Krienyolag dropped Akiseta off in the plains close to Whiterun. After touching her snout to his, she waved him off and made her way to the city. Normally, returning to Whiterun made her feel better. But not this time. Her mind felt weighed down by what she had learned in Riften, and the attempt on her life.
Akiseta was no stranger to having to do things for political reasons, as her position as Arch Mage was evident of. But this matter with Ulfric went far beyond politics and power. There was a lot to consider with moving forward, and a lot at stake.
When needing to secure Whiterun's safety to lure Ohdahviing to Dragonsreach so he could take her to Skuldafn, the 'peace meeting' with Ulfric and Tulius had gone just as Akiseta had expected. They wanted power and control over certain cities and holds. They wanted her to decide who should control what territories.
But the true reality was crystal clear to Akiseta. They wanted her to declare whom she was loyal to. They, like many people she'd met, wanted her to pick a side in the war.
'You're either with us, or against us.'
Akiseta had heard it so many times, in multiple contexts. And by that point, she'd finally had enough. So she told them her true feelings. They were all foolish. Which was met with muttered words of hate.
The fire pit had gotten a taste of her Fire Breath, stunning everyone into silence. She raged at them about wanting to control land when a dragon threatened to burn everything to ash, and devour the souls of the dead.
So she gave them an ultimatum of her own. Whiterun territories were to be left alone, or she would unleash her wrath on the armies, and their leaders. No soldiers on either side were allowed to pass through the hold. Any whom did would be executed. And if Ulfric or Tulius ever gave such orders, they would suffer her wrath.
She could smell the fear on all present at the time, especially on Ulfric and Tulius, whom both agreed to the terms. She was Dragonborn, after all, and had many powerful connections. They knew she could make good on her threats. So they had complied.
Until now.
She wondered if Ulfric simply wasn't afraid of her threat anymore, or if he just assumed she wouldn't find out. Either way, she had to deal with it.
Going into Whiterun. Akiseta was motioned aside by Adrianne.
"Everything alright, Adrianne?"
"Yes, Akiseta. I just had a question. Would you happen to know what Aela's last job was?"
"No. She must have gone to do it after I left. Why?"
"Well, she brought a man back with her."
"Huh. That's unusual. She's not really that type of person."
"I didn't mean it like that. He seemed to be a prisoner. Stripped of everything but his loincloth. Serana helped her bring him in."
Akiseta raised a brow at that. "She did? I wonder why. I also wonder who he was, I need to go find out. See you later, Adrianne."
"See you later."
Akiseta walked through the city, wondering what Aela had gotten herself into during her last job, and how and why Serana got involved. Unease began to settle inside her, but she tried to push past it.
Her musings were interrupted as Lucia tackle hugged her.
"Mama! You're back! I missed you."
"I missed you too, little flower." Akiseta said, hugging her daughter.
"Oh, I was able to make frost!" Lucia said excitedly.
Akiseta smiled. "Really? That's wonderful, sweetheart."
Lucia had been struggling with using that spell. Akiseta was glad she was finally able to do it.
"It was only a little, but I did it! Serana's a wonderful teacher."
"I'm sure she's very proud of you. And so am I." Akiseta told her. Lucia beamed, and hugged her again.
"Do you know where Serana is, little flower?"
"She's at Jorrvaskr. She and Aela brought a prisoner back yesterday. I asked her about it, but she said she wouldn't talk about it until she talked with you."
"I see. I'll go talk with her about it."
Akiseta kissed Lucia on the forehead, and then headed for Jorrvaskr The mead hall was as lively as usual. Akiseta went over to Lydia, who sat in a chair, holding Ysmnwulf.
Lydia looked up, smiling. "Aki. Glad to see you're back."
"I'm glad to be back, raj-beeko. How is the little one today?"
"He's alright." Lydia looked down at the baby. "Would you like to see Auntie Akiseta?" She said in a soft tone most people spoke to babies in.
Ysmnwulf grinned, clapping his hands together and sticking his tongue out. Lydia handed him to Akiseta.
Akiseta held him, smiling. He smiled at her and placed his hands on the sides of her snout, trying to get a grip on her nose, making little babbling sounds. After than he reached up and grabbed one of her horns, giving it a tug.
Akiseta laughed. "You've got quite a grip, little one. You'll make a fine warrior one day. Just like your mama and papa."
Ysmnwulf grinned, making more little happy babbles, then began sucking on his fist, drooling a bit. Akiseta kissed his forehead, and handed him back to Lydia.
"He's getting so big, Lydia."
"I know. He definitely takes after Farkas in that regard. I swear, it feels like yesterday Danica was handing him to me in wrapped in a blanket, and I was holding him for the first time." Lydia sighed wistfully. "Sometimes, I wish he would stay this little forever."
"I know, Lydia. I still remember when I first took in Lucia. A scrawny little thing who could barely swing a wooden sword around. Now, she's starting to cast spells. They all have to grow up sometime."
"I know. But he'll always be my little man Won't you?" Lydia cooed, hugging Ysmnwulf. Ysmnwulf giggled, starting to tug at his mother's hair.
Akiseta smiled, before getting more serious. "Lucia said Serana is here?"
"Yes." Lydia said, prying Ysmnwulf's fingers from her hair. "She's down in the quarters with Aela. They've been acting strange all day. I assume it's due to that prisoner they brought back."
"Most likely. I'll go see what's going on."
Akiseta went downstairs, and headed for Aela's room. As she got closer, she heard the two women's voices.
"-so don't get snappy with me, Serana."
"I have every right to be upset! We've barely got this handled!"
"It was the best we could do, and you know that."
"I know, I know! I just don't like thinking what this will do to Aki."
"I don't either."
"What's going on?" Akiseta asked as she entered the room, catching their attention.
"Aki, something's come up." Serana told her. The tone in her voice made Akiseta's unease come back up.
"What it is?"
"I'm sure you've heard I brought a prisoner back with me." Aela said.
"Yes. I was told he was related to your last job."
"That's not quite true. I came across him as I was finishing my last job. I was leaving Rorikstead. You see, that man is an Imperial soldier."
Akiseta felt herself stiffen. "An Imperial soldier?"
"Yes. He told us he was crossing through the territory on Tulius's orders."
"Of course he was." Akiseta growled.
"Me and Serana stripped him of his gear before we brought him into town, and I had Caius place him in a cell in the deeper part of the dungeon."
"I did tell Balgruuf, though." Serana added. "We thought he should know."
"You did the right things." Akiseta said. She sighed. "Another problem to deal with..."
"Another problem?" Serana questioned.
"Yes. The reason Laila wanted to see me was because she had an injured Stormcloak soldier. He had been ordered to cross by Ulfric."
"Well, this is lovely." Aela muttered, crossing her arms.
"Unfortunately, it gets worse on this end." Serana said.
"How so?" Akiseta asked.
"This man said his troop was attacked by a dragon."
"A.. a dragon? Are you sure?"
"He described the beast and the attack pretty well. And a Nord knows a liar when she sees one." Aela sighed.
Akiseta turned away from the other women, and began pacing.
'Ulfric and Tulius both broke the agreement. And, two dragons failed to make sure all the soldiers were killed. Kaoc.'
Akiseta gripped her feathers. "What did I do to deserve this?"
"None of this is your fault, Harbinger." Aela said.
"You have no idea how responsible I feel, Aela. But that doesn't matter now. I need to go deal with this. Make sure everything here runs smoothly while I'm gone."
"Of course, Aki."
Akiseta watch Balgruuf's face as she talked with him about everything. The concern was crystal clear.
"Akiseta, I've always trusted your judgement and stood by your decisions. And I will do so with whatever the coming storm brings. But, do you realize the gravity of what you're getting into?"
"Of course I do, Balgruuf. But I have to do something. Ulfric and Tulius may continue to send troops into the territories. What if they decide to attack the city?"
"I fear that all the time, Akiseta. But what of the Thalmor?"
"I'd deal with them later. I'll just avoid the roads from now on."
"And the dragon attacks?"
"Isolated issues, like I said. I took care of it."
"Alright." Balgruuf said, walking over. He grasped Akiseta's shoulders. "I just ask that you stay vigilant. And safe."
"I plan to, my friend."
Balgruuf pulled her into a strong embrace. A strong pang of guilt struck her as she left.
She was lying to Laila and Balgruuf about the dragon incidents. She was lying to her friends. And she was lying to Serana. And that made her feel even worse.
Akiseta had known that making Whiterun territory forbidden to the war sides was only a minor fix to one problem. The war would still rage, and the rest of the holds would suffer. So, she'd come up with an idea.
She'd asked the dragons to occasionally take out a patrol or two, just some of the time. Just to cut down on the fighting, and to weaken the war efforts. She knew it was a cruel thing to do, but it was the only thing she could think of to do.
The dragons had always cleared out the patrols entirely. Until now. Bad timing for such bad luck.
Akiseta never told another person about what she had the dragons do. No one would understand her reasoning. Not one of her Argonian friends, not any of the Companions, not even Lydia.
Then there was Serana. Serana had spent much of her life around manipulation and mind games. This was similar to that. What would Serana think of her if she knew?
And Lucia.. How could Lucia ever understand? How would she feel if she knew what her mother had set into motion?
No. No one could know the truth. It was between her and the dragons.
Serana was waiting for her by the gate with Lucia and their backpacks, having everything all packed. They had explained everything to Lucia.
"Promise you'll be careful." Lucia said. "Both of you."
"We will be, little flower." Akiseta told her. She crouched down and hugged her, kissing her on the cheek.
Serana crouched down and hugged her as well, kissing her forehead. "Stay strong for you mother, okay? And for me."
"I will. I promise."
Serana smiled. She handed Akiseta her bag, and they exited the city, and began walking.
"So, what's our plan?" The vampire asked after dropping her disguise and pulling up her hood.
Akiseta thought for a moment. This matter with Ulfric and Tulius was the most pressing matter. But, she couldn't just go confront them. If she had to do what she threatened to do, she'd need to make sure it wouldn't come to bite her in the tail later.
Furthermore, she needed to know if this was a course of action she should really take. And finally, she needed to know that she had full support on her actions.
"I want to go to Morthal. I want to talk to Idgrod."
"Seeking advice from a mystic?"
"I might as well. Maybe her visions could show something. At the least, she can give me wise, impartial advice. Gods know I could use it." Akiseta sighed. "I'd even accept help from the Hist if it could tell me what to do."
"I'm not really on good terms with the gods, but I did learn to have faith. If not in them, in you."
"I appreciate that, iluukai, I really do, but I'm at a lost on how to proceed."
"I know. But we'll figure something out, okay?" Serana took her hand. "It'll be okay."
Akiseta nodded, managing a smile. Serana smiled as well, and leaned up and kissed her on the cheek.