//------------------------------// // Whiterun and the Wizard // Story: Dovashy // by FriendlyTwo3 //------------------------------// Chapter 4: Whiterun and the Wizard Fluttershy continued her trek down the cobblestone path. The path was flanked by dense forestation on both sides. The sounds of animals speaking with each other could be heard in the distance. Flies buzzed around the mare’s armored head. Fluttershy was now in her element. She loved nature as much as she loved her animals, and that was saying a lot. There were some aspects of the wild, of course, that Fluttershy didn’t take to her liking. There were the bugs, but they didn’t bother the mare too much. They were more of a distraction than an actual problem. A nuisance, would be the correct term. There were, of course, the less than hospitable wildlife; wolves, coyotes, bears, Frostbite Spiders, and no one can forget trolls. Trolls were especially frightening to the Pegasus. They had three eyes, all soulless and evil-natured. Trolls themselves weren’t evil, but they were as infamous as infamous can get. The only time Fluttershy had ever felt the need to get near one was when she was seven, when she had found a lost troll cub. Trying to nurture it back to health, she found that it wasn’t lost at all; that the mother had simply gone to look for food. The poor little Pegasus barely escaped with her life. The only thing worse than trolls were frost trolls. They were much more aggressive, much tougher, and above all, much stronger than their brown-haired cousins. Their fur was that of a pure white, effectively camouflaging them in the tundra’s they call their homes. They lived in the mountains, so they weren’t much of a problem to Fluttershy, but their reputation had more than locked themselves deep into her subconscious. Travelers and merchants Fluttershy had met coming out of Skyrim often had stories of the beasts. Some naïve travelers wandering in the mountains sometimes confused the monsters for some type of ‘abominable snowmen.’ The thought sometimes made Fluttershy chuckle, but the danger still loomed in her head. You can call a Frostbite Spider a honeybee, but they were still terrifying. But Fluttershy had pushed out the thoughts of danger from her head. She had to, otherwise she would just find a log to hide under and stay there for the rest of her life. She walked quickly down the path, looking into nothing. Her focus was on following the path to Whiterun, lest she get lost in this land she was not familiar with. She seemed to lose her focus in her train of thought, though. Thinking of trolls and other nasty things clouded her sense of direction, and she was suddenly off the path and in the middle of the thicket. Her eyes widened as she realized this, and she immediately started to panic. To make matters worse, she could hear the howling of wolves in the distance. She had heard stories of the wolves in Skyrim. They were in no way like the other wolves of the world. They were feral, savage beasts who took kindly to no one but their own kind. Sure enough, after a few moments, the howling stopped and was replaced by the sounds of heavy breathing; the kind that one makes only when they are running, and Fluttershy was still in the same place. She turned around quickly to find a dark gray wolf running straight at her. She let out a loud yelp as the wolf jumped at her. She quickly ducked and the wolf jumped clean over her. They both turned to face each other. Fluttershy pulled out her sword and pointed it at the wolf. “N-Nice wolf… I j-just… wanna get to Wh-Whiterun… P-Please let me g-go…” The wolf of course did not listen, and pounced toward the teen yet again. Fluttershy yelped once again as the wolf jumped straight into the sword. Its blood spilled onto the blade and onto Fluttershy’s hoof. The wolf squealed a bit before letting out one final breath. It slipped off the sword and lied dead on the ground, blood spilling out of the wound on its shoulder. Fluttershy shook hard and looked down at her bloodied hoof and sword. She gritted her teeth and quickly walked away. She sheathed the sword and started to run. Very soon, she found herself in a full sprint down the way she came. After a long while of running, she found herself back on the very path she lost herself on. She sighed through her short, rapid breaths. The pegasus trotted over to a tree and tried her hardest to rub some of the wolf blood off of her, with little avail. She pulled away from it and continued to tremble vigorously. Killing a giant spider was one thing, killing a warm-blooded wolf was another. The teen examined her surroundings for a quick moment. She was on the path, yes, but this section of the path was new to her. It now bordered a steep hill. Below the hill lied a small, two story house with a garden and a farm. Beyond that was a short stretch of field that led to a large stone wall. Within the wall, large buildings could be seen. Fluttershy looked toward the city and then too a sign next to her. It had an arrow on it that read: “ß Whiterun” Fluttershy had reached her destination, and words could not describe her relief. Her right foreleg was still covered in blood, though being partially smeared. Its smell filled her nose, much to her displeasure. She widened the gap between her nose and foreleg as best she could, but sadly, her neck was only so long. The mare decided to disregard it for the time being and somehow wash it off later. She had a city to get to, and she wasn’t but a mile away now. And so she trudged on, leaving behind all worries. She was too filled with relief. The journey hadn’t been a journey at all, but a rather… uncouth walk in the forest. As Fluttershy walked further, she could hear distant yelling. In an unexpected event, her curiosity took over her state of security. She trotted toward the screaming. As she neared closer, and she was near a patch of farmland now, she could notice the sound of roaring. Normally, she would’ve turned tail and ran by then, but she continued to sneak forward. Very shortly, she was behind a wooden fence pole, looking on at the battle taking place before her. Three bulky warriors were fighting what looked to be an incredibly tall pony. Blood was draped across the warriors’ armor and faces, and they seemed to… enjoy it. The tall pony had albino white fur and a long grey beard. It had patches of bare skin all across its body. It wore nothing and held an enormous club. Though, tall wasn’t exactly the correct term. It was… monstrous. Gargantuan. Sickly. The warriors were mostly male. There was one female. The female had a mint green coat, half covered in fur wrappings. She had messy green hair that had a patch of nearly-white green, split apart by a small horn. She held a steel sword, of the like Fluttershy hadn’t seen before. The steel looked perfect and shiny. It looked as if it had been crafted by the most skilled blacksmith in the world. For some reason, it caught Fluttershy’s eye more than the battle itself did. She seemed… intrigued by its make. It didn’t look too heavy, it looked sturdy, and it looked SHARP. The blade looked as if it could cut through armor like it was butter. And it certainly could cut through the flesh of a giant, as hinted by the splatter of blood that nearly reached the hidden pegasus herself. This certainly got her attention as well. The splatter of fresh blood seemed to shock her out of her state of wonder. As she backed up and looked up again, she noticed that the giant had fallen. Its corpse was a simple heap on the ground, a pile of white, pink, and red. The warriors sheathed their swords and passed smiles and laughs to each other. One of them nodded to Fluttershy, causing the female to look behind her shoulder. She passed her a glance then nodded to her friends. The two males trotted away, but the female started toward Fluttershy. Needless to say, the poor pegasus was terrified. For some odd reason, she was better off watching them kill a giant, then to actually meet the warriors. She backed away until she tripped over a large rock and fell onto her rear. She straightened her back and sat up to meet the warrior. “Enjoy the show?” said the Unicorn, a smug smile on her face. Fluttershy simply stammered out words that didn’t even sound like words. The Unicorn’s smile widened. “I thought so.” She seemed to examine the teen, focusing on her right side. “What kinda blood you got there?” “U-Um… W-Wolf… blood…” stammered the poor mare. The Unicorn’s smile faded a little. “Wolf blood… Hm…” “I-I didn’t mean to kill it! It rushed at me a-and I had to… I’m sorry!” “Hey, any kinda blood is good blood, eh?” said the Unicorn, patting Fluttershy on her red shoulder. Fluttershy was… confused to say the least. The Unicorn’s odd behavior got her thinking. Is this how warriors act? Are the stories of war heroes bathing in the blood of their enemies, enjoying every second of it, true? “I… I should… suppose…” and she meant to finish with ‘not,’ but the Unicorn let out a long gout of laughter, interrupting the Pegasus. “That’s the spirit!” said the Unicorn with a final chuckle, “Name’s Lyra. If ya think ya got what it takes, you should join up with the Companions here in Whiterun. I think you’ll make a fine addition to our little… family.” Fluttershy continue to stammer in an inaudible tone. Lyra laughed and patted her shoulder once again. She rather forcefully pulled the Pegasus to her feet. “Just ask around and you’ll find your way home.” Fluttershy backed up a little as the Unicorn galloped away. She stopped and slowed when she caught up to her friends. Fluttershy let out a long, breathy sigh and continued to the gates. She noticed that for some reason, the warriors didn’t turn to enter the gate, instead continued forward. Thinking they had… well… war to get to, Fluttershy thought nothing of it. The smell of wolf blood was still deep in Fluttershy’s nose. It racked up her nerves to the extremes and left her no chance of calming down, at least not anytime soon. The path up to the large gate was surrounded by guard posts, each containing two to four guards each. The guards wore armor head to hoof, leaving no fur visible. Their helmets looked strong, made of gray iron. Their chests were covered by a yellow tunic, obviously covering thick chain-mail. They all held different weapons. Some held greatswords, some held maces, and some held spears. They eyed the Pegasus through their dark, soulless helmets. As Fluttershy neared the enormous pale yellow gate, one of the guards approached her. “Halt!” Fluttershy stopped dead in her tracks and complied with another flurry of inaudible squeals and squeaks. “The city’s closed with dragons about! Official business only!” “Oh, okay!” Fluttershy said aloud. She began to trot away with a much overacted smile on her face. As she trotted through one of the many stone archways leading up to the gate, her eyes widened, as if she had forgotten completely her objective. She stopped and scolded herself. Turning around, she noticed that the guard had returned to the side of the gate. The mare sighed and rubbed her brow through her helmet. With a few mental rehearsals of what to say, she eased her way back up to the gateway, much to the guard’s annoyance. “U-Um… I… I actually do have… o-official business…” “Like what?” asked the guard in a condescending tone. He walked forward and met the Pegasus again. Fluttershy had hoped dearly that her previous statement would be enough, but she knew that it would most certainly not be. “U-Uh… I-I have to… talk to… erm…” The teen tried to remember what the old mare back in Riverwood said. She remembered Granny Smith sitting down in her rocking chair. ‘Jarl Cadence shouldn’t be too hard to talk to. She’s just a little… paranoid is all.’ The voice replayed in her head like it was just said a few moments ago. “I have to talk to Jarl… C… Cadence…? I-It’s about the dragons… and Helgen and Riverwood…” The guard paused for a moment, as if to think about whether or not this little Pegasus is telling the truth or not. “…Fine. But we’ll be keeping an eye on you. The Jarl is up in Dragonsreach, the palace in the cloud district. Hard to miss.” “…Th-Thank you…” The guard stepped back and pushed the enormous gate open. Fluttershy walked in and took in the sights on the city. Tall, but not wide, houses lined the road. A blacksmith was pounding on a piece of metal to her right. Many paths strayed away from the main road, leading to other streets with other houses. A two-story house near the entrance had a cheap ‘For Sale 5000 gold’ sign on it. Many, many ponies walked the streets and conversed with each other. Fluttershy looked above the buildings. A large palace could be seen towering above the city. That must’ve been Dragonsreach. Fluttershy walked through the street and weaved through the crowd. Some ponies took notice of her warrior guise and blood-stained foreleg. They also took notice of her bloodied sword and large hunting bow. Whispers could be heard, of whether she’s a hunter, or if she’s a Companion, or some sort of bandit. All three put Fluttershy into a state of unease. These Companions started to sound even more like an uncomfortable mess. The Pegasus, tired of ponies staring at her, decided to take a short cut. She flapped her wings and rose above the buildings. Fluttershy didn’t usually fly often for fear of falling to her doom. She had no problem, however, flying low to the ground or just above a house. Unlike most other Pegasi, she didn’t take to the clouds and reside within their soft embrace. She didn’t bathe in the wetness and cleanliness of them, nor did she push them around and make them her home. She was content being on the ground, hooves flat on the earth. That was safer anyway, for she never knew if a cloud would hold her weight (what little weight she had), even though cities had been built out of them. Any time she could sink right through and fall to her death. This was one of the rare cases in which she didn’t care about falling. She didn’t care about her wings suddenly failing her. She just wanted to get to Dragonsreach and get this journey over. Riverwood might as well have been called heaven. All the poor mare wanted was to get back to a life of peace. Little did she know, peace wouldn’t call her name for a long, LONG while. With a bit of effort, the armored Pegasus landed in front of the large doors that led to the palace. The two guards eyed her, but stepped out of the way. Fluttershy softly thanked them (causing the guards to roll their eyes) and slowly pushed the gate open. The inside of the palace was just as large as she imagined it to be. It was a long way to the throne. The long stretch of carpet was decorated a warm shade of pink. To maids tended to the quality of the floors on either side of the baffled Pegasus. Large, almost indescribable archways welcomed visitors to the hall. A small set of stairs led to the main section of the palace, which was equally as grand. As Fluttershy walked up these steps, the maids begrudgingly cleaned her tracks of mud and dirt, to which Fluttershy was completely oblivious. The teen also noticed the long tables, at which three foals, one maid, and one gray Pegasus was sitting. The gray Pegasus had messy, blonde hair. She was eating what looked to be a muffin. Fluttershy walked past this mare, noticing the happiness of her atmosphere. The second she looked forward, she bumped into someone. She backed up and quickly started apologizing. She gazed up at this tall stallion. He had clean white fur, covered by thick, steel, shining armor. His hair was a deep shade of blue, with highlights running through it. His gaze was intense, and his eyes were just as blue as his hair. He didn’t look as hulking or buff as Big Macintosh, but he certainly looked as if he could whip Big Macintosh’s plot all the way to Morrowind. “What’s the meaning of this interruption?” he said in a stern, yet somehow laid back voice. “We’re in the middle of a discussion. The Jarl’s not taking visitors.” “U- Um…” Though he somehow didn’t seem a threat, Fluttershy was nearly wetting herself. “I-I want to… talk to Jarl… Cadence…” “Who doesn’t?” ask the stallion. “I-It’s about the… the dragons… and Helgen…” In the mare’s peripheral vision, she could almost see someone turn their heads. “Well… That explains why the guards let you in here… Fine.” The stallion led Fluttershy to the large throne. On this throne sat the Jarl herself. She looked to be a bit shorter than the stallion, though much, MUCH more regal. Her coat was that of a light pink, and her horn was definitely longer than any other Unicorn’s. That’s when Fluttershy became curious. What was it with this pony that made her so regal, respected, and feared? The question didn’t remain in Fluttershy’s head for too long, for it was answered with the spreading of the Jarl’s wings. She was an Alicorn. Fluttershy was… bewildered to say the least. The only other Alicorn she’d ever seen she had just met the day before. And that Alicorn was the leader of the Stormcloaks, Nightmare Moon. Fluttershy, while feeling slightly chilled in Nightmare Moon’s presence, felt oddly warmer in Cadence’s. She had an atmosphere that was hard to be nervous in. It… unnerved Fluttershy somehow. “So…” Cadence began, “You know about the dragon attack in Helgen?” “Y- Yes, ma’am… I… I was captured by the Imperials… and I just barely escaped alive…” “You’re saying that you were there for the attack?” Fluttershy offered a subtle nod as a response. Her eyes widened in realization of something, or rather, remembrance of something. She unclipped her right shoulder pad and lowered the inner fabric of her armor, showing off her right shoulder. What Cadence expected was yellow fur, but what she saw was a patch of skin. The fur around it was a dark black and the skin was redder than the sun. Not only was it a deep red, but the burn seemed to glow red. In the most subtle of ways, it pulsated and brightened and darkened. The likes of which can only result from dragon-fire. “A dragon-scar…” Cadence whispered to herself. She examined the scar, noticing the odd sections of burns that seemed to form themselves into the shape of something. They twisted and turned into what seemed like some sort of glyph. Cadence’s eyelids narrowed, as if she knew these shapes from somewhere. “My friend Applejack was almost killed when we escaped. I saved her from a giant Frostbite Spider.” Cadence paused for a moment, as if she was trying to remember something. “Applejack… Isn’t she the sister of the blacksmith in Riverwood?” “Yes, ma’am,” said Fluttershy, clipping her shoulder pad back into place. Cadence nodded, an intrigued expression on her face. “I remember them… Riverwood…” She turned to the stallion from before, who had returned to her side. “Shining Armor, send a detachment of your soldiers to Riverwood. Keep that village safe.” “At once,” said Shining Armor, bowing quickly. He walked past Fluttershy and out of the palace. Cadence turned to Fluttershy once again. “What’s your name?” “…Fluttershy… o- of Ponyville…” the mare squeaked out. “Thank you, Fluttershy. Without you, I would never have remembered to aid Riverwood. So much is going on…” She looked down at the floor for a moment and held her head. The Alicorn quickly looked back at Fluttershy, regaining her composure. “You’ve done us a service and sought me out on your own initiative. You said you were a prisoner of the Imperials?” “Uh… I…” Fluttershy didn’t know which answer would be better. “I… Y-Yes…?” Again Cadence nodded. “Yes… I just received word that a prisoner was pardoned. That hasn’t happened in decades. Your criminal past, whatever it is, is behind you now. Here, take this,” said the Jarl, digging into a small box beside her throne. She pulled out a small brown pouch. She handed it to Fluttershy, causing it to make a quiet jingling sound. “It’s 500 gold. Use it wisely.” Fluttershy nodded and smiled. “Thank you,” she said quietly. Cadence once again paused. “Maybe there is another thing you could do for me…” Fluttershy’s shoulders sank to the floor and she suddenly felt short of breath. “…Something for somepony of your… particular talents… perhaps…” The poor teen pondered the Jarl’s words. ‘Particular talents? All I did was deliver a message from a nearby village! What else could I…?! Oh, I shouldn’t have told her about defeating the spider…’ “Come,” said Cadence, standing up, “Let’s go find Twilight Sparkle, my court wizard. She’s been looking into these… dragons and… rumors of dragons,” the way she uttered the word ‘dragon’ sounded as if she had to force it from her tongue, expelling it from her body. As if the simple word was poison. She walked toward another room and signaled for Fluttershy to follow. Fluttershy cursed everything and followed. Cadence led her into the room. Fluttershy saw a purple Unicorn working over an alchemy table. Fluttershy wasn’t an alchemist herself, but she knew her way around the alchemy table if the situation called for it. She could make a healing potion with ease. Once, she had accidentally made an invisibility potion and fed it to her sick pet toad. The poor mare searched everywhere for it, only to realize that the old toad hadn’t moved an inch. Sadly, it died an invisible death. “Twilight,” said Cadence, stopping behind a desk. The desk was covered with potion recipes, letters, spell tomes, soul gems, and books. LOTS of books. The Unicorn turned around. She was a little taller than Fluttershy. She wore a blue cloak that covered her from the base of her neck down. It had a hood, but it was down. The Unicorn had deep purple eyes and hair that matched them. Her hair had two streaks of lighter colors running through it. “I think I’ve found somepony to aid you in your quest. Fill her in with all the details.” The Unicorn tilted her head and looked at Fluttershy. “Hm? Oh! You must be referring to the Dragonstone!” Fluttershy backed up a little. Anything with the word ‘dragon’ in it, Fluttershy wanted no part of. “I guess I could use somepony to help me.” She walked toward Fluttershy a little. “Wh- What’s the… Dragonstone…?” Fluttershy asked, sitting down. “The Dragonstone is an ancient stone tablet, hidden away in Bleak Falls Barrow. It sort of acts like a map to all the ancient dragon burial sites,” said Twilight in an… oddly chipper tone. She acted as if she DIDN’T have to go into a barrow to get it. Especially one called Bleak Falls Barrow. “A-And… you’re coming with me…?” Fluttershy asked, hoping she wouldn’t have to go alone. “Of course! I want to see it in the old crypt myself.” “Crypt?” “Yeah, Bleak Falls Barrow is full of ancient burials and tombs. It should be no problem, though. If Jarl Cadence thinks you’re right for the job, I won’t doubt her or you. So! Will you do it? Are you ready?” Fluttershy’s eyes were as wide as dinner plates and her pupils were almost invisible. Oh, how misunderstood these ponies are. The simple mention of tombs and crypts made her uneasy beyond belief. She shook wildly. She had to retrace her steps to find out how exactly she got in this situation. Fluttershy wouldn’t hurt a fly, much less a giant spider. But… then again… She DID kill a giant spider. Whether it was all her doing or not, SHE was the one to finish it off. That had to count for something. “Yes… I’m ready.”