The Legend of Zelda: Skyrim - Chapter 7: Whiterun and Dragonsreach
The three of them had returned safely. They had returned with the Golden Claw and the Dragonstone, after finding the two Nords' horses where they had left them, alive.
Lucan was delighted to have the Claw back, and he was true to his word. The three of them received two hundred Septims each.
After the three of them had refreshed their supplies, they left the Riverwood Trader, only to be greeted by Gerdur. "We need more guards here in case more dragons start showing up. I'm sure the three of you can travel to Whiterun?"
Link, Hadvar, and Ralof looked at each other, then nodded at Gerdur.
"Excellent. I suspect you'd want to get there as soon as possible, don't let me keep you."
The two Nords and Hylian walked under the gate, crossed the bridge, and took the right path towards Whiterun.
Ralof finally stopped walking. Some sort of structure was just visible in the distance. "See that? That's Dragonsreach. Whiterun sits around it. There's three districts. Cloud, which is where Dragonsreach is, Wind, which is where all of the shops are, and Plains, which is where everyone lives. I heard there's a house there for sale, Breezehome, but it costs five thousand Septims."
Hadvar nodded. "Maybe they'd knock it down a thousand if they really wanted to, maybe someone helps save Whiterun or something."
The two Nords talked a bit about the price of this Breezehome for a bit, before they got a campfire going.
"We'll stay here for tonight, then head for Whiterun at dawn."
It was dark. Then, a thunderous roar reached him, and then his world exploded with color. He was flying, drifting among the clouds, the two moons high above him. He wanted the world to know who he was, that all was to fear him! But something told him that his time had not come yet, but it was close. Soon, he would truly awaken and make Skyrim, no, Tamriel, nay, all of Nirn know the meaning of Fear!
His massive golden wings flapped on the air currents as he seemed to fly in the Aurora, its beautiful lights dancing all around him. He spotted goats on a mountain and briefly thought about devouring them, but thought against it. Then he decided to grab just one, and he flew down, claws outstretched, fangs salivating at the taste of blood and meat. And then he said something, and somewhere else, something awoke, if only briefly.
"FUS RO DAH!"
The wolf awoke with a yelp and he leapt to his paws, staring out at the moon lit fields before him. He felt some sort of longing, something he had never felt before, and it confused him.
'What...It's like when I saw that Dragon fly overhead two nights ago, and then at that stone wall...What is going on!?'
It was as if his mind woke up then and he looked down. 'I'm a wolf again. Why does this keep happening?'
He found that he had no answers to his questions and Link stayed where he was standing for a few more moments, then he felt a pressing need and padded over to a massive pine tree, looked around, then stepped behind the tree and relieved himself.
As he did so, the wolf's thoughts wandered to the dream he had had, that sentence the thing had spoken, it had sounded right. That first word, he remembered it from that stone wall in Bleak Falls.
'Fus.'
There. Something stirred in him, but only for a moment. That one word meant something, and Link was determined to figure out what that meant.
The wolf returned to the campfire for a few moments, gazed at the two Nords that were sleeping nearby, then turned around and started to walk down the hill.
It was an hour later, Link was very close to Whiterun now and was quietly stalking a lone goat, intent on killing it and eating it. The wolf crouched low to the ground, waited a moment, then pounced. The goat let out a death scream as the beast bit its throat, instinctively swallowing warm blood as he did so. Link stood still for a moment, his ears flicking for any signs of retaliation. Finding none, the wolf started to drag the goat to where he had been sleeping.
He dropped the goat at his paws, looked down at it for a moment, then tore into the dead carcass, raw sinew and muscle and bone disappearing down his throat as he satisfied his hunger.
Finally, Link swayed a bit, before he dropped to the ground besides the goat carcass, feeling drowsy. 'It obviously belonged to someone but I need to eat somehow. Besides it was…'
He searched for a word, but all he could think of was…
'Good. I'll need to find a way to get into Whiterun, but I can dwell on that later today-'
Something sent some sort of bird into the air, screaming "FLEE, FLEE!" as the creature flew away. Link's head snapped up, eyes scanning his surroundings. Then, he smelled them. Men.
The wolf got up, his muscles tense, ready to run at any moment's notice. Then he heard something whistle through the air, sail over his head, and come down in a field not too far away. The wolf took it as a sign to leave, so he looked down at the goat carcass with dismay - how he wished he could take it with him - and he took off to the left of the bridge, darting left and right every now and then, towards Whiterun. He stuck close to the path and the river, and eventually, his pursuers gave up and he was able to stop running.
Link had seen movement on the other side of the bridge, however, he could leap across the river and double back to where he had seen the movement, but yet…
The wolf padded over to the riverbank and looked at it, then at the other side.
'I've never jumped this far before? What if I fall in?'
Link hesitated, then walked backwards a bit, then ran forwards into the water. It was cold, but he bent down, and then leapt for the other side.
Then he felt entirely different.
'...Just ...Why…'
Then he fell into the river.
This was not a good day. The giant that had been roaming near Whiterun had decided to venture onto Pelagia Farm, and who had been called to deal with the giant this early in the morning. The Companions. As always.
Aela notched an arrow to her bow and fired it at the giant.
Then, Farkas came running up."Aela, we've got company."
Aela gazed at Farkas for a moment, then looked to where he was pointing. "...What?"
A figure darted up to the giant, then darted away as the creature turned to face them. They earned a hit to their left side and they went down.
Farkas winced. "That had to hurt."
The giant started to walk towards them, holding the club up a bit, then the creature roared and dropped to one knee. The figure from before appeared, their left shoulder obviously injured, ran around to the front of the giant, and was hit again by the club.
Tovar darted pass the two other Companions, up to the figure, picked them up and darted back before laying them on the ground.
"...What's this? A young Elf? What's he doing out here?"
Farkas grinned. "Maybe he saw us and wanted to help? Not much good now, he's injured, and - wait, do we have any healing potions left?"
Before Aela could reply, a blood covered arm set itself on Farkas' wrist. "I want to help."
The voice was somewhat young, male, and there was this accent that none of the Companions could place.
Aela glanced at the newcomer. "Help? You're injured. How old are you?"
"Seventeen. This blood isn't mine, by the way, it happened when I stabbed the giant's leg."
Aela smiled. "For how injured you are, you seem to not care. What do you think you can do in your current state?"
The Elf - if that's what his race was - eyed Aela for a second, then slowly got to his feet, swayed a bit, then drew two daggers, one on fire, one made of ice. He ended up holding both of them in his right hand, for all intents and purposes, his left arm was useless - it was simply hanging, unusable at that moment. In addition to that, it was clear that his right ribs were broken. "I guess stab the giant with these until he falls?"
Farkas smiled. "Sounds like a plan to me."
Without waiting for orders, the Elf darted forwards, stabbed the giant in the same leg, brought it down to one knee, somehow vaulted up to his neck, and started to stab the creature while the three Companions finished it off. At last, the Giant fell and the Elf leapt from the Giant's neck, rolled, and came back up as the thing hit the ground.
Farkas looked at Torvar, who then started asking questions. "What's your name?"
"Link. Link Faremanne. Yours?"
"I'm Torvar, the other two are Aela and Farkas. You're not from here, are you?"
"No."
Before Tovar could ask Link anything else, the Elf turned black, and when he returned from not being black, a massive black and white wolf was sitting there, looking very annoyed.
The three Companions looked at each other, then at the wolf, then back at each other.
"Did you know he could become a wolf?"
Farkas shook his head. "No, Aela, I didn't. But look at him, he's massive!" Farkas looked down at the injured shapeshifter, then moved his gaze up to Dragonsreach. "We'll bring him to Kodlak. He'll know what to do."
Torvar bent down next to Link and then looked up. "...That's fine and all, but how are we going to get him into Whiterun?"
Being a guard was boring. Nothing never really happened, until now.
Two of the Companions, Torvar and Farkas, were carrying a massive dead black and white wolf between them, while Aela led. "Guard, we'd like to take this wolf back to Jorrvaskr."
The guard eyed her for a moment, then waved a hand. "Alright, but other people might ask you questions. Pretty big beast you've got there, you need help carrying it?"
"No, we don't, but thanks for offering."
The guard let them pass, but kept his eye on the massive dead wolf as Torvar and Farkas carried the corpse inside Whiterun. "Well...That was strange."
The Companions were drinking and talking in the main hall when Aela, Farkas, and Tovar returned, but yet they grew silent when they saw the wolf.
"Where did you hunt him?"
"We didn't hunt him." Farkas set the wolf down on the table, then said something strange. "You can stop playing dead, kid."
The wolf moved a bit, then opened his eyes and focused on Farkas for a moment, before the beast started to look around the room.
Farkas turned to Tovar and asked him to go fetch Kodlak. Torvar left, Aelas started to look the wolf over, while Farkas told the other Companions that a young Elf by the name of Link had helped them kill the giant, then he had shapeshifted into the wolf on the table. While the other Companions started talking to each other, Farkas watched as Aela gently pushed the wolf back down when he bolted upright a bit.
"Aela, you're being motherly." Farkas smirked as he watched the woman tend to the wolf.
The woman glared at him before determining just how many ribs were broken. "I am not."
Farkas stopped leaning against a wooden beam and walked over to her. "Yes you are. Is it because of how young he actually is?"
Aela set the wolf's shoulder without warning, then nodded. "I knew it. What are you going to do when he turns back to normal."
"Scold him for being so reckless, of course, what else?"
Despite the obvious pain the wolf was in, he shot a smug grin at her and Farkas grinned. "You. I like you, kid, you've got fire."
Then Kodlak Whitemane stepped into the room and it fell silent.
Kodlak walked up to the young wolf and gazed at him for a second, taking note of the eerie human-like intelligence in the blue eyes. "I've never seen anything like you before."He looked at Aela."You said he was a young elf before he transformed?"
The woman nodded as she finished stitching Link's wounds. She noticed the shackle and chain on the wolf's left arm and lifted the arm a bit, then glanced at Kodlak, who frowned.
"A shackle? It looks like it's been there for a while. What do you say we try to take it off?"
The wolf nodded and held his arm out for Kodlak, who took it, then another Companion walked up and said that she would want to try to break the lone shackle. Kodlak nodded, let Njada Stonearm hold the shackle in her hand, then she drew a Skyreach sword and slammed it against the metal. The sword broke, but the shackle had nary a scratch.
"...What? How?"
It sooned turned into a competition to see who could break the shackle.
Aela used her sword, Farkas a mace, Torvar an axe. Even Athis tried to open it by using a metal rod as a lever.
However, in the end, no weapon broke it. The Companions were insulted; the metal of the Skyforge was supposed to be able to break anything! But not the shackle.
Eventually, Kodlak told Torvar to get Eorlund Gray-Mane, who studied Link for a bit before the man nodded.
"I believe you when you said he was a young Elf when you fought the giant, his injuries match those of what you described his were, I have a feeling that this shackle is causing these transformations."
Eorlund stroked his beard in thought for a moment, then turned to Farkas. "Get me a Daedric sword.
Kodlak gave Eorlund a knowing look and turned to Farkas. "Bring back my Daedric sword.
The Nord ran off to get the weapon and Eorlund moved his hand to the shackle to the paw, which had a strange symbol on it.
"I bet you know what this is, don't you?"
A nod.
Gray-Mane let the paw fall to the table and half turned to see Farkas standing there with his sword. "Thank you. Now stand back, everyone."
Eorlund took the sword, picked up the arm with the lone shackle, and lock picked the shackle's lock with the sword.
The shackle made a mute click and it fell from the wolf's arm from the table, which revealed a scar where the shackle had been.
It was silent for a second, the Companions in shock at what had happened.
Kodlak picked up the remains of the shackle and looked at them. "Let that be a lesson to you that blunt force isn't always the answer, and you have to be as cunning as you are strong."
The Companions continued to talk to themselves, then went silent as the wolf turned black, then, where the wolf had been sitting, was a young Elf. Eorlund smiled.
"Hello, Link, Aela told me how you helped them fight the giant?"
A nod.
Kodlak helped the boy down from the table, looked him over, checked his injuries, then the other Companions gathered around.
They learnt that Link was from a place named Hyrule, and that his people were called Hylians.
"Well", Eorlund was stroking his beard again "I'm offering you a chance to join us, Link. You don't need to join us now, but I'm giving you the chance to as soon as you think you're ready. You more than proved yourself when you helped Torvar, Aela, and Farkas fight that Giant, regardless of your injuries."
"Really?"
"Sure, it's the least we can do. Get you new supplies, let you freshen up a bit, send you on your way. What brings you to Whiterun, I wonder?"
"I was heading to Dragonsreach to inform them of the Dragon attack on Helgen, and that Riverwood requests more guards in case another Dragon attacks them."
Farkas nodded. "But yet they sent you instead of someone else?"
"Hadvar and Ralof should have arrived here at some point."
Kodlak took a step forward. "They're already somewhere in Whiterun, from what I heard."
Link, after having breakfast and speaking with them for a while, thanked the Companions for aiding him, then left Jorrvaskr.
Whiterun was...massive compared to Ordon. Link was fascinated with the Argonians and Khajiits, and with the way they spoke.
"Greetings! I have not seen you in Whiterun before, are you an outsider?"
A young male Khajiit hissed at the female Argonian. "Swift! He might be an outsider, but you don't have to state that!"
The two of them were standing behind a stall that had various items, such as food and clothing.
The Khajiit had a thick blonde mane, his coat was blonde fur, blue eyes, and was wearing a red tunic and black trousers. The female Argonian was green scaled, she had blue eyes, horns on her head and she was wearing a red dress.
"Samson?" Swift was looking up at her friend with a sly expression and he didn't seem to catch on.
"Yes…?"
"Those two are at it again." She pointed a silver claw towards a young man and woman standing close together nearby, around her age.
Samson shook his head. "So they are. I wonder if he has asked her the question."
Swift glared at the cat and Samson merely grinned.
"Why are you so angry with me, my friend? I know you wonder as well!"
Link felt as if he was suddenly intruding, so he said farewell to Samson and Swift, then walked down the hill towards the gates, where he saw a man arguing with a blacksmith.
The man was making some sort of large order
The blacksmith threw her hands up. "Idolaf, I just can't fill an order that size on my own. Why don't you swallow that stubborn pride of yours and ask Eorlund Gray-Mane for help?"
Idolaf scowled. "I'll sooner bend my knee to Ulfric Stormcloak, Adrianne. Besides, Gray-Mane would never make steel for the Legion.""
Adrianne nodded. "Have it your way. I'll take the job, but don't expect a miracle."
Curious, Link walk up to the two and then froze as the man suddenly turned to face him. "Gray-Mane or Battle-Born?"
"What?"
"Got stones in your ears? I asked what side you're on, Gray-Mane or Battle-Born!"
"I... I'm afraid I don't understand the question."
The man sighed. "New in town, huh? Whiterun's got two clans, both old and both respected. Difference is, the Gray-Manes turned their backs on the Empire and we Battle-Borns stayed loyal. So I'll ask again, Gray-Mane or Battle-Born?"
"...Can I choose both?"
The man shook his head. "Sure, just know that sooner or later, we all have to choose a side."
No sooner had Idolaf left the blacksmith than Link overheard two Redugards arguing.
"Amren, I am not going to let you go out there again! You've wasted too much time looking for that thing! Just accept that it's gone."
"Saffir! Please give me one more day! I'll find it!"
'Set one foot outside our house, and you won't see me or your daughter again." The woman shook her head and started to walk away, while Link stepped up to the man.
"Is something wrong?"
"My sword! It was a family heirloom, but now it's gone!"
"I could look for it if you want."
"You would? Divines bless you!"
The man gave Link a description of his father's sword and then told him that he last had the sword north west of Whiterun, but then two bandits had ambushed him.
"I shall give you twenty five Septims if you find my sword and return it to me."
Link nodded, then heard someone yelling something and went to go investigate.
A man wearing robes was wildly gesturing and saying things about "Talos" whoever they were. Somewhat interested, Link took a step forward and the man spotted him.
"Hello, my friend! If you seek knowledge about mighty Talos, you have most certainly come to the right person." He gestured to the statue with his hand and Link looked up to the statue, then back to the man. "In mortal life, Talos was a Nord possessed of unmatched tactical skill, limitless wisdom and the power to see into men's hearts. ..."
Heimskr, as the man was named, seemed to be very happy that Link was talking to him. He answered any questions that Link had about Tamriel's various religions, and pointed him in the direction of the Temple of Kynareth a few feet away if he wanted to know more.
Link shook his head. "I'd love to continue speaking with you, but I've wasted far too much time already. I need to get to Dragonsreach."
Heimskr eyed him curiously. "Whatever for?"
"Riverwood needs more guards in case a dragon attacks it."
The man nodded. "That's a good reason. Go on, don't let me keep you!"
Heimskr waved a hand towards the stairs and the young Hylian left the priest's company and finally started for Dragonsreach.
'So Talos was a mortal that ascended to Godhood...Interesting. It seems like these Divines are well worshipped. I may just take up Heimskr's offer and study these Divines.'
The building in front of him was massive. Sure, it wasn't as tall as Hyrule Castle, perhaps half as tall, but it was still massive.
Link stared up at the massive twin doors for a moment, then stepped forwards and pushed them open, only to be stopped by three guards.
Jarl Balgruuf sensed that something had changed. Something was bound to happen soon, but what he was, he did not know. There was some sort of commotion at the entrance, someone was being questioned by guards about the real purpose of his visit.
Balgruuf stood up from his throne. "Let the boy pass! If he ventured up here, he must have something important to say!"
The guards looked at each other for a second, then let the visitor pass.
Balgruuf silently gazed at the young Elf as he drew closer. He wasn't from Skyrim, that was for certain, and the way he was staring at everything told The Jarl that he had never really been anywhere this nice. "So, what brings you to Dragonsreach?"
The Elf froze, locked gazes with Balgruuf for a second, then composed himself. "I bring a request from Riverwood, they would like more guards in case of a Dragon attack."
The Jarl leaned forwards a bit. "They send a mere boy to tell me this? What is your name?"
"Link Farmanne."
Balgruuf smiled. "Link...A fitting name. That large stone you're carrying...Do you know what it is?"
"I believe it's called a Dragonstone."
The Jarl blinked, then gazed at the court mage's room. "Farengar! I need you!"
The court wizard poked his head out of his office, then saw what Link was holding. Balgruuf had never seen the man move so fast in his life as he did now.
The mage ran over to Link, took the Dragonstone from him, then started asking questions. "Where did you get this, did you tamper with it all at?"
"Farengar, let the boy speak, please, I am certain he has a lot to say."
Link started to speak, but when he mentioned his wolf counterpart, the mage stopped him.
"So you can transform into a wolf? Fascinating, do you think you could show us?"
Balgruuf shook his head. "Perhaps some other people wouldn't like that, Farengar. I admit, I am curious, let us test this in your study, shall we?"
The jarl got up from his throne and the court wizard darted off to his study, Link and Jarl following.
"Utterly fascinating. Your mind is still in there…" Farengar was eyeing a massive black and white wolf that was sitting on a table. "I'm...Trying to restrain myself because of that, won't want to make you uncomfortable, or anything of the sort…"
Balgruuf kept watch for anyone that would want to speak to him while the court wizard tested various magical reactions.
"Odd, you don't seem to react to magic...You can transform back now." Farengar stepped back as the wolf leaped from the table, turned black, shot upwards, and then Link was standing there. The mage gestured towards the Dragonstone that was lying on the table."Where did you find this?"
"In Bleak Falls Barrow."
Balgruuf nodded."Interesting. I must return to my Throne now, lest someone needs me."
The Jarl left the room to go back to his Throne while Farengar and Link studied the Dragonstone for a bit.
There was some sort of commotion in the main hall, and Farengar was called from his study.
Link stepped out of the mage's office and followed Farengar up the stairs, where a lone guard was talking to Jarl Balgruuf about a dragon being spotted at the western watchtower.
"So, Irileth tells me you came from the western watchtower."
The guard nodded, looking very nervous. "Yes, my lord."
Irileth stepped up. "Tell him what you told me. About the dragon."
The guard shifted a bit. "Uh...that's right. We saw it coming from the south. It was fast... faster than anything I've ever seen."
Balgruuf looked concerned. "What did it do? Is it attacking the watchtower?"
The guard shook his head. "No, my lord. It was just circling overhead when I left. I never ran so fast in my life...I thought it would come after me for sure."
Balgruuf clapped a hand on the man's shoulder and smiled. "Good work, son. We'll take it from here. Head down to the barracks for some food and rest. You've earned it."
The Jarl watched the guard leave, then turned to his housecarl. "Irileth, you'd better gather some guardsmen and get down there."
"I've already ordered my men to muster near the main gate."
Balgruuf nodded. "Good. Don't fail me. One last thing, Irileth. This isn't a death or glory mission. I need to know what we're dealing with.
"Don't worry, my lord. I'm the very soul of caution." Irileth nodded to the Jarl, drew her sword, then gestured to two other guards. "You two, with me! We'll show the winged bastard that he'll regret the day he was ever hatched!" The woman then ran off with a few guards.
'A dragon? Here? It couldn't be the one I saw two nights ago, could it?' Link watched the guards and Irileth leave, then started to follow them, only to stop and gaze at a table nearby. On it laid two clawed objects and a map of Skyrim. Link picked one of the objects up, and half turned to face Farengar. "Where did you find these?"
Farengar smiled. "A guard found them by the river. They were in rough shape, and covered in blood. I cleaned them personally and have been trying to figure out how they operate, with no success this far."
"I can show you, if you wish. They're called Clawshots, and they can latch onto any wooden object and propel you towards them."
Farengar tilted his head a bit in confusion."And you know how these work, why?"
Then young Hylian picked up the other Clawshot, aimed one towards a wooden beam above him, then lowered the weapon. "Because they're mine. I found them in a ruin back home."
Farengar looked at Link for a moment, then nodded. "Then you may keep them, and the map, if you wish. No, not that one, this one." The man gave him a smaller map, which he studied for a bit, put it in his satchel, then started to walk down the steps.
"Link."
He stopped walking and looked back.
Jarl Balgruuf was looking at him with mixed emotions, then the Jarl moved his gaze to the twin Clawshots. "I admit that you have been through a great deal since you awoke in Skyrim, and that, I know without you speaking, that you wish to aid them in fighting the dragon, if there is one. However, I cannot let you leave. It's far too dangerous."
"...Dangerous? I'll have you know that I fought the most powerful warlock back home in Hyrule and survived. A dragon should be no trouble for me."
"Most powerful in your homeland, perhaps, but there are possibly far more powerful mages here, Link." The Jarl's tone told Link that he was overstepping some sort of boundary, but yet, to be treated like this was too much after what he had been through.
Before Link could take a step forward, he was suddenly frozen. He couldn't move for a second then the feeling passed.
"If you're going to try to retaliate, then I will stop you. Just a warning." Farengar had frozen him somehow.
"How did you do that?"
The mage smiled. "Practice. It's a spell called Paralyze."
The Jarl walked over to Link, then set a hand on his shoulder. "I had received word that two Nords have been asking about you, you may see them before they depart, if you wish."
Link nodded, composed himself, then started to walk down the steps.
Link stopped on Dragonreach's bridge after leaving the building, attached the Clawshots to his belt, then looked out towards the burning watchtower. Something was flying around it, and when he saw what it was, he felt those emotions again, the same ones he had felt when the same dragon flew overhead in Riverwood.
"What are you doing out here?"
It was Irileth, she was standing there at the end of the bridge, arms crossed. Ralof and Hadvar were standing close together, eyeing the guards nervously.
When they saw Link, then ran over to him.
"So you're off to fight the dragon then?"
Hadvar nodded. "It's a tough decision, lad. We've seen how you fight, but they haven't. Besides, it's far too dangerous."
"And yet you're going?"
The two Nords didn't have an answer to that and Irileth yelled at them that they had to leave.
Hadvar ran over to the woman but Ralof stayed there for a moment. "When we return, I'll tell you everything, alright?"
"Not if Hadvar tells me first."
Ralof grinned, shook his head, then walked over to Irileth, who then led the group down the steps and they disappeared from view.
A few minutes passed. It was surprisingly quiet on the bridge, and Link looked back at the massive twin doors for a moment, then noticed the wooden beams above and all around him.
'...I wonder...Do the Clawshots still work?' He then noticed how much wood was really around him and he grinned. 'Only one way to find out. How I'd love to see the look on Balgruuf's face when he realizes that I've gone off to help.'
Link primed a Clawshot, aimed it towards a wooden beam above the wooden doors, and then fired.