I, Draugr Chapter 52

A curse leaves Hildr's lips when the tip of her pen breaks once more, leaving yet another ink stain on her journal.

Turning, she tosses it on the nearby table before turning back to what she was analyzing, her now free fingers coming up to pinch the bridge of her nose and rub at her lone good eye.

The sound of the door opening makes her pause, before she turns her head towards the entrance of the training room she was occupying, a small smile spreading across her face when she sees Aurelia walk in, with Gretel holding her hand while chewing on a large bone.

"That's one way to make her obey…" Hildr jokes aloud, her words being ignored by the brat busy gnawing on what must be the bone of a deer while Aurelia laughs softly.

"It was either that, or her barking at the Merchant." The Dragonborn sighs out, pure amusement in her warm yet light voice, "And Leo was about to throw her at the poor man."

"Of course he would have…" Hildr sighs while Gretel hops towards the table after receiving a quick head-pat from Aurelia, pupils dilated as she fully focused on tearing apart the deer bone like it had slighted her. "Thanks for taking care of her." Her brows then furrow, "...How long have I been here?"

Aurelia snorts, moving to join Gretel at the table so to place down the bag she was carrying, "A few days." She answers, before nodding her head towards the right, "Didn't you notice?"

The redhead blinks and looks in the direction hinted at by Aurelia, and finds a large bed laying there. A bed she remembers passing out on when tired by her constant studies. "Leo moved it in here while you were focused. And the table too."

Hildr's heart warms at that, a radiant smile blooming on her face, "I don't deserve him…" She sighs out softly, pure love overflowing out of her voice.

Aurelia smiles, dusting off her hands, "I think that's what he would say too. Before doing something stupid that gives us headaches."

A snort is shared between the two ladies before Hildr brings Aurelia in a quick and tight hug that the Dragonborn happily reciprocates, "Sorry that I left you to handle him all this while."

The silver-haired beauty hums happily in the smile, "I'm just dealing with the aftermath of his insanity. He has been mostly targeting the city and Lah."

Hildr blinks, then pulls back to frown at Aurelia, "Lah?"

Aurelia's smile grows… Stiff, "He somehow tossed Lah down the cliff. He also keeps throwing Poopdaggah at Kara, and telling Gretel to 'shank' people."

"...I think letting him sleep was a mistake."

They share a shudder at that, but deep down they were relieved. Especially Hildr, who was bearing witness to Leo slowly losing himself and becoming more withdrawn due to how mentally tired he was.

"So, what are you researching?" Aurelia asks, breaking away from Hildr and bumping shoulders with her, huge smile on her face as she turns to look at what Hildr had been studying deeply.

There, in the middle of the training room, was a large sphere of flame burning with radiant white-hot light that made it hard to look at. The heat it radiated was immense, enough to evaporate oceans whole in seconds… And yet, it somehow didn't affect them or the room.

Hildr opens her mouth to answer, then pauses, "I… Don't know. I've been trying to figure it out all this while." She admits shamelessly, not being like the other Mages who hate sharing their failures and shortcomings.

The pale woman beside her tilts her head at the answer, "Really? How did you make this, then?"

With a hum, Hildr leans against Aurelia's shoulder, "I was trying to find the Original Rune within my Spirit." She answers, "Spells have one, so I thought… What if it has one too?"

Her gloved hand raises to wave at the floating sphere of blinding light and heat, "It turned into that after a bit."

She had grasped something, that much Hildr could tell. Her Spirit was still alive, just… Dormant. This never happened before, and she had been studying the sphere of fire her Spirit had turned into for several days now.

Other than the glowing Rune she had grasped was at the core of the sphere, Hildr couldn't make out much else.

It was fire, but also not. It burned, but also not. It was hot, but also not. It made no sense to her, and she found it so fascinating, giving it her full focus during her studies.

"Curious." Aurelia hums softly, "I've been mastering the Original Runes of my own Magic too, though I am focusing on learning the more powerful Restoration Spells. I'd rather keep my focus on mastering the Thu'Um and perfecting the Dragon Blades."

The redhead nods at that, having been awed from the sheer beauty of the Dragon Blades, something only possible due to Aurelia's unique heritage.

A Dragon Soul, plus the unique power of the Ansei due to her Breton Heritage, both combined for something unique.

Though, due to a lack of proper teachers in the art, Aurelia is clearly struggling, thus she is wandering around aimlessly until she finds a proper path to follow.

Not that her current method of invoking the Dragon Blades is a waste. They are still a tremendously powerful weapon that she can now openly wield due to her dual-wield style of fighting.

"I should put some efforts in learning Restoration Magic too." Hildr grunts out, "Learning how to heal myself would be very useful." Even though she has some of Leo's personally made Scrolls with his powerful Restoration Spell, she'd still rather have the skill under the belt.

Aurelia perks up at that, "Oh! I almost forgot!" The woman gasps out, making Hildr turn to look at her from the side. While also partially enjoying the view while she was there. It wasn't much of a lie when she said that she was also into women, after all. "Me, Kara and Lah thought of a possible solution for your transformation!"

The redhead blinks her good eye at that, "Other than the 'Ignore Hunger' Spell?" That Spell did wonders while in Saarthal, allowing her to employ the full power of her transformation so to assist Aurelia in battling the five-hundred Companions.

Despite the fact that she tired out within minutes – and that was because she pushed herself to last longer, else she'd have turned back to normal even sooner – the sheer might she wielded in that form was intoxicating.

"Other than that, yes!" Aurelia nods, huge smile on her face that made her appear radiant. Enough so that Hildr had to squint her good eye to stare at her properly. "Restoration Spells of the Expert Class and above can restore Stamina too! It could be useful in helping you last longer while transformed!"

Hildr leans back, one gloved hand rising up to cup her chin as her gaze lowers in thought, "I actually didn't know that… But Spells of that level are quite complicated, no?"

Aurelia winches at that, "Yeah, about that…" Her hand comes up to rub the back of her head, causing her long hair to bounce with the movement, "Kara told me the difference between the Expert and Master Class Spells of back then, and the current ones."

Hildr blinks at that, "Go on…"

"Well… Expert and Master Class Spells of nowadays are still powerful, but they lack what used to set them apart from the lower Classes."

"The Expert Class is when a Magician touches upon Original Runes, thus making their Spells reach a whole new magnitude of Spells and opening a new world to discover."

"Master Class Spells? They revolve around the Original Runes. They are all about bringing out the true might of an Original Rune, unleashing literal cataclysms in the process… Unlike the far, far weaker variants of today."

Hildr finds her mouth go dry at the explanation that, honestly, made far too much sense.

Master Class Spells were known as the epitome of might. The greatest power available to a Mage, capable of reshaping the landscape and scorch the very skies.

But she had read stories of battles between Mages in the past, which she usually thought were far too overblown. Their battles could crack continents, erase islands, create oceans… But now, a Master Class Spell could barely remove a city off the map, depending on the one that unleashes it.

"It does sound incredible, I'll admit." The redhead finally sighs out with a slump of her shoulders, "I'm starting to get more comfortable with that side of me, but it always leaves me so weak right after."

It was the cost she had to pay for all that immense power that turned a portion of Blackreach into a molten landscape, and it felt wrong to complain further now that she doesn't lose her mind when using it.

"Anyway-" Shaking her head, Hildr smiles and takes one of Aurelia's hands in hers before tugging her friend towards the table, "Did I miss anything while I secluded myself in here? Deinmaar back yet?"

Aurelia shakes her head at the last question, "Not yet, but Leo isn't too worried. He said he has a feeling on where Deinmaar went." And if Leo wasn't worried, they weren't either. The big guy probably also needed some time away from the insanity that is a fully rested Leonidas.

"As for something new… Serana woke up." Hildr blinks and perks up at that, remembering the beautiful Vampire Leo had suddenly showed up with while she was passed out over his back.

He had clearly mentioned her once, as Hildr remembered seeing Aurelia perk up when he stated the Vampire's name before placing her in a room to recover and rest.

"How's she?" She asks, leaning close to Aurelia and seeing the inner turmoil within her gaze.

"She's… Alright, I guess?" The holy woman sighs out, slumping her shoulders in defeat, "Very beautiful too."

And there's the expected jealousy Hildr saw coming, "Uh-huh… Bet Leo still had eyes only for you." She teases, making the Dragonborn's cheeks flush as her gaze turns shy.

"You worry too much, 'Relia." The redhead reassures softly, voice soothing and warm, "He adores us too much for that." Leo was easy to read, for he was a very honest and direct man.

He expressed his adoration and love for them quite directly, showering them with it since they basically got together in an official way. He'd even made a game out of showering Aurelia with compliments until she makes a noise akin to a boiling tea-kettle, or threatens bodily harm upon him.

Plus the hugs, the holding hands, always holding them close when together. It was the little acts he did to show that he yearns and adores them that makes Hildr swoon madly for that foolish bag of bones.

Then he goes back to being an idiot, and she goes back to wondering on how the fuck she fell for such a clown that made bothering the Daedric Princes his daily source of amusement.

The fact that he keeps a rat on him so to 'call' Hircine whenever he wanted also irked her, for some reason.

"I know, he reassured me too." Aurelia pouts, cheeks still flushed in a very adorable way, "But… You should see her. She is so…" The woman sighs, and Hildr nods with an understanding hum.

"That's the Vampire Charm. It is how they get by looking like a walking pale corpse." Though, Serana's clearly was on a whole other level. Even while asleep and without being consciously forced on someone, it still made it hard for Hildr to look away from the woman.

"I don't remember it being so powerful…" Aurelia muses, then shrugs, "But that might be because I always started punching and killing when I saw the glowing eyes."

Hildr found that very, very hot. But she kept her mouth quiet, for now.

"What has she been doing so far?"

"Just reading." The pale woman answers with a sniff, "She's from the Second Era. Predates the Empire, even."

Hildr wanted to point out that so does Kara, but she didn't want to be the one that calls the woman an 'old hag' and then get hit by whatever ungodly powerful Spell she has in her repertoire.

"What about Winterhold? How's it faring?"

Aurelia proceeds to inform her of everything she missed these past few days due to the presence of the Eye of Magnus above the College.

With it basically drenching Winterhold in Magicka, the people of the city have been feeling full of energy. Kara set up an Array to keep away the worst of the cold and blizzards, and to invigorate the people of the city, thus making them work with far greater efficiency.

Roads were fixed, and the mine around the hole down to Blackreach was set up, with several elevators having been built that descent down the pit.

Kara had made it so that the Array went down the tunnel too, with a Spell called Feather Fall lingering around in case anyone fell. Even if they did, the would just get a bad scrape that would heal in seconds, even from the immense fall.

Still, they hadn't reached Blackreach yet, and not from a lack of trying. The miners were just discovering countless pockets and tunnels filled with so many ore veins that their time was being eaten up, not that any of them was minding.

They were stocking up on so many resources that they had turned the hollow mountain into a storage unit.

Hildr saw this as a good thing, for they all needed to prepare as best as possible for the war against the Dragons. But she also saw this as a way for Skyrim to rebuild its strength, and perhaps gain a greater foothold with the Empire.

Once trade was set up and Blackreach was being mined properly, the Empire would be able to hasten its recovery.

While raw ores couldn't replace lost lives, Hildr had no doubt that finely crafted and Enchanted gear would help in the future war against the Thalmors.

With the Dragons targeting Skyrim due to their past loss caused by its people, the Thalmors were sure to use this to further weaken the Empire…

Yet, Hildr knew that any action they would take would be answered in turn by Leonidas. He was just waiting for a reason to drop a catastrophic Spell upon their land.

Such an attack would weaken them massively for many years. Decades, even.

Kara was of the same mind, but she personally did not enjoy meddling in such affairs due to her immense power, and due to Lah being her husband.

She will protect Skyrim against the other Great Sages, but she couldn't hold the hand of its people. Mostly because they weren't the type.

Things were building up, and with Morokei having spied on them through their Masks this whole time, he was clearly planning to take them on and cripple Skyrim with the next battle coming upon them.

He had gathered the remaining Dragon Priests and freed Otar the Mad, a man who Deinmaar confirms is far stronger than him. The roar that had shaken the whole of Skyrim some time ago had come from him.

Kara confirmed that the Dragon Priests and Otar the Mad were gathered together in the mountain chain South-West of Solitude, which were now shrouded by a dense magical fog that stopped any magical scrying.

Not that it could stop Kara if she tried, she just didn't bother to as she knew that the Dragon Priests were likely raising an army of Undead, while Morokei had disappeared, his goal unknown.

"We can't catch a moment of peace, huh?" Hildr jokes, a grin on her lips, and Aurelia snorts softly.

Her shoulders shrug, making her silver hair bounce, "To be fair, it does work in our favor. All of the past Dragon Priests in one place is a good thing for us."

"The Dragon may train others, but they won't be as loyal as the ones from the Merethic Era."

Hildr was just worried about Morokei. According to Leo, the Dragon Priest holds the Staff of Magnus, capable of devouring Magicka itself, and he was a terrifyingly cunning strategist who had been spying on them this whole time through the Masks.

Plus whatever power his Mask held- Hildr and Aurelia both perk up when the door of the training room opens, and in lazily strides Kara, an apple in her hands as she swaggers in while audibly crunching on it.

Only to pause and drop her half-eaten apple at the sight of the flaming sun in the middle of the room, "What. The. Fuck." The woman exclaims through muffled words due to the apple pieces still in her mouth.

"Oh, hey Kara!" Hildr waves, a smile on her face- Only to flinch when the minute freckled woman turns towards her with a very heated gaze.

"Hildr." One hand waves towards the flaming sun, "What the fuck."

The redhead can only shrug, strangely amused at the sight, "Yeah, it kind of happened… Do you know what that is?"

Kara gapes, then looks between Hildr and what she had conjured several times, "By Meridia's wonderfully fat tits-" Aurelia chokes on her breath at those words, "-you actually don't know what you just did…"

"Meridia has fat tits?" Hildr asks the important question. She was curious, damn it!

Kara nods absentmindedly while Aurelia drops her face in her hands, "Oh yeah. And long legs. She also likes using an avatar that is over three meters tall, ya know? First time I saw her I went all 'Awooga!' at them huge ol' tiddies."

Gretel had stopped munching on her destroyed bone long enough to give Kara a confused and disgusted look. And coming from Gretel, such a look was lethal.

Kara ignored it like she ignores the fact she punched a hole from Skyrim to Blackreach that could have made the surface collapse had it been any stronger. "Anyway!"

Small hands wave at the burning sun, "This is the Fire Origin Rune!"

Hildr slowly nods, "I… Yeah? I was trying to find my Spirit's Original Rune, and that popped out."

The ancient archmage shakes her head with a groan, "No, not an Original Rune! Origin! The main one, from where the Original Runes branch out from! The very source of that damned element!"

Hildr's shoulders sag, "Huh… Cool." So there was a difference between Origin and Original Runes. Two small letters, but the power difference was likely… Immense.

And her Spirit was now dormant, as if incubating itself within that Origin Rune. That was going to unleash something, because of course it will. It always does.

"Cool, she says." Kara scoffs, kicking her half-eaten apple and vaporizing it with fire magic, "I was fifty when I first touched upon Origin Runes, ya know? And you're barely half my age."

The redhead finds her ears burning from the praise, a shy smile working its way on her face, "So uh… How do you use it?"

"You don't." Is Kara's instantaneous and harsh answer, her eyes narrowed into a warning glare that startled both Aurelia and Hildr, "I'm serious. Even I have never dared use a Spell with these things powering it."

Hildr works her jaw, her mouth suddenly dry and feeling like she was chewing sand, "I-… Why?" She partially hated it, but she also listened to Kara due to her immense knowledge. No matter how much she disliked it, for she wanted more power, so to be more useful and less of a liability.

Kara looks at her for a good few quiet seconds before breathing in through her nostrils. Her shoulders rise, and her gaze flicks towards the burning sun in the room, "These are Concepts, Hildr. It is the very meaning of Fire. Of Hot, Burning, Boiling- Everything relating to Fire itself."

"You unleash a Spell through this? It will never. Stop. Burning." Hildr finds her stomach drop, "Not now. Not ever. Even the caster cannot stop it."

Aurelia lets out a shaky breath, "By Arkay…" She leans back, "I presume the others are… Similar?"

Kara winches and looks away, "Yeah… Some even worse, while the Alteration one is kinda harmless unless… Well, used." The woman didn't explain further, and seeing how it disgusted her so, they decided not to ask any further.

And that's when another voice pipes in. "Is this your new hiding spot?"

In unison, all four women blink. Then, very slowly, they raise their heads towards the ceiling.

And there, on it, was a wide pitch black stain. From said black stain emerged Leonidas' head, his frozen skull wrapped in that eternal darkness and those purple flames fully visible beneath his hood.

"Oh, no…" Kara whimpers, "You can make portals now, can't you…?"

Leonidas' answer was grabbing Kara's ankle, his skeletal arm rising out of a patch of darkness right beneath the woman.

Kara looks down at the arm grasping her ankle with pure disgust, "Sometimes I wonder why I let you exist."

Leonidas' tilts his head from its spot on the ceiling, "Is this about me tossing Lah down the roof and into the water?"

"Yes."

Hildr still wanted to know how the fuck that happened, but knowing Leo… He could make the impossible into something possible whenever he wanted to annoy someone.

"I did give you the Ohgma Infinium." The idiot skeleton points out, and suddenly Kara is all smiles and warm love.

"You're the best, skelly boy!" The woman instantly does a one-eighty while ignoring the blank stares from Hildr and Aurelia.

"I know, but keep the compliments coming." Leo sighs humbly, "Anyway- Yoink." Gretel disappears with a squeak.

Hildr blinks up at the skull.

"Anyone else want to come to Whiterun? I'm gonna drop Wuuthrad on them bitches, see if there's anyone chad enough to lift that heavy motherfucker."

Hildr blinks again, "Where did you send Gretel?"

"Just dropped her on top of Aela. She's screaming bloody murder as Gretel wacks her with the half-eaten bone."

The redhead stands instantly, enormous grin on her face, "Oh, I gotta see this shit."

Aurelia says nothing, but she moves to follow. To stop the chaos, of course.

Totally.

~~XXX~~

"Uhm… Sir?"

The hall falls quiet as a guard approaches from the stairs. Balgruuf lifts his head from the war table where every remaining Jarl, the Emperor, General Tullius and Kodlak sat at, discussing plans for the incoming crisis.

"What is it, soldier?" Balgruuf questions, though he already had an inkling. That's the 'He is back and he is making it everyone's problem' tone of voice.

"Sir Leonidas is back, sir." Called it. "He just… Appeared. Walked out of a wall, somehow. Said something about 'I'm in your walls, you fuckin' N'wah!', threw a child at a Companion and is now… Well, down the stairs."

Fascinating. "Anyone else with him?"

"The Dragonborn, sir."

And that made everyone pay attention. Shoulders squared, eyes grew sharper, and even the Emperor sat straighter on his seat.

It wasn't often one would be able to meet the central figure of the prophecy, after all.

"Allow them through." Balgruuf orders, though… The Emperor was here, and well… This was Leonidas. The man was not going to behave. "Your Majesty."

Balgruuf turns, referring to the Emperor, who nods his way, "Just… Keep an open mind about Leonidas. He is… Well, we suspect he is a very ancient existence."

Eyes widen at his words, and the Emperor nods once more, clearly thankful for the warning.

Balgruuf shared a defeated look with Farengar, for they both knew that warning wasn't much. No warning could ever prepare someone for Leonidas-

"Fuck outta my way, torta. Foo' comin' through."

And there it fucking was.

Balgruuf half-sighs and half-groans, face dropping in his hands as Leonidas swaggers up the stars, dragging a colossal weapon over his shoulder like it weighed nothing.

Aurelia followed after him, swiftly shooting Balgruuf an apologetic smile that said 'I tried, sorry.' and that made the Jarl feel just a tiny bit better. But also sorry for the woman that had to handle the foolishly whimsical being that accompanied her.

It was a theory, of course, but one that likely held some truth. Farengar had once mentioned it, but the man didn't wish to speculate too much, for deep down he also held great respect for Leonidas.

The robed man was clearly some manner of Undead, which Farengar once confirmed in one of his past visits through a quick use of the Sense Life Spell… Which found none in Leonidas.

He was likely some form of ancient Lich, or one of those ancient Dark Bishops, seeing how the man walked in and out of Arkay's church without getting vaporized, and his usage of Holy Magic.

Plus, said theory was also still pondered on due to the immense amount of knowledge the man held. Balgruuf highly doubted there was anyone that knew as much as Leonidas.

"Balgruuf, homie!" Leonidas cheers, voice joyful as his free hand rises up in a salute. "Man, it's nice to see y'all actually talk like adults and not be fuckin' idiots."

Ulfric winches from his seat, while Elisif snorts softly from her. The shot was clearly aimed at him.

"You seem in a good mood, Leonidas." Balgruuf nods in greeting, finding himself feeling quite… Relaxed. Confident. Leonidas strangely had that effect. Having him on their side always reassured Balgruuf that everything would be alright.

"Quite!" The robed man nods, then swiftly raises the giant weapon over his shoulder and rests it on the ground.

Once in full view, the hall goes quiet. Very, very quiet, for only idiots would not recognize the weapon.

Any proper Nord would recognize the weapon of their Ancestor. The one from whom their whole Race originates from. The one who granted them Skyrim.

Balgruuf gulps, his mouth dry as Kodlak slowly stands. The Harbinger of the Companions looked ready to collapse on the spot, eyes as wide as they could be, and hands shaking as they supported him against the table. "T-That is…"

"Wuuthrad, yes." Leonidas nod, patting the giant black weapon with his gloved hand, "Found it in the ruins of Saarthal… Alongside Ysgramor."

The reveal sends sharp intake of airs through the wide hall. "You mean… Alive?" Balgruuf asks, feeling faint.

His Ancestor. The First Man. Word-Bringer. The Atmoran.

Alive. All this time.

Leonidas hums softly, then moves forward, "Let me tell you all a quick story." He states, and Balgruuf waves at a guard, who swiftly hurries to bring a seat for the robed man.

Once seated, he started the story. The story of a prodigy in Magic, who grew up in Saarthal and surpassed all of his teachers.

A prodigy who left his family to pursue his talent before coming back better. Stronger. Satisfied.

Only to return upon a burning city, sacked by the Snow Elves, led by their greed for an ancient artifact.

Having lost his wife and child, the prodigy returns to seeking more knowledge. More power. Even going as far as learning from the very Races that he loathed, for they took his family.

And when Ysgramor returned, the man swiftly offered his extensive Enchanting knowledge to the Atmoran and his Five-Hundred Companions, thus becoming the Embittered Destroyer.

Ahzidal.

Ysgramor led a genocide, slaughtering the Snow Elves until they could only let the Dwemer enslave them so to give them an escape route.

But Ahzidal wasn't satisfied. He wanted to kill all the other Elf Races, down to the last… But he also wanted refused to become such a monster before his companions. His brothers and sisters in arms. His liege.

Thus… He found a compromise. He sealed them, and himself, together with the powerful Artifact. Stunted the magical growth of all the Races, crippled it over the years until it would fade away.

Then, he waited. And waited. Until someone appeared within the ruins of Saarthal and felled him… Thus using himself and the Artifact as a sacrifice to open a colossal Oblivion Gate.

But he couldn't go through with it. Not fully. The Dragonborn granted the Companions a warrior's death, and Ysgramor enjoyed one final battle…

Before the First Man challenged his own friend, so they both could reach Sovngarde together, and Ahzidal's death wouldn't be a sacrifice that would paint him as a monster worse than the ones he hated.

Once it was all over, the first to speak was the Emperor, surprisingly enough, "Leonidas." The man starts, rising from his seat, and resting his hands on the table.

Leonidas straightens on his seat, suddenly seeming very aware of the man that had spoken to him. Even Aurelia's own eyes widen in shock, as the two had failed to recognize the Emperor seating among the Jarls.

"I must thank you, from the bottom of my heart and Soul, as the Emperor." The old man bows his head deeply, stunning the Jarls, "What you stopped is…"

The Emperor was at a loss for words. His shoulders fell, and his face looked like it had aged considerably as he sighed deeply.

None dared say that Leonidas' words were fake, or that it was just a tale to impress them. Balgruuf had spoken greatly of him enough that others would keep their thoughts for themselves.

Leonidas remains quiet for a while, before he finally speaks up. His voice was surprisingly soft as he speaks up for the Emperor, "I couldn't allow Martin's sacrifice to go to waste."

Such simple words, stated with such simple and direct honesty, swiftly gained him the full respect of the Emperor, who smiles warmly and in thanks towards the robed man.

Who proceeded to shrug, "Plus, Sheogorath would have crashed out if I let that happen."

Balgruuf blinks at that, "...Sheogorath? Why?" Why would the Daedric Prince of Madness be mad at that?

"Hm?" Leonidas perks up as he stands from his seat, "Oh, the Hero of Kvatch is the current Sheogorath." He reveals, pulling out a slice of cheese from his sleeve before tossing it into the large fire in the hall, "Ain't that right, buddy?"

The fire swells and roars purple, before taking the shape of a large thumbs up followed by the insane cackles of a God.

The Emperor stared at the bonfire for a good, tense and quiet minute, before nodding and taking his seat once more. "I'm just going to ignore that."

Balgruuf followed along. So did everyone else. Aurelia was currently glaring bloody murder at Leonidas, and making him drop any cheese he was hiding in his robes.

He so fucking hated Leonidas for dropping mind-shattering revelations in such a relaxed manner.

"Anyway!" The robed idiot claps his hands, drawing attention back to him. Unfortunately. "Ysgramor wanted me to find a worthy wielder for Wuuthrad, so I brought it here."

"I don't know if such a person is in this room. Or in this Hold. Or is even fuckin' born."

"All I know is that Ysgramor loved Skyrim. He fought for it like a man possessed, and he'd be fucking furious to see his descendants fight among each other like fuckin' children."

Heads lower, fists clench, eyes burn. But Leonidas doesn't stop. His words are sharp, and cut deeper than any blade could, "You're brothers and sisters, for fuck's sake. Bickering is normal, killing each other ain't."

"The Empire has its faults, has fucked up its fair share of times… But it needs Skyrim the same way Skyrim needs the Empire."

"Divided you fall, united you stand." Leonidas lift Wuuthrad and slams it closer to the table with enough force to shake the floor, "Talos ascended so he could run the fade with the fucking Elven Gods and throw slurs at them. Make him proud and keep tearing into those piss-yellow cunts like feral dogs."

His hand releases Wuuthrad's shaft, and he takes a step back. "Your Ancestors felled Dragons. Saved Tamriel from their tyranny."

"A bunch of prideful cunts dressed like edgy fucks are nothing in comparison."

The Emperor was the first to lose it. His head flew back from how hard his laughter roared out of him, and Balgruuf soon followed, with Ulfric in tow.

That was one way to raise morale, alright.

~~XXX~~

Kara breathes in the fresh, cold air of Winterhold from the rooftop, a smile on her face.

Lah lazed around beside her, just napping away the annoyance of not figuring out how the Eye of Magnus works.

Serana was with them too, carrying a book that detailed the Empire history. One of many, at least. She wasn't even close to the Oblivion Crisis.

Kara really wanted to pay Mehrunes Dagon's Realm a visit when she learned the full extent of it. She had fallen asleep around the time it started, and woke up when the Fourth Era began, so she had missed the full scope of it.

Though she had heard of how disastrous it was from the students of the College through the years. The only thing that quelled her anger and amused her greatly was how the Hist drugged up the Argonians, who proceeded to beat the absolute fuck out of the Daedra and started invading Oblivion instead.

Weird trees and their magical drugs… Now if only Lah could get along with them, she could maybe find an opportunity to study them, but nope. She always had to stop the big nerd from just flying over and evaporating them and their country.

Dragons and their hate for the Hist… She now had to ask Leonidas for slurs to hurl at weird, magical trees. Her hubby's enemies are hers too, after all!

"You know…" Serana suddenly starts, closing the book she was reading so to gaze around, her face relaxed, "This is… Nice."

Kara tilts her head, then blinks in realization, "Oh yeah, you've grown in nobility, yeah?"

The Vampire nods, her nose scrunching up in distaste, "The worst kind, but yes. Not having to deal with arrogant pricks using flowering speech is very, very nice."

The Archmage snorts softly, "Wait 'till the Mages come out from their studies and catch sight of your beauty." She teases, "You'll be hating this place too in no time!"

The pale woman lets out a soft, bubbling laugh, "Think they'll accept me?"

Kara shrugs, "I think you don't care either way." She points out, and Serana does nod, "But yes, they will. Pretty sure there's a Hag studying here now? And it wouldn't be the first time a Vampire came to learn from the College."

The vampire beauty perks up at that, "Truly?"

With a smile, the freckled woman leans back and sighs wistfully, "Back in my time, one of the Master Mages was a Vampire. The Master of Alteration, he was a very fun dude, and made some of the best wines I've ever had."

Now, all those people were long gone. Those she was teaching, her students, her friends, her colleagues… None of them knew her real heritage, until the very end.

For the longest time, Kara feared that all of her achievements would be stolen by her deadbeat of a father if her heritage was know.

"As expected of Shalidor's daughter." They would say.

"Truly, you carry his blood in your veins." They would praise.

"He must be so proud to have such a successor." They'd say without knowing shit.

All those possibilities… For the longest time, they haunted her, and she hated them. Deeply. Terribly so.

She still cares, deep down. But sometimes, such a status could be used to have people listen to her, and trust in her.

Still… Leonidas and the others warmed her heart a great deal. Hildr and Aurelia didn't care, while Leonidas… He would often say that Shalidor was nowhere near her level.

And she believed him. Not out of pride and arrogance, but because those are words of someone who studied her father's life through the Folium Discognitum.

It was funny how someone so much younger than her helped her step out of the shadow she trapped herself in.

Humming softly, Kara glances at Serana. A mischievous grin slowly forms on her face, and she flicks her wrist, weaving Magicka to do her bidding.

Serana's calm smile twitches, her nostrils scrunch up, and then she audibly gags and covers her mouth, "What the fuck!" The woman exclaims, and Kara cackles, "Did you just use Illusion Magic to create the stench of garlic around me!?"

The Archmage wheezes, punching the stone railing of the College's roof, "W-Wanna do it to your daddy's castle?" She offers, and Serana freezes.

The allure. The sheer, tempting allure of being a little shit. It was so addictive, and the adrenaline of it just made it so much better.

Kara used to prank the students of the College in the past, but now she wants to be even worse because of Leonidas. He was a bad influence.

"I should really say no…" Serana whispers, her lips twitching as she was visibly trying to stop a smile from rising on her face. "I really should. It… It isn't proper."

Kara's grin turns dark as she leans in, "Do it! Get some much deserved catharsis! Make his last few days miserable-" Her words halt, and Kara's head shoots to the side, eyes narrowed and zeroing onto the hollow mountain beside Winterhold.

Serana doesn't miss the sudden change in the mood, "Is everything… Alright?"

Kara doesn't answer. Her gaze turns towards Lah, and the Dragon only had a lone golden eye open, which was staring right back at her.

"Something just came up." The freckled woman drawls out, a dangerous smile spreading across her face as she stands, "I'll be back soon with a very convincing argument on why we should make your father's castle reek of garlic."

The vampire just sighs in defeat, and Kara bows before the wind picks her up, carrying her away from the College and towards the mountain.

She enters it through the large crack, using a minor Illusion Spell to make the miners and workers unaware of her as she hums a happy tune… And jumps down the massive hole she created.

The wind rushes past her ears, a relaxed smile on her face as she stretches her arms and legs through the air, delighted by the lack of back pain or other issues that plagued her due to old age back in the day.

At least one good thing came out from getting sealed by Lah.

It takes her a good bit to finally reach Blackreach, where she land with a light grunt and stumble forward, before she straightens up with a cheer and feral grin on her face, "Now…"

"Where the fuck do you think you're going, Morokei?"

A pulse of Magicka cracks forth from her like a clap of thunder, displacing the surrounding magic and destroying the minor Spell that would never fool the likes of her.

A cloaked figure shimmers into view far ahead, back turned to her, one arm stretched to the side and grasping a long mottled staff seemingly made out of the branch of a tree.

Aquamarine Runes covered the base of the staff, all the way to the top, where it opened up and wrapped tiny branches around a glowing aquamarine gem.

The Dragon Priest turns his head, glowing light blue mask regarding Kara with disinterest, "It seems I was expected."

Kara's grin turns vicious, "You're predictable." She sneers, "I expected the allure of the Elder Scroll to attract you. And I expected you'd act the moment Leonidas was gone."

From the very moment she realized Morokei was spying on them, Kara knew the one thing he was coveting the most was the Elder Scroll Leonidas mentioned was in Blackreach.

It was both to gain such a powerful tool, and to likely remove it from their hands so it wouldn't be used against Alduin once more, just in case.

What other plans Morokei had for it, Kara didn't know. Nor did she care.

The ancient Dragon Priest turns to fully face her, dusty and torn cape billowing and revealing the aged and form-fitting dragon-scale armor beneath, "No matter. Just a temporary distraction."

The Staff of Magnus flares, and Kara instantly feels the surrounding Magicka bend to its will, then rush towards Morokei in a roaring storm of dense, visible waves of pure Magic.

"A Mage unable to wield Magicka is an inconsequential threat."

The staff rises-

"Fly – Punch – Smash – Pierce – Push – Move – Shove – Shatter – Collapse – Annihilate."

A miniature, familiar star rumbles to life on the tip of Kara's right index finger.

"Ro – Fus – Dah – Nah – Kest – Bah – Vaaz – Mul – Gaar – Dov!"

The star roars forth, and the whole of Blackreach whines.

Magicka itself bows to the whim of the minute Archmage, her Chant in two languages having forced the very fabric of Reality to support her Spell with all of the Magicka available instead of flowing to the command of the Divine Artifact.

Every Chant gave meaning to the Spell, empowering each Chanted factor to unimaginable levels, and thus also changing the very Spell itself.

A simple Magic Missile roared forth, howling like a furious Divine Dragon as it bloomed with radiant light that took the shape of those mighty, scaled winged beasts.

It crossed the distance between her and Morokei faster than the speed of a blink, blinding jaws reaching for the Dragon Priest's skull.

Until he tilts his staff, and Space itself seemed to twist, causing the colossal Dragon of light to curve around Morokei and shoot in the distance, the Doppler Effect of its roar ringing forth together with the devastating sonic-boom.

With a hum, Morokei reaches up to dust off his robes, "Apologies, I won't underestimate you further."

Kara huffs and tosses her hair over her back with a swing of her arm. "Be a dear and don't disappoint me, yeah?"

"I have several Era's worth of stress to dish out, after all."

Either Blackreach breaks first…

Or Morokei does.

A.N. Silly widdle Kara and showing why Lah is all horni and obedient for her.

And I also want to show off Morokei and the Staff of Magnus. Because why not.

Another big battle is approaching!

And so is Solomon's first appearance.

Nyeheheheh!

Toodles!