//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 - The Rowdy Warrior // Story: The Dragonborn Chronicles: Part 1 - Ponies in Skyrim // by Barix123 //------------------------------// The Rowdy Warrior         It was morning as the group was eating breakfast. Applejack was excited throughout the night and following morning because she was going on her first quest. At least she thought it was a quest. Barix had said this was pretty routine for him but she was excited none the less. The armor set wasn’t done yet so Barix decided to get Applejack’s weapon preference in the armory. “Alright Applejack, we have to get you accustomed with weapons. The only way to do that is to try out all the weapons.” “Well I already like ta use the sword. Can’t ah jus use that?” “You can but I was told that you are the strongest out of your friends. You can take a sword as a backup but with the strength you have you would be more suited for a larger weapon. Like…this one.”         Barix took an ebony warhammer off the wall with both hands and set it on the floor. Even softly it made a loud thud. “This an ebony warhammer. It’s not only long but it’s also one of the heaviest weapons able to be made. One end is used to smash and the other end is spiked for…other… needs. ”         He was a little stunned when the orange mare took the weapon in her teeth and picked it up with ease. She gave it a few swings. “Ow uch doesh it iegh?” “Um…about two hundred pounds.”         She put the weapon back down. “There’s no way fer it ta be much use in mah mouth, especially with it’s long handle. Twilight! Are you still there!?”         Twilight makes here way into the room. “Yes AJ?” “Can ya do that fancy sticky spell on this here warhammer for me?” “Ok. Is it your new weapon?” “Sure is.” “Sticky spell? What’s that?” Barix was curious at this new spell. “It’s a spell that lets any object stay or ‘stick’ to any surface and detach if the one wielding the object doesn’t want to hold it any more.” Twilight explained. “Oh ok. So you use it as a substitute because you have hooves instead of hands. Clever and useful.”         Twilight cast the spell on the hammer and went back to her books. Applejack touched the handle with her hoof and was able to pick it up with ease. She gave it a few more swings and it moved more easily and freely. Changing between hooves and swinging the weapon around almost looked natural for the country pony. Not much longer Rarity came up with AJ’s new armor. It was a perfect fit. Applejack couldn’t get her Stetson to stay on with the helmet so she decided to leave it behind for now. Barix secured an ebony sword along the side of her body and an ebony dagger on her fore leg. The warhammer rested right on her back with the spell to keep it in place. “Am ah really gonna need all these?” “You’d be surprised how many weapons I’ve lost throughout the years. I’ve got to get ready myself. I’ll call you when I’m done.”         Applejack left him to get ready. She went find Rainbow who didn’t appear to be in the house. All her other friends didn’t know were she was but AJ knew pegasus friend was jealous. Either way all her friends wanted her to keep an eye out for something they wanted. Twilight wanted any books in readable condition, Rarity wanted any and all metals and gems, and Pinkie wanted sugar and flour. Fluttershy was the only one who didn’t want anything. Barix was ready after that. He had on dragonscale armor. On his right was a mace, left was a sword, on his back was a bow and arrows and on both legs was a dagger, all dragonbone weapons. As they left and were walking down the road- “Hey Applejack!”         They stopped to see Rainbow on the roof of the house. “Knock’em dead for me will ya.” “Sure will partner.”         With friendly smiles the two warriors then left. They only walked for a few minutes until Barix stopped. “Somethin wrong, sugarcube?” “Yes something is very wrong. I never informed my mentors that I was alive!” “Oh yeah I fergot ya were on the edge a death when we found ya. But you can still do that later right?” “…No I can do it now.” “Beg yer pardon but how?” “Look,” Barix pointed to a mountain, “They live up there. All I have to do is tell them.” “We have to go all the way up there!?” “No, I’ll just tell them. You may want to cover your ears.”         Applejack took a few steps back and covered her ears remembering just how loud the other shouts were the first time they met. She saw him take a deep breathe. “FUS! RO! DAH!”         The shout was still loud enough to make her cringe and hold her head tighter. As she looked at the shockwave of energy, it seemed to weaken as it traveled toward the top of the mountain. For a minute they stood there without speaking. Barix stared at the mountain with careful eyes, focusing only on that. His country partner was about to speak up when something stopped her. “DOV! AH! KIIIN!”         The intensity of it almost shook the ground but it put a smile on the warriors face. “Sky above, voice within.” He made the same gestures that came to him as natural as breathing. “What?” It was all she could say. “That was the Greybeards. Powerful people who are masters of the voice just as I am. They live on the top of the mountain were they live in seclusion. All I did now was tell them I was alive…I left them on the idea I wasn’t going to come back.” Applejack saw this as a sign of respect. “Alright now let us not waste any time.” On the way Barix informed Applejack on the mission. A claw had been stolen from these merchants and they need to get it back. Barix had dealt with these bandits before and said they were nothing close to a threat. Still Applejack was happy to be exploring an unknown place that was supposedly filled with danger. The trip was somewhat long. The multiple paths took them across a village and up a hill that got snowy as they climbed, even more so the higher they climbed. Finally she saw it, Bleak Falls Barrow. The two stopped at a good distance away. AJ just watched as Barix took his bow and dropped the bandits that were outside with excellent precision. As they advanced up the steps Barix was checking the bandits and took things that were of greater value than most things on them; potions, jewels, and even some weapons. Some how they all fit inside his satchel. She made a mental note to ask about that later.         As they proceeded inside, the two saw some more around a fire at the far end of the room. The cow girl looked to dragonborn for a plan but found he was gone. She looked around to find him fighting one of them with the rest already on the ground. Applejack caught up to him with all the bandits dispatched. She copied his action this time, searching for anything that looked valuable and put it in her satchel. Hers seemed to be able to fit more than it could hold as well. Going deeper in the dungeon, the two were taking out bandits left and right. Barix noticed that the orange mare was taking out more bandit than himself. It seemed obvious in the end due to her strength and the way she swung the warhammer so easily, sometimes with one hoof. They came to a point in some dank caverns when dead bodies were coming to life. Applejack was scared of this at first but found that they were slower and a little weaker then the bandits. Barix told her they were draugr, weaker undead creatures. Soon they came to a room with an open gate and a platform above it. There was a chest so Barix walked up to check it out. Applejack opened it but it was too late for the dragonborn to stop her and a small snap was heard. Barix grabbed her and jumped off the ledge. As they slammed onto the floor below, darts from the ceiling came down onto the spot in front of the chest. “Oh mah Celestia, I’m so sorry Barix!” “Uuhh…my back.” AJ got off him, where she just so happened to land, and helped him up. “Now I hope you know to check all chests before you open them.” “Don’t worry you have mah word, ah won’t be that stupid again.”         They checked the chest now and found the claw inside along with some gold and some weapons. Applejack took them since Barix didn’t seem too interested in anything but the claw. The warriors were about to leave when they turned and saw seven bandits around the bottom floor. One took a step forward and Barix recognized him immediately as Avrel the Swift. “Well look at this, and they say draugr are the only dead things walking.” Arvel started. “I could say the same to you, thief. Last time I saw you was at the end of my sword.” “HA! Don’t make me laugh. An amateur wound like that wouldn’t kill a child. Now I believe you have something that belongs to me.” “I tried to spare you once to see if you’ll change your ways but since that answer is a no, you’re not getting this claw back.” “Suit yourself dead man. Kill him and take the claw.” The bandits began running up the stairs at the command. “VEN!”         The wind from the small cyclone blew out all torches in the room leaving it pitch black. Applejack heard a small whisper as she was about to run. Don’t move or you’ll die. She did just that and only that as she heard screams of pain, limbs being torn, and metal hitting metal. When it stopped she felt something pick her up. Green eye was all she could see before blacking out. ------------------------------------------------------ She awoke to find herself and Barix on a cart traveling through the forest. He was reading a book across from her but noticed she was up. “Barix, what happened? Where are we?” “I apologize for what happened back at Bleak Falls but if I didn’t we might not have been so well off right now. I won’t go into detail but I have a very special set of abilities. You might see them all in time.” “…Ok then…ah won’t push the issue if it’s that bad but ah will have ta ask at some point. Fer now where are we goin?” “To a city call Solitude. I have to meet someone.” “Who?” “A general, and a friend.” The rest of the trip was quiet. AJ just got some sleep so the trip was very boring. She realized that she felt almost too rested. “Um Barix…how long was ah out fer?” “All night and the morning.” “Why did ya do that, it’s not like ah would’ve told the others ya killed some bandits and that we’re next. After all I killed some maself.” “…” “Barix?” “Please…I’ve asked not to press the issue…please.”         She could see a pain in his eyes and knew something happened and had to let it go. She changed sides of the cart and gave him a hug. Barix a little taken back by this. This was happening a lot lately. “Ok ah won’t…but if ya ever need ta talk bout it ah’ll always be here fer ya, pinkie promise.”         He was confused by that last part but accepted the hug none the less. Not much longer they had arrived at the gates and it was getting dark. As they walked through town some of the guards whispered things that weren’t audible so AJ focused on the city itself. It was an elegant city that showed a lot of that high class froofroo stuff similar to Canterlot, that is, if the city was in a medieval time with monsters everywhere and humans instead of ponies. They walked to a castle and into a set of doors. The guards there were all too eager to let him in. “Good to see you back dragonborn, he should still be inside.”         AJ could see two figures in the room ahead. As Barix walked forward she followed close behind. “General,” the two looked up as Barix was taking off his helmet, “It’s good to see you again.”         They stood in place as if seeing a ghost. “By the gods…is it…really you…Barix?” “Yes it is general Tullius.”         The man walked, somewhat ran, over to Barix and gave him a great big hug. “My boy it’s good to see you again. I thought you were gone for sure. But how, you and Alduin…did you…” “We have much to discuss but I have to say I wouldn’t be standing here if it wasn’t for my new friends.” Barix looked to his current companion. “Hi there.” Applejack greeted. “Hello, so you helped my boy here. I owe you more than some gold or royal favors, I owe you my life. I hope my thanks will be enough for now.” “Oh come on now, it was nothin.” She replied. “Rikke, it is good to see you as well.” Barix said. “Barix…I…” Rikke was still somewhat one the shocked end. “It’s fine you don’t have to say anything,” Barix went over and hugged her, “I’m just glad to see some friendly faces.” “Did you eat yet Barix? We can catch up during dinner.” General Tullius said. “That sound good to me.” Barix replied. -------------------------------------------------         Throughout the meal Barix got General Tullius caught up on what’s happened to him and about his new friends as well as telling Applejack about his war days in the legion. “Oh so ya joined cause Tullius is yer pa right?” The country mare asked. “No he’s not but we’ve been so close for so long he started to feel like a son to me. Mostly because of my ageing and his lack of. Let me ask you something miss, where do you come from? I don’t recall you mentioning that.” General Tullius asked. “Oh right, we never did say that. Well me and mah friends come from the land of Equestria.” “So how long will you be staying here in Skyrim?” “Ahm not sure. Mah friend Twilight is trying ta learn all she can now and remember the spell that brought us here so we can get back but not much luck as of yet.” Applejack said half heartedly. “It’s nothing that time won’t solve,” Barix interjected, “General I have come here for more than just a friendly hello.” “The stormcloaks I presume. We’ve had little trouble with them since the death of Ulfric Stormcloak but our scouts are still reporting camps around Skyrim. If you want I can give you a map of their current locations.” General Tullius said. “That sounds good, whenever I’m near one of the camps I’ll be sure to take them out.” “Just do what you do best and I know you’ll get it done. For now it’s late so you can stay here.” “Thank you general, we’ll leave again in the morning.”         General Tullius showed the two to a guest room were two beds laid. They settled down but Applejack couldn’t get to sleep. She kept going back to what happened inside of Bleak Falls Barrow. Finally she got the courage to ask the question. “Hey Barix…are ya still awake?” She said rather softly. “…yes.” He was quiet as well. “Am sorry ta be a burden but I jus can’t help thinkin bout what happened in that dungeon.” “…” “Now Ah now ya don’t want ta talk bout it but ah can also tell ya don’t have anypo-…anyone ta talk ta bout it. Ahm not sayin that ah know what yer goin through but ah do know that it must be hard ta keep it locked away fer so long.” “…” “…Ok…ah won’t push the issue.” “…I like to kill.” “Oh…well that’s…” she turned in bed to see him but he was already sitting on the edge of it. “I don’t just like it, I love it and I get a rush every time I kill. I’ve tried everything I can think of but there’s no way I can stop my feelings.” Applejack sat up with wide eyes at what she was hearing from this being who seemed so level headed. “…I’ve tried to focus on killing just the bad and it worked…for a time but…no matter what, it keeps coming back.” A few tears ran down his face. Applejack laid him down on the bed. “It’s ok. Just cause you have these feelin’s doesn’t mean you are a bad…creature. Everyone has had bad thoughts at some point, no matter how good they are.”         Barix stop tearing up and laid there looking at Applejack. “Tell ya what, you sleep right here fer the night. You could use some comforting anyway.” Applejack pulled the covers over him and wrapped her forelimbs around Barix as they drifted of to sleep. Morning came as the two awoke to each other. With slight blushes the two fighters got up and went downstairs for breakfast. Barix and Tullius went over the map during the meal. When it was over they got their armor and left Solitude. “So what’s the plan for these stormcloak fellers? Are ya gonna kill’em?” “No.” “Really? Ah’m kind of surprised ya aren’t.” “Since we are far enough away from the city I can tell you what the plan is. The war is over but these idiots are too stubborn to give up, so we are just going to knock them down and hopefully push them out.” “That’s good ta here but ah’m curious as ta why?” “Of course, they want to fight but they do so from the wilderness and away from their loved ones. Every day they spend out here in the wild is another day they could spend with friends and family that are waiting back where they came from. It is our job to ‘convince’ them to leave, even if we have to do it the hard way.” “Ya mean beatin the pulp outta them.” Applejack put on a sly grin. “I like to call it tough love.” “Does yer general friend know about this?” “He knows I get rid of the camps but how I do it he does not know. Tullius might think it a good idea the way I dispose of the camps but I don’t dare press my luck like that. He is the general after all.” “Ah can understand that. So where is this camp we’re headin to?” “It’s on the way back home near a village called Dragon Bridge. Just a bit off the main road but not far.” “Good ah can’t wait to get warmed up. Say, before we do that can we sell some stuff at that village ya mentioned? All the stuff we collected is kinda weighin me down.” “Why didn’t you say so?”         Barix stops in the road, AJ does too. He snaps his finger and a demon looking entity appeared in front of the two. It looked nicely dressed though. “Hello sir, how can I help today?” Sarcastic depression was dripping from it’s words. “Wow nelly, who are you?” “This is my demon butler. I use him to carry things I have collected and save them for later.” He turned his attention to the butler. “I’ll need two more satchels.” “Of course sir.” The butler clapped his hands and the two satchels on Barix and Applejack were untied and two new ones tied themselves to the same spot. The country mare felt much lighter now. “Anything else I can do sir.” Still sounding ‘excited’. “That’s it, you can go.” “Oh joy.” It then disappeared. “Ok, let’s get moving.”         After some time they passed the village and continued to the tree line. Applejack was struck with a thought. “Can I ask ya somethin sugercube?” “What is it?” “If that butler guy can carry this fer you then why didn’t ya have it carry any potions or bandages or somethin? Ya know, so ya could heal yerself?” “Simple, I rely on my skills in a tough situation. I believe that if I die at any point then I was destined to die then. After all, if I have to keep potions around to make sure I live then I’m not really good at what I do, that’s how I got as good as I am today. I either fight and live or die.” “Inerestin. Not the mindset ah might have but it must be workin seein as yer still walkin right?” “Indeed. The camp should be right over the hill here.”         The two stopped at a rocky edge and saw the camp. It was small with about twenty stormcloaks with tents to match. A larger tent was up with a table visible from their vantage point and on the other side was a blacksmith with his own little anvil. The odds were stacked against them ten to one and Applejack was getting nervous at the sight of the group. “So…uh…what’s the plan sugercube?” “We charge head first into the camp and knock’em out cold.” Barix had put on a mischievous grin. “Ya kiddin…right?” “Come on, Applejack. let’s have some fun.”         Barix hopped off the rock and ran forward. “Celestia’s sake, do you want to die that bad!”         It was too late some of the stormcloaks had seen him. “ENEMY SIGHTED. ALL HANDS TAKE ARMS!!!”         Barix had started swinging his fists at the incoming enemies. One by one they either staggered away or were knocked out. AJ soon joined him, not taking out her weapon, but charging and bucking her way around. Barix saw the leader of the camp come out of the large tent. “FUS!”         A path was cleared as the group was thrown against each other. Barix ran threw and began to attack the leader. The leaders sword hit but could do nothing against the dragonscale armor. AJ had the same thing happen, the weak blades and arrows meant nothing to the well crafted second skin around her. In a few minutes, mostly due to distractions, Barix took out the leader. He quickly made his way to his ally and got the stormcloaks away. They had managed to grab her and began to take off her armor until the dragonborn put a stop to that. The two had finally managed to put down all the stormcloaks. None had run away instead Barix and AJ had tied them up in groups starting with the ones that were still conscious. They were all dragged to the center of the camp as they swore at their captors. “SILENCE!” Barix roared at the tied groups and they secede yelling as some more woke up. The way he yelled made Applejack think of Princess Luna. “The war is over you will no longer fight.” “Says who, a milk drinker like you?” A random stormcloak yells out. “No. The dragonborn says so.” The ones that were struggling stopped and the ones that were conscious looked up. “I will say this once and only once so listen up. You are fighting a battle you’ve already lost. Why would you die for a lost cause when you could be with the ones you love? Did you not think of them, or were you all too selfish of your own beliefs that you would die just to openly worship a god?” “What do you expect us to do? Not follow the way of our hero?” “What about the Thalmor? They will accuse anyone they want.” More shouts came from the stormcloaks. “I never said you couldn’t worship Talos. All I am saying is to not be stupid and wear a Talos necklace in public or mention him around anyone besides your closest family. Let me worry about the Thalmor. I have business with them anyway.” Barix picked up a knife and tossed it near a group. “The choice is yours. Either live and worship in hiding or die while fighting a battle you cannot hope to win, because I can promise you, if I see any of you around this camp again I will kill you.”         With that Barix walked off with Applejack in tow. They were back on the main road so she knew it was safe to talk again. “Ah’m impressed, ya didn’t kill any of them.” “Well it’s a lot easier to manage when I’ve already…you know.” “Ah got it sugercube.” She looked up to see the sun grazing the horizon. “Say, not to be a worry wart, but how much longer til we get back home?”         Barix also noticed what time it was. “Oh I see. Here, we’ll ride this.” He held his hand out and a cloud of smoke formed. A black horse with red eyes trotted out. He hopped on the horse and held out a hand to AJ. “Let’s go we don’t have long.” “Oh this is jus wrong in every sense of the word.” Despite her words she took his hand and hopped on. He signaled Shadowmare to run. She may not have liked riding another of her kind but she didn’t want to be out in the woods at night. As light was just about gone Barix grabbed his bow and readied an arrow. “Is somethin wrong?” “Just keep quiet I need to concentrate.” He said in a barley audible tone.         The two kept riding threw the forest as darkness completely took over. A minute later other movement was heard. Barix readied his bow to the left. Nothing was seen only heard, but then a pair of red eyes were staring at them following them as though on a chase. He was about to release the bow but then he let out a low growl. Another growl came from the eyes sounding similar to Barix. A silent conversation was carried by him and the eyes as AJ could only hold on and pray nothing happened…which is exactly what happened. The eyes stopped moving, disappearing into the forest behind them. Barix lowered his bow. It wasn’t much longer that they made it to the house. Without a second thought they got off and ran inside. Lydia was leaning against the doorway to the dining room. “Late again my Thane.” Lydia said casually. “You know me, always the one for excitement.” He said, slightly out of breathe. “That’s it ah’m done. Ah’m stayin right here in this house fer a while thank you very much.” Applejack trotted off even more out of breathe. “See you both in the morning.” Barix said as he watched Lydia and AJ walk off. He was going to do that as well, but be just needs to get his armor off. He starts to walk to the back. “How was the trip?”         He turned to see Rarity coming from the bedroom wing of the house. “Exciting as always. Anything interesting happen when I was gone?” “Yes actually, rumor has it that there was a theft in Riverwood. You know that village we walked to for metal? The one right next to us.” “Is that so?” “Hmhmm, apparently the blacksmith there was cleaned out, not one bit of metal left to his supply.” “That is interesting, wonder who it was.”         Rarity couldn’t help but smile as she walked up to her hero, got on her hind legs and hugged him. “Thank you.” “Just make sure you don’t over work yourself.”         With that everyone had gone to bed. Barix couldn't help but feel excited for what was in store for him. If the past few days were this fun he couldn’t wait for what else the gods had planned. One thing was certain though. He needed to meet with the greybeards for more training. “Who should I bring next?”