. For now, only the Jarl should know about this."
"You want us to keep this a secret!?" a woman shouted back, astonished.
"Housecarl, don't you realize what this could do? If people know about there being a Dragonborn, it could give all of Skyrim hope."
"Or it could cause a ruckus. One that a girl barely a year from being a child should not have to deal with. As far as the rest of the world knows, a group of dedicated soldiers slayed this dragon, not-"
Voices like thunder resounded across the land. People covered their ears, but still they heard it.
"DOV-AH-KIIN!" they all heard.
"Sweet mother of night!" Yang cursed while covering her ears, alongside everyone else. Once the sound finally abated, and the ringing stopping.
"That was…the Greybeards," Farkas awed.
"Uh," a guard said dumbly. "About keeping that a secret, Irileth…" At seeing the housecarl's enraged and twitching face, he wisely backed off. A little too late, apparently, as the Dunmer's attention was now squarely on him.
"Get the wounded onto the cart," she ordered.
"We...don't have a cart..."
"Go get one."
"... Yes, housecarl," the guard groaned as he ran back to Whiterun, while everyone else began giving potions to the wounded and gathering up the bodies of the fallen.
"So, my sister is some kind of traditional Nordic hero or something?" Yang asked one of the men walking next to the cart they were carrying her on. There were several injured, but only two were unable to walk, and Yang was one of them.
"Basically. Dragonborn are supposed to be the greatest dragon slayers alive. They're supposed to be part dragon…or something like that."
"Huh, maybe she got it from dad. Ooh, maybe I'm one too!"
"Maybe. It'd make sense to me." The Nord shrugged. "Was supposed to be that the Emperors were Dragonborn, so it was a bloodline thing. Last one died with no heirs though, during the Oblivion Crisis two hundred years ago."
"I've actually read about that," Weiss interjected. "Martin Septim apparently became an avatar of Akatosh and sealed Oblivion away from Nirn so that Daedra could no longer brute force their way in."
"Oh, you read that too?" Blake asked.
"No, not what you read. I looked up history. You read some fiction about five heroes."
"Actually, the five heroes existed," Aela explained. "The Hero, The Guardian, The Champion, The Watcher, and The Unknown. They did a lot of things to save Cyrodiil during it's time of need, including help the Blades secure Martin and the Amulet of Kings. Then they disappeared while going into the last known Oblivion Gate, leading to the Shivering Isles. It closed, and there hasn't been an Oblivion Gate since, so they must have succeeded in whatever it was beyond there."
"Oh, then why weren't they-"
"Was it a Cyrod name for the author?"
"Looked Bretonnish, actually."
"Then I wouldn't trust it. Bretons aren't the best at learning other provinces' history. They have too much to keep up with in their own country."
Blake shrugged. "Cynrrbert was wrong about the millennia thing."
"It was an honest semantics mistake!" Weiss defended her teacher, for lack of a better word. "Some people hear 'a long time' and think thousands of years. Some think centuries. And then some think 'since ever'."
"Hey!" the guard in question objected.
"Guys, I don't think arguing is going to help," the team leader scolded. "Besides we're close to the city now, and we should…keep it all on the down-low."
"All right. Still going to try to sell those bones and scales, though," Weiss deferred before groaning. "Gods, these are heavy..." She shifted the pack's straps on her shoulders.
"If you think you can, have at it," the housecarl told her. "Remember everyone, keep it to yourselves. The dragon fell to all of us. Let the people guess at who the Dragonborn is for now."
The crowd walked through the Khajiit caravan, Blake hanging back for a while to speak with a few of them. As they passed through the gate, they found Whiterun to be deserted. Apparently, the curfew hadn't been lifted just yet.
"It's for the best," Irileth concluded as they passed into the Wind District, placing a comforting hand on Ruby's shoulder. "The less people know, the better."
Being the best place in the city to heal their injuries, the injured were all brought into the Temple of Kynereth, where priests immediately began setting broken bones and applying healing magic. Yang's cart was set carefully, and one priestess came over to tend to her.
"Are you all right?"
"You should see the other guy," Yang joked before wincing. "Ah, seriously though, I think my pelvis is cracked. Don't really want to test out my legs to see how they are."
The healer began looking her over, a yellow glow on her hands as she tested touching around the injured areas.
"What exactly happened?"
"A dragon stepped on her," Ruby declared.
"She had a, uh, protective spell on at the time," Weiss lied. Alteration armor spells like oakflesh worked a lot like defensive Aura to be comparable to it.
"Definitely seems crushed in places. We'll work on her throughout the day, but there are a lot of patients with the guards returning." The priestess shook her head sadly. "Not as many as we'd hoped, but better than none at all."
Having secured Yang a spot in the healing temple, the two left and ran into the four Companions.
"Well, nice to see you all make it," Skjor commended, though in such a way that Ruby couldn't tell if it was a compliment or not. "I guess Yang's going to need a day or two before we send her out? Well, she certainly proved her bravery out there. Now to get her to think before she acts." He laughed a bit. "You two did well out there. Ruby, I hope you know you aren't getting out of your proving mission either. It's only delayed. Just because you have a bit of special power in you don't make you an expert yet. If anything, we'll be pressed to push you twice as hard."
"Oh boy," she muttered.
"Don't let the old dog make you feel down," Vilkas interceded. "Legacy or no, you fought bravely, and in defense of your sister when she was down. I only hope my brother is half as brave if I ever need him that badly."
"Assuming I don't put you there," Farkas joked, lightly punching his brother in the shoulder.
"Thanks guys. We should probably head up to see the Jarl before we turn in," Ruby responded. "Today's…been full of things." At this, the Companions nodded in understanding.
"Divines smile on you, girls."
"Have a good night." At this, the two groups went their separate ways, the Companions retreating into their mead hall, the huntresses walking up the steps to Dragonsreach.
As Weiss and Ruby walked up to the keep, Blake caught up, having finished speaking to the Khajiit, falling in behind them. The three entered to see Jarl Balgruuf waiting near his throne, pacing back and forth. The man sighed when he saw them, but looked a little bit to their left where Yang usually stood. He seemed a bit somber, but Blake decided to break the ice with a little good news.
"Hello, sir. We made it back, but Yang's injured and at the temple healing."
"Ah, that's good to hear," he said with a drop of relief. "Irileth sent a few men ahead, but they all seemed tense. Not a bad sort, more like there's a secret that they can't hold in. And the Greybeards… Do you…know what's going on?"
The team looked about, noting that there didn't seem to be anyone else in the main hall at the moment.
"Well," Ruby said uncertainly. "Apparently I'm a…Dragonborn, or something?"
Balgruuf looked at her for a moment and blinked. "Are you… Are you certain about this?"
"The guards thought so, and I can…Shout now."
"Then…it was you the Greybeards were summoning."
"Greybeards?" Weiss asked, gaining the Jarl's attention. "Sorry, sir, but not much was really explained to us, and there seemed to be a lot of conflicting information, ranging from some world ending prophecy to Ruby being the descendant of a Septim's illegitimate child. Can you…?"
"I can understand your confusion. Most know more about the deeds of the Dragonborn of the past than of the Dragonborn themselves. As for the Greybeards, they are the Masters of the Way of the Voice, who live in seclusion in High Hrothgar, atop the Throat of the World. Monks most would call them. And for a Dragonborn's significance, they are uniquely gifted in the Voice, the ability to focus your vital essence into a Thu'um. The Shout you made was one such Thu'um."
"So, they want me to come up to meet them because I'm…talented?"
"Talented would not be the correct word I would use for it. But, if it's true and you are Dragonborn, the Greybeards are the ones to see. They, more than anyone, can teach you about the Voice."
"Wait, what was that about focusing her essence?" Blake asked.
"Basically, it's a part of her soul. I'm…not certain of the intricacies about it, but to be Dragonborn is to have a dragon's soul. Only a dragon can permanently kill another dragon, and the Dragonborn are simply dragons in mortal form."
Ruby reached up and touched her chest above her heart while wincing. Weiss noticed and frowned at her partner's discomfort.
"So, will these Greybeards… They'll have esoteric abilities? Like magic?"
"That's a way of putting it, I suppose. Like I said, they've spent nearly all their lives studying the Voice. There are…strange powers that be used with its mastery. Some things only a Dragonborn could even hope to learn." He looked directly at Ruby. "The moment you're able, you should head up to High Hrothgar, meet the Greybeards. To be able to meet with them is a great honor." He then had a wistful look upon his face. "Ah, to be able to go up the Seven Thousands Steps… I once made the pilgrimage up there, you know. A hard hike, but wondrous for the soul." He shook his head from his musings and looked back to them.
"Nevertheless, after you four selflessly put yourselves in harm's way, even though you understood the dangers better than anyone in Whiterun, I think a more substantial reward is in order. By my right as Jarl, I name you all as Thanes of Whiterun. When your sister has recovered, I shall see to it that she receives the same, as well as something to compensate her for her injuries. As well, to you, Ruby Rose, I'll have Lydia assigned to you as your own housecarl. You are important beyond words, after all, and you need every bit of defense we can spare."
"Thanes?" Blake asked.
"Housecarl?" Ruby voiced in concern.
"We're thankful, sir," Weiss said. "But, there's so much going on at the moment…"
"I understand you feel a little overwhelmed, but you deserve the best I can give you all, and the title of Thane is the highest honor I can give."
"Oh, no complaints at all, Jarl Balgruuf. It's just…unexpected."
He chuckled for a moment. "No trouble. You should know though that being Thanes means you are technically now citizens of Whiterun, with everything that entails. Including the right to own land and property within the Hold and city. The guards will be informed of your positions as well, so they know you aren't just part of the common rabble."
Weiss felt a little perked up at that.
"So, are Thanes like knights?" Ruby asked her.
"A rough analogy, but the simplest. We should all get some rest then." Weiss bowed toward Balgruuf and the other two followed her example, Ruby a little uncertainly.
"Of course. You've all… We have all had a remarkably eventful day. I assume the Bannered Mare?" Ruby nodded. "Then I'll have your housecarl sent there the moment she can come. Rest easy, all of you. And…be brave, Dragonborn."
Ruby flipped through the Book of the Dragonborn again.
'To think I picked it up on a whim back in Helgen!' she thought. Most of it was old accounts of Dragonborn and suspected Dragonborn, including the Emperors and Empresses of Tamriel, but one part at the end on the "Prophecy of the Dragonborn" sent a chill down her spine.
When misrule takes its place at the eight corners of the world
When the Brass Tower walks and Time is reshaped
When the thrice-blessed fail and the Red Tower trembles
When the Dragonborn Ruler loses his throne, and the White Tower falls
When the Snow Tower lies sundered, kingless, bleeding
The World-Eater wakes, and the Wheel turns upon the Last Dragonborn.
She didn't know what exactly most of it meant, but she could figure out at least that the Dragonborn Ruler cold be talking about the Septim Dynasty falling. And the bit about a World-Eater was…ominous was not the right word, but it was a part of what she felt. Weiss and Blake could probably narrow some other things in the book down. Especially since Weiss was working with the wizard.
"So, we're…Thanes?" Blake asked the white-haired heiress.
"I was surprised as well, but in hindsight, it makes sense. We were a major part of that battle. Even Irileth and the Companions only hurt the dragon so much with their skills. Without us, it would have been an even bigger slaughter. Perhaps they could've still killed it, but there would have been far more deaths."
"There were a lot anyways," Ruby mourned as she walked over to the bed Weiss had chosen for the night. "Can you make sense of this? All I got was the bit about the Dragonborn Ruler."
Weiss scanned over the tidbit and hummed. "I'm not entirely sure. There's mention of Towers, but I don't know what they are, though maybe the White Tower is the one where they signed the White-Gold Concordat in Cyrodiil? Just a guess though. Could be an entirely different one…" She blinked and looked over the second-to-last verse again. "Sundered, kingless, bleeding. The High King of Skyrim is dead, and now the nation is in a civil war, sundered, kingless, and bleeding!"
She jumped up and began looking through the small collection of books sitting on a shelf. When she didn't find anything relevant she started heading downstairs with the book in hand and started questioning the relieved, if slightly harrowed, returned patrons. Ruby and Blake followed her as she asked a man what a Brass Tower could be, to retrieve an odd answer.
"Best I could think of would be the ancient war machine, Numidium. It was a massive Dwarven construct, so it probably looked like a tower made of brass. And it could walk. Don't know much about it beyond Tiber Septim used it to conquer the High Elves."
"And a Red Tower?"
"Red tower?" the man rubbed his chin for a moment before shrugging.
"Hey, what about Red Mountain?" a Dunmer suggested. "What exactly are you reading from there? What's it say about a Red Tower?"
"Um, would the Red Tower in question have 'trembled'?"
"It erupted, and destroyed much of Vvardefell, if that's what you mean."
Weiss set the book down next to the dark elf and pointed out the prophecy.
"What does this look like to you?"
The elf hummed and read over the verses, his red eyes trailing down each line. When done, his eyes widened as he looked back up at them.
"What in Oblivion… When was this written?"
Weiss flipped the pages back to the front, and saw the title and author listed, with the year written just below.
Year 360 of the Third Era, Twenty-First of the Reign of His Majesty Pelagius IV
"Azura's spite!" the Dunmer hissed. "That might just be a legitimate prophecy, assuming this is accurate."
"Then what does the last part mean?"
"Well, I'm a bit rusty since I've been out of school for about a century, but The Wheel is what folks sometimes refer to the world as. Not just Nirn, but the whole Aurbis, that is, everything. Atherius, Oblivion, and Mundus. Anything lying outside of that is the Void. But the Wheel turning… I don't quite know. Maybe this Last Dragonborn has something to do with this. Considering a 'World-Eater is mentioned here, maybe they're supposed to stop it. Dagon, perhaps? No, he can't really invade again. Not after last time. Couldn't have been Martin though. That was before half of this happened."
Two of them looked nervously at Ruby, who seemed to be forlornly paying attention to the inn patron's dissection of the Prophecy.
"Great, another end of the world event coming. Guess it's just as well I'm headed to High Rock." He took a large gulp of his drink and sighed before handing the book back to Weiss. "I'd suggest getting out of here if there's nothing tying you down. Between the dragons showing up, and apparently a prophecy being almost fulfilled, I think Skyrim's a mite bit too exciting. And to think, all I was worried about was some Stormcloaks deciding I'd be fine target practice." He took another deep draught as the girls made their way back to their room.
"Thank you," Weiss said.
"No problem, ladies. Just try not to lose your heads over it. Nirn made it through the Oblivion Crisis, if a bit cracked up. We can handle some dragons." As the Dunmer left, the girls looked at each other, unsure as to what they should do next.
"He... He has to be wrong, right? I mean, there's no way..." Ruby started, desperately looking towards her teammates for an answer. Judging by the look on their faces, they were having the same issue.
"It…could have been edited," Blake suggested, but by the way she talked it was clear that she didn't believe that.
"No," Weiss replied, looking at the book's inside back cover. "First edition. Kept in remarkable shape, too. No signs of editing that I can see."
"That means that...someone, hundreds, if not thousands, of years ago, successfully predicted all the major calamities that occurred for the past two hundred years..." Ruby began, only to trail off as the implications sunk in.
"And now we're in the middle of one that could spell the end of the world," Blake finished, letting the silence fill the air.
"Now what?" Weiss asked the question they all had. She and Blake turned to look at their leader, who had gone silent, looking down at the table.
"We're going to stop it," Ruby declared, resolute, as she redirected her gaze back towards her teammates.
"...Ruby, that's noble and all, but…we're only students. We're not equipped to handle this," Blake admitted, scared.
"Besides,...this isn't our-" Weiss began, only to be interrupted by a furious Ruby.
"Don't you dare finish that sentence," Ruby barked, shocking Blake and Weiss into a stunned silence. Ruby went silent before whispering. "I'm scared. Scared that we might die here. Scared that we won't get back home to Remnant, to our friends and family. Scared of what we might become, but I don't care. None of that matters. I don't care that this isn't our home. I don't care that this isn't our world. It's these people's home. It's these people's world, and that's good enough for me. I don't care what this 'World-Eater' is, but based off of the events of the past few days, I'm going to take a guess that's it's a dragon. We just proved that dragons can be killed. So if one dragon can be killed, so can this World-Eater. We have the ability to help, and so that is what we are going to do." At Ruby's declaration, Blake and Weiss looked at each other before redirecting their gaze towards their leader, their eyes filled with newfound determination.
"We're with you, one hundred percent," Weiss declared, with Blake nodding in agreement.
"Thank you," the younger girl said with a light smile. With their course set, the girls readied themselves for bed, not knowing how they would stop this World-Eater, but determined to do it anyway.
The next morning, Ruby let Yang know the slight change in plans, to which she immediately agreed with her sister. There were immediate concerns for them at the moment, however. The funeral for the fallen guards was being held. Most of the city was there. Many of the fallen had families in Whiterun, most living inside the city walls. It was a solemn affair, with dozens of crying spouses and many a child now missing a parent. Ruby felt her heart tugged on harshly when one little girl couldn't seem to understand why 'mama doesn't wake up'. Each now rested in a casket and were taken into the Hall of the Dead, recently cleared of skeletons by Blake, to be interred by a group of guards wearing black cloaks to represent their mourning. The captain of the guard tried to give a speech about how they had all willingly given their lives for the good of Whiterun, but it seemed to fall flat. It was immediately obvious that he wasn't used to such a situation. Luckily Balgruuf took over for him and was a little more successful.
"Today, many of our own rest in Sovngarde, for there can be no doubt that they have earned their way into the halls of our ancestors. We must never forget what they have done, or why they have done it. Nor do we forget what they accomplished. Today, the corpse of a dragon rots outside of our walls, because brave men and women put their lives on the line.
"To the grieving families, I offer condolences, for what they are worth. To those who have lost a friend or a loved one, I hope you find it in you to raise a cup in their honor. But do not grieve for so long, for I believe that they wish for your happiness as well. Whiterun stands today because of these people. And so the people of Whiterun must stand to make their sacrifice worthwhile. Today, a dragon. Tomorrow an army. As the people of Skyrim, we must be ready to fight, just as they have. Let us all be worthy of what they gave. Divines help us, let us be worthy."
The service ended not long after, and Blake went to speak with Balgruuf while Ruby and Weiss looked over Yang, who was sitting during the whole funeral, but now was standing with the assistance of a pair of crutches. She grunted and rolled her shoulders, before leaning her weight on the wooden supports.
"So, we're taking the elevator up to the castle, right?" she joked, attempting to lighten the mood.
"Yang I don't think they have elevators," Ruby said, going along with her joke. "They don't seem big on disability assistance."
"Wow. We're going to have to sue them and get ramps and elevators put up. It's the Mistral Architectural Disability Crisis all over again!"
"That happened literally years before any of us were born," Weiss pointed out. "You have no idea what that was like. Besides, it didn't even last that long."
"People argued that putting up ramps to let people in wheelchairs get into public places wasn't worth the cost or the 'aesthetic dissonance'. No matter what the situation was, that's pretty bad. I mean, someone basically looked at kids in wheelchairs and said "Your education is not worth the one hundred lien it'd take to make a ramp or the ten percent beauty lost to the school.""
"I never said I was on that side. Just pointing out that it was over almost as soon as it started."
Blake returned to them and nodded.
"What's up, Blake? You rushed off pretty quick to talk to the Arl."
"Jarl," she corrected their leader. "I was just asking him something to clarify some rumors I heard. We're heading up now, right?"
"Yeah, gotta get Yang thaned. Or, uh… Is thaned a word? Is it like being knighted?"
"I think it would properly called 'having the title of thane conferred upon'."
"Too wordy," Yang complained as she started hobbling forward. "Let's go get me thaned, guys."
As Yang, Ruby, and Weiss went forward to speak with Balgruuf, Blake took a small detour to find and talk to Nelkir. He was easiest to pick out, being the youngest boy. The older boy was talking to their uncle, while the girl was playing with dolls. Nelkir was simply sitting and reading, away from the both of them.
'Doesn't look dark to me. A little broody, perhaps.' Yang might have joked about her knowing exactly what brooding looked like, but that was neither here nor there. She approached the child, and tried to recall exactly how speaking with kids worked. He eyed her from the side and sighed.
"Another wanderer," he complained. "So, what're you here for? Mercenary? Merchant? Maid? You have a sword. No armor. Dressed funny. Must be a merchant. Trying to kiss up to my father, huh?"
Blake was a little stunned, but quickly shook away her surprise and cleared her throat.
"A little rude, don't you think, saying that to someone you just met?"
"Doesn't matter to me. You'll either be gone by the end of the week or working for my father all the time." He flipped a page in his book. "Wonder if the ears will make people kick you out. No, you're a thane already. They might make an exception."
Now her eyes widened. She knew some people could just tell by looking at her and observing for a while. A lot of Khajiit commented about having smelled it even before she removed the bow, but here this child was already able to tell what her secret was.
She decided to cut to the chase. "Look, your father asked me to speak to you."
The boy just dropped his book onto the table and sneered. "He sent you to bother me? One day I'll… Tch, whatever. He doesn't know a thing about me." He smirked. "But I know about him. And the war. More than he might think."
"What…are you talking about?" Blake was a little frightened, but less because of the attitude and more of whom it was coming from. This kid couldn't have been over thirteen years old, yet the way he smiled reminded her of some of the worst people she could think of.
"I know that he still worships Talos. And that he hates the Thalmor as much as the Stormcloaks do." No real surprise there. She figured most Nords on either side felt that way. "That he worries about being chased from Whiterun. That he… That I'm…" His expression faltered into one of melancholy. "That I don't have the same mother as my brother and sister."
Blake felt her ears spring up at that. "Is… Is that what's-"
"Look, don't even bother. I've heard it all already. From 'it doesn't matter' to 'so was Martin Septim'. I just don't care anymore."
"Well, how in the world did you even know?" Blake asked. "It sounds like your father tried to keep it a secret. Is that why you're mad?"
"This castle's old," he stated matter-of-factly. "Lots of places nobody's been in a while. Places where you can overhear things. See things." He smirked. "And the Whispering Lady."
"The…who?"
"She won't tell me her name," he said like it was no big deal. "I've gotten good at listening to keyholes. At the basement door, I could hear her. I thought someone caught me at first, but then she started telling me even more secrets. Can't open the door though."
Blake's mind was running a mile a minute. There was someone in the castle. Someone just handing out secrets to a little kid like candy. She couldn't even tell what their purpose was. Was this lady trying to turn Nelkir against his father for political reasons? Was she after Nelkir himself? How was she in the basement to the point the boy couldn't get in?
Whatever was going on, Blake needed to get to the bottom of it and soon.
"Where is this door, exactly?"
The moment Yang was given her title, and they were all handed a sword or axe with an engraving of Whiterun's Mare upon them, a woman in steel armor with a sword and shield entered the main hall and walked straight to Ruby. Before Ruby could react to the sudden arrival, the woman addressed her directly.
"An honor to meet you, my thane," the woman announced with an arm across the chest and a bow at the waist. "I am Lydia, and I swear to defend you and your household from this day forwards."
Not knowing what exactly to say, Ruby went with the first thing that came to mind. "Uh, happy to have you Lydia. I'm Ruby."
"Happy to be here, my thane."
"Well, with that settled," Balgruuf sighed. "I hope you ladies don't mind if I take a moment to rest." He began heading back into the castle towards his chambers, leaving the four women alone with each other.
"So…" Yang began. "Either of you going to mention the goliath in the room or…"
"A…goliath?" the housecarl asked.
"Imagine a mammoth, but bigger, furless, black and white, and full of the unquenchable blood thirst for the destruction of humanity," the brawler described.
"Yang, I don't want to be rude," her sister pouted.
"Not being rude. We just gotta explain this eventually. Hey Blake. …Whoa, what happened? You see a ghost?"
The harrowed looking faunus shook her head, but her team couldn't help but feel worried for her.
"Is there something wrong?" Weiss asked.
"Just…a little shell-shocked I guess."
"Okay. Geez, didn't think the little prince was that bad." Yang shrugged. "So, I say we go down to the Bannered Mare and use this opportunity to drink like no tomorrow."
"Yang, remember last time?" her sister warned.
"Hey, I'm just going with the local customs. Nords drink to toast the fallen when a warrior gets killed in battle, especially epic ones like against a dragon, right?"
The girls looked to Lydia, who gave a partial shrug.
"She isn't wrong. I imagine all the survivors are celebrating and mourning. They might expect you to at least show."
Ruby sighed. "Okay, fine, but no getting crazy this time."
"Ruby, are we really-" her partner started.
"Just limit her to three to start and then one every twenty minutes. We can't stop her, but we can control the damage."
"You're way too experienced for this. How often does your sister go drinking?"
"Eh, I didn't learn from watching her. Learned from watching over our uncle."
"Greatest uncle ever, by the way," Yang said as she began hobbling towards the doors. "Taught Ruby everything she knows about the scythe. Taught me everything I know about keeping boys at bay."
"I fear having to someday meet your uncle." Weiss regretted it the moment she realized what she said, and quickly turned to her partner. "I'd still like to meet him though. He is your uncle, after all. He can't be all bad."
"Aw, thanks Weiss!" Ruby gently butte her shoulder with her head and went after Yang. Lydia followed right after her, and the other two trailed after them all.
"So, what happened anyways?" Weiss asked, hoping Blake would open up a bit to her about what was bothering her. "Was it something to do with the Jarl's children? Do I need to help you out with them? I do have a bit of experience with spoiled, rich children, in case you didn't notice."
"It's…fine. I think I've already got some help." Blake shuddered at the memory of the unnatural voice that came from that door and how Nelkir just knew from looking at her she'd met the Whispering Lady. But some other words really frightened her as well.
"No one will miss Farengar - I promise you."
A child just should not be that fine with the prospect of a man's death.
Besides, someone here did care about Farengar, and she was standing right next to her. Even if their relationship was purely one of business, Weiss wouldn't take kindly to anyone connected with her being threatened.
Either way, she needed to get that key and remove whatever influence was in that room, before someone else more morally ambiguous or bankrupt stumbled upon this secret.
Yang so far had only had four bottles of mead. Two Honningbrew, and two Black-Briar's. She found she liked Honningbrew more, as Black-Briar tasted a little watered down. She didn't know if there was a sort of Food and Drug Administration in Tamriel, but they needed one to check over these companies and make sure that the alcohol content of their drinks was legitimate. Yep, solely for that reason! Not also because she was afraid that someone might get a bunch of food poisoning served out to a crowd one day. Just the drinks!
While she laughed at her own internal joke, she noticed someone sit next to Ruby, who was holding a cup of milk. Someone picked on her earlier about it, but after a spiel about how good milk was for growing bones, no one else dared bring it up. This man's intentions seemed different, however, as he placed a hand on her shoulder and began rubbing it!
Yang saw red, but she still couldn't quite stand on her own power. She still needed at least one crutch. She started to struggle up, when Lydia seemed to appear from the wall and pulled the man's arm away.
"I suggest you leave my charge alone," Yang heard her say under the din of the loud room.
"Oh?! And what are you gonna do about- Ack!"
As quick as lightning, Lydia had twisted his arm and used her other hand to slam his body into the table with a loud crash, catching everyone's attention. The man grunted in pain as she slowly pulled his arm up, her biceps visibly bulging and the muscles in her forearm showing off their definition. The man started beating his other fist against the table and he cried out and grit his teeth.
"Okay! I give up! I'll go!" he screamed. Lydia released him, and the man shot off, cradling his arm. Ruby whispered a thank you to the woman, and Yang smirked. She raised up a bottle and started hollering.
"Cheers for the new thane's housecarl!" The room responded with a whoop, several people pointing and laughing at the sore-armed man while she noticed a few gawking at Lydia with… Was that lust? Seemed Nords like their women tough.
She smirked and took down the last sip of number four when a man sat across from her.
"Hey, you hold your drink pretty well. Mind a bit of a contest?"
"Hm, maybe. You'd have to catch up first."
"You've done four right?"
"You been watching?" She raised an eyebrow at this. She couldn't tell if the man was planning something or if he was just genuinely interested in a drinking game.
"Oh no!" Weiss objected as she came nearby and sat next to the blonde. "You start this, and you're going to regret it in the morning.
Blake sat on her other side. "We're supposed to be limiting you, remember?"
"Come now ladies! Here, I'll sweeten the pot. All of you against me. One hundred septims from all of you, as one. One hundred total. One hundred from me to each of you. Three hundred total."
That caught the girls' interest, though Weiss still grabbed at her chin in thought as she looked away.
"And, I'll even through in this magic staff for the one who lasts the longest." He placed a staff on the table, the girls unsure of where it came from. Weiss looked it over in interest. It was carved like a massive rose, nearly the whole of the staff painted green, with the head of it splayed out like petals and painted red with bits of yellow, making it look like a real flower, two thorns on either side of the flowering part arcing upward, and a smaller, third thorn a little lower from them.
"What…does it do?" Weiss asked as her curiosity overcame her.
"It's a summoning staff. As for what it summons, beat me to find out."
The girls looked at each other, looked over to Ruby, and then around the inn's tavern. It wasn't like the place wasn't already full of drunken revelers, and their leader was well-protected, as far as this place went.
"All right, but only because as a learning mage I should have such a staff!"
"Hey, I'm doing this for the fun," Yang replied. "The money's just icing on the cake."
"It has been a while since…I let loose."
"All right! First goal! Let's all catch up to Miss Gold's four bottles!"
"Name's Yang. Yang Xiao-Long."
"Sam Guevenne. A pleasure to meet you."