A/N: couldn't find an official physical description of the crown or how it rejects its wearer / 2024 update: Oops. I should have been looking for the "Crown of Freydis", not the Crown of Verity.
Chapter 52: Crowns & Kings
Skuldafn. Lady Helsette had entered Sovngarde a week ago. They were all still here. The Eastmarch Nords were happily slaughtering draugr and looting what they could. The Winterhold wizards were doing their best to locate libraries and places of magical interest to prevent looting. It was only for the sake of the latter group that Curtis continued his role as the camp centurion or logistics commander of this chaos. He'd much rather be running around, digging into obscure places himself. But someone had to coordinate guards for the sites the wizards wanted to be preserved and the safe transportation of items to Winterhold. Fortunately, most of the Gray Guards from Aldmora and a sub-company of Selvaai mercs (Ralis Sedaris's in-laws) had arrived to handle secure transportation on the other side of the gate.
One such magical item was a blocky circlet of five rough-cut crystal spikes that looked like soul gems or stahlrim. The soldier who found it had put it on. Moments later, she screamed that her brain was on fire and pushed the crown off. Her fellow soldiers would have smashed it, but she stopped them. She brought it to the wizards. Tolfdir had examined it and asked Curtis to send a picture to Urag in Winterhold. The Loremaster confirmed it was the Crown of Verity or the Crown of Queen Freydis.
Yeah, that crown that was supposed to elect the true high king or queen of Skyrim because its enchantment would not allow an illegitimate ruler to wear it. According to what Urag told him, the Crown of Verity was created after the first crown of Atmora, the Jagged Crown, went missing. With Ysgramor's line ended and the Jagged Crown missing, the Crown of Verity was created and so enchanted to select from all the claimants the "true" high king. The Crown of Verity was one of the royal treasures of Windhelm that High King Jorunn salvaged from Windhelm's treasury while the Akaviri invaders were at the gates. It was a precious keepsake of his mother and sister, the last rulers to wear the crown. He stored it in Skuldafn and, for unknown reasons, never brought it back out of there.
Ulfric Stormcloak currently wore the Jagged Crown. In the Skyrim Game, retrieving the crown was the second mission when one initially joined the Imperial or the Stormcloak factions. High King Borgas, the last heir of the Ysgramor Dynasty, had turned on the gods of Atmora and taken up the One-God faith of Maruhk the Prophet. He'd died in Valenwood, losing in battle against the Wild Hunt of the Bosmeri, and the Jagged Crown had disappeared with him. His grave, until recently, had been unrecorded in official records. General Galmar had found it by doggedly pursuing rumors and word-of-mouth clues in various families' tales. The Jagged Crown quest was one of those pivotal points where, if wanted, the player could choose to switch sides by simply bringing the crown to the desired side. Where the tale differed in this reality, Curtis heard Revyn had muddled up The Mind of Madness quest and The Jagged Crown quest while attending Lady Vici's wedding. He'd convinced General Tullius not to send Legate Rikka to interfere with the dig at Korvanjud because he had already arranged for Lady Helsette's mother, Legion General Inanna Faro, to impersonate her daughter and retrieve the Jagged Crown for the Stormcloaks.
"Interesting," said Severus as he held the crown in a beam of sunlight coming through the open door flap of the tent. Rainbow shards of light, splintered by the crystals of the crown, played across the tent walls, the floor, and the sparse furniture. "It stopped being the crown of Skyrim, why?"
"Succession dispute after the death of High King Borgas in the third century of the First Era," said Tolfdir. "The Moot fumbled by failing to appoint Jarl Hanse of Winterhold as the successor. This led to decades of conflict between the Western Holds of Whiterun and Solitude and the Old Holds of Eastmarch and Winterhold. The Crown of Verity chose Queen Freydis of Windhelm, but the Moot gave the High King's throne to Olaf One-Eye of Whiterun. It was the end of the First Nord Empire. The Direnni Hegemony took High Rock and the Reach, Cyrodiil reclaimed all of Nibenay Valley, and — as you two know — the your armies reclaimed Morrowind."
"What was wrong with Queen Freydis?" asked Curtis.
"Nothing, except that she was a woman. Also, Jarl Svartr of Solitude also questioned her birthright legitimacy. The other claimant was Jarl Olaf of Whiterun, the acclaimed dragon slayer."
"Oh. Got it. 'O King Olaf… Your legend is lies, lurid and false; your cunning capture of Numinex, a con for the ages,'" Curtis intoned.
"What?" asked Severus.
"Bards College, the Burning of King Olaf annual celebration in Solitude," Curtis explained. "It's part of a, um, rediscovered poetic edda. Anyway, so we have the Crown of Verity. I'm sure King Ulfric would want this."
"Then he holds both crowns of significant history," said Severus. "I remember my crown, a wreath of flowers, and then the hammered gold piece I took from the Ashking. Yours was a heavy thing of silver and gemstones."
"Titanium and power gems set on a circuit band that was a master key to all the major systems in Vvardenfell."
Ulfric was coming the next morning to claim the crown.
X—X—X—X—X—X—X
"… pitifully ignorant of Skyrim history," Severus was saying to Ulfric. "I knew the tales my mother told me, most of them folklore and histories of the Pale. But my mother was from a tiny hamlet of humble folk who lived by fur trapping and tree cutting. Like many Nords, she learned most of Skyrim's history only after enlisting in the Legion, where she could meet military history scholars and talk with folk from other Holds, some from higher classes and better education. Anything I learned was second- or third-hand.
"What I know of Jorunn Skald-King I learned from Revyn. The Dunmer hold Jorunn in high regard. He was the first Nord King declared an ally by The Three. Vivec acknowledged his creativity and eloquence. Almalexia was delighted by his determination and skills as a champion of his people. Revyn thinks you have inherited those qualities."
"I hear doubt in your voice," said Ulfric.
"Revyn's an optimist. I only say this because I'm not a subject of yours. You do have those strengths. They've come out more strongly since you've stopped being a head-up-your-ass, reactionary fool about the Empire and the Dominion."
"Watch your mouth," warned Icewind.
"At ease," said Ulfric, a lilt of amusement in his voice. "Lord Revyn has said as much to my face, though in his typical roundabout evasive way."
"Not unjustified," said Severus. "Captured, tortured, manipulated by the Dominion, it's to be expected that you came out of it twisted. I understand it was Justiciar Elenwen who oversaw your breaking. A bitch with over a hundred years of experience in that job. How was a green, idealistic young prince experiencing his first major war far from home expected to hold out against her?"
"Enough!" said Ulfric. His tone was deceptively mild. "We are not here to talk of my disgrace."
"You're about to touch the Crown of Verity; can a true king afford to lie to himself?" challenged Severus. "I know we're all curious to see if it will acknowledge you. It's a curious question — what makes one the 'true' ruler of Skyrim? Considering the circumstances of the time, will it be a warlord or a peacemaker? A scoundrel or a saint? Does the crown judge the candidate's current fitness to rule or the future potential to represent and lead the nation?"
Ulfric and those of his party glared at Severus.
"I have no intention of trying to wear that crown," said Ulfric at last. "I already wear the Jagged Crown and rule the Old Kingdom of Skyrim. The Crown of Verity will be worn by the one who can unite all of Skyrim, whether it be of my descent, Elisif's, or Balgruuf's."
Severus laughed softly. "That's quite a statement. The East and West — I wonder how many lifetimes it will take for that to happen?" He pivoted around to look at Curtis. "I'm thinking the crown should be kept either in Winterhold or High Hrothgar. Political neutrality. What do you think?"
Curtis shrugged and used his right hand to wave responsibility for his answer aside. "Personally, I'd like Winterhold. The magic in that crown would be interesting to study. But I guess the appropriate guardians of culture would be the Tongues of High Hrothgar. And if we're talking great public relations, inviting representatives from The Reach and Solitude to come along when you march the crown up there and hand it to the monks would be priceless. I mean, come on — Ulfric Stormcloak makes the grand gesture and opens the door to a future of a unified Skyrim under the Crown of Verity. The Dragon Crown offers to submit to the 'The True' crown. It's the perfect fluffy PR move for the future."
"Interesting," said Ulfric. "Then to High Hrothgar it will go."
X—X—X—X—X—X—X
"It'll only take a few hours of your time," said Curtis. "Giraud Gemane, Dean of History at the Bards' College, is the current voice. He's good, but he's Breton, and that's obvious in certain phrasings he doesn't quite get right. I couldn't find Bard Talsgar in time for the recording. I was going to have him do a new track. But I heard you can sing, so I thought, 'Why not have the rebel king do his thing?' I know my light and magic show is going to be in Windhelm as part of the first year anniversary celebration of your coronation."
Ulfric picked up a fourth slice of pizza as he mulled over the offer. "This may make your work unwelcome in certain places," he said.
"Yeah, and in those places, the original soundtrack can be used. So, does that mean you're for it?"
"If you mean will I lend my voice? I think I am willing. But I will have the right to refuse use if the results do not please me."
"You're talking about the right to recall the product even after its release, you mean."
"Yes."
"Got it. No problem."
"You may make arrangements with Jorlief, my steward."
"Okay. But if you've got a few more minutes, how about I give you a preview of the show, and you can hear and see for yourself what you'll be singing to?"
"Can you do that here?"
"I got a few tricks up my sleeve and attached to my leg. Dwemer magic." He detached the computer on his leg. People crowded closer, eager to watch and ignoring the snarls and shoves of Ulfric's bodyguards.
The little screen lit up. Ulfric bellowed a command for silence as the crowd behind him reacted. Sound quality was crap, and the speakers were designed for speaking clarity with a limited frequency spectrum. However, to everyone but Curtis, it was wondrous magic. First showing was for the novelty, the second was for Ulfric to listen and study the synchronization of music to the action on screen, and the third was where he closed his eyes and focused on the main vocals.
"A few hours? That is days of practice with musicians and other singers," he said. "I cannot commit so much time now or in the immediate future."
"Nope. Hours. Trust me."
"Very well. I have the sheet music you sent me through Hrafnhildr. I can begin studying that."
"Great. But don't overdo it. For the voice-over to work, you have to match your timing to the finished work. We can make adjustments to pitch, but certain sound marks have to be met for this to work. But that can be worked out later. My sound mixer is busy in Whiterun anyway, helping with the rebuilding. He'll contact Jorlief at the end of this week, somebody from Steark-Skjold Consultants."
"Steark-Skjold," Ulfric repeated. His eyes lit up. "Strong-Shield. 'Vvarden' in the elf tongues. Vvardenfell is Strong-Shield Hold." His eyes narrowed. "And if I'm to believe the Dunmer legends that King Nerevar is reborn and stands before me as Severus, a Nord from Cyrodiil, who's to say King Dumac might also have returned as a Dunmer from Winterhold?"
"That seems highly improbable," said Curtis. "There are no great prophecies about Dumac; Dunmer history says Nerevar killed him on Azura's command for crimes against nature. Well, I got reports to write, so by your leave, your majesty."
He came back to see Ulfric and his party off.
"So, what's your impression of King Ulfric?" he asked Severus.
"He'll do what's best for the Old Kingdom," said Severus. "If the Alliance is to survive the poisons of the Dominion, they'll need someone like him to defend them. Although, he won't be as effective without Revyn's support," he added. "But he seems to have realized that."
"Yeah. Ulfric is not a stupid man. Just obsessive. Not necessarily a bad trait unless you're on the bad side."
"'Skyrim is for the Nords,'" quoted Severus. "I remember thinking like that. Nords should stay on their side of the mountains. They do not belong outside of there."
"Hah. You also thought the same of Dwemer."
"Well, no. I just wished you lot stayed underground and not dug our precious resources out from under us. Do you know how irritating it was to travel to your favorite spring hunting grounds, arrive hungry for food, and find somebody set up animal fences to drive all the prey away from mining pits? Travel long distance with a trade caravan, looking forward to a particularly nice watering hole only to find it gone because someone needed water to cool down their underground machines?"
"You do know that we would have taken into consideration your needs if you'd informed us of your schedules," said Curtis, smiling as Dumac would have done. This was an old bickering point. Severus, Nerevar, answered as expected.
"We don't report our business to non-clan. Hah!" Severus barked and playfully slapped Curtis on the back. "Well, times have changed."
"Yeah. We had our moments."
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