"Speaking normally"
'Thoughts'
~Telepathy~
[Written text like books or journals]
'How in the hell did I end up in this mess?' muttered the man in cuffs, his hands were tied by a rope, a piece of cloth in his mouth prevented him from uttering a word, and his fine clothing was now replaced with rags worthy of only beggars and prisoners. His prison wagon went up and down as they rode on the bumpy roads of the mountain.
With him were four other people whom Luther recognized all but one, a brown hair thief named Lokir who was shaking with dread of what is to come. A blond rebel, Ralof of Riverwood. A Freedom-seeking king, Ulfric Stromcloak. And most important of them all, a dunmer woman whose name Luther didn't know.
'You are a fucking idiot for falling into that trap Luther! you knew you were in Skyrim, you fucking knew what was going to happen, you played the damn game hundreds of times yet you still got caught up in this mess!' the spell sword berated himself as his eyes met the unconscious Dark elf next to him 'All I wanted was to live a quiet life away from the dragon born, but that damn Dremora had to ruin it all!' Luther frowned as he remembered the way he met the Dremora 'Asshole, throwing me into the imperial ambush just to spite me, bastard, I bet you are enjoying your time in oblivion don't you?' he cursed the Dremora.
Luther jumped as the Wagon bumped into something on the road, his cold skin hit the hardwood below. The head of the Dunmer woman fell on his shoulder, despite that she didn't seem to wake up. Luther pushed the woman away to where she was before and glared at the imperial solder driving the wagon.
"Damn imperials, thralls to Thalmor all of them" Luther heard Ralof mutter.
Not wanting to hear anything else and wanting to pass time, Luther decides to close his eyes and disperse some of his Magic outwards in order to train it, nothing too serious, just a letting the mana out of his body, emptying his reserves and letting it fill again, this way he can increase his reserves even further, just like how someone builds muscle mass.
The dispersing mana left some warmth in his body, yet even mana's heat could not protect him from the Skyrim herself 'At this rate, the cold will kill me before the executioner' he slightly increased the volume of the mana, his reserves were more than enough to keep him warm until they reach Helgen, after that he just have to wait for Alduin to free them and escape with dragon born.
Luther opened his eyes and glanced at the sleeping dunmer 'The nords won't like this, to think she was a dark elf' the woman was still sleeping, she was everything you would expect from a dark elf, sharp features, raven black hair, and most likely red eyes, she was beautiful due to her elven heritage but Luther wasn't that impressed, he has seen better, both mer and men.
Though her look wasn't the only thing that was impressive, from looking at the way her body was built, he could tell that she is quite skilled with edged weaponry, he didn't know exactly what but he could tell she has trained with edged weaponry from the way her muscles are built. Her mana or "Magicka" as the people of this world like to call it, was incredibly high, almost as much as his... almost...
'I came to this world 7 years ago and have been training ever since, wonder how much she has trained to get this good' Luther looked at the blue sky as he ponder the question.
"Hey you, you're finally awake, you were trying to cross the border right? walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that thief and that drunken fool over there" a voice snapped his attention.
'Wait did he just call me a drunk fool?' "Hmph hmmmm HA" Luther tried to insult the Nord but the cloth in his mouth muffled all the intelligible words into huffs.
Luther was ignored "Damn you Stormcloaks, Skyrim was fine until you came along, the empire was good and lazy until you came along, if they hadn't been looking for you, could've stolen that horse and went halfway to Hammerfall" the thief hissed before looking at the two prisoners in front of him.
'Here comes this cutscene, I was sick of watching it in every playthrough but seeing it happen right before my eyes is quite entertaining'
"Your two, you and me, we shouldn't be here, its the Stormcloaks the empire wants"
"We are all brothers and sisters in binds now thief!" Ralof said with a hint of disgust, looks like he doesn't like to share the journey with a thief, even if the said journey was to their deaths.
"I'm not your sister or comrade, Nord, don't assume anything" Luther heard the woman speak, he looked towards the red-eyed woman who was glaring at the group, from the look in her eyes one could tell, she is still recovering from whatever hit that has caused her to lose consciousness.
"Oh shut up back there" Before Ralof could say anything, the soldier in front of the wagon shouted. Ralof just glared at the dunmer before diverting his eyes.
Observing the conversation of the group, Ulfric smiled which creeped out the thief "What's wrong with him, huh?" he asked.
"Watch your tongue! Your speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak, the true high king!" the revelation seems to shock everyone as all the prisoners in the Wagon looked at his directions, all except for Luther who already knew Ulfric's identity.
"Ulfric of Windham?" the dark elf asked "So they are taking us to our death because of you?"
"Shut your mouth before I cut your tongue elf!" Ralof shouted and almost tried to stand up, the dunmer on the other hand remained.
Before Ralof could do anything, an imperial soldier who was riding next to the wagon used his sheathed blade to hit Ralof's right leg, he fell back to his seat with a grunt "Stand down, no fighting" he ordered, the dark elf woman smiled at Ralof's misery.
"You will meet your end today, Elf, by my hands or executioner's blade, it matters not" Ralof hissed.
'Only if you knew she is the Dragonborn, Ralof' Luther sighed 'The imperials who are trying to execute her and the stormcloaks who insulted her, I wonder which faction she'll join, maybe she won't choose at all and let the things play out?'
As the two were glaring down at each other another voice called out but not to them "General Talluis, Sir, the headsmen is waiting" suddenly Lokir's shiver became worse and he began to recite prayers to all the gods he knew, heck, Luther even heard Talos's name, uttering his name in open is an extremely bad idea, especially with those Thalmor agents around.
The worst part of committing such a crime wasn't the death sentence, but the things the justiciar will do to you, Luther has witnessed such deeds first hand, well, at least what remained of the victims. Let's just say Thalmor despite claiming to be superior to human apes, does indulge in what is considered "Beastiality" in their society. In their captivity torture is expected and death is a certainty. Fortunately or unfortunately, there are also Thalmor agents who were unlucky enough to be captured in stormcloak territory...
Luther shook her head as he tried to bury the memories of his encounter with Thalmor agents, the day when he almost was captured for being a heretic(Which he wasn't), but narrowly escaped, that was three years ago...
"Hey move it already" a sudden sense of pain rushed to his mind as a soldier whipped him from the horseback, Luther quickly realized that he was dazed out for some time and prisoners were already getting off from the wagons "Didn't you hear me? MOVE IT!" another lash of whip contacted Luther's cold skin, causing it to bleed, the pain was made worse thanks to the freezing cold weather.
Not wanting another lash of the whip, Luther quickly jumped out from the wagon where all the other prisoners were waiting, though he made sure to throw some insults toward the guard that whipped him 'If you survive the Alduin, I'll make sure to punch you a few times u fucker' he glared at the soldier.
Luther looked around him, the number of soldiers and prisoners was far larger than what the game showed it to be, well, he realized that fact when he was thrown into the world 7 years ago but still, this place looked amazing in real life, he still could remember the size of cities, not the small villages the game called cities, but actual cities with thousands upon thousands of people living in it.
'That's a lot of prisoners, and even more soldiers' even from his place between the crowds, Luther could count hundreds of prisoners and perhaps thousands of imperial soldiers.
"The imperials and their damn lists" Luther could make out Ralof's voice amongst the crowd, he looked in front of the line he was in, tens of prisoners lined up before a few Imperial captains, he could make out Hadvar's face at the end of the line with a list at hand.
The murmurs of prisoners continued, most didn't care about death, and some wanted to start a riot which, considering the number of soldiers around, meant the same fate. Only a few of the stormcloaks showed fear, Ulfric was as stoic as always while Lokir shivered like a mouse. Ralof has already accepted his death while the Dragonborn...
Luther looked around the crowd of prisoners to locate the dark elf, only for her to spook him out from behind "Hey you! Nord?" the dark elf seems like couldn't figure out Luther's race.
"Hmmm?" Luther answered, the cloth still in his mouth, with cuffed hands the elf removed the cloth from his mouth, Luther was happy to see the terrible smell of the cloth gone "Redguard elf, I am a Redguard" Luther corrected her, it wasn't a complete lie, he was born in the middle east in the old world, the Redguards were the closest thing to him.
The dark elf looks him up and down "Quite pale for a desert dweller" she gave him a glare.
"There are Yokudians with pale skin as white as snow Dunmer, besides, what do I have to gain with lying? were going to die anyway"
"Whatever" the woman shrugged "Let's get to business, I want to go out of here, are you with me?" she asked, her voice was a whisper.
Luther contemplated whether to answer her question or not, he did expect her to act differently than the game protagonist dragon born since this world was real, unlike the game, this place had endless possibilities. He can't tell her about Alduin, obviously, she would be suspicious of him which might cause a problem down the line, he can't accept her offer to escape, whatever she was planning was out of desperation and would almost be suicidal, as most plans in such situations tend to be. If she dies now, no one will be there to defeat Alduin, from what he has seen thus far, everything was far more powerful in this world than it was in-game, armies were larger, cities were massive, mages were extremely powerful, it wouldn't be surprising for Alduin to be more powerful than in-game Alduin, it wouldn't be surprising for him to live up to the tail "World destroyer".
"Hey, I'm talking to you" Luther's eyes snapped back to the woman speaking in front of him.
"Tell Dunmer, why me of all people?" he asked, he already had an answer but wasn't sure if it was the true reason.
The red-eyed woman looked as if she has taken offense at his question, it was obvious she didn't want to answer but did it anyway, for her, the time was running short, every second she spent here talking was another second closer to the chopping block "Argh" she grunted "I can see from the way you stand, from the stench of Magicka-"
"It's called Mana, no need for such silly names" Luther interrupted her, his interruption only earned him a glare.
The dunmer grabbed the collar of his rags and dragged his face next to her's "Next time I am interrupted, I will throw you out of the line to get some whipping before your imminent death" she threatened, her voice before was cold, it was even worse than before. Luther brought up his arms in a sign of surrender and apology. Dunmer woman huffs before letting his rag go "As I was saying, you are at least a decent warrior, I can smell the Magicka in you, were share the same traits, our escape will have a higher chance of success if we work together" she pauses for a moment, letting her words sink in "So, are you in or out?"
"I already have a plan" Luther whispers in her ears "When the executioner begins to... Oh shit!" Luther's eyes widen as he witnesses Lokir's escape.
"NO! I'm not a rebel, you're not going to catch me!" the thief shouts as he makes a run for it THROUGH THE IMPERIAL SOLDIERS!
"HALT! ARCHERS!" the female captain shouts, soon enough a hail of arrows pierce the thief's back, he soon dies on the ground, bleeding to death while everyone looks at him.
"That idiot" Luther facepalms "I forgot to tell him, damn".
"Anyone else feels like running?"
A few prisoners look around in hesitation, they wanted to see if they could use the commotion as a means to a sudden riot, unfortunately for them, the sparks fail to ignite the riot. Silence reigns supreme as the soldiers take the thief's corpse away.
"Why are you acting like this? was he necessary for your plan?" the dark elf pulls part of Luther's rags to get his attention, Luther doesn't look away from the scene of death.
"No, just wait, I know it's hard to trust someone you just met but you have no other choice, wait until I give the sign, you will see what will happen" he quickly explains as he moves forward through the line "Whatever happens, don't run until I give the sign!" the dark elf wants to protest but her words die in her throat as Luther moves towards Hadvar.
"Tch" she gives an annoyed grunt but seems to do as Luther said.
Luther nods in satisfaction, the Dragonborn won't do anything stupid until Alduin arrives to save them, the only left is to wait.
"Next!" Hadvar shouts, Luther walks forward while Hadrav checks his list "Who are you?".
"Luther, Luther Russ of Hammerfell" Hadvar looks at him judging before giving the race-specific voice line.
"He is not on the list, Captain, what should we do?"
"It doesn't matter, he is going to the block, NEXT!"
"I'm sorry, well make sure your remains return to Hammerfall" Hadvar looks back at the prisoner with sorrow in his eyes.
'Ah, Hadvar! ever the gentlemen, I would've married you if I was a woman' Luther chuckles which earns him a glance from the imperial soldier.
"Who are you?"
"Elenor, Elenor whitemane"
(A few minutes later)
The dark elf stood by his side as Luther witnessed the execution of several soldiers, so far, everything has gone according to the game, Alduin should arrive any minute now, the only thing left is to wait and hope the two won't be sent to the chopping block before the dragon's arrival.
"This plan of yours, isn't it time yet?" the dark elf whom Luther knew as Elenor asked, her voice was neutral, calm, and stoic, but even she was getting nervous as her turn was coming, thanks to the gods of this world, the number of prisoners was quite high, it bought them valuable time.
Luther bites his tongue as the motion passes his mind, he scolded himself for seeing the stormcloaks in such a manner, yes they had nothing to do with him but still, using other humans as meat shields didn't bode well with him.
"Trust me, Elf, neither of us will die today, just wait for it" the ragged man tried to reassure her but his companion was reaching her limit.
"How much longer-"
"Next, the renegade from hammerfell!" the captain called.
Luther didn't utter a word as he walked toward the executioner, a sudden surge of fear took over his soul, what if Alduin doesn't arrive in time? what if he dies trying to act cool? what if things don't go according to plan? Suddenly the executioner felt intimidating.
'Calm down, everything will be alright, I fought bandits, Falmer, monsters, vampires, and daedric creatures, a man in a black mask is nothing compared to the horrors I have seen' Luther gulped as he looked down the place where his head soon will be 'Alduin will come, he will, I won't die here damn it! I worked my ass off trying to learn magic, I won't die! not after working so hard' a hand forced him to kneel on the cold ground, his head was placed down, he saw as everyone was watching him, the prisoners who will soon take his place, the soldiers who are cheering for his death and the Dragonborn elf who looked at him with a cold gaze.
As the executioner's axe rose into the air, a thunderous roar filled the ears of everyone watching the scene.
"WHAT IN OBLIVION IS THAT?"
*End of chapter*
Hello, did you enjoy this? Do you want me to continue? let me know in the reviews.
For those people who also read my other Isekai story:
I just got some free time so I decided to write something with my phone, at first I wanted to finish the last chapter of my first story but, to be frank, I got bored of 40k.
I will finish my first story regardless of what happens, but writing only about one thing gets boring over time so I decided to have some fun by writing a Skyrim fic alongside my 40k fic. Hope you guys aren't mad, I was just a little bored of 40k things, I will continue when I get more free time.