She had not known how long she had been running, but she didn’t care. The feeling of exhaustion and pain clouded her senses. Celestia just kept on running and running through the pearly white snow biting at her bare feet, trying to stay as far away from her pursuers as much as possible. She didn’t know what they looked like. Every time she turned around, all she would see was a dark mass of black smoke, goo, green eyes and writhing tentacles, rapidly gaining on her and everytime she set eyes upon it, it would fuel her terror even more. So she just kept running blindly throughout the snow covered forest at breakneck speed with her lungs screaming for relief. Then out of nowhere, she felt a sharp pain in her leg as it caught onto a lifted root of a tree and sent her slamming down into the snow with a smack. She turned onto her stomach to find the giant morphous mass staring at her right in the face just a few inches away with its single haunting eye in its center. She could hear an unholy gutteral voice whispering in a terrifying dialect that she could never hope to understand.
The mass began to stretch out its tentacles, but stopped just within an inch of her face, when a gonging sound followed by a blue flashing light suddenly appeared. The light appeared to frighten off the beast as it disappeared into smoke without a trace. The light slowly came out from behind a tree and brought itself into Celestia’s sight. The ball of blue light had a presence of comfort and love, making Celestia’s feelings of terror melt right away. As it got closer, she could feel the warmth emanating from it, encasing her body in a shell of safety. Then to her surprise, the ball began to make distinctive sounds that almost sounded like whispering. The voice coming from the ball sounded strangely familiar to her, but she couldn't quite place it. However, when she tried to listen in on to the ball of light to make it out more clearly, she felt herself fading away and her world turning dark once again.
As Celestia began to stir once again from the depths of slumber, she felt something she hadn’t felt for the past few days. Warmth and comfort wrapping her in its safe embrace like a loving cocoon. She could smell a mix of lavender incense and brown sugar in the air, mixed with a faint smell of meat. There were also other older smells too. The smell of old book pages and ink filled the air with a friendly aroma that for a moment, made her believe that she was back home, safe and sound in her room and in her own bed. That feeling gave way to a slight cold sting as she shifted her leg slightly out from underneath her covers before jerking it back underneath what she assumed to be the covers.
Her eyes slowly opened to a stone ceiling, worn and ancient, but still holding together. She turned her head over to the right to see pale white light coming out of a window as if a blizzard was brewing right outside. The walls of the room were adorned with blue banners and drapes of various shades. One of the banners carried the visage of a blue bear. She assumed that had to be a symbol of significance to these people. Bookcases lined the walls filled with books that had unique covers with bright vibrant colors. Celestia could swear she felt magical power emanate from a select few of the more brightly colored books throughout each of the bookcases. The small table next to the bed she was currently occupying had a few various items including a candle, a few books, and two glass bottles of an unknown green substance. She looked at the bed she was currently occupying and the silk sheets were the same shade of icy blue that the various banners around the room had.
All of a sudden, the wooden door on the other side of the room swung wide open to reveal a burly man with rippling muscles wearing a bears pelt as a hood of sorts. His spiked gloves and his large battle axe draped across his back were sure signs that this man, whoever he was, meant business and was not one to be trifled with. However, being around more intimidating ponies and creatures in the past, this man didn’t scare her in the slightest. The man eyed up and down her as if looking for a sign of any threat for a solid minute before letting out a deep breath and stepped further into the room, closing the door behind him.
“So, you’re awake. Good. I’m not entirely sure if you can understand me horse woman, but it is nice to see you didn’t die out there before making it here” the raspy voiced burly man said with a tiny smile.
“May I ask where I am good sir?” Celestia replied with a smile of her own.
The man was taken aback for a moment, but composed himself quickly. He looked as if he was about to say something, before another man came into the room without warning.
“You are in one of my chambers in the Palace of Kings of Windhelm. And it is nine in the morning, on the 23rd of Hearthfire if you would like to know.” the man said.
Celestia warily eyed this new man, but gave a small smile at him. The man in question was fairly tall and of average muscular build, but his piercing ice blue eyes commanded attention. He appeared to be wearing a fur coat over a steel cuirass engraved with a complex pattern. He also appeared to be carrying a simple steel sword that was partially concealed underneath his fur coat. His armored boots clanked every step he took closer to the bed Celestia was currently occupying.
“Welcome to my palace Princess Celestia.” the man said.
“Wh-Who are you?”
“I am Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak. The ruler of this hold.” the now identified Ulfric replied.
“And future high king of Skyrim.” the burly man in the bear pelt hood added.
“Please Galmar, not now, there is still a lot that needs to be done before that becomes close to being reality.” Ulfric firmly replied.
“My apologies.” the burly man said.
“May I ask how you know my name Lord Ulfric?” Celestia respectfully asked.
“Hah! The lass seems to have the same thoughts as I!” Galmar said with a chuckle.
“We heard all about you from Lady Shattershield and how you saved her and managed to slay the Butcher of Cragslane Cavern. His operations have been a dangerous nuisance to my people for some time now, so I thank you.”
“F-Friga? Is she alright? I must find her!” Celestia said as she tried to get out of the bed only to be met with pain from her abdomen and quickly followed with a cry in pain.
“Hold it there lass. My men saw your little tumble down that hillside with Lady Shattershield. You probably shouldn’t move for a little bit.” Galmar insisted as he carefully helped her back into bed.
“Do not fear. Friga is traumatized from her experience and she suffered a few broken bones, but she seems to be alright.” Ulfric replied. “She told us of what you and her suffered at the hands of that filth Butcher.”
Celestia looked down, still upset with herself that she was unable to stop Friga from being violated.
She needed me and I screwed around, she thought as tears began to form in her eyes.
“Lord Ulfric… Friga ended up suffering, and I took too long to prevent it.” she replied choked up with sobs.
Ulfric kneeled down to face Celestia at eye level by her bed and placed his hand on her shoulder.
“But you DID save her. That is what is important. She may not be fine now, but after being reunited with her friends and family, the possibility of healing has returned to her thanks to you. In my eyes, that makes you a hero.” Ulfric comfortingly replied to her.
“...Thank you.”
“Now, I must ask. Where do you hail from? I know many of the races all across Nirn through my academic studies at the academy in Cyrodiil, but I have never seen, nor heard of a race such as yours before. And to have that member of a new race be royalty is even more unusual.”
Celestia looked off to the window for a moment, trying to think of a response. This new land had not given her a good first impression when it came to the kind of people that inhabited it, and she was not entirely certain that she should reveal her true nature to Jarl Ulfric quite yet until she knew she could trust him. She wanted to find Luna as soon as possible, and people knowing of her world and her true form would only get in the way of her search.
I hate doing this but I don’t know if I can trust them yet. I just hope I remember how to make a convincing lie, she thought morosely.
“I am called Alicorn Equestrian Lord Ulfric. My sister and I hail from an island continent in the far east away from this one called Equestria.” she explained.
“Equestria? In all of my studies have never heard of such a place.” he admitted.
“The feeling is quite mutual Lord Ulfric. In the thousands of years my people have existed, we have never known of any lands outside of our own.”
"Not many lands are known in the Far Eastern Unknown Seas of Nirn. Does your land sit close to Akavir?"
"Akavir? To be honest Lord Ulfric, I'm not entirely sure. For as long as my people have been on our land, we have never known of many other races outside of our own, save for the small tribes of Centaurs, Zebras, and Minotaurs. My little ponies unfortunately are isolationists and are afraid of anything new, strange, and unusual. From what I know, we haven't really left our land for anything, save for the fishing boats, but those have only gone 10 miles at the most out to sea."
A bit convoluted, but it will have to do as a cover story. Goodness, I'm beginning to sound like Discord. I do suppose it IS technically the truth. As much as I love them, my ponies can be a little xenophobic. Perhaps I should introduce myself to Twilight's zebra friend once I get home, she thought.
“How in Oblivion did you come across us then?” Galmar asked inquisitively.
“Uhhh...I believe my sister found this continent by accident while trying to save an overturned ship filled with a few of my subjects. A freak storm pushed them past the fishing boundaries I set for my people. I came here to find her and perhaps achieve first contact when I discovered other people lived here.”
“Well, you have done the latter, albeit under unfortunate circumstances. And your timing is a little ill. We are in the middle of a war and do not have time unfortunately for diplomatic relations with new nations.” Ulfric explained.
Damn, I was hoping that finding Luna safe and sound would be easy, but a war is going to complicate things. Celestia thought as she looked towards the frost covered window.
“But perhaps we can assist you with finding your sister, but for the moment, I must go back to attending to my duties as Jarl. We have a murderer to track down.” Ulfric stated. “Galmar, send for a few of the servants to attend to her while she rejuvenates.”
“At once my lord.” Galmar replied as he put his fist across his chest like some kind of salute. Ulfric nodded and walked out of the room, leaving Galmar and Celestia alone for the moment. Galmar was about to leave the room to follow Ulfric’s orders, but Celestia stopped Galmar in an attempt to get some answers out of him.
“Sir Galmar, if it is no trouble, may I ask, have you heard anything of my sister’s whereabouts?” Celestia politely inquired.
“You are the first kind of thing that we have actually seen Princess, but there were rumors passing around travelers recently of a blue horse woman in Whiterun fighting a dragon, but to be honest, until we found you we all assumed they just hit the skooma pretty hard.”
“Skooma Sir Galmar?”
“Aye, an addictive elixir with moon sugar that hails from Elsweyr. Its illegal these days, but that doesn’t stop many from getting their hands on it. Its quite destructive to the body and mind.” Galmar explained. “The Butcher had a lieutenant who had a huge supply of it in Cragslane Cavern where you were found.”
That sounds like the drugs my sweet little ponies used to abuse themselves with. I’m sure glad Luna and I permanently put and end to that. Celestia thought.
“And I suppose we should be thanking you. We’ve been looking for The Butcher and his Pit Wolf Tournament operations for a while now. From what my men told me, you escaped its destruction and led us directly to it with the trail you left behind.”
“I-I’m glad I could be of some help.” Celestia acknowledged.
“Now, If you’ll excuse me your highness, I must attend to my daily duties.” Galmar said as he gave her a slight bow before he started to walk towards the door but stopped to look over his shoulder. “And by the way, if you are looking for your regalia, you need not worry, they were put in the drawer beside your bed.”
Celestia leaned over to the drawer on the left side of her bed and opened it to reveal her crown and necklace perfectly intact. She picked them up for a moment to scan for any damages and then put them back in the drawer when she found none. Celestia then looked back up at Galmar and smiled at him and bowed slightly back at him in her upright position.
“Thank you Galmar, my regalia mean a lot to me.” she thanked Galmar.
Galmar nodded at Celestia and turned back towards the door as he left the room and back down the hallway to attend to the duties that he spoke of.
Celestia laid her head back down on to the soft feather stuffed pillow to rest from her extreme fatigue and fell into a dreamless sleep.
Two restful hours later, she woke up to a slightly darker and colder room. She turned her head towards the window and saw snowflakes blowing in the wind through the frost. The sight seemed to make her colder. When she breathed out, she could slightly see her breath. Celestia had felt fully rested and wanted to start exploring her surroundings. She slowly sat up and felt a stinging pain in her back.
Its been awhile since I slept on my wings. I usually sleep on my side, she thought as she rubbed the sensitive appendages underneath her burlap gown.
Turning to the end table drawer where her regalia was stored, she found a moderately simple, but beautiful sapphire blue dress folded neatly on to the wooden end table with a note laying on top. She picked up the note with her left hand and proceeded to read it.
Princess,
Here is a token of Jarl Ulfric’s hospitality, wear them well.
Galmar
Celestia smiled at his gracious generosity and placed the note back down on to the table. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she proceeded to carefully stand up on to the stone floor. She winced at its ice cold temperature on to her more sensitive feet. She looked down to find a simple but practical pair of blue women’s shoes which she quickly stepped into to relieve herself from the cold. Breathing a small sigh of relief, she turned to the table and picked up the dress. She quickly pulled off her itchy, uncomfortable burlap courtesan dress and slipped on the soft blue dress. The difference in comfort was immediate as her body felt as if it was encased in a soft cocoon.
“Is this silk? I hope they aren’t spending too much on my behalf,” she said to herself concerned. “I need to leave to find Luna as soon as I can anyway.”
She set her sights on the bookshelves hoping to learn as much as she could about this hostile new world before beginning her search for Luna. Walking up to the nearest bookshelf, she reached for an old book with a worn detailed cover. She opened up the cover to see the title of the book. A Brief History of the Empire Book 1 splayed across the top of the first page in intricate handwriting. As with the multitude of books there were in this set, she decided to skim through each of the books, only looking for the more significant details within the texts so she could quickly move on to other books.
In the first book, she learned a multitude of things about Tamriel. How its first ruler Tiber Septim forcefully united the land under his rule to quell the chaos of the mad kings of old. She read further that he began his rule in the year 2E 896, yet she couldn’t help but wonder what the epoch for that date was. And immediately after, it tells of how the start of his rule signaled the beginning of the Third Era of Tamriel. All of the kings and rulers that came after him in his bloodline had their lives taken away from them by either betrayal, assassination, disease, or foolishness on their own behalf. The mention of this ancient Dark Brotherhood murdering the second king at an altar, disturbed her, but she continued on reading. She learned of how the cousin of the second king ascended to the throne and faced the same kind of problems and how after his death, one of his children Potema Septim became on of the most powerful Necromancers in history to usurp the old rule of Cyrodil and bring the capital to the Skyrim city of Solitude. Celestia read on that she did this by starting an infamous conflict known as the War of the Red Diamond. Eventually however, she succumbed to her own evil as her own troops began to desert her and she ended up being slain after a long siege on Solitude. The story of her son Pelagius III turned Celestia's stomach, so she decided to skip over it for the moment.
Reading even further with the following books told of the many descendants of Tiber Septim including the Uriel dynasty leading all the way up to Uriel VII who brought peace to Tamriel for 22 years of his reign until he, like the many Emperors and Empresses who came before him became involved in a plot against his rule. She learned of how his royal battle mage Jagar Tharn betrayed him and imprisoned him in a parallel dimension for ten years. Jagar Tharn learned how to make himself immortal by transferring his life force into an artifact called the Staff of Chaos which he also used to banish the Emperor.
One fact about this Jagar Tharn disturbed Celestia. To keep anyone from destroying it, he split the staff into seven pieces. In doing so though, he lost his sanity and all emotion. He even turned on his own apprentice Ria Silmane when she tried to stop him. Before hee destroyed the staff, he destroyed her corporeal form, essentially erasing her from existence.
I've only known one to split their soul in the pursuit of alicorn-like immortality. ....and she became one of my family's greatest failures, Celestia thought sadly.
She continued to read on in an attempt to clear the troubling thought out of her head. She also had learned that Jagar Tharn apparently masqueraded as the king after banishing him and took over his throne. For ten years he kept up this complex charade until one day when an enigmatic person that seems just to be called the “Eternal Champion” defeated Jagar Tharn in the dungeons of the Imperial Palace in Cyrodil. He had apparently gathered together the shards of the Staff and destroyed it once he brought them all together to kill Tharn. After which he freed the Emperor from his extra dimensional prison. The event was then on called the “Arena Crisis” by many of Tamriel's residences.
Another book spoke of the history of the city itself. To her surprise, the book told of how scholars discovered that the city had been standing for millions of years. It was apparently one of the oldest cities in Tamriel and possibly all of Nirn. She learned that mankind came to Skyrim from their frozen continent of Atmora in the north when it became uninhabitable and settled here in Windhelm after driving back the native Snow Elves that had attacked them on their first settlement near the northern shore. Poorly pronouncing the name in her head, she also learned of how the Ysgramor and his Five Hundred Companions established the First Empire of Men here in Skyrim after conquering the land.
Slipping the last book back into the shelf, she decided to take a short break to search for Jarl Ulfric to obtain information that may give her a lead on Luna’s whereabouts. But before she could leave the room, one of the books on the shelf gave off a magical aura that seemed to draw Celestia in. Looking over to the right side, her eyes landed on a brightly colored red tome. She slowly reached over to it with her right hand and gently pulled it off of the bookshelf. The cover of the book had an odd rune on it that appeared to be a hand on fire. Apprehensively, she slowly opened the cover to reveal an unsettling, scratchy text written in an unknown dialect. She was about to put it down, but as her eyes scanned across the page, she felt an ancient voice whisper into her head in presumably that same dialect. When she flipped through all of the pages, the book suddenly slammed shut by itself, followed by a quick, but loud chant. The red tome then burst into flames and out of existence. The power of the book flew into her body and gave her a feeling of intense heat.
She looked at her hands and then snapped out of her wonder, realizing she may have just destroyed on of her host’s possessions.
“Perhaps it best that I tell Lord Ulfric about this and apologize” Celestia concluded to herself as she stood back up and brushed herself off.
She nervously then turned to the door and walked out of the room with a sheepish smile on her face.
Looking out of the door frame, she could see the long, narrow stone hallway extending left and right for a few hundred feet. Each side seemed to lead to a series of rooms. In one of them on the left, Celestia swore she could see a wizard resurrecting a goat which immediately burst into flames. In another room on the left she could clearly see various servants cleaning and making beds.
All of a sudden, she could hear a person coming around the corner which caused her to duck back into her room and kick the burnt remains of the book behind one of the bookshelves. As the steps grew closer, she pounced on to the bed and quickly opened the copy of A Brief History of the Empire vol 1 and pretended she was reading. The wooden door swung open to reveal a burly man with thick muscular arms wearing a long orange shirt and a maroon vest. On top of his head laid a strange looking baggy hat.
“Ah! you must be Princess Celestia.” the man said cheerfully.
“Oh, may I ask who you are good sir?” Celestia asked.
“Oh yes, where are my manners? I am Jorlief, Jarl Ulfric’s castle steward. I help keep the Palace of the Kings and local relations of Windhelm running smoothly. The Jarl asked me to escort you to the throne room. He has requested your presence.” Jorelief greeted.
“Very well, I thank you for your assistance Jorleif”, Celestia replied as she followed him out of the room and down the hallway.
Slowly making their way down each hallway, they passed many different rooms of varying luxury that Celestia had assumed to be for the nobility and servants within the palace. The stone hallways, while appeared to be well maintained by the people living there, were a little too narrow and dark than the wide, bright, and inviting hallways of her own home. Many of the rooms they passed had people going about their daily duties and looked to busy to even notice Celestia's presence. They eventually made their way to a stone passageway that led down to a small wooden door. Jorleif reached for the latch and with a loud creak, the door opened and let in a rush of warm air.
The room they came into was a massive throne room with long royal blue carpets trailing down the hallway. The dining table lain lengthwise nearly covered half of the hallway and was covered in ornate silverware and plates. The cold stone walls were adorned with banners sharing the carpet’s royal blue coloring and appeared to be laced with gold leafing. The throne itself to the left of her appeared to be made out a single piece of granite and carved with extreme precision, but it still had an aged look which led her to believe that the throne had also been there since ancient times. The tall narrow windows covering the wall behind the throne let in the dull grey light of the cold weather outside giving the entire throne room a feeling of sheer cold.
Jarl Ulfric didn’t appear to be there at the moment, only a few servants were present sweeping up the floors near what Celestia assumed to be the entryway doors into the palace.
Jorleif led her to the table and pulled out one of the seats. He politely gestured for her to sit down and she complied with a polite smile. She carefully sat down, positioning herself as to not put painful pressure on to her tail.
“I’m afraid Lady Celestia that the Jarl has to attend to a few short notice duties within the city for a few minutes, so he has instructed for me to accommodate you with food and wine until he returns.” Jorlief said in apology.
He then whistled off to a room which a blonde haired female servant carrying a tray of food and a liquor of some kind emerged. The female servant placed the tray on the table and quickly gave Celesia and Jorlief a bow before turning around and walked back into the room that she came from.
The spread that she was given did certainly look simple, but delicious. A large slice of a white cheese that gave off a mild, but pleasant odor, a warm loaf of fresh bread, and a bunch of dark violet grapes.
“Thank you sir Jorleif. I don’t think I’ve eaten anything for a few days.” Celestia kindly said to the man.
“Yes, I can imagine. Being wrongfully imprisoned the way you were, terrible thing. Eat as much as you want milady. You are an honored guest of the Jarl. Any luxury you ask for within reason, we will give to you within a moment’s notice.” Jorlief added.
“Thank you very much. This delicious looking food and your generous hospitality will be quite enough for a while,” she kindly replied.
“Then I shall take my leave. Jarl Ulfric shouldn’t be away too much longer.” he said. Jorleif then gave a short bow to her and left the room through a door across the hallway.
Celestia devoured her food, quite happy to be eating something after going without food for what she had assumed to be two days. And despite the small bit of pleasure she got from the food, there was still something even more important that she needed to keep as her top priority: finding Luna. All she could do for the moment was enjoy her food and wait patiently for Ulfric to return and hopefully with a concrete lead for her on Luna’s whereabouts. After fifteen minutes she had gone through most all o the food including the large slice of cheese, the entire loaf of bread, and finished off the sweet roll last. She took a quick look at the bottle and much to her surprise, she found that she had inadvertently downed the whole bottle in between each bite of food she took.
Not long after she had finished off the food on the silver tray, she was tired of waiting for the Jarl and decided to take a short walk around the bottom floor of the castle to explore and to pass a little bit of time. One of the doors behind her was open, One of the doors on her side of the hallway was wide open, so she decided to throw caution to the wind and see what she could find. She didn’t find much of interest down the first narrow hallway. That just lead to what she assumed to be the castle’s kitchen. The room was extremely hot, presumably from the intense flames of its fireplace. She then went over to one of the doors on the other side of the hallway and started hearing voices on the other side of the door. Not wanting to eavesdrop, she started to step away, but one of the voices grew loud enough for Celestia to hear.
“Do you think she is an Akaviri spy for the Dominion? She very well could be.” one voice said.
“Yeah, whoever heard of an alicorn pony? It might just be some daedra succubi in disguise conjured by the elves to infiltrate us.” another voice said.
“I do not believe the poor lass even knows about this war, let alone who the Thalmor are lads.” Galmar’s familiar voice barked out. "As much as I like her, she seems to be as clueless as they come. And she doesn't even look like she has picked up a sword in ages."
“Galmar is right. A daedra would have no feeling or remorse in their souls, only a desire to tempt and kill. As far as the Akaviri are concerned, all four races were well documented by Morrowind's Nerevarine. All other races on the continent were wiped out long ago, our Ebonheart Pact saw to that. And as far as the Dominion is concerned, I have been around long enough to be able to read most people and pick out those who work for the Thalmor. While we may want to conquer Skyrim in our own way, I do not think that conquest or espionage are any of her intentions.” the other familiar voice of Ulfric added. “I looked into her eyes and I saw a pure innocence that I haven’t known for so long. It is clear that while Celestia may be familiar with bloody conflict, she is not hardened by it yet. She remains happy and hopeful...In a strange way, I want to respect that.”
“But Jarl Ulfric, what if she-”
“Enough! She is my royal guest and she is not to be harmed, is that understood?”
“Yes, my Jarl.”
There was silence for a few moments before Celestia heard them talking again.
“If the rumors about her powers are true then, do you think we can convince her to help us win the war?” Galmar asked.
“….Perhaps, one day. For now, we must focus on taking Skyrim back on our own accord.” Ulfric replied. “Has the report come in Galmar?”
“Yes my lord, our scouts in Whiterun did confirm the sighting. Shall I inform Celestia?”
“Yes, and take her around my city. I’d like her to have a tour of Windhelm.”
“Very well my lord.” Galmar replied.
“What of Balgruf my lord? The capture of his city will bring us that much closer to victory.” the other unknown voice asked.
Another moment of silence ensued before Celestia heard activity again.
“Are you mad boy? As much as I want to see the traitor Balgruf the Indecisive run through with a blade, Greymoor and Neugard still stand. If we even try to get close they must be purged of Imperial scum.” Galmar replied.
“Regardless, we must deal with Imperial threats in the East before we can move forward.
Celestia walked back over to the table and sat back down as she began to hear movement come from behind the door.
I suppose Ulfric and Galmar are alright, but I may have to carefully watch the other men under his command. Celestia thought.
The door opened and Ulfric, Galmar, and Jorleif stepped out. Jorleif walked off to a different part of the castle while Ulfric approached his stone throne and sat down. He gave Celestia an unreadable look for a moment before he signaled for a few of his guards to come over to the table. Three guards in a blue garb and spiked helmets which covered their faces entirely. Steel swords hung from their belts and they held a blue shield with the pattern of a golden bear. Celestia had figured that the bear must be the symbol of their city in the same way her sister and herself in their astral forms were the symbol of Equestria.
“Am I in some kind of trouble Lord Ulfric?” Celestia calmly asked.
“Oh Aetherius no, Princess. In fact, I may have some news that may please you." Ulfric replied kindly. “One of my spies have sighted a blue horse woman whom we believe to be your sister. She was sighted near the city of Whiterun to the West.”
In shock, Celestia leaped up out off her chair which momentarily startled them.
“Luna’s alive?” Celestia cried.
“Hold it lass, hold everything.” Galmar urged.
“Do not worry Celestia, for the moment, your sister is safe. Whiterun is well protected and we have reports that your sister is safely in the hands of a capable warrior.”
Breathing out a sigh of relief, she finally started to relax. She slumped back into her chair with a small relaxed smile on her case.
“That at least gives me hope. I should probably set off as soon as I can to find her though, so we can return home.” she said.
“And you shall, with a few provisions that I wish to provide you to survive in Skyrim. However, there is something I would like to ask of you Princess.” Ulfric said.
“Oh, and what might that be?” Celestia asked genuinely intrigued.
“I was hoping before you leave, you would take a small amount of time to tour my city and get to know the land of my people. Being from a new land previously undiscovered by man, I was hoping to take this chance to hopefully establish good diplomatic terms with you being this new land’s ruler. A king must have good allies after all.” Ulfric stated. Especially when said king is in the middle of a civil war.”
“ So the war you are in the middle of is a civil war?”
“Aye lass, with the spineless Empire of Tamriel. Once the golden pride of our continent, now the pathetic pawn of the Thalmor Aldemiri Dominion.” Galmar confirmed with disgust.
Celestia was slowly getting more and more confused at all of these new things that she had no context for. The look on her face gave Ulfric reason to elaborate.
“A hundred years ago, the whole of Tamriel was in the midst of a war that engulfed the entire continent, The Great War. The magic blooded race of the Altmer were conquered by a powerful faction of the elves who called themselves the Thalmor. They foolishly believed we humankind and the races that dared to befriend us were inferior races compared to them. Who they believed themselves to be “pure-blooded magic users.” Ulfric all, but spat out. "The Elves invaded Tamriel from their Archipelago in the Summerset Isles. They started by gathering the other Elven races by systematically conquering them and recruiting them to their cause. And with the combined might of two Elven nations,The Aldemiri Dominion was born, despite their seemingly small numbers at first, they threatened to engulf the whole continent in a few short years. Many lives were lost in the conflict, but we were getting close to winning the war with the help of our allies the Redguards of Hammerfell. Unfortunately, after retaking the Imperial City in Cyrodil, Emperor Titus Mede II lost his spine and caved in to the Thalmor scum's demands, even after all of the pain they caused for all of us. The signing White-Gold Concordat made all of our fighting for naught. "A chance to end the conflict" the cowardly wretch Titus said. Now the worship of mighty Talos has been outlawed and the Empire was forced to break ties with Hammerfell after they wisely rejected the Concordat. And our once mighty orders, The Blades and the Ebonheart Pact were forced to be disbanded. After a hundred years, I made the decision to do something. And now, because I dared to speak out against the Empire and the Dominion the whole of Skyrim has become the battleground for the rest of Tamriel.
After that story, Celestia was still unsure about everyone in this dangerous new land and she was still not entirely sure that she could trust Ulfric or his men, but at the same time, she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. It did sound like he was willing to do whatever it took to save his country, but there was something about Ulfric's story that didn't add up to Celestia. For the moment though, she had to push that back into her mind for later. For now, all that mattered was finding Luna. However, there was one person she wanted to see before she left the city.
“I...suppose I could consider helping you in your civil war Lord Ulfric, but for now all that matters to me is finding my sister and returning home before I can do anything else. I unfortunately have a conflict of my own that I have not yet quelled as well. So my sister and my own country must come first unfortunately”. Celestia politely declined.
“Of course, I would not ask of you to do this now. Simply think it over while you are on your journey.” Ulfric replied.
“Thank you. However, there is one person I would also like to see before I leave. May I see Lady Friga Lord Ulfric? I didn’t get a chance to see how she recovered.”
“Of course. My men will escort you to Shattershield Manor as you make your way around the city. I unfortunately cannot leave you alone until you are safely out of the hold. There is a murderer stalking my city and killing women who takes the name of the brigand you slayed “The Butcher”. And with the Empire and the return of the dragons, I dare not leave my allies alone for a moment.”
“Thank you Lord Ulfric. I really do appreciate the assistance.” Celestia replied with a short bow.
Ulfric simply nodded in reply as he signaled Galmar and the group of guards to come over to the table.
“Come along lass, let me show you the glory of our ancient capital city.” Galmar happily urged.
“Very well, lead the way,” Celestia cheerfully replied.
As the group walked out of the castle past the giant entryway doors into the castle, one thing immediately assaulted all of a sudden. Crisp, ice cold wind that bit down on her flesh like a ravenous wolf causing her to instinctively hold her arms.. The entire sky was covered with a gloomy casing of fluffy silver clouds that hung low over the city. Snowflakes steadily blew in the wind and fell on every surface that wasn’t protected. The courtyard of the castle seemed to be nearly untouched by the snow as it was kept mostly dry by the hot flame pits circling the entire space. A beggar in rags seemed to be staying close to the flame pit to stay warm from the intense cold. The central and western parts of the city seemed to be filled with nothing but ancient and weathered stone buildings which included a uniquely shaped building that ran across the central stretch of the city. Bright lights seemed to illuminate its frost covered glass from inside the building. Galmar immediately saw how mesmerized she was with the structure and chuckled.
“That would be one of the prides of our fair city lass. Candlehearth Hall. The building has a noble history. As the tale goes, the building was once the home of the great warrior Vundheim. When he passed on, his son Deroct lit a candle on the hearth of his fireplace and since then, the candle has never gone out. The building has become a refuge of warmth and comfort from the unforgiving cold of Skyrim and is the first thing people see when they enter the city into the Stone District..” Galmar explained proudly.
“It certainly does look warm and inviting” Celestia replied as her teeth chattered.
“Come, let us move on, perhaps before you set out on your journey I can treat you to the fine mead of our land in Candlehearth.” Galmar kindly said.
“And maybe a second coat of fur too.” One of the accompanying guards said to his friend with a laugh.
Celestia and Galmar made their way across the courtyard and down a side road. They went through what Celestia assumed to be the graveyard of a temple by traversing a raised stone path above the graveyard. On the other side, Celestia came face to face with a neatly tucked away side street filled with lavish three story homes, presumably owned by the nobility of the city. The first building on the block was bigger than all of the rest, but its windows were all dark and the front door appeared to be damaged. The front porch had appeared to be left unkept for weeks unlike the other houses along the street. After walking past the gloomy structure, Galmar stopped at the next house on the street. While not as big as the first house, it still had a unique structure. The shape of its roof alone was worth noting. It was sharply curved upwards into a steep slope. Almost taking the shape of a wide arrowhead. The roof seemed to be mostly clean of snow, which lead Celestia to believe that the odd design choice was meant for this purpose. A protruding section of the roof directly above the front door was held up by two carved stone pillars.
“Here we are fair lass, House of Clan Shatter-Shield on Valunstrad.” Galmar stated.
After a few minutes of knocking and Galmar’s unusual curse words at the people inside, much to Celestia’s amusement, sounds of the front door unlocking could clearly be heard. The door opened to reveal a middle aged woman with dirty blonde hair in sophisticated clothes similar to the ones Celestia was currently wearing. A golden necklace with a ruby hung low over her chest from her neck. She seemed to notice Celestia first. She carefully eyed up and down her as if she was a bomb that was about to blow at any moment. But then she seemed to calm down as she gave Celestia warm smile.
“You must be the horse woman that my daughter told us so much about.” she said. “I am glad to see that Friga had not gone mad when she told us about you. I am Tova Shatter-Shield, Friga’s mother.”
“It is very nice to meet you Lady Shattershield, I am Princess Celestia. I just wanted to come by on my tour of your fine city to see how she
was doing.” Celestia kindly said as she gave a small bow to Tova.
"Thank you your Majesty. I'm sure Friga would be very honored to receive your comfort.” she replied. “I'm sure my husband Tolbjorn would be pleased to make your acquaintance as well. Unfortunately though, he's in the middle of a meeting with a representative from Dawnstar.”
Some men are funny about their emotions when it comes to family I suppose, Celestia thought to herself.
Celestia followed Tova a inside their home while Galmar and his guards remained outside to protect the house, should the need arise. Celestia found Friga sitting by another woman. When the woman saw Celestia, she was startled by her appearance for a moment, but was quickly calmed when Friga tackled Celestia into a warm embrace sobbing hysterically into her fur. Celestia just sat there for a few minutes with Friga stroking her back and softly shushing her. It took a while, but she finally got her to calm down as she helped her back on to her feet and over to one of the cushioned chairs in their living room. She admitted to Friga that she couldn't stay long, as she needed to start her search as soon as possible, but she was glad to see she was recovering. Exchanging pleasantries with Nilsine, Celestia found a moment to sit down with them and have a few glasses of wine. Celestia didn't drink as much as she used to, but was content having a few glasses of wine every now and then. She was glad to see that female custom carried over to this dimension as well.
She spoke with the three of them for a half hour, going over possible plans she might have and where she would be going after she left the city. Afterwards, Celestia exchanged kind departing words with Friga and her family, promising that she would visit again, should she ever pass by Windhelm once again. She gave Friga a hug which seemed to slightly improve her mood and then she exited the house to rejoin Galmar and his escort group. The next thing they went through looked to be a marketplace and a group of various shops. There was one shop called The White Phial which had a hanging wooden sign with the name of the shop and a carved picture of a bottle filled with a mysterious white liquid. The sign hang on a post that reached the top of the door. Celestia assumed the shop to be a Alchemy shop of sorts. Galmar saw her gazing at the shop and decided to speak up.
"That would be The White Phial. Windhelm's potion shop. Run by a cooky little elf named Nurelion and his apprentice Quintus Navale. Strange man, but harmless enough and supplies good healing, stamina, and magicka potions to the Stormcloaks." Galmar explained.
"Healing potions?" Celestia inquired.
"Ask an alchemist. Don't know how they work, just that they do and they heal wounds in battle or make you run longer." he replied with a shrug.
While looking through the marketplace, Celestia garnered a few dirty and suspicious looks from many of the people passing through and buying wares from many of the various vendors. A look from Galmar and her escort disuaded any from doing anything that they might regret. At one of the booths, Celestia became fast friends with one of the merchants. An Altmer woman named Niranye who shared Celestia's feeling of being out of place in a strange environment. She learned that because of the war, Niranye was unable to leave, but she told Celestia that this didn't bother her too much as she was able to gain the trust of the right people and eventually fit right in to Windhelm's society. Noticing Celestia's fascination with books, she gave her a book with a silver laced cover called Aedra and Daedra. Celestia promised to come back when she could to tell her of Equestria's culture. Or as much of it as she could while maintaining her cover. She told Celestia if her race knew how to conjure magic, she should check out a place in the North Eastern mountains of Skyrim called the College of Winterhold should she ever pass through that area on her travels.
Perhaps after I find Luna, that may be a good place to start in order to find a way home, she thought.
Another booth carried the one thing she suspected would be a common thing in this world: meat. The smell of frozen meat permeated throughout the whole Marketplace. She knew that Equestrian ponies weren't like the Horses of Earth who strictly ate oats and grass. Ponies from Equestria including her sister and herself were indeed omnivorous, much like humans. However, the idea of eating meat was slowly discouraged over the millenia as they adopted a more vegetarian diet. Unfortunately, Celestia knew that she might not have the luxury of eating nothing but veggies, oats, and grass with this new body that needed many new nutrients just to remain healthy in this hostile world.
They went past what looked to be a large Blacksmith shop with a large active Forge sitting right in front of the building. Developing blades and armor sat right in the inferno encased in solid brick. The fire became even more warm and intense, the closer she went to the forge. In this freezing weather, a source of heat like this was welcome, as the entire marketplace seemed to be warm as it was close to the roaring flames. Galmar informed her that Oengul War-Anvil the blacksmith was working on his latest project and wouldn't be around until much later in the evening, so they moved on.
They concluded the tour by circling back towards the palace past Candlehearth Hall and stopped at a small stone building that Celestia has assumed to be a guardhouse at first.
"And finally here we are at the true glory of our city. The Temple of mighty Talos. I dare not take up any more of the Jarl's time, as he is most likely waiting for us, but I implore you to visit it at one point in the future. You might discover something." Galmar proudly stated.
"Galmar, if it is alright to ask, what is over on the east side of the city?" Celestia asked.
"That would be the Gray Quarter. It is the slums of the city where most of the city's Dunmer live. The Jarl has asked of me to not go there on our tour as relations in that part of the city have been poor as of late. Fights are brewing down there every night. The upper level doesn't have much to look at, cept Calixto's odd little museum and the Aventino Residence, which I've also been asked to avoid. A Dark aura looms over that place." Galmar replied.
"A dark aura? Do you mean dark magic is being used there or some kind of enchantment?"
"Aye, that's what we suspect. But nothing has happened yet, so the most we do is ask that people steer clear of the place until we know what we are dealing with from there. We are busy dealing with the war to deal with it anyway, so we leave it be. Even our own court wizard can't be bothered to deal with the potential threat."
Celestia followed Galmar back up the stone steps and back into the Palace where Ulfric and Jorleif were speaking with a bald bearded man in a deep red apron that touched his knees. Ulfric turned to Galmar as they walked in and he appeared to slightly perk up at the sight of Celestia coming closer.
"Ah, Galmar, Celestia. I assumed you enjoyed your tour of my city?" he asked.
"It is quite...strange and rough, but beautiful, I have to say," she politely replied.
"Yes, the city does have its rough spots. But as soon as the war is over, I intend to bring the city back to its ancient glory when the great Ysgramor ruled here. But enough of that. I have a few essential gifts for you before you depart for Whiterun as a token of our friendship," Ulfric replied.
He motioned to the man in the apron standing next to his throne and he turned around to face Celestia as she approached his throne.
"You must be the horse princess I've been hearing about. I thought people in the palace have been hitting the skooma, but I'm glad to see that is not the case." the man said stroking his beard in thought.
"Hello, I am Celestia. May I ask who are you?"
"Call me Oengul War-Blade. I am the Stormcloaks' primary Smith. Some say that Eorlund Gray-Mane of Whiterun is the best blacksmith in Skyrim. I plan to change a few minds about that." the man proudly boasted.
"Well, it is a pleasure to meet you Oengul. Perhaps I might purchase a set of armor or jewelry during my stay here in Skyrim." Celestia replied with a curtsey.
"It is funny that you mention that, because just as it happens, I DO have something for you. Perhaps this gift will encourage you to inspect my wares more in the future." he replied cheerfully as he went into a side room with another guard and brought out a wooden chest.
The two of them sat the wooden chest down in front of Celestia on the carpeting with a thud and stepped back. Celestia looked up at Ulfric with a confused look, but he simply nodded and motioned towards the chest. Celestia knelt down and lifted up the silver latch of the chest and slowly lifted the lid to reveal the contents inside.
Inside the chest, she found a strange set of armor that shined in the torchlight of the castle's main hallway. The first thing that came to her attention was the strangely shaped cuirass. It seemed to be made out of a bronze colored alloy with an ancient and modern texture, if that made any sense to her. It appeared to be perfectly shaped to fit her feminine figure, while also providing a great amount of protection. Six small individual plates appeared to be tightly chained together to make up the abs of the cuirass. Celestia assumed that these were for providing protection while also allowing the wearer a lot more movement in the armor. The gauntlets were uniquely shaped as well. Both of them bulked outwards from where the tricep would be as if they were intended to be extra protection against massive blows. The tunic segment of the armor was comprised of four large plates that hung down from the waist. A simple black skirt was provided to protect the wearer's legs from burns or chafing by the armor in certain environments. The armor boots, if you could call them that, had an almost obsurd amount of defense. The boots appeared to be double plated, with the metal curving down and over the ankle from the calf section of a leg. The shoe portion of the boots appeared to be comprised of seven individual sections to provide full form of movement without allowing any weak spots to show. It was almost as if the creator of the armor was daring Celestia to attempt to mortally wound herself by jumping off of a cliff or go face down an army of fire breathing dragons.
"What do you think? It is called Dwarven Armor. Based on the sophisticated armor of the long lost race of Dwarves, known for their legendary craftsmanship and ingenuity. I forged it and then modified the design based off of descriptions Jorleif gave me about your body structure. Which included some of your more...ahem, unique features," the man said while pointing to his back with his thumb.
Celestia raised one of her eyebrows, but took a second look at the armor and found two long slits parallel from one another running down the back of the cuirass. Judging by the size and length of the slits, Celestia immediately knew what they were for. Her eyes widened as she lifted her head to look at Oengul and then at Ulfric with a surprised and confused look in her eyes.
"How?" she dared to ask.
"I'm not a fool Princess. I already knew of your capabilities and your wings the moment my troops brought you into my palace." Ulfric said. "I understand that there are things about you that you do not wish to divulge until you feel comfortable to do so and I respect that. But please do not lie to my face when I can plainly see the truth."
"My apologies Jarl Ulfric. My first experience in Skyrim was definitely not very pleasant and I allowed it to create distrust within me for everything and everyone I came across."
"Distrust is completely natural in a world such as this. But within the borders of these lands, you need to keep it in moderation. Accept the fact that there are those who will want to take advantage of you, but be able to discern that from those who genuinely wish to help."
"I suppose after all of these years, even I sometimes need to be reminded of the lessons I try to teach my subjects," Celestia admitted.
"We all do Princess. Such is one of the burdens of ruling a nation. We all need to be brought back down to reality from time to time."
"Regardless, I am very grateful for the gift. Thank you Oengul and Jarl Ulfric I shall put it to good use." Celestia replied.
"I believe you also had a weapon to present to Celestia Oengul?" Ulfric asked.
"Ah yes, my apologies." Oengul said as he walked back into the same side room and came out with a sheathed blade that was as twice wide as her arms.
Presenting the blade to Celestia, she gently lifted it out of Oengul's hands and slowly unsheathed the blade from its brown and green scabbard. The entire sword appeared to be made out of a gold iron alloy of some sort that made the blade glow in the torchlight just like the armor she was given. The hilt carried the image of an eagle with outstretched wings with its head reaching across the tang of the blade. The pommel was elongated and shaped to look like tail feathers but also appeared to act as a secondary weapon on the sword.
"This is an Enchanted Honed Elven Blade. It was taken off a notable Thalmor general during the Great War, but for over a hundred years, it has gone unused, collecting dust," Oengul stated. "It took some doing, but I had my assistant Hermir sharpen it back to its former glory and reinforce its strength with extra moonstone and malachite. It also still has an enchantment upon it that burns whoever is struck. I hope you find more use from it than its former master did."
"Its beautiful. Thank you Oengul."
"Just be sure to tell all on your travels of who forged your exquisite armor." he replied heartily.
She simply smiled and then thanked the Jarl once again for her gifts. He allowed her to go into a side room where she was able to change into her new armor and placed her regalia on under the armor. Thankfully her necklace was snug enough for it to not get in the way. Her crown was the same as well. She never felt comfortable in a helmet, but her crown always provided ample enough protection from arrows or projectiles in ancient times. She came out fully equipped in her new armor which seemed to thoroughly impress everyone in the room. If Ulfric was also impressed, he didn't show it outwardly.
"Come, let me show you something Princess. It might prove to help you." Ulfric said.
Her curiosity piqued, Celestia followed Galmar and Ulfric into the same room they were speaking about her earlier in the day. Inside, she came across a few out of place things in an overall clean castle. Bales of hay were stacked up along one of the walls with a few training dummies leaning up against them, various targets with arrows plunged into the center were haphazardly hung up on another wall while in the middle of the table lie a large table with a massive map of sorts covering the whole thing. Tiny red and blue flags appeared to be stuck into locations of some significance.
"What's this? Is this supposed to be Skyrim?" Celestia asked as she pointed down at the map.
"You catch on quick lass, yes" Galmar replied.
"Skyrim all the way north and south from the Sea of Ghosts to the Southern Mountains that create the border between us and Cyrodil and Hammerfell and all the way east and west from our border with Morrowind to our border with High Rock. Our entire land can be seen from these maps. You can find them in the possession of most Jarls and high class merchants." he explained. "But enough of that. Unfortunately, my troops ran themselves into another skirmish fifty miles west of Riften, so I am unfortunately unable to provide you with an escort to the border. But I can provide you with the means to reach your destination."
Ulfric pointed down at a shield in the middle of the map that had the name of a city on it.
"This is Whiterun. All you need to do is take the southeast road out of the hold and you will hit Valtheim Towers at the border. All you need to do is avoid Darkshade Cavern and the Abandoned Prison on your way there and you shouldn't run into many problems. Except the occasional wolf, frostbite spider, and bandit. With your abilities, those shouldn't be too much of a problem" he explained while pointing out the locations of the various mentioned places on the map.
He reached over his shoulder and one of the guards in the room gave him what looked like a smaller version of the map on the table and a satchel of sorts that clinked when he set it down in front of her. Curious, she opened up the satchel and found a few various food items, books, a few potions and poisons, and a small sack that carried a sizable amount of gold coins. In the side pouch, it carried a few unusual clothes and pieces of jewelry. One of the cloaks within radiated a mysterious magical power and glowed a very dulled light blue. It was almost unnoticeable if you weren't looking hard enough.
"You will probably need these as well. These were seized by my men off of an Imperial Frigate trying to attack us from the harbor a few months ago. From what their cargo manifests told us, I believe it once belonged to a Khajiit hero that lived in Cyrodiil a hundred years ago during the days of the Oblivion Crisis named Katia Managan. From what I know of my lineage and my heritage, my family apparently owes a great debt to her. I am certain she wouldn't mind you holding on to her possessions."
"Thank you Ulfric, I will put these to good use." she replied as she slung the satchel over her shoulder and rolled up the smaller map and placed it into a side pouch."
Ulfric and Galmar then took the liberty to walk her to the gates of the city to wish her good luck. When Celestia asked them to check in on Friga from time to time, they were intrigued, but not entirely surprised. They accepted the request as the guards at the front gate open the large metal doors into the unforgiving hostile cold of Skyrim.
Celestia said her farewells for now to the Jarl and exited the city. As the doors closed behind her, she could almost hear Ulfric and Galmar talking to each other about her.
"Do you think she will be alright my lord?"
"If her abilities are to be believed, then I am certain she will survive. All I can hope is she learns that there are many unmerciful people in this world that will take advantage of her kindness without remorse."
"If her people are as half as powerful as she is, I can only imagine what a whole army of them can do to the likes of the Thalmor and the Empire."
"One thing at a time Galmar, one thing at a time."
Next time, back with our Lunar and Dragon blooded heroes....
"Oooh! this is SO much fun! I love it when bad guys randomly freeze and let me slice their heads off." a bubbly voice says.
"Ky'ell, thou has numerous issues". an irritated voice replied.
"But its fun to see how baddies can go splat! Maybe I should try a warhammer to see if I can make them freeze and then do that funny neck breaking thing I saw one of the guards do on a bandit."
"Let us just dispatch the leader of these brigands and return to Proventus to collect our first bounty. We need the money if we are going to buy food and supplies for a three day trek up a mountain! And I suspect we may need to do a few more before we are sufficiently prepared to do so."
"Aw, you're no fun. Hey, look over there. Why is that axe glowing green? Why is that sword glowing green? Why is that bread glowing green?"