Wind whipped the trees below as Sylvi rode Cannibal toward the smaller dragon flying in circles. The hands around her waist tightened with nervousness. Sylvi glanced behind her to see Onmund's face had turned white with fear; however, his eyes told her that he was ready for the fight. Sylvi forced Cannibal to land. Shouting at the dark dragon to stay put, she got off of him and helped Onmund and Dalton. Cannibal growled but laid down on the grass.
With a sigh of relief, Sylvi turned her attention back to the smaller dragon circling a keep. Thalmor hurled spells at the dragon, but it stayed far enough away to avoid the blasts. Sylvi ran for the keep and took cover behind one of the walls as the dragon swooped down to attack the Thalmor with fire. Turning to Onmund and Dalton, she told them to wait while she sneaked inside. The dragon was clearly after something… possibly its rider was inside. Onmund agreed, while Dalton skeptically raised an eyebrow.
"I've sneaked around one of their embassies before. I can do it again."
Dalton shrugged, and Sylvi quickly and quietly skirted around the keep before finding a small side door on a balcony. Sylvi gripped onto the stones as she slowly worked her way to the balcony. Her fingers were sore by the time she'd gotten to the door. It was locked. Luckily, Marcurio had given her quite a few lockpicks before she'd left. The lock clicked open, and Sylvi quietly opened the door. No one was here. Most of their men were likely focused on the angry dragon outside.
Keeping low, Sylvi carefully explored the keep. If it was anything like Skyrim, then the dungeons would be located at the very bottom. A stairway down the hall beckoned her, and she slowly crept toward it. The sounds of men below made her quickly hide behind a barrel. Two Altmer with bows in hand ran up the stairs and to the balcony that she'd just been on. Taking out her knife, Sylvi followed behind them. They were so focused on the dragon that neither saw her follow them onto the balcony. The first man went down without a fight. The second panicked and tried to hit her with his bow, but Sylvi grasped onto the wooden instrument and took him down as well. Sylvi waited a moment to see if anyone had heard them, but the dragon's roars drowned out all other sounds. Before leaving the balcony, she quickly took their arrows and one of the bows before checking their pockets. No keys.
Heading back to the stairs, Sylvi readied her bow. There were no more sounds from below. Sylvi slowly crept down the stairs and looked around. The ground floor had a mess hall, but no one was using it. Sounds of footsteps made Sylvi jump underneath a table. More Altmer had readied themselves for the fight with the dragon and climbed the stairs. As soon as the last one was out of sight, Sylvi ran for the corridor. It was only a matter of time before they found the bodies.
Finding another set of stairs, Sylvi thanked Talos before descending into the dungeon. There was one Thalmor man in the dungeon. The rest of them were likely outside. Sylvi crept to the door and opened it slightly. Her hand tightened on the bow in rage as she saw Farkas and Vilkas being held to the wall in chains.
Creeping inside, Sylvi took aim and fired the arrow. The Thalmor dropped to the ground as a knife clattered beside him. Farkas and Vilkas looked at her with surprise and joy as she went through the Thalmor's pockets. Finally, a key. Quickly freeing her friends, she took a moment to hug them before turning to the cages in the corner. Two young boys sat in different cages. One young boy wore clothes like the Targaryen royalty, and the other wore rags.
"I'm assuming that the dragon out there is yours," Sylvi said as she unlocked his cage. "Are you a Targaryen?"
The boy said nothing as he stared at Sylvi with wary eyes.
"His name is Jace," Vilkas said as Farkas picked out a longsword. "Sylvi is a good person, Jace. She's the Harbinger that we were seeking. You are safe now."
"I wouldn't say that… There are quite a few Thalmor outside," Sylvi said as she unlocked the second cage. "Hey there. What's your name?"
The boy kept his gaze to the floor. Wild, unkempt hair told her that he hadn't been cared for in quite some time. After a more careful inspection, Sylvi hid a small gasp. The boy was an Altmer… One born with black hair. The boy's body was covered in dark green bruises. Sylvi slowly showed the boy her hand.
"You will be okay now, child. I promise you that. Come on out. We need to leave quickly." Her tone was firm but gentle, and the boy turned his gaze to her face to look at her with his piercing dark green eyes. He hesitantly took her hand. Sylvi helped the boy to stand before glancing at the table in the middle of the room. Dark crimson splashes adorned the table. On its edge sat a familiar object: an extractor. Sylvi pulled the boy close before looking at Vilkas and Farkas.
Vilkas seemed to have put it together as well, and a steely rage now hid behind his eyes. The companions were not fans of the Altmer, but not a single one of them would stand by and let a child of any race be tortured or experimented on.
Farkas led the way, and Sylvi held the boy steady as they ascended the stairs. Suddenly, Farkas and Vilkas rushed forward. Sylvi had Jace hold onto the boy before pulling an arrow out of her quiver. The group of Thalmor had discovered the bodies and came looking for trouble, and Sylvi would make sure that they found it. Sylvi aimed for the gaps in their helmets as the twins used brute force to bash through the enemies' armor.
Checking on the boys, Sylvi saw Jace's face turn white as the other boy watched with indifference. No doubt that the young Altmer was no stranger to violence. Sylvi gestured for them to wait as Sylvi led the twins out of the front door. The Thalmor were too busy to notice them arrive. With a nod, they took off in separate directions. Sylvi used her spells to electrocute the nearby Thalmor. The sound of explosions from the walls above made her turn to see that Onmund and Dalton had joined the fight.
A roar came from above her, and she quickly threw up a ward as the dragon breathed fire at the Thalmor and her. A young man's voice came from the balcony, and the dragon flew toward the keep. Sylvi dropped her bow and drew her sword as one of the Thalmor charged her. Sylvi blocked the blow, but the force of it pushed her backwards. As the Thalmor soldier attempted to swing at her again, Sylvi dodged and struck him in the side. There were screams from the walls as dragon fire rained down. Jace and the young boy were on the younger dragon.
Now the dragon had Jace's brain to its brawn, and the Thalmor archers on the wall were soon wiped out. Sylvi, Vilkas, and Farkas fought with renewed vigor as Jace targeted the Thalmor from above.
As the smoke cleared, the young dragon landed. Sylvi ran to the dragon as Jace limply sat on its back with the other boy desperately holding him up. An arrow pierced the boy's side. Sylvi gently removed him from the dragon and set him on the ground.
"This is going to hurt, but I can heal you," Sylvi reassured the young man.
Jace nodded, and Sylvi quickly pulled out the arrow. The young man and his dragon screamed out in pain before relaxing as Sylvi healed the wound. As Jace's head cleared, he felt where the arrow had hit him only to find perfectly healed skin. Sylvi smiled at his look of amazement.
"You're very brave," Sylvi told him before standing to go retrieve the other boy from the dragon.
The boy watched her as she tried to heal him. The dark green bruises stayed. Sylvi had only used the extractor on dead bandits, so she wasn't sure how it affected a living person. The boy rested his head in her hands, and Sylvi held him for a moment.
"Ah… Jacaerys Velaryon," Dalton said with a smirk. "You wouldn't mind coming with us to King's Landing, would you?"
Vilkas and Farkas immediately put themselves in between Dalton and the young man. Jace looked up at Sylvi with fear in his eyes.
"No," Sylvi answered for Jace. "He needs to go to his mother and tell her what happened here today. Jace… the mer who captured you are called the Thalmor. They were likely working with your mother when negotiations fell apart… I don't know what their goal is, but I do know that they need to be stopped. You were their bargaining chip, but their real target was probably your dragon. So fly home, and tell your mother that I would like to broker a truce if I can. If we continue to be at each other's throats, then the Thalmor will have no problem tearing us apart."
Jace seemed lost in thought before he suddenly turned his attention back to her. Determination shone from his eyes as he agreed and walked to his dragon. The other boy remained with Sylvi. As Sylvi held the boy close, the young dragon rose into the air with a powerful gust.
Sylvi turned back to the others to see Dalton giving her an amused look. He explained, "Your King's dear grandfather will not be pleased that you have let his enemy's son escape."
"I have no king… And if Lord Hightower doesn't like my decisions, then he can lead the charge himself next time."
Dalton chuckled at that but let it go. Honestly, Sylvi knew that Lord Hightower would be upset, but surely he would see that the Thalmor posed a greater threat.
"What's wrong with the boy?" Farkas asked, surprising the group. "You tried to heal him earlier. Did it not work?"
The boy looked at them with curiosity as they looked at his bruises. With a sigh, Sylvi asked for Onmund to try to heal the boy. Onmund walked forward and outstretched his hands. A glowing light radiated outward to the boy. After a few moments, Onmund stopped, but the injuries remained. Sylvi comforted the boy with a gentle pat on the head but gave Onmund a worried look.
"Who knows what they did to the boy," Vilkas said, taking a closer look at the boy. "What's your name?"
The boy stared at Vilkas with wide eyes. Shaking his head, he pointed to his throat.
"Do you even have a name?"
The boy shook his head again. Vilkas sighed, and the boy grasped Sylvi's arm in fear. Sylvi comforted him as Vilkas explained, "I'm not angry at you, child. As for a name…"
"Kodlak," Farkas said quietly, and Vilkas and Sylvi turned to him. "It is a good strong name. And the boy may need that strength."
Sylvi turned to the boy and asked, "Do you like the name Kodlak? It was the name of my predecessor, the Harbinger before me. He was a brave and good man."
The boy gripped onto her shirt and nodded. Sylvi smiled as she touched Kodlak's head.
"That's good, Kodlak. Now come on. Let's get to the nearest inn. You desperately need a good rest… and a bath."
Kodlak looked at her in confusion as she took his hand. He slowly relaxed his hand in hers. Sylvi watched Vilkas and Farkas as they saw the dark dragon in the distance. Farkas began to draw his sword.
"No, Farkas. He's friendly. We rode him here."
Farkas and Vilkas gave her a frustrated look before turning back to the dragon. Cannibal blew smoke toward them in spite. Vilkas and Farkas once again looked at Sylvi.
"I didn't say that he's very nice… His name is Cannibal."
Vilkas let out a bark of laughter, and even Farkas smiled. Sylvi pointed toward the town that she had seen earlier, and everyone followed her lead. Kodlak looked at the dragon with more curiosity than fear. With a smile and a gentle tug, Sylvi led him to the path.