"Muffle, muffle, muffle." Ulfric says, and might I add, quite inspirationally.
"And now, I get to put you down like the rabid dog you are." General Tullius sneers, as Ulfric stands in stoic defiance.
"First prisoner." That captain says.
I step forward, looking at Ulfric, "It's been an honor to pledge my services to the true High King of Skyrim. Please, begin the rights priestess." I say turning to the priestess of Arkay... Another wave of "Thunder" tears through the sky, much closer than the last. I really hope I timed this right...
"As we commend your souls to Atherius, blessings of the eight divines upon yo-" The priestess begins, but a loud crash above silences her...
"Now! Make for the tower!" I shout at the top of my lungs, shoving my would-be executioner to the ground, and taking his ax before making my way to the tower...
Flames like rain pour forth from the heavens. Looking over my shoulder, I see Alduin... The largest, most ferocious dragon to ever roam Tameriel... Yeah, I'm not suicidal... Yet… Slamming the door behind me I shout above.
"Who's ever up the tower, climb down now or you're dead!" I use the executioner's ax to cut my bindings before tossing it to Ralof.
"Free those still bound, after you hear the tower shake follow me through the breach. All of you! Don't fear the flames, they won't burn if you're quick enough!" I prepare to head up the stairway with two Stormcloaks rushing down past me as Lokir begins to speak.
"That's... That's a dragon! Is that..." Lokir begins stammering.
"Yes, that's why I told you not to look, otherwise you'd be paralyzed by fear," I say, almost halfway up the stairs when I hear...
"Halt, who are you Orc? How do you know these things?" Ulfric bellows towards me.
"I am Silvantus Malborne, the rest I'll tell you when we're all safe from the dragon. Now, I've gotten you this far. Trust me a little further and we'll all make it out of here with a story to tell." I say marching up the steps, the tower shakes and Alduin smashes through the wall, filling the space just above me with a torrent of flame.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1... And with that, he flies off to torment more easier prey...
"Now! Through the breach, aim for the hole in the building below!" I shout below, as I sprint toward the breach.
"That man is insane!" Lokir shouts over the din of battle as he follows close behind. Close behind him Ralof, Ulfric, and the other Stormcloaks follow my lead.
Descending through the burning wreckage of the house I tell them, "Alright, we're almost to the keep, from there we'll have a moment's rest, but we don't have time to waste. Follow my steps exactly untill we enter the keep. Now, onward unto the chaos!"
Where the hell is this coming from? I don't remember being so assertive... Maybe because I'm an Orc now? And why is the sounds of the dragon tearing this town to shreds so... Exhilarating!… No time to question it. Keep moving!
"Hroathgar, grab the child and fall in line if you wish to survive this!" I shout to the man and child cowering behind some rubble.
"Who are you? How do you know my name?!" Hrothgar whimpers.
"Right now I'm your only hope of survival and that's all that matters!" I shout over the dragon's roars.
The dragon lands and shoots fire down one of the side streets.
Speechcraft Increased to 17
"A-alright, I'm with you!" Hroathgar shouts grabbing the boy and tossing him over his shoulders.
The dragon takes off once more.
"Now, follow me into this alley, and whatever you do, don't make a sound!" I rush to the alley with the growing group of allies close behind. I stop just at the corner of one of the buildings.
"W-why are we stopping?" Lokir says.
I simply bring my hand up to my lips in the motion of silence... Feeling my tusks for the first time, I'm impressed by their length, it looks as though they are almost level with my nose.
But enough of that! I'll have time to admire my rugged good looks after the dra- I feel the earth tremble behind me... And the dragon bathes the path before us in flames... Then takes off once more...
"That's why we stopped, now we're going to be running straight for the keep. Keep your eyes locked on my back and don't stop running until we make it inside the keep. Alright! Let's go!" I charge forth into the fray, pushing with all my might through the keep's door, holding it as the rest file in behind me. Panting Ulfric turns to me and says,
"Alright Orc, we made it to the keep. Now tell me who are you!?" He bellows, on the verge of rage.
"Not yet, there's still the matter of your men being tortured below, now quickly hide! The key to our escape approaches quickly." I say, hiding just out of sight of the barred passage to my left.
"Quick open the gate! We need to get out of here!" The captain who had ordered my execution shouts at the foot soldier accompanying her... Ooh... I am so going to enjoy thi-... Hold up... Since when was I this bloodthirsty? I shouldn't... No! This is kill or be killed! Now fight! The gate comes down and the two make their way into our ambush. Ulfric takes the executioner's axe and brings it down on the head of the imperial soldier. Splitting his hide helmet in two. While I pin the imperial captain to the floor and whisper into her ear...
"You reap what you sow, Imperial..." Before quickly snapping her neck, and taking the key out of her pockets. I remove her helmet, sword, and whatever other pieces of armor she has that would fit me...
One Handed Combat Increased to 16
Level Increased to 2
I'll choose a level up later..."Quick to the dungeons!" I shout quickly opening the door and dashing downstairs towards the sound of fighting.
Jumping into the fray I run the torturer through with my sword as those who were once his victims take on the assistant. With batted breath, I slump down into the nearest chair...
One-handed Combat Increased to 17
Damn, I'm just getting level after level, I'm glad I chose that exp boost now.
"Now... Now we are safe enough to speak... For the moment... Everyone, arm yourselves while I speak with the High King, Lokir, and Ralof... They have many questions that need answering. And I do not have much time to answer..." I take them off to an empty cell down the way, far enough so that no one could hear us.
"Enough sneaking around! Who are you and how do you know so much about this dragon attack?!" Ulfric finally snaps, shouting at me. But I calmly stand my ground.
Welp, time to lie my ass off... "As I said before, my name is Silvantus Malborne, and to answer your question as to how I know what I know... It is a long story, but suffice to say, I am the sole survivor of my clan. We specialized in divination magic, some of us could predict the weather, others the outcome of a gamble, but few could predict the future... I was blessed with being the only one to receive a vision of this day and all its happenings... My clan, knowing the importance of this event, sacrificed everything to get me here... Now, I stand before you, a hand of the will of the nine divines to lead you safely out of the rubble of Helgan so that you may reclaim your throne as the true High King of Skyrim." I sigh, taking a moment to catch my breath... I think that was beli-
Speechcraft Increased to 18
Speechcraft Increased to 19
Speechcraft Increased to 20
Level Increased to 3
Well, I guess that worked. I'll check my level up later though.
"That... Is quite the tale..." Ralof says... Looking overwhelmed.
"I have no idea what to say... Why save me? I'm just a good-for-nothing horse thief... A lousy one at that." Lokir says, looking at me...
I look at him debating on whether I should tell him he's just an idiot who died with an arrow in his back... "I saved you for a selfish reason. I wanted to know if I could alter the vision of the future I had seen... You were to die to an Imperial arrow while fleeing the execution block. Instead, you now live and may change my next dream of the future."
Lokir just looks at me silently before Ulfric speaks up.
"So, in your vision... I win this civil war, and become High King?" He says, pondering this news.
"Yes, the future High King is among us, your highness," I say with a slight nod, inwardly smirking as several thoughts swirl inside my conniving little mind.
"Then it's settled, you'll accompany me to Windhelm and become a member of my personal war council," Ulfric says matter of factly... Shit, I'm not ready for that yet! I'm way too low of a level! Plus, they're pretty racist last time I checked... Hmm, ah ha!
"My deepest apologies your highness, but that is not the trail I must take yet. I must first set into motion several events to ensure you will have the resources at your disposal for what comes after unifying Skyrim. The Aldmeri will not stand idly by as it becomes apparent the civil war will end with a Stormcloak victory. I must strengthen your foundation from the shadows so that once they realize what is going on it'll be too late to stop you." I say, hoping he buys that load of bul-
Speechcraft Increased to level 21
Okay, that's going to get real annoying, real quick.
"I see your point... Alright, but should you ever require assistance in these events. You'll have whatever I can spare. Now, what's our next step?" Ulfric says.
"First we arm up, there's a few more Imperials and frostbite spiders between us and freedom. After that half of us will dress as Imperials and the other half Stormcloaks. Should we run into an Imperial patrol, we'll act as though we're transferring prisoners. We'll do this untill we reach Riverwood, at that point we'll part ways." I say, finally catching my breath. Man, I'm so glad the Stormcloaks hate the Imperials more than orcs.
"Sounds like as good a plan as any," Ralof says, leaving with Ulfric to go arm and coordinate with the men. Lokir stays behind...
Shuffling from foot to foot, he then speaks to me, "What am I supposed to do? Aren't I supposed to die? How can I go back to being a simple thief after hearing all this?" He says, putting his head in his hands.
Shit, I'm not equipped to deal with an emotional crisis of purpose... Purpose... Ah, that could work, that could work really well...
A kind smile creeps up my face and I place my hand on his shoulder, "You were supposed to die a nameless horse thief, but your fate has changed. You can be anything you desire, but I would be a fool not to ask you to join me on my journey to shape the fate of this land, if not all of Tameriel."
Lokir looks up to me, purpose slowly filling his eyes, "Y-you really want to work with me? A nobody?"
"Not nobody, Lokir of Rorikstead, a name that will be remembered for ages to come," I say, smiling as he straightens up and determination fills his gaze.
"Then if you'll have me, I'd be honored to work for you Silvantus." Lokir says sticking his hand out.
I clasp it in mine and say, "Not for me, with me. Partner. Now let's get you out of those rags, mind checking to see if any light Imperial armor is left that isn't too damaged and might fit you?"
Letting go of my hand, Lokir nods returning to the group... I stand in the hall... Spying a skeleton, I search around and find a couple sacks of coins. And use a couple lock picks I found lying around to enter the locked cells.
I proceed to loot what I can from the imperial corpses, taking the torturer's hood and the mage's supplies. Learning the spell, I find I only have flames and lighting, I really need to increase my spells and their potency... What was that class I always played? Spell-sword I think is what it was.
Lockpicking Skill Increased to 16
Lockpicking Skill Increased to 17
Lockpicking Skill Increased to 18
Lockpicking Skill Increased to 19
Level Increased to 4
Inventory: Gold 132