"Dragon… born? What is that?" Aurash asked with no small amount of confusion and I couldn't help but smile at her.
"Dragonborn, or Dovahkiin in the dragon language, is someone born with the soul of a dragon. It pretty much stands as 'Born Hunter of Dragonkind', because when a Dragonborn kills a dragon, they absorb their very soul, knowledge and power. It also grants them the ability to learn and use the Voice almost instantly." I nodded towards the massive Word Wall behind her, "And that's pretty much what just happened."
Aurash blinked, then looked at the giant wall with narrowed eyes, as if in thought. I stepped to the side of it as she turned back towards the throne and took a deep breath, my eyes widening slightly as I felt some sort of invisible energy quickly lock me in place. I was unable to even twitch or breathe!
"Fus!" My hair blew back as an immense shock-wave exploded forth, tearing apart the throne and sarcophagus behind it instantly, together with the stone ground and the stairs. Everything in front of Aurash was torn to shreds for at least a dozen meters or more.
Holy shit.
If just the first word is so strong, then what about the full Shout? That's just terrifying.
"So this is the Shout that damn draugr used on me!" Aurash hummed, marvelling at the destruction she released with a single word while gently rubbing her throat.
"No, that's not it." I drew her attention to me as I kept staring at the destroyed steps with narrowed eyes. "When the draugr used it on you, he threw you across the room. If you used it on him, you would have thrown him across the room and into the wall…" My gaze snapped up to meet hers, "And he wouldn't have left it."
But why is it much more powerful than when the draugr used it? Is it because Aurash is the Dragonborn? Or are there other things at play?
"So mine is stronger huh?" I blinked slightly, noticing a slight flash of greed and anger on her face before it quickly vanished. Is Aurash hungry for power? Why? Could it be related to her younger brother perhaps? I hum and file that information for later. I might find out as more time passes, I'd rather not fuck up our friendship just because I am curious.
I step back from the Word Wall and walk to it's left, and sure enough there is a rusted lever hidden beside it.
I used a few roots to pull it and soon heard a metallic groan coming from the cave wall beside me. A few seconds later, a large portion of the wall was sucked in and moved to the right, revealing a large hidden room. I could see a large table inside full of dusty books and scrolls, several shelves and bottles. But my eyes were drawn towards the Arcane Enchanter in the corner.
I didn't wast time and walked right towards it, blowing the dust on top of it away and cleaning it as much as I could. It was different from the one in the game, but I recognized it thanks to the green crystal ball on it.
The table was eight sided and was quite large, bigger than two handed weapons for sure. Instead of the six symbols being on top of it like in the game, this one just pitch black, but I saw several light spots slowly swimming around. The table was akin to a starry night sky, but with very few stars. And after looking closely I noticed that each 'Star' was actually a Rune, and each Rune was a Letter. A letter of the alphabet.
I tried moving them around with my fingers but it didn't work, and only once I rested my hands on the table did I realize how it works. I felt the table slowly absorb my Mana, and as I poured more into it I tried to move the runes, and it worked.
I stopped pouring Mana into the table as the cost was quite large. But I liked the challenge, so I pulled the dagger that I haven't used in a while out of my inventory and placed it on the table, then thought about what Enchantment to put on it, just to try.
I believe that the more complicated the Enchantment is, the greater the cost and the better the reward I gain. I might gain more than a single level in the Enchantment Skill if I make a powerful enough Enchanted weapon.
I have a lot of Mana, of that I am sure, and doubled with my Mage Stone blessing I can surely make something complicated and good.
I narrowed my eyes and poured Mana into the table, several Runes starting to move towards and around the dagger at my will. Then they started crawling onto the dagger, and moving them on top of it required even more Mana, which showed just how hard Enchanting actually is.
The moment I drew my attention away from some of the runes, they would instantly start to move back to their original place, and it was a pain in the ass. I had to focus in order to keep them still, which meant I had to use even more Mana.
I slowly started forming a word letter by letter on the dagger, keeping the other letters in place so that they won't move back, else it would be annoying.
I bit my lower lip as my eyes darted from rune to rune, swiftly moving them in place and keeping them locked there.
I needed an image. The way the Enchantment must manifest once activated. I already have fire and lightning magical abilities, so I'll create an ice Enchantment. Powerful, and to be used sparsely as it won't have many charges before it expires. Of course, the first charge will be used as a test as I need to know that my Enchantment came out as I wanted.
So I slowly put down the words of the kind of Enchantment I wanted.
Ice. Blast. Spike. Ten.
Basically, a blast of ice spikes in a large range of ten meters. With how powerful the Enchantment is, I doubt it will have more than five charges, especially since it's on a small dagger. I presume that the better the quality of the weapon used, the more charges there will be. And also the greater the Soul Gem used, the more powerful the Enchantment will be.
Oh crap, I forgot I need a Soul Gem to finalize the Enchantment!
Just as I was about to freak out and fuck up the Enchantment, Aurash's arm came into view. There was a large, fist sized light purple gem in her hand, which she placed on the dagger. The gem glowed brightly for a second before it quickly crumbled into dust and I pulled back with a soft gasp.
I rubbed my temples as I tried to calm down the pounding headache in my head. I didn't even realize I almost used all of my Mana to do just this Enchantment. Still, I can't wait to do more of them!
"You just made an Enchanted Weapon." Aurash stated blankly as she grabbed the dagger, which now had a bright sky blue glow around it. The temperature around it was also very cold.
I couldn't help the very proud grin that spread across my face. This just gave me a sense of accomplishment that I never felt before. It felt so nice!
"It's actually easy to understand how to make Enchanted weapons!" I stated with a grin, which twitched as Aurash just kept giving me a very flat stare. "Look, these stars are actually runes if you look closely. Each rune is a letter of the alphabet, and to create an Enchantment, you need to have an image and simplify it with words." I gently took the cold dagger out of her hands and gripped it tightly as I turned to a ruined part of the room. "The one I put on this dagger should be very powerful, and have very few charges, but I need to test it out."
I poured some magic into the dagger and felt it grow colder and colder. Then I swung upward and grinned when the dagger glowed brightly. A wave of cold air erupted the next second, followed by frost covering the ground and then large spikes of ice to erupt out of the frost.
I whistled as I marvelled the large spikes of ice, each one thicker than my arm and tall enough that they reach my stomach. These things can skewer anything in their path, just as I had wanted.
I put the dagger away and turned to Aurash with an even bigger proud grin. She keeps staring at me blankly for a few seconds before she sighs and smiles. Am I driving her insane by revealing all this stuff? First my race, then creating a giant plant monster and turning a Hellhound pup into a giant Hellhound, and no I can Enchant things.
"Oh right, where did you find that Soul Gem?" I don't remember us running into one during our path here, and both enchanted staffs are in my inventory right now.
"They were right next to the Arcane Enchanter." Aurash states, pointing her thumb to the right of said magical table, where two large boxes were placed. Inside one of them were several dozen transparent crystals, which might be empty Soul Gems. The other instead had eight large purple crystals. They were Soul Gems of course, but I can't tell the quality as they all have different shapes from the ones I am used to. Actually, do they even have qualities like in the game?
"We should really keep the fact that you can make Enchanted Weapons a secret." Aurash states as I throw both the empty and filled gems into my inventory, and luckily enough, I can also send something as big as the Arcane Enchanter into my inventory. I should find out what the limit is about that when I can.
"That's next to impossible." I sigh as I pat the dust off my hands and turn towards her. "A dragon appeared at Helgen, and many more will come. And you, being the Dragonborn, are the only way to stop another Dragon War to break out." Aurash frowned at my words, clearly not liking having this kind of huge responsibility dropped on her so suddenly, and without her even wanting it.
I don't blame her honestly. Who, in their right state of mind, would go all gung-ho and accept this role, weak as you are, and go fight literal dragons? Will you even gain a huge power boost when you kill and absorb one or will you just learn how to use Shouts? Because that's surely going to help!
The only Shout that can help is the Dragonrend one. Hopefully, it's even stronger than in the game, because just making dragons stop flying, while useful, it's still weak. But seeing how the first word of 'Fus Ro Dah' was so powerful, I think I can have some hope.
Wait, can she use other words without 'learning' them from dead dragons or Word Walls? No, I doubt it. People need to study for years in order to fully understand and use a Shout. Knowing the words is useless, one needs to understand everything about it.
"That we like it or not, we will be pulled into this storm, and like hell I'm not going to abuse this Enchanting skill of mine to make sure we live through it." The more I used it, the better it became, and the greater and more powerful the Enchantments I make will be. The more I do it, the higher our chances of survival will be.
"I don't like it, but I understand." Aurash sighs, scratching at the back of her neck while frowning. The burden of being a Dragonborn was massive and terrifying, and I'll try and support her as much as possible through this. Hopefully, everything works out.
"Come on, let's get out of this place." Aurash stated after another sigh, clearly not wanting to think too much about her Dragonborn heritage, and her future dragon hunting. I still hope that I can control dragon and have them calm down through my title and Wildlife Control skill. I really, really do not want to go around and kill them. But if I have to...
We left the hidden room since it had just scrap and nothing else, all books and the rest crumbled to the touch sadly. I really wanted to read what was inside them.
"You know…" Aurash stops and draws my attention, her brows slightly furrowed together. "Since Enchantments need soul gems to take effect and be refilled, it will be quite easy for you to have quite a lot of soul gems on hand. You can just kill the things inside those Daedric Dungeons." Holy shit! She's right! And here I was thinking of ways to gather more soul gems without having to go around killing. I was mostly thinking of buying them since I'll very likely have a huge amount of money in my pockets once my Alchemy business starts, but this helps too.
"Pretty sure it's going to be filled with spiders though…" I shivered at that. Small spiders I can deal with no problem, but horse sized ones? Yeah, no. With my title, I was able to ignore those back at Helgen, mostly because I don't like killing living creatures, but that doesn't count for the monsters inside the Daedric Dungeons, as they are very likely constructs created by the Daedric Prince that controls said Dungeon.
Mephala is the one that controls the one at Whiterun, and her minions are most definitely spiders, or things similar to spiders.
Well, as long as they aren't utterly massive then it's fine. I had a pet tarantula, and I used to let it crawl on my arm because the little cutie hated being alone, so I can deal with them. But Skyrim's spiders are just so… ugly.
Shaking my head, I soon joined Aurash as we walked back to the entrance of Bleak Falls Barrow, glad that this over.
"By the way, did you find anything good? Other than the Enchanted Sword of course." There were a lot of weapons left behind after we killed all the skeletons and draugrs, even armour pieces. And while everything is old and rusted, I think some of the metals can still be smelted for reforging.
"Not much. Almost everything crumbled when I squeezed it a bit too hard, but I was able to recover a lot of the armour from that giant draugr that was with the Wight." She rose her right hand and pulled out a dusty pitch black gauntlet from her pocket dimension, it was even the right size for her but it had quite a bit of rust around it. "I don't recognize the material of this, but it's very good and hard even after so many years passed. Even after you smashed that fucker into the ceiling, most of his armour was still intact." I couldn't help but snort when I remembered how I smashed that draugr into the ceiling. Who would have thought that violence could be fun sometimes.
…
I did not just think that.
I shook my head to erase those thoughts. Oh right, let me check on my Enchanting skill level, I want to know if it went up or not.
[Name: Flora
Race: Nymph
Title: "Child of The Earth"
Job: Druid lv 19/100
Mage Skill Trees:
Destruction (3)
Restoration (8)
Enchanting (4)]
Damn, three levels is a lot! I mean, I did make a powerful and complicated Enchantment that took quite a bit of Mana. That's not something a beginner can do, and I only managed to do it because I had the Mage Stone blessing and quite a fair bit of Mana.
I do wonder though: Will the Mana cost to make Enchantments grow lower the higher the Enchanting skill level is? Will they also grow stronger? I hope so, it will make things better.
Hell, I might just use any scrap weapon Aurash has and pull an all-nighter to put Enchantments on them, maybe also ask for a steady supply of Mana Potions if my Alchemy business goes off perfectly. I'll be able to power level it a lot, but it will just grow harder and harder to raise it's level, it won't be the same as in the game. I'll probably have to Enchant thousands of weapons and armours, maybe even more, just to get to max level for Enchanting.
As for the Destruction skill, I'll train them in the Daedric Dungeon, just set fire to everything. The quicker I can cast different spells with it, the better.
As for the Restoration skill, I'll just offer to heal those that come out injured from the Daedric Dungeon. I'll also have to see if there is a Daedric Dungeon full of undead. Molag Bal most definitely has one full of vampires or things like that, but like hell I'm stepping into that thing. And I bet the Dungeon is at Castle Volkihar, because why not.
"You know, if there are Daedric Dungeons, do you think that the Divines have a Dungeon too?" I stated aloud, mostly to myself. If each Daedric Prince has a Dungeon, then maybe the Divines made dungeons for themselves too. That would actually be cool.
"Maybe they do, but nobody has found them yet." Aurash hums as I take Fenrir out of the Pet Space since the entrance of Bleak Falls Barrow came in view. We can finally get out of this place. I do not enjoy being shot by arrows. I already got show twice! Far too many times! Am I some sort of appealing target or what!?
"It's going to take a few days to get to Whiterun…" Aurash grumbles as we step out into the snow and look to our left. A massive city surrounded by large walls came into view, much bigger than in the game. There was a large forest between us and the city, and it will indeed take a while to get there.
"We can ride on Fenrir." I suggested, causing said Hellhound to let out an excited howl. She'll surely be incredibly fast and we might be able to reach it Whiterun tomorrow at most. The faster we get there, the faster I can get to work on preparing everyone for the fucking dragon attack. I just don't know when it will happen!
Shaking my head, I had Fenrir lie down as me and Aurash got on her back, then once she stood back up and slowly had her walk the path down the mountain right in front of us, not the one where we came from. I also made sure to tell her to stop when she is tired or hungry. We have a lot of food and meat at hand, so we can afford giving her some every now and then.
We quickly reached the bottom of the mountain and had Fenrir speed up, and I smiled when I could feel her happiness as she ran like a bullet through the forest. She was going so fast and yet she was so agile that she blitzed around the trees like it was nothing.
"Keep an eye out for any giants or cyclopes, they tend to live in forests like this!" I nod my head, grumbling at the fact that now there are cyclopes too here to worry about, before just shaking my head and focusing myself on the road. Mostly because Fenrir tried to go after anything she sees, like rabbits or even a deer. This is what happens when you have a giant wolf with the mentality of a small pup.
We keep travelling in comfortable silence, other than Fenrir occasional happy bark or howl and her constant panting. I also occasionally see a group of goblins as we run by, but they all scream and run away when they see Fenrir. And because she sometimes stomps some of them to death, not that I mind.
Fenrir turned out to be much faster than i thought as by the time the sky was turning orange we already reached the edge of the forest and were just a few minutes away from Whiterun.
"Cyclope!" And of course we had to run into the usual giant attack when you first arrive at Whiterun. Oh wait, it's not a giant, but a big ass cyclope! Which let me tell you, is at least three times bigger than a giant! It's a big dark green monster with a single large eye, tusks, a fat belly and legs bigger than some trees of the forest behind us.
I saw several civilians run away from the giant rampaging monster, a destroyed house right behind it along with several corpses. Must have been a sudden attack.
Both of the cyclopes legs were bleeding profusely, with arrows and gashes all over it, yet the monster still stomped on the ground, trying to get kill his assailants.
There were more than twenty people surrounding the cyclope in familiar looking armour. Pretty sure the redhead with a bow is Aela.
Look at those long legs…
Wait, now is not the time to admire a pair of sexy looking long legs!
"Fenrir!" Fenrir howled and shot forward at my command, a low whine coming from her mouth as flames and embers poured out of it in large bursts while they condensed. The Companions that were fighting the giant drew back, eyes wide as they saw Fenrir charging in and vaulting over them.
A large fireball smashed against the side of the cyclope head before exploding, causing it to reel back and roar in pain. It was soon followed by a large pillar of earth rising up and smashing right where the sun doesn't shine. I smiled as I heard several guys hiss loudly and cross their legs. Meanwhile, Aurash was just laughing her ass off as the cyclope keeled over while holding his groin.
Never leave it without protection in my presence!
"We are here to help!" I announced loudly, drawing the gaze of the Companions as I waved at them from my spot on top of Fenrir. Helping people makes me feel so happy! Pretty sure they would have won either way, but I can still offer some help. And Healing if they need to.
I turned towards the cyclope as another pillar of earth rose up from the ground and smashed through the large eye of the cyclope, it was a very easy target since he was keeled over. A fountain of blood poured out of the completely destroyed eye as the cyclope just twitched and went limp.
I winched and looked away from the blood pouring out of the hole, albeit the stench was growing stronger and stronger. Yeah, I'll never get used to this.
"We could have handled it ourselves, but thank you for your help…" The redhead that is definitely Aela speaks up as I have Fenrir lie down so me and Aurash can get off. The Companions glance warily at her, but she just barks and pants happily at them without a care as she lays beside me.
"By the Divines, you actually have tamed an Adult Hellhound!" A huge Nord man steps beside Aela, staring at Fenrir with wide and amazed eyes. Is this Farkas? He does kinda look like him. Just much taller and muscular.
"This is Fenrir!" I introduced my amazing pet Hellhound, "This is Aurash!" I introduced my orc companion, "And I'm Flora! It's a pleasure to meet all of you!" I stated sincerely as I gave them an honest smile. Many of the guys were already staring at me in a certain why, but I simply powered through my nervousness as I put on the most serious look I can.
"We bring news from Helgen. A dragon destroyed it just yesterday morning." That causes them to recoil back in shock and exchange worried glances among themselves.
"A dragon?" Aela spoke up with a frown, "Many of the sentinels and citizens of Whiterun saw a giant black beast fly across the sky yesterday, but it was too fast to fully make it out. Is that the dragon that destroyed Helgen?" I nodded my head with a grave look. It's a good thing Alduin flew over the city, it should have put them on alert.
"We should get you two to the Jarl as soon as possible, he'll definitely want to hear what happened." Farkas nods his head, then glances between me and Fenrir. I instantly understand, and I send her inside my Pet Space after a quick hug. The sudden disappearance of the giant Hellhound has them all blink in confusion, but then they just shrug and ignore it. Pretty sure this isn't the weirdest thing they have seen.
"Get to work on removing this corpse from the field! Farkas, let's get them to the Jarl." Aela nodded at us and walked forward, stepping onto the long stone path that would lead us up the hill and towards the gates.
Whiterun's walls didn't look frail and brittle like in the game, but tall and strong, with dozens of archers walking along the top. It also had a huge vantage point as it was built on elevated ground and the only way to access it is from the main gates.
"Say, what's Whiterun standing in the civil war?" I asked Aela as we were walking up the hill. This is something important, because even if they stand either with the Stormcloaks or the Imperials, I'd rather make it clear that I don't stand on either side and am completely neutral, unless provoked that is.
"Whiterun stands right in the middle of Skyrim, and it's a neutral ground for anyone that wants to run away from the war and seek shelter. Neither the Imperials or the Stormcloaks dare give Whiterun trouble, lest they provoke the Companions." Farkas was the one to answer, and I breathed a massive sigh of relief. It's neutral ground! Fucking fuck yes! Now I won't be bothered by a bunch of idiots trying to invite me in their army or worse!
Aurash seemed to be extremely glad of that fact too, neither of us wants to participate in this civil war, because it's none of our business. She isn't from Skyrim, and I'm not from this universe, simple as that.
We walk through the open gates and across the large bridge after it, and I can't help but smile at how familiar yet unfamiliar this place looks. Seeing it with your own eyes is just different.
I can't help but snort when I see Aurash eyeing the forge on the right side of the bridge. Guess I'll know where to find her when she is gone. If they will even allow her to use it.
"Hey…" I blink when Aurash leans close to me, making me tilt my head to the side to hear what she wanted to say, "You do all the talking. Any man would listen to a cutie like you." My face flushed and I just gave her an angry pout. I'd stomp on her foot, but I am barefoot and she has iron boots over hers.
"Your friend is right. Albeit I doubt they would pay much attention to your words." Aela pipes up from the front, her voice filled with amusement. I just groan loudly and cover my face with my hands as they laugh at me.
I'm already getting bullied! And since when does Aela crack jokes?! Go back to being an NPC with scripted lines! Meanie!
"If they don't listen, I'll just pull Fenrir out." I grumble loudly as I stomp my foot, making them laugh harder. Pulling a giant Hellhound out of nowhere is surely going to make them listen instead of staring at my cleavage.
After quite some time of walking through the streets, we walk up a set of stairs that leads to a massive plaza. In the middle of it was a massive tree with dark pink leaves, most of them were burned down and the middle of the tree was split in half and charred black. Was it hit by lightning?
On the right side of the plaza was a massive staircase that led up to an equally giant building with a massive boat on top of it as roof, dozens of people walked in and out of the open doors of the building in an endless stream. They must be adventurers.
I could see a large arc behind the building, standing slightly taller than it and not that far behind. It was pitch black in colour, and I could see a swirling dark purple mass below it. I guess that must be the Daedric Dungeon, or the entrance to it. It gives me the chills just staring at it.
On the left is a large city district full of houses, even small farms with chickens. While right past the lightning-struck tree is another set of large stairs that leads up towards Dragonsreach, which was much, much bigger than in the game.
"That's Jorrvaskrs, it's where us Companions reside and take care of Guild matters. We also got our own Daedric Dungeon, horrible place filled with spiders and webs." I see Farkas give a full body shiver at the mention of spiders and I tilt my head at that. He has arachnophobia, doesn't he? Pretty sure it was in the game too.
My eyebrow twitches as we walk past the large stream of adventures, and several of them wolf whistles after me.
Don't call out Fenrir. Don't call out Fenrir. Don't call out Fenrir.
A single glare from Aela has all those adventures calling after me run away with the their tails between their legs, some even screaming like girls. There has to be some sort of story behind this, because I doubt anyone would react to this extent just from a glare.
I shake my head and ignore the adventures, and turn my attention to the dying tree. I feel bad for leaving it like this when I have the power to heal it.
I walk next to it and place my palm against the trunk of the tree. I don't need to do this since my range is now quite massive, but here spells need hands as the catalyst. Aurash is the only one that I trust enough where I can just invoke spells without the use of my hands around her.
I poured my Mana into the tree and smiled when it swelled and the burn part soon vanished and regrew at a rapid pace. The split part soon melded together as the branches were covered by leaves and grew thicker and bigger along with the tree.
I pulled back after just a few seconds, in fear that I would make it far too big and it would ruin the plaza, and then walked back to the group. I also did my best to ignore the stares as almost everyone stopped to stare at me and the tree.
"The followers of Kynareth worship that tree, so they will be very thankful to you after this." Farkas stated as I glanced back towards the tree with a confused look. Why do they worship it? Oh well, not my business. I just healed it because I felt bad.
Aela snorted, then shook her head and turned around as she started walking back towards Dragonsreach and we soon followed after her.
As I was walking up the stairs I felt a gaze on my back and turned my head to look at who was looking at me so intently that I could literally feel it.
My gaze landed on a yellow robed woman, her hands were pressed together as if in a prayer before her chest, and she was looking at me intently.
I tilted my head, gave her a wave and a smile, then blinked when the woman bowed several times before turning around and hurrying away.
She must be one of the priestesses of Kynareth.
I shrug and turn back to walking up the stairs, she probably just wanted to thank me. Maybe I should expect more thanks from the other followers too so I should be ready to be swarmed once I'm out of Dragonsreach.
I marvelled at the amazing giant castle and how wide it was because it was quite cool. I never had the chance to travel back in my world, so I was never able to visit ancient structures or castles. And yet now I had one right in front of me that was still in good conditions and was still being used and guarded. This is so cool!
I also noticed how Dragonsreach was not at the very back of Whiterun, but in the very middle. The city extended all around it and Dragonsreach was at the highest point.
"State your business!" One of the two guards by the large doors shouted as we approached, and Aela quickened her pace to stand in front of us.
"I am Aela, member of the Companions!" The two guards stood straighter at her introduction, clearly showing that the Companions have a huge standing in Whiterun. "I bring two people that must speak with the Jarl at once, it is a matter of life and death!" Her voice held an edge to it that caused the guards to quiver. Is she going to beat them up if they don't let her through? What a violent woman.
My gaze moves down to her legs. I certainly wouldn't mind being choked by those thighs.
Wait, no! Bad Flora! This is important!
The guards stepped back and pushed one of the large doors open, allowing us to step through and into the large hall lit up by torches.
There were several maids cleaning the place with brooms, and each pillar had a guard standing next to it, watching us with a sharp gaze. Being a guard must be one hell of a boring job.
I looked up at the large set of stairs that would lead us to the Jarl's throne and saw a Dunmer woman in leather armour standing right at the top, her back to us. She turned around and narrowed her eyes at us, but soon relaxed when her eyes landed on Aela. She threw a glance back, then turned around and walked down the stairs.
"Aela, what are you doing here?" The woman, most likely Irileth, asked as she stopped in front of us. She threw a glance towards me and Aurash and inspected us for a second before speaking again, "And who are these two? The Jarl is in a meeting with the nobles and cannot be disturbed." Her tone was strong and she definitely wouldn't budge unless it was something incredibly important. Luckily, our matter is important, and we have Aela and Farkas on our side.
"This is important Irileth, these two must speak to the Jarl at once." Said Dunmer looked at me and Aurash again, then raised a brow towards Aela. "They bring words from Helgen. A dragon razed the whole city to the ground. The same giant beast that flew across the sky yesterday." Aela stated seriously, causing Irileth to draw in a sharp and cold breath. The Dunmer woman nodded and turned around, having us follow her up the stairs.
I have to say that Dunmers are scary. Their glowing red eyes and pitch black sclera are just so intimidating!
"My Jarl!" Irileth spoke up as we reached the top of the stairs. The place looked the same as in the game, with a big fire in the middle, the Jarl throne at the back with a dragon skull on top, which was massive, and two large tables, one on the left and one on the right.
Both tables were filled with several people of varying age, some of them having armed people behind them. They must be the nobles. Some even look like the common nobles in anime. Fat ugly guys that started leering at me instantly. Ew.
There was even an orc that was staring at Aurash. Well, she is a beauty. At least for me she is.
"Forgive me for interrupting the meeting, but there is something of utmost importance that you must hear." The man sitting on the throne rose a brow and nodded his head. He was tall and muscular, with long blonde hair tied in braids, a full messy beard and sharp blue eyes. Man, Jarl Balgruuf looks much better than in the game.
"Speak. I hope this is as important as you say." Irileth nodded sharply, then turned her gaze towards me and Aurash, which clearly meant that I should speak up.
I took a deep breath and stepped forward, hardening my gaze to not show my nervousness.
"A dragon has destroyed Helgen." I spoke up, causing the entire hall to fall silent. I let the words stew for a bit before I spoke up again, "It was razed to the ground in minutes. A beast as black as the night and as big as the mountain. It used the Thu'um to bring forth a storm that rained fireballs the size of a horse, and just sat in the middle of the city, watching it as it crumbled." A low murmur started echoing around the hall, and Jarl Balgruuf leaned forward on his throne, hands clenching the armrests.
"The Imperials had managed to capture Jalr Ulfric during an ambush and were getting ready to execute him when the beast appeared. We didn't meet any survivor on our way to Riverwood, but I highly doubt many managed to leave the city, and I doubt more survived the night. Alvor of Riverwood sent us here to warn you about the danger, and to ask for help, as Riverwood currently lacks manpower to protect itself." The murmur ceases, and the nobles simply look between each other and towards me. Jarl Balgruuf looked like he was about to rip his throne to shreds, but then he simply sighed and stood up.
"Everyone, leave. We'll finish the meeting another day." He walked down from his throne as the nobles scurried up and quickly left the hall, then Dragonsreach as a whole. "Irileth, gather some guards and send them to Riverwood, I refuse to let the people there die." Irileth bowed sharply and instantly left, hurrying down the stairs to take care of her order.
"You two have my deepest thanks, I'll make sure to reward you handsomely." Jarl Balgruuf stated with a nod, then his expression soured slightly. "My court wizard has always been interested in dragons and has been undergoing a study towards them, he might know of ways to combat those beasts. I'd like if you two could recount the facts to him too." I nodded my head and followed after him, giving Aurash a smile as she sighed through her nose, clearly not liking all of this. Aela and Farkas stay behind, so I have Aurash wait with them. I already have the Dragonstone on me and can simply recount the facts once more, no biggie.
"Farengar!" Jarl Balgruuf's voice booms as he steps in front of a large pair of doors and slams them open, revealing a large studio with an alchemy table, an Arcane Enchanter and several shelves and supplies. In the middle of the room was a dark haired man in dark blue robes, whom jumped out of his chair and threw his papers in the air at the sudden entrance of the Jarl.
"My Jarl! Please, stop doing that!" Farengar whined, holding a hand over his chest and taking in a deep breath. His eyes widened when he saw the Jarl serious expression, and he instantly regained his bearing.
"Farengar, your knowledge of dragons will finally be put to good use. The beast that flew across the sky yesterday? That was a dragon, and minutes before he flew above Whiterun, that beast had just finished tearing Helgen to shreds." Farengar's expression twitched, and his eyes filled with understanding when they landed on me, clearly recognizing me as a 'survivor'.
"This may be of help too." I spoke up, drawing their eyes on me as I pulled out the Dragonstone, shocking Farengar even more. "It's a map of dragons burial sites, and there is one right on the north of Whiterun." I placed the large tablet on the desk as Jarl Balgruuf drew in a sharp breath and releasing a quiet curse.
"The black dragon that destroyed Helgen is very likely going to bring them back to life. I have reasons to believe that's Alduin." Jarl Balgruuf cursed again, this time much louder, and Farengar did the same. He quickly grabbed the tablet and flipped it around, drawing his fingers along the dusty surface before tapping a certain location.
"My Jarl, she is right. I hate to say this, but we might face a dragon attack in the coming days." His fingers moved around the tablet again and tapped several location, some of them being very close to large cities. "We need to send runners to various cities too, this is serious." Farengar drew back, sighing deeply as he ran a hand through his hair.
"It might not be as bad as we are thinking. Our soldiers have experience fighting against Drakes and Wyverns, so that should help." So there are miniature dragons too now? Fuck's sake. I wonder if Aurash can still devour their souls since they kinda are 'dragons'.
"Dragons are the size of buildings, or even bigger. There is a skull right above the Jarl's throne to testify that. The dragon that destroyed Helgen had a claw that was ten times the size of that skull. They might be of varying sizes, and they all have different ways to use the Thu'um." Farengar cursed as I slipped the rug from under his feet. I bit my lips as I thought of ways that might help them, and I did have one but…
"I… do have a way to help in case of a dragon attack." I stated, drawing their attention to me once more, their eyes full of hope. "But I need you to promise to not share it absolutely with anyone, it must be between us. If someone asks, then just say I am the provider and… protect me from them in case they get forceful." Jarl Balgruuf and Farengar frown and share a look, with Firengar crossing his arms and tapping his foot.
"It depends on how good this 'help' might be." Jarl Balgruuf stated as Farengar nodded, and I smiled. I may be able to gain protection and a good standing with this.
"It's Enchanting, I can teach you how to Enchant." Farengar draws in a sharp breath, his arms uncrossing and eyes wide as he stares at me like a fanatic. This is clearly the greatest dream of a mage, being able to put Enchantments on something. "I can teach you how to Enchant weapons, but on the condition that you absolutely do not sell them. Else the civil war will grow ten times worse. Arm your soldiers and those you thrust with them, but keep it within the city. Once voice spreads, say that I am the one that knows how to Enchant things, but I will not disclose or sell those weapons and armours, or teach it to others." Farengar throws a begging gaze towards Jarl Balgruuf, and said man was staring at me with wide eyes filled with hope.
"I swear upon my very soul and on the Nine Divines that no Enchanted weapon will make it's way outside the city under my watch, and that Farengar shall not disclose the way to create said Enchantments." Farengar was vibrating in place with a shaky smile, almost jumping in place at this point. "You might have given us the power to protect Whiterun, and you have my deepest thanks for this. From now on, you are a Thane of Whiterun and I'll make sure you will have skilled guards watching your back constantly." I released a sigh of relief, giving them a grateful smile as I relaxed and thanked them both profusely. With Whiterun being neutral and me being it's Thane, nobody will dare to attack or force me lest they draw Jarl Balgruuf wrath. I'll have to gain a good standing with the Companions too as extra precaution.
"I also have another way to help." I stated and I smiled nervously under their fervent gazes. They are looking at me as if I am a Goddess! Stop! "It's related to Alchemy though. Could you please get me in contact with the Master Alchemist of Whiterun?" There should be a Master Alchemist in each city, which are the main providers of the potion market. By giving my assistance to them, I'll raise my standing and importance even more. Mostly because I will help them make a shit ton of money constantly.
Jarl Balgruuf rose a brow, but nodded nonetheless and turned around to get that done while I turned towards the very excited looking Farengar to very quickly teach him how to make Enchantments.
"Enchanting is actually quite easy. Each star is a rune, and each rune is a letter of the alphabet. By pouring Mana into the Arcane Enchanter you can control those stars…" And so I started teaching Farengar how to create Enchantments while also writing down a translation of the each rune. Luckily, he memorized the runes and then turned the paper to ashes. It was a show of trust and loyalty that I appreciated a lot.
It wasn't until half an hour later that Jarl Balgruuf came back, luckily I was already done teaching everything to Farengar while also discussing about possible dragon-slaying effects to put on weapons. He had that idea, which reminded me of that sword called Dragonbane. I might have to arm Aurash with a weapon like that as soon as possible.
Farengar had stated that his first and best Enchanted gear was going to Irileth and to the Jarl, the he would make some for himself and then start on the guards and soldiers. I told him that I will certainly help him in doing that once I fully settled down, and he promised me that if I wanted I could have him teach me how to use Fire Magic since he was an Expert class Fire Mage. The offer was very appealing, and I'll make sure to take it up one day.
I turned my attention to the very sexy elven woman beside the Jarl. Her whole presence pretty much screamed 'Milf!'. She was a head taller than me, almost as tall as Jarl Balgruuf. She had long dark blonde hair and bright blue eyes, meaning that she might be a half-Nord half-Bosmer, just like my supposed race that me and Aurash came up with.
She was wearing a white lab coat over a black baggy shirt and long dark red skirt and boots.
"This is Ariana, the Master Alchemist of the Guild. Ariana, this is…" Jarl Balgruuf paused, blinking when he realized that he never got my name, and sent me a sheepish glance. My fault, I didn't introduce myself.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Ariana, my name is Flora." The very sexy woman gave me a smile that made my legs quiver as we shook hands. Damn, she smelled good too! "Before I go straight to the point, can you tell me about the potion market, and how many potions you can sell each day, and also how many you can make each day." Ariana rose a brow and shared a glance with Jarl Balgruuf, but the man gave her a smile and a nod. Farengar was also listening in, leaning against the table, clearly interested about my new plan. Mostly because I refused to tell him when he asked.
"The potion market, while it brings in a great deal of money, is mostly very slow. The gathering and growing of the herbs is always a contest between the cities, and growing the herbs takes months, some even take years." Ariana started, running a hand through her long blonde locks and crossing an arm under her very large bust. I guess the fact that elves are sexy is some sort of universal fact.
"Potions bring in a large profit when sold, prices range between the hundreds and the thousands. As for how many potions we can make per day…" She sighed and gave a wry smile, "There are times when we can't even make potions for a whole month because we lack ingredients." Damn, the situation sounds even more dire than I thought. Oh well, I can easily fix that.
"Thank you for telling me." I pulled out my wooden staff out of the inventory and grinned at them. "How would you like to start making loads of money through potion making?" I asked as roots, flowers and vines started growing out of my staff at a visible rate. Ariana stared at the staff in confusion alongside Farengar and Jarl Balgruuf.
Then it clicked.
"Flora, you are going to start a Golden Age for Whiterun." Jarl Balgruuf stated, voice hoarse and quite literally dripping with excitement. More money meant more power, he could have the walls strengthened and so much more stuff. And this was going to bring in loads of Septims.
"I can easily grow dozens, if not hundreds, of the herbs you need for potion making without a problem. You can lower the potions price to sell them in bulks, and even sell the extra herbs to other cities for more profit and so that they aren't left out and can still sell and make their own. And then you can use the money to buy herbs that you are missing so that I can grow them in huge batches too, and then sell the extra once more. We can easily become the main provider of herbs for the whole of Skyrim." Farengar just chuckled and then turns to his Arcane Enchanter, but I could easily see his excitement. Jarl Balgruuf went back to staring at me as if I was a Goddess while Ariana seemed to still be processing my words.
Needless to say that I received a hug from an elven Milf and I very much enjoyed it.
"We can get started right now. I can easily grow them in seconds." I told Ariana, whom started dragging me towards the door. I laughed and turned towards Jarl Balgruuf as I was being slowly dragged out of the room. "Could you please prepare a house for me and my friend? One close to the Guild would be perfect!" I hated having to ask such things, but Jarl Balgruuf simply nodded with a smile, making me relax.
I waved at Aurash, Aela and Farkas as Ariana dragged me by them, making them share a look and catch up to us. Aurash looked like she was about to throw Ariana across the city.
"Guess who just became the Thane of Whiterun?" I asked her with a huge grin, making her gape at me as I laughed out loud, enjoying the shocked expression Aela and Farkas were giving me too.
"This is Ariana, she is the Master Alchemist of the guild. The idea we had back in Riverwood is a huge success." Aurash blinked, then she nodded with a smile, clearly remembering it. This will bring a lot of money in our pockets, which is very welcome!
I turn back to stare at the large stairs out of Dragonsreach and blink when I see a blonde Nord woman in leather armour stomp past me. I looked back at her and followed her with my eyes for a bit before shrugging. She looked familiar, but it might just be my imagination.
She did look like she needed to take a chill pill. Pretty sure that scowl was going to be permanent if she didn't remove it.
"Flora, you have company." I perked up and turned towards Aela, whom was grinning and staring down at the bottom of the staircase. I followed her gaze and blinked when it landed on the twenty plus women in golden robes, whom were all staring towards me… worshipfully? Oh god, what is going on?
"Excuse me!" A blonde Nord woman steps forward, almost getting in my face and making me take a nervous step back. "Are you the one that healed the Gildrergreen tree?!"
I blinked and swept my eyes around the many priestesses, all waiting for my response quite eagerly. I gulped nervously and slowly nodded my head, which caused some of them to squeal while others cheered. But they all quickly regained their bearing as they knelt on the ground in front of me.
"It's an honour to be in your presence, Champion of Kynareth!"
Oh for fuck's sake...
[Crossposted from QQ!]
A.N.: Can any of you give me good Daedric Artifacts ideas? You can make them both versatile, OP or however you like, if you want that is!
An example below.]
Daedric Prince that created the Daedric Artifact:
Item Type: Armour/Weapon/Staff/etc
Effects:
(Optional) Drawbacks: