The cow came at her call – a particular whistle she’d taught her, that meant nuzzles and food. The hairy bovine nudged at the hand that held the sweet oats, and she cooed and patted her face. It was soothing, this, the warmth of the animal and the feel of her fur, and she needed it.
The cow lipped at her blonde braids, and AJ gave her a light smack on the face, drawing a snort. “Now, you know better’n that. Hair ain’t food, Bea.” The cow nudged her in the chest in response, and she laughed, giving scratches in return, a smile on her face. Still, she couldn’t quite shake the feeling of unease. Maybe it was because she was at loose ends; with her brother back from the legion, there was a lot less she had to do around the farm, meaning she suddenly had all this free time she wasn’t used to.
Maybe she could go see if Uncle needed any help. It had been a while since she’d turned her hand to the forge … but right, he was apprenticing his daughter now. Still, maybe she could stop by, see if he’d let her teach Dorthe a couple things. She nodded, and gave Bea another pat, sending her off to do cow things before vaulting the fence and heading for Alvor’s forge.
But as she hit the path, the unease grew. Today just did not feel right, not right at all. She shook her head, to try and clear it, and her eyes widened. A shadow had just passed over her, vaguely birdlike, but bigger than anything she’d ever seen, and moving faster, too. She looked up, whirling around to try and catch sight of whatever it might have been, and caught a brief glimpse of something huge and black, before it disappeared into the mountain mists. “What in tarnation was that?”
She turned at the sound of her name, and caught sight of her sister running up. “Apple Bloom! What’s got you in such a tizzy?”
“Up there, sis! Cain’t you see it?”
She looked up, following her sister’s pointing finger, and her jaw went slack. There was a great big ol’ cloud of smoke coming up from the mountainside. That direction could only be … “Horsefeathers,” she breathed. “Helgen.” If that town had been sacked, then Riverwood could well be next. They had no soldiers here, and many called the Cloaks kin, but you never knew with war. “Sugarcube, go an’ find Big Mac, an’ then stay with Granny.”
The girl’s face fell. “But sis!”
“No buts, Bloom. This here is serious. You tell Big Mac to get his armor out, you hear? Now go!” Apple Bloom gulped, nodded, and ran, heading for the farm lickety-split. AJ went straight on toward Alvor’s, running now, that feeling of unease just about tripled. She had kin at Helgen; cousin Hadvar. Was he alive? Just what had happened?
Alvor was in the forge area when she found him, leaning on one of the posts, eyes locked on the smoke. He nodded to her as she ran up, expression troubled. “You seen it too, then.”
“Hard to miss, Uncle. Gerdur know about it yet?”
He shrugged. “If she doesn’t, she will soon.”
There was little more to be said. She just stood beside him, looking up the road that ran to Helgen, and listening to old Hilde ramble on to her son about seeing a dragon. Silly, really, dragons didn’t exi- wait. What had she seen, then, that thing all black and huge way up in the sky? She frowned, and shuddered. Dragon. It couldn’t be. Could it?
“Niece. Someone comes.” Her uncle’s words shook her out of it, and she peered up the road to Helgen. Sure enough, there was someone coming down it, though at this distance she couldn’t make out any details. She turned to her uncle’s workbench, then, and grabbed one of the maces he had out, fastening its accompanying belt around her waist. He raised a brow at her, but made no comment. These were dangerous times, after all.
Her face grim, AJ stepped out to meet the stranger, standing as tall as she could and keeping one hand close to the mace. The woman, for woman she had to be, with that build, was running, and probably had been all the way from Helgen. She wasn’t wearing the blue of the Stormcloaks, but she was certainly armored, and there were weapons at her hips. Legion, then? No, her armor lacked the distinctive skirt.
Before long, the woman was facing her, panting to catch her breath. AJ gave her one good look, took in the soot, the ragged state of her leathers, and her clear exhaustion, and decided that, whoever she was, she wasn’t a threat to Riverwood. “Good gravy, girl. You look like hell.”
The woman chuckled, and coughed. “I feel like it, too,” she rasped, voice hoarse, likely from the smoke and the running. AJ, shaking her head, took her by the arm and led her back to the forge’s porch, sitting her down. “Could you get us some cider, uncle?” The blacksmith nodded, and left, leaving the two women alone on the porch.
“Hey, what are you doing?” the newcomer said, irritated.
“I’m checking the damage, now hush,” replied AJ, hands moving the woman’s soot-blackened hair around to check for burns and the like. “We don’t have a healer in town, but Camilla at the Trader knows her a touch of alchemy. She could probably make you a salve for any burns you got.”
“Pft, I’m fine. It takes more’n a little fire to get the best of Rainbow Dash.”
AJ arched an eyebrow, letting go of the woman’s hair. “That’s your name, then?”
“The one and only! How about you, oh kind stranger?”
“M’name’s Applejack,” she said, “and this here’s my Uncle Alvor. Thanks, unc.” He nodded, handing her one of the three tankards in his hand, and the other to Rainbow, who gulped it down with enthusiasm. Interesting name, but there were stranger out there.
They waited a bit, Alvor and his niece sipping at their cider, allowing Rainbow to slake her thirst. “Thanks! Man, but I was parched!”
“Smoke’ll do that ya. You came from Helgen, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Mind tellin’ us what happened up there?”
Rainbow fell silent, her face pensive, troubled. “Yeah alright. But no interruptions, okay? It’s a bit of a story.”
“No interruptions, then.”
-oOo-
"There was a time the folks in Cyrodiil said I had Nocturnal's own luck. The dice fell in my favor; the cards were dealt just right; my opponents would make that fatal misstep at just the right moment. I was a legend in my own right. Well... until my luck went sour. But, you don't really want to hear about that."
The icy wind crept up under Dash's tunic, sending a chill up her spine. Reflexively, she hugged herself a little tighter, rubbing her exposed arms. The others riding in the rickety cart didn't seem to notice the wind, but all eyes were on her. Admittedly, she did stand out; flame-red hair, deep violet eyes, a blue short-sleeved tunic with yellow borders protruding beneath her leather vest, not to mention the rainbow-dyed bandanna that hung around her neck. She wasn't exactly blending in with the dull blues and browns the others wore.
The one who had asked the question grunted, a large dirty blond fellow. His Nord accent was thick. "So you left Cyrodiil for Skyrim. I see it did little to improve your luck."
"I know! I hate losing." She grouched, a slight pout to her lower lip. Dash took stock of the uniformed men and women around her. "So who are you guys, anyway?" She asked, looking around. "That's not Legion armor. You some kinda militia or something?"
"We are Stormcloaks," the woman to her right said, as if that explained everything. Dash just gave her an empty stare until she continued. "We fight for Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak and for all true Nords."
"Jarl who?"
"Jarl Ulfric. He's in the cart behind us; the only one who's gagged." Rainbow leaned forward, trying to catch a glimpse of the man they spoke of.
"So... why is he the only one gagged?"
"He has the Voice! He Shouted High King Torygg to death with his Thu'um," one of the younger men explained enthusiastically. "The Imperials don't dare let him speak because of it." A man who could kill with his voice? Dash liked the sound of that, but the only gagged man in the cart behind them didn't look all that impressive, hunched over as he was. The snow in the air was making it difficult to see much more than that.
"So is that why the Legion after you? Because he killed the King?"
"There's much more to it than that, but that’s reason enough for them." The burly man agreed. Rainbow shrugged. "But why did they arrest you? Are you some kind of fugitive?"
"Hell no! I just think I got nabbed in the confusion. Once they find out who I am, I'm sure they'll let me go." The Stormcloaks didn't seem convinced. By this point in time, the wagon was rolling up to the walled town of Helgen, or so one of the Stormcloaks called it. Soon the wagons were lined up and the prisoners were told to dismount. Dash followed suit, if reluctantly. It was then that she saw it; a lone block of grooved stone, and behind it, a large hooded man leaning on a large, jagged axe. This was an execution. Dash swallowed hard.
"As I call your names, move over there and stand by," said one of the legionnaires, pointing to a spot close to the headsman. He then looked down at piece of paper in his hands. "Bjornskar of Whiterun." The burly man simply turned and walked towards the block. "Gretta of Kynesgrove." The woman spat at the soldier's feet before she followed suit. At that moment there was a commotion to Dash's right. A man dressed in rags bolted for the hills as fast as his legs could carry him, but he was not faster than Imperial bows. With a command from the captain, bowstrings sang and the fleeing figure dropped like a sack of wheat, several arrows in his back.
"Anyone else feel like running!?" the captain asked, eyeing the remaining prisoners with her hands on her hips. Dash shook her head. The stupid man. He was nowhere near fast enough to escape. Hell, even she wasn't. She was fast, but she couldn't outrun an arrow. As if reacting to her thoughts, the Legion captain looked right at her. Immediately, she walked over to the list reader and a hushed conversation ensued, together with many furtive glances in Dash's direction.
"You there!" the soldier with the list said, pointing his quill at her. "Who are you?" Rainbow straightened up, pointing a thumb at herself.
"I'm Rainbow Dash! Fastest hands in all of Cyrodiil, bar none," she boasted proudly. The legionnaire turned to the Captain with a question, and the Captain disappeared for a moment into the nearby guard tower, returning with a piece of paper which she handed to the man. After looking the paper over, the soldier smirked and looked up at Dash.
"Ah. I thought you looked familiar. Well you should know, Miss Rainbow Dash, that the Legion has a warrant out for your arrest."
"WHAT!?" Rainbow's jaw dropped. "Why!? I haven't done anything!"
"That's not what the warrant says." He proceeded to read from the warrant itself. "Wanted: Rainbow Dash; Renegade. Charged with the following crimes: Embezzlement, Fraud, five counts of Unarmed Assault, two counts of Resisting Arrest, one count of Public Intoxication..."
"Oh yeah. Forgot about that night." Rainbow grimaced.
"Three counts of Assault on a Law Officer..."
"Wait, I never-"
"And here's the clincher." The guard grinned rather maliciously. "Murder of a Legion Officer in the first degree." If it was possible for Dash's jaw to drop any further, it would have. She had never murdered anyone in her life! Sure, she was a duelist and most of her duels were to the death, but duels were legally sanctioned, and were always witnessed by at least three citizens and a local lawman. All very official.
"I killed Captain Matius in a legal duel! It was witnessed! I saw the signatures myself!"
"According to records, the town guard never reported a duel. Unless you happen to have the names of the witnesses..." Dash growled. Of course she couldn't remember their names. That was months ago. "I thought not." The legionnaire laughed. "Don't worry. Your headless corpse will get shipped back to Bravil, murderer."
That was the last straw. With a shout, Rainbow bum-rushed the guard, ploughing into him with her shoulder. The soldier went sprawling, quill and parchment scattering. She was immediately seized by several nearby guards and forced roughly to the ground, kicking and bucking the whole way. The soldier stood and brushed himself off. "Make that four counts of assault on a law officer," he stated coldly, rubbing his bruised chest. "Take her over to the block and keep a tight rein on her." Dash was roughly hauled to her feet and pushed to where the other prisoners were, standing in a semi-circle around the executioner.
"Ulfric Stormcloak. Some here in Helgen call you a hero, but a hero doesn't use a power like the Voice to murder his King and usurp his throne." There stood the infamous Jarl, a whole head taller than the man speaking. The ornately armored officer didn't seem to notice the difference in stature. "You started this war, plunged Skyrim into chaos, and now the Empire is going to put you down and restore the peace!" In that moment, a harsh, guttural cry echoed down the valley. Guards and prisoners alike looked around nervously, unsure of what the sound was. The grey-haired officer dismissed it off-hand. "It's nothing. Carry on."
"Yes, General Tullius," the Captain replied, snapping a smart salute. She turned to the robed priestess who now stood to one side of the executioner. "Give them their last rites," she commanded, stepping aside to let the priestess take charge. Dash gave one last try at breaking free, but her guards just held her arms tighter. So much for that.
"As we commend your souls to Aetherius, blessings of the eight divines upon you," the priestess began, only to be interrupted by one of the Stormcloaks.
"For the love of Talos, shut up and lets get this over with," he said, advancing on the priestess. She stepped back from him with a venomous glare.
"As you wish."
"Come on, I haven't got all morning!" he said to the executioner as he boldly faced the block. The executioner shrugged at the Captain, who moved up behind the man to force him down to his knees. "My ancestors are smiling at me, Imperials. Can you say the same?" the Stormcloak asked as his head was laid on the block. The only response he received was the sickening sound of metal tearing through flesh, sinew, and bone. Even Rainbow felt her stomach flip-flop at the sound. The execution brought out mixed reactions. Cries of anger from the Stormcloaks clashed with cheers from some of the soldiers and townsfolk.
"As fearless in death as he was in life," a voice said somberly.
"Next, the Renegade from Cyrodiil!" the Captain called, pointing directly at Rainbow. Again, that eerie animalistic roar echoed into the town, this time louder and much closer. The soldiers shifted uneasily. "I said, next prisoner." she reiterated. Roughly, Rainbow was pushed towards the block by the guards flanking her.
"I'm not a renegade! You bunch of puffed-up bullies! I swear I will haunt your faces! The ghost of Rainbow Dash will haunt you until the day you die!" she shouted, struggling to the best of her abilities, but it did little. She was roughly thrown onto the block and a heavy metal boot was planted in the center of her back. Dash blew out a puff of air to get the hair out of her eyes. She wanted to stare down the executioner. What she saw instead was the largest beast she had ever seen in her life land on top of the tower beyond. Chaos erupted.
Fire fell from the sky like rain, shattering stone and bone wherever it hit. Rainbow struggled to her feet, her guards having more important things to deal with than a criminal. One of the Stormcloaks waved at her from the door into the local fort. She didn't need a second invitation. She ran for the door, dodging fire and panicking guards as she went. Once safe inside, she leaned against the cool stone, breathing hard. "You alright there, lass?" the Stormcloak asked.
"I'm fine! It'll take more'n a bit of fire to take down Rainbow Dash," she said between breaths. She looked down at her hands. "Mind getting these cuffs off? It's kind of hard to do much with my hands like this."
"Sure thing." He said, pulling out a knife and slicing the ties that held the leather bond in place. Rainbow shook her hands free and rubbed them gratefully. "Name's Ralof. We should probably get moving." He ran over to a fallen Stormcloak and picked up a pair of axes. "Here," he said holding out one of them to her. Rainbow took it awkwardly. She had never swung an axe in her life. "Just in case," Ralof explained. "Follow me. There should be a way out under the fort." So saying, he headed off down one of the passages.
"You know where you're going?" Rainbow asked, pulling her rainbow colored bandanna up to hold her hair in place as they went down corridor after corridor.
"No idea. I just know we should head down."
"Great." Rainbow grumbled. As they rounded a corner into one of the fort's pantries, they blundered right into a pair of legionnaires. Both parties froze, unsure what to do.
"Stormcloaks! Kill them!" one of the legionnaires shouted, drawing his blade. Ralof responded in kind, his axe whistling as he swung it. The other soldier turned his attention on Dash. She held her weapon awkwardly in both hands as he advanced. He brought his blade up and sent it sailing down at Rainbow's head. She raised the axe to meet it.
The sharp clang of steel-on-steel rang in the small cellar as the combatants battled. Dash's lack of skill with the axe was showing. She was giving ground fast, barely managing to deflect the sword strikes from her opponent. She misjudged a block, the sword carving a gash across her left cheek as punishment. The soldier grinned wickedly and pulled his sword back to strike again, only to have his hand lopped off from behind. Ralof was there, panting heavily from his own fight. He was quick to finish the job, burying his axe in the stunned man's neck.
"Not very good with a weapon, I see," Ralof commented, looking Rainbow over.
"No! I'm plenty good with weapons ... just not ... this weapon," she said, giving the axe a loathsome sneer. "Too heavy." She spotted a dagger on the dead legionnaire's belt. Grinning, she dropped the axe and undid the belt, strapping it around her waist. Drawing the iron dagger, she weighed it in her hand. "Ugh. Horribly balanced." She ran a finger over the edge. "And blunt, but it'll have to do for now. Did the other guy have one as well?" Ralof nodded. "Perfect." She looted the matching dagger from the other soldier, attaching the sheath to her belt on the opposite hip. "Let's get out of here."
"You’re bleeding," Ralof said, pointing at her cheek. Dash self-consciously rubbed her cheek with the back of her hand, leaving a smear of blood and dirt across both hand and cheek.
"It's just a scratch. Let's just get going!" she insisted. The two continued deeper into the fort. They threw open the final door, and found themselves back outside. They were near the gate of the town, survivors running out of the town as fast as they could. The great beast landed in the street behind them.
Dash froze in fear for the first time in her life. The black winged beast was looking directly at her, and its eyes were not the eyes of a dumb animal. It was aware, intelligent, and it was smiling. It enjoyed what it was doing. Rainbow had never felt this kind of fear before. She couldn't move. The beast took in a deep breath, then let out a deafening shout. A gout of fire erupted from its maw. At the last second, Ralof yanked Rainbow back inside the door. The heat was scorching even at this distance. Rainbow felt her exposed skin burning just from being in proximity. When the heat subsided, Dash did the most idiotic thing in her life. She broke away from the Ralof's grip and ran out into the street, past the charred corpses of the dead, and out the town gates. Behind her she heard the beast laughing.
"RUN! RUN LITTLE MORTALS! RUN AND TELL THE DOVAHKIIN THAT HIS DAYS ARE NUMBERED! I WANT HIM TO KNOW I COME FOR HIM. I WANT HIM TO QUAIL IN FEAR OF MY VOICE! THE DOVAH RETURN! OUR VOICES WILL SUNDER THE HEAVENS!"
Rainbow Dash just ran.
-oOo-
“And that’s how I got here.” Rainbow Dash finished, taking another drink of cider. She took a moment to brush a stray lock of red hair out of her face, her bandanna now resting around her neck. “Not exactly my proudest moment.” She said, slouching a bit in shame.
Applejack just sat there in silence, her mind (and stomach) churning. That had definitely been a story. Ulfric captured, and sent to execution for his crimes, and as this girl’s head is readied for he block, a dragon from nowhere. A dragon. What in the name of the Nine was happening?
She heard a snort from behind her, and both of them looked up at her uncle. “You must be touched in the head, girl,” he said, looking at Rainbow through narrowed eyes. “There are no dragons. Did you hit your head when you ran in the chaos?”
Rainbow was on her feet in an instant, eyes smoldering and hands on the hilts of her daggers. “Hey! First, I never said it was a dragon, and second, I know what I saw! You weren’t even there, you don’t get to call me crazy!”
“Uncle, t’ain’t no call to go questionin’ her story. Plenty of things in this world we don’t know about after all.” He snorted again, but, taking another look the girl, at the marks on her face and the damage to her leathers, his face softened.
“Sorry, miss. Just, I know the old stories, and what you say you saw could only be a dragon. And they don’t exist.”
“Yeah, well, that one did,” she said, her tone still belligerent, though she had released her grip on her daggers.
“Actually, I think I saw it, too.”
“What?” They were both looking at AJ, now, alike in their surprise.
“Well, somethin’ like it. Big, black, and flying, and gone before I could get a good glimpse of it,” she said, gesturing toward the mountains that separated Riverwood from Whiterun. “It disappeared off yonder. Hulda saw it too, heard her telling her boy about it just as you were comin’ up the path. And Helgen …” she frowned, and shook her head. “I’d say we take it seriously. You know if there were any others made it out?”
Rainbow shook her head, rubbing her arms. “I kind of just ran. Really fast. I mean I’m not saying there aren’t, I just don’t know, you know?”
AJ nodded. “I understand. Come on, you need a wash and probably could use a bed. There’s a couple spare places to crash at our farm, and won’t nobody ask questions, I’ll see to that.”
Rainbow blinked, then followed, as AJ had already set out. “Wow. Thanks. I mean, usually people are all ‘find your own dang place,’ so really, thanks.”
AJ snorted. “The Apple family remembers how to be good neighbors, even if everyone else has forgotten.”
-oOo-
“Rainbow.” She grumbled, shifting on her bedroll. “Rainbow. Wake up.” She grumbled again, burrowing deeper into the furs. “Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash.”
“What!?” she yelled, throwing the furs off onto the offending voice. “I’m trying to sleep!”
“AJ said for to wake you up, Rainbow Dash,” came the muffled reply. Her eyes focused, and she blinked. Oh. Apple Bloom. Oh.
“Uh … right. I’m up. I’m up,” she said, pulling the furs off the girl and giving her a tired smile. Apple Bloom beamed one right back at her, and bounced off. Rainbow shook her head. “Cute kid.”
She dragged herself up out of bed, briefly running a wooden comb through her hair to get the snarls out, and dressed herself. Breakfast was a bit of bread with some cheese, which was actually somewhat more substantial than she’d been used to in recent days. “Right,” she said, facing the door and shouldering her new bow. “Honest work. It’s been a while.”
She’d forgotten how much honest work sucked. Two hours out in the woods with a grumpy wood elf, creeping through underbrush and around trees, looking for something to hunt. For all they’d found, the game seemed to have decided to just stay home sick or something. Or, well, for all she’d found. Faendal was probably having better luck, since he was an elf. A wood elf. They were … woodsy.
Wait. There! A deer. Beautiful specimen, too - tall and big and very nice antlers and wonderfully oblivious to her presence. She crept forward, channeling every sneaky skill she’d learned on the streets of Cyrodiil. Hopefully they applied out here, too; so far, it seemed the answer was yes. She was in a good position, now, with a clear shot. Nothing in the way. Alright. This was it.
She nocked an arrow, drew back the bow, and lost control of the string. The arrow flew through the air, straight and true, and thunked into the ground some twenty feet short of the deer. “Gods … dammit!” she yelled, shaking her hand. Sure, she was wearing bracers, but the string slapping into her wrist still stung like a bitch. And, of course, there went the deer. Wonderful.
Okay. It hadn’t gone far. And she was still upwind. “Alright, Rainbow. You can do this.” She nocked an arrow, drew back, making extra sure of her grip this time, and took aim. “Here we go.” She released. The arrow flew through the air like an angry hornet, sailing straight, true, and right over the deer’s back by at least a foot. And once again, the deer was gone. She slapped a hand to her forehead. “Great. Just … great.”
Okay, this deer was stupid. It had gone, what, ten yards? Twenty? Whatever. It was determined to let her shoot it, and shoot it she would. “This time. Not gonna miss.” She nocked her third arrow, narrowed her eyes, and drew the bow, trying to remember what her instructor had taught her. Breathe out. Right. She aimed, and fired. The arrow’s feathers kissed the deer’s cheek, and it buried itself deep into a tree trunk. “NO!”
“So.” She ignored him. “Are you going to sulk, or are you going to help me skin the deer?”
“Grmph,” she said, but got out her skinning knife and turned to the task at hand. Stupid elf. Where did he get off being so darned good with a bow? It must have been just blind luck. Yeah. Pure luck that he’d taken down the deer with a single arrow, when she’d missed like, five different times. Luck. Yeah.
“When was the last time you held a bow?” She scowled at him. He just raised an eyebrow. Stupid elves and their stupid poker faces. Her brow furrowed. How long had it been since she’d held a bow?
“Two ... no, it’s been longer than that. And there was that year in Anvil,” she muttered, casting her mind back, trying to remember. “Maybe in Skingrad … no, wait, I got out of that one. Huh.” Really? Had it really been since …? “Uh, I’m thinkin’ … six years?”
He raised an eyebrow. “You haven’t touched a bow in six years? Hm. You did better than I would have expected.”
She blinked. “What, really? Wait, you were watching?”
“Yes. Take some time to practice, and I would wager that you will bring down a kill on the morrow.”
-oOo-
“Apple Bloom! Get down from there!”
The girl looked up. Well, actually, down, but she was hanging upside down from a tree, so everything was topsy turvy. She blinked a couple times, taking stock of the situation. Her sister had her hands on her hips and her eyes were narrowed, but she wasn’t quite frowning. Okay. “Why?”
“Because you’ll fall and break your neck!”
Oh, it was that one again. “No I won’t!”
“Don’t you argue with me!”
“But I won’t! See, watch!” she said, and demonstrated by skillfully flipping herself back upright onto the branch. “Besides, sis, I can get the apples better from up here! Well, when its time, I mean.”
“Apple Bloom.” Uh oh. Now she was frowning. “Down. Now.”
The girl sighed, and jumped the branch, landing with a roll. She dusted herself off from the landing, looked up, and cringed. AJ’s face was thunderous. “Uh … sis?”
“You … I meant for you to climb down, not jump!”
“But you said now!”
Applejack slapped her palm to her forehead, brow furrowed and eyes closed. “Apple Bloom, that didn’t mean … oh forget it. Just … go play. And not in trees.”
Apple Bloom sighed. “Okay,” she said, and ran off, trying to think of what else to do. She did not see her sister bang her head against the tree, nor hear her supplication to the Nine.
-oOo-
Rainbow breathed, long and slow, steadying herself. Eyes narrowed, she peered at the target in the distance. The crude sketch of a legionnaire’s helmet, rendered on white bark with black charcoal, glared back at her. Not that it had eyes. She nocked an arrow, drew, aimed, and fired. The arrow hit the tree dead center, tail quivering from the force of impact. Rainbow groaned in frustration. “Too high! Again!”
She shook her head. “Calm down. Calm down. You can do this. You just need to focus. Like in a duel.” One more time. Breathe in with the draw, and out with the release. In with the draw, out with the release. “Alright.” She nocked another arrow, drew, and fired. She grunted. “Too low. I guess that’s better than too high.” She would at least still hit something.
“One more time.” She readied her third arrow, aiming just a touch higher than last time, and released. She squinted a bit, then grunted. “Off to the side a bit. Still, that would’ve got his eye. Acceptable, I guess.”
“Wow, you’re good!” She almost dropped her bow, her free hand halfway to her dagger’s hilt before she stopped herself. Slowly, she completed her turn, dropping her gaze down to the little girl who had nearly startled her into something horrible.
“Kid?”
“Yeah?” said Apple Bloom, grinning up at her.
“Don’t sneak up on me like that.”
Apple Bloom frowned, her face puzzled. “But I wasn’t sneaking.”
Ugh. Kids. “Look, just, uh … walk louder. Or something.” She turned back to the trees, narrowing her eyes at the target. Could she do it aga- wait. “So you think I’m good?”
“Yeah! I mean, you hit the tree all three times!”
She blinked, looking sideways at where the little strawberry blonde was standing. “What, that doesn’t usually happen?”
“Nope,” the girl said, shaking her head. “Usually everyone goes wide a couple times first. Well, except for Faendal, but Applejack says that’s ‘cause he practices all the time. Frodnar says it’s just ‘cause he’s an elf, but then he also says that beestings don’t hurt, so what does he know?”
Rainbow blinked. “Frodnar?”
“Hod and Gerdur’s kid. He likes pranks,” she said, her eyes now on Rainbow’s dagger. “He doesn’t prank me anymore though.”
“No? Why not?”
“’Cause the last time he tried it, I pushed him in the mud and sat on him until he said sorry.”
Rainbow snickered. “Nice one.”
“I also told him I’d break his nose next time he tried anything.” She was looking really closely at her daggers, now. “So are you, like, a soldier or something?”
Rainbow snorted. “Never in a hundred years, kid. Way too many rules.”
“So what’re those for?” she asked, pointing at the daggers.
“Well, kid, I’m a du-“ Wait. She’d gotten in trouble for things like this before. And right now, she had good food and a roof over her head. “Uh … traveler. I kind of wander around. Yeah.”
If Apple Bloom had caught her slip-up, the girl wasn’t showing it. Instead, she was all big eyes and excited grin. “Really? Where’ve you been? Have you been to Solitude? Or Whiterun?”
“Uh, no. I only got to Skyrim a few days ago. But I have been all over Cyrodiil.”
The girl gasped. “Really? Have you been to the Imperial City?”
Rainbow chuckled. “Yep.”
“What’s it like?”
“Well …”
-oOo-
Applejack gave Apple Bloom an affectionate pat on the head as the girl ran into the house, chuckling. “She weren’t too much a bother, I hope.”
“Nah,” said Rainbow. “It was kind of fun telling her about all the places I’ve been.”
“Oh?” She noticed that Applejack’s eyebrows were rather expressive.
“Yep! I told her all about how to find the best gambling dens, and where to go if you ever need to hide for whatever reason, and I also told her aaaaall about Madam Rosa’s in the Imperial City.”
Oh yes. Very expressive. Right now they were just about trying to fly off her face. She snickered, and punched the Nord in the arm. “Joking. I ain’t stupid. Nah, I told her about the White-Gold tower and the Legion parade marches and stuff like that.”
AJ did not look particularly amused. “Oh, come on, lighten up. Just a joke. I know better than to tell other people’s kids about my kind of life! She’s your daughter.” She snickered again, calling up that image of the girl holding some idiot boy down in the mud. “She’s fun enough as she is.”
Applejack managed to recover in time to put a hand on Rainbow’s shoulder before the woman went into the house. “Wait, Rainbow. Did you just … did you just say she’s my daughter?”
Rainbow looked at her, confused. “Uh, yeah.” Her confusion slowly gave way to horror. “Wait. Wait. She isn’t?”
Applejack shook her head. “No. She’s my sister.”
Rainbow gulped. “So, then, Big Macintosh …”
“He’s my brother.”
The red head’s cheeks flushed to match her hair, and she bit her lip. “Okay, wow. This is all kinds of awkward. Um. You … uh … go ahead. I’m just gonna go dunk my head in the river.” She sidestepped, and started walking away, very quickly. Applejack stared after her for a while, her face blank, then turned and entered the house. Once inside, she buried her face in her hands.
“Oh, Mara! She thought … pffft hahahaha!”
-oOo-
The town had gathered. The Sleeping Giant Inn offered its spacious common room, as usual, the tables stacked away and the benches set in a ring around the central firepit, offering a makeshift auditorium for whoever was speaking. The elders of the town had taken their customary seats, while the others stood behind them. All voices were hushed, and all eyes were on the woman standing inside the ring. They were waiting for her to speak.
Gerdur cleared her throat. “Two days ago, Helgen was sacked.” A murmur rippled through the crowd, but for the most part, they remained silent. Everyone had seen the smoke. “Since then, we have all seen the ... creature, in the distance.” Again, there were murmurs, louder, and more of them. One of the men towards the middle of the circle, the local bard, spoke up, his burly arms crossed.
“Call it what it is, Gerdur! That is a dragon!”
The crowd exploded, shouts going back and forth between friends and neighbors, denials and accusations of blindness flying through the air. Gerdur stamped her foot, and shouted for quiet, but the yells of the others drowned her out.
One of the elders, a white-haired woman dressed in green and wearing an apron, reached back and jabbed the man behind her. He was large, even by Nord standards, broad of shoulder and well-muscled, and stood a head taller than the rest of the crowd. He looked down at her, eyebrow raised, and she jerked her head at the crowd in general. He blinked, then nodded.
The Nord inhaled, then yelled. There were no words to it – it was simply louder than anything else in the inn, and did a magnificent job of shutting everyone up. All eyes in the crowd went to him, those of them that weren’t fiddling with their ringing ears, and stared back at those he could see. “Y’take turns at speaking,” he said, simply.
Gerdur cleared her throat. “Thank you, Macintosh.” He nodded, and she continued. “Yes, Sven, it fits the stories. It also,” she said, raising her voice and bulling ahead to cut off the shouts before they could gain momentum, “is a threat to us – even if it is not a dragon. Whatever that beast is, it is why Helgen burned.”
“How do you know?” She turned to find the speaker, narrowing her eyes at the dark-haired man.
“Eyewitness, Lucan!” Applejack was on her feet, cutting in before Gerdur could reply, Rainbow Dash beside her. The redhead stepped forward, chin up and face serious.
“I was at Helgen. That thing swooped down on us without any warning and set fire to everything it could, and shrugged off whatever the Legionnaires managed to throw at it.” She glared at the crowd, defying anyone to contradict her. “If it comes here and you don’t have a plan? Riverwood will burn brighter than Helgen.”
The gathered were silent. Their faces ran the gamut of expression, from scared to angry, worried to skeptical. Lucan, the proprietor of the Riverwood Trader, was clearly not buying it. “And who are you, then? You’re Imperial, but you are no legionnaire. Why were you at Helgen?”
Rainbow stared at him, but he did not flinch. Others were looking at her as well, clearly expecting her to answer – but if she did, they’d just discredit her. She no longer bore the evidence of dragon fire, and who would trust the word of a woman escaped from the headsman’s axe? She’d have to make something up. No problem. She could do that.
“She’s not the only survivor.” She blinked, staring at Gerdur in surprise – along with everyone else. “My brother, Ralof, also survived. He came to me.” There were mutterings in the crowd, then, the words ‘Stormcloak’ and ‘traitor’ floating to her ears. Her brow furrowed. That name was familiar.
“Yes, I harbored him. He is my brother. Would you expect different?” Gerdur asked, a clear note of challenge in her voice. People exchanged glances, and more than a few nods, and the mutters died down. “He is gone, by now, but he told me what he saw. This woman is not lying.”
“Hadvar survived as well.” Everyone turned to Alvor, now, Applejack’s face lighting up at this revelation. “My nephew came to me, like Ralof to you, Gerdur, and he shared the same story. He, too, is gone, off to let the Legion know.” The blacksmith looked straight at Lucan, whose look of disbelief had been replaced by one of worry. “That is three accounts, now. Both Stormcloak and Legion agree on what happened, and Miss Dash holds with neither. If you do not believe now, then you are willfully blind.”
“So what do we do?” The bard was speaking again, his voice loud with worry. “If the Legion can’t handle a dragon, how can we?” Again, the crowd grew loud, everyone trying to voice their worries at once. The old woman dressed in green got to her feet, Big Macintosh helping her up, and rapped her cane on the floor for attention. The crowd grew quiet.
“I’ll tell you what we’re gonna do! First thing, we’re not gon’ panic, and we’re not gon’ worry more’n we have to!” she said, her voice trembling with her age, but clear nonetheless. “So don’t you go singin’ any songs of doom, whippersnapper, or I’ll have a piece of your hide, y’hear?” She gave Sven a pointed look, and the man nodded. “If ‘at dragon decides to burn us out, that’s gon’ happen. So best we can do is be alert and see it comin’. If it comes, we run! Y’all want to pack stuff and hide it away from town, where you can get to it later. If it comes to that, we go to family, or Whiterun.”
“So there’s no way to fight back, Granny?”
Granny Smith squinted, looking around to find the speaker. Camilla, Lucan’s sister, waved to her, and the elderly woman nodded her thanks. “It’s a dragon, girl. Men y’can fight. Dragons are beyond us. You run, you live. You stay, you die. Though …” Her brow furrowed, a thought coming to her. “The Jarl needs to know about all this. And he may have his own ideas about what to do.”
“He could send soldiers!”
“If the Legion couldn’t kill it, how will the guards?”
“The Legion didn’t have any warning! The guards will!”
“That won’t make a difference against a thing like that!”
The rapping of Granny’s cane on the floor brought silence to the room once again. She sent her glare around at everyone present, making sure she had their attention. “Guards’ll do what they can, and we can’t do squat about that. Worry about what we can do. Right now, that’s tell the Jarl. Y’all hear?”
There was a general murmur of assent. Gerdur nodded to Granny, then took the floor once more. “Good then. Now we need simply to pick who to send. Miss,” and she turned to face Rainbow, “would you be willing?”
The red head blinked. “What? Why me?”
“Because you were at Helgen, sugarcube.” Applejack put her hand on the woman’s shoulder. “Jarl Balgruuf will want to hear about that, and will want to hear it from someone who saw it happen.” Rainbow frowned. This all sounded iffy. She’d come here to avoid complications, and it just looked like more and more were being thrown her way. “You won’t go alone, mind. I’ll go, too. After all,” she said to the crowd, “we need to speak for ouselves as well. And no buts, Big Mac. You can handle the farm without me for a while.”
Rainbow gave an internal groan. Now she had to go. “Yeah, okay. Fine. I’ll go.”
Gerdur nodded, and turned back to the crowd. “Anyone have any objections?” She was answered with silence. “Good then! Rainbow, Applejack, you have our thanks.”
“We’ll need a few days to prepare, all.”
“What about supplies?” Lucan asked, and Rainbow looked at him, suspicious. “It is a week’s walk to Whiterun, and the roads are not safe anymore. You will need armor, and food.”
“Are you offering to help?” asked Applejack.
“Yes,” he replied. “Though armor is not something I have in abundance.”
“We can make them armor, and weapons, if necessary,” Alvor said. “But I think everyone should put forward something to help them get there and back in one piece. Agreed?”
There was a chorus of ayes, and the meeting devolved into general chatter, people already discussing what to stash away and what to donate to the planned trip. Rainbow looked on, a little dumbstruck. Just like that? That’s all it took? Someone poked her in the ribs, and she jumped. “Hey!”
“You look a little dumbstruck there, sugarcube.”
Rainbow blinked, and scratched her head. “Well … it’s just … they’re all just gonna pitch in? Just like that? No teeth pulling or arm twisting?”
Applejack laughed. “‘Course they are! Only makes sense - if we’re supplied right, we stand that much better a chance of making it there, which is in everyones’ best interest.”
“Yeah, I guess, but … I’m just used to people being stupid about it.”
AJ snorted. “Yeah. They used to be that way. But by now they’ve all been on the wrong side of Granny’s tongue. Or cane, in some cases. Come on, Dash - we’ve got plans to make.”