It's Not Who I Am Underneath
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Back into the temple, the scene was replaced by angry priests to stern legionaries guarding the armor from all sides. General Tullius was the one standing at the altar as well.
The upper-class folk took the seats in the temple with the people of Winterhold and the Court of Solitude taking the first row on both sides.
General Tullius assumed the centermost part of the praying altar at the front of the temple and started giving a speech.
"Under the Light of the Eight Divines, the Imperial Authority of Skyrim is setting a loan contract to the person of the Dragonborn, Hero of Skyrim and the only instrument to deal with the ongoing Dragon Crisis. As long as the Dragon Crisis stands, the Loan of the Lord's Mail armor stands as well. As all loans stand with interest, the only interest that the Imperial Authority of Skyrim has is the immediate elimination of the current Dragon Crisis in order to set Skyrim back to the current of peace. While that is our major interest, we also want to emphasize the fact that wearing this Armor means friendship with the Empire.. Any sort of action against the Empire of the wearer of this armor should bring about the Wrath of the Eight Divines on its wearer and so the Wrath of the Empire and its glorious Legions. With those conditions said, the Empire and the Elder Council have given the Imperial Authority of Skyrim the power to assign this piece of Godly Artifact into use by a suitable Champion who proves his worth and ability to honor the agreement. May Akatosh Bless Cyrodiil, Skyrim, and their people!"
With a long intimidating speech, General Tullius briefed the people of the contract that will be set between the Empire and the Dragonborn. Those who understand it may find it very interesting, so to speak.
First, the Empire wouldn't force the Dragonborn to join its ranks or act hostile towards him, he who has the Dragon Blood which proves legitimacy over the Imperial Ruby Throne.
Second, the Dragonborn can't join any force hostile to the Empire or act against the Empire directly. This eliminates any possibility for the Dragonborn to join the Civil War on the Stormcloak side. While he's also a Nord who seems sympathetic to the Nord ways and takes on the neutral stand with Winterhold, he is considered out of all human conflicts by now. That, however, doesn't mean anything regarding external enemies.
Third, the Dragonborn can keep the Lord's Mail as the Dragon Crisis stands. While the Empire is annoyed by the Dragons roaming Skyrim and the late sightings of the Dragon Cult, the fact that the Dragonborn has such a powerful artifact means that he can keep the Dragons in check so long he takes them off the battlefields so the Nords and Imperials can kill each other in peace.
Fourth, and this is consequential on third, the Dragon Crisis is a way to set the Dragonborn clear of the course of politics. While Jon Dare is the advocate of the Dragonborn, this Nord Warlord has no desire to rule over Skyrim let alone the Empire so there is no threat to the current date. However, if the Dragonborn was to deal with the Dragons so fast, this would mean the situation is bound to change at some point and so the pact over the Lord's Mail may bind the Dragonborn.
Fifth, regarding the pact, it seemed clear that General Tullius, who is not a man of the Gods, seemed to be invoking the power of the Eight Divines over the pact between the Dragonborn and the Imperial Authority of Skyrim to keep him in check. While that is the case, if the Dragonborn quest was done so soon, there would be no harm in keeping the Dragonborn and the Lord's Mail together to keep the pact going. A point which the Dragonborn should be aware of if he intends well towards the current Empire.
All in all, these points were enough to put the tension regarding the Dragonborn at ease from the side of the Empire and Western Skyrim.
But there is a big catch…
This is an official document that can be held only by official persons. Party A is of course the Empire, the owner of the Lord's Mail. However, Party B is the Dragonborn, a man whose name is anonymous and whose face is masked by his silly horned helm. Party B must be officially recognized by a given name, a face, and an address.
"Should the Dragonborn agree to this pact, may he please rise and sign his name over this contract." General Tullius said as he spread a sheet over the altar.
The Dragonborn stood up from beside Alina and looked behind and beside him before taking a few steps ahead and replacing Tullius in front of the Altar.
"Ehem!" He readied his hoarse voice again and spoke, "So many of you wait for me to remove that helm and look at this face. Something, you as my friends, share with those who are my enemies."
His words made the people tense and so did General Tullius who was ready to demand the Dragonborn to remove his helm.
"Sir, this is important for the contract…" Legate Rikki, from behind the General, tried to convince the Dragonborn to remove the helm.
"This Helm is not for you, dear sister." The Dragonborn replied, "It is to protect the people we care about."
His deep words in that hoarse voice struck deep. The General looked around with unease to see
"I want to answer more concerns regarding the Dragon Crisis, for you dear brothers and sisters, to put your minds at peace." He kept talking without picking the quill to sign the contract which meant he had no intention of playing this game by Imperial Rules.
He's as much of a wild card as he was feared to be.
One of the men present tried to raise his hand to ask something but the Dragonborn continued.
"I already know what your questions are since I am always hammered with them wherever I go." He said, "First, my official name is Dovahkiin. I know it is a shock and it is not the name my parents gave me when I was young but as you can tell, my childhood wasn't normal."
"When I was aware of my place in the world for the first time, I was so shocked to the point that my old name could no longer work. I learned that I am a Dragonborn, a shred of Akatosh who is the Dragon God of Time. You can't live in peace with such a thing embedded deep into your soul. You will make enemies and friends wherever you go and many friends did I lose. It led me here in the end, at this very spot, and among those friendly faces."
"Aside from who I am, what I am up against is nothing simple. The Dragons are as much as I, born of Akatosh. While I share their blood and soul, I suffer mortality and death, and we mortals are dying since the day we are born. However, the Dragons are smarter and craftier than any of you may think. While they may seem beastly and brutish, their cunning is beyond you, me, and even the entire Empire. They are an enemy that predates the entire civilizations we are so proud of. For them to spread their influence, the Dragons enslaved men into their Dragon Cult so long ago and if not for the Dragon War when we Nords shouted the Dragons off the Sky, we would have been enslaved to this very day."
"However, the old enemy is back en masse and they are using the same old methods all over again. With the help of the people of Winterhold, we managed to take the fight to the caves and hideouts of the new Dragon Cult and we took down Seven Dragons to this day and toppled down one of the Four Pillars of the Dragon Cult, the Great Dragon Onikkeindrog."
"But that is nothing compared to the horror seen in Helgen that day and General Tullius was a first-hand witness who joined the desperate fight against the Great Black Dragon. The one you may know from the child stories…" The Dragonborn chose to take a dramatic silence for a few seconds before uttering the name, "Alduin."
A state of unrest spread through the room. The politicians of Solitude were the opposite of the word "superstitious" and so the name Alduin caused them to fall into a state of disbelief.
To all Nords, Alduin is a known figure, especially for children. Take it as a devil figure who became some sort of a boogeyman to scare the children. Alduin the Hungry Dragon will eat your entire family if you don't go to bed early.
Tell someone that the boogeyman himself is real and he will feel kinda odd about believing you since Alduin himself should be something above all Dragons.
"If I may…" At this moment, a woman sitting next to Jarl Elisif spoke. That is without a doubt the court mage of Solitude, Sybille Stentor.
"Please."
"In the Ancient Nordic Pantheon, Alduin is basically… to put it in a way that doesn't offend our Imperial friends, an evil version of Akatosh." Sybille said as she watched many of the Legionaries display their detest of the subject, "Are we still speaking of that same mythical figure?"
A not so innocent question as it seemed. Something that caused the Dragonborn to smile.
"The very same beast." Jon nodded, "I have been looking deep into the history of the Dragon God of Time from the Imperial Pantheon, The Dragon King of Cats from the Khajiit Pantheon, the Eagle God of the Beginning from the Elven Pantheon, and the Dragon of the End of Times from the Nordic Pantheon. My findings of the four aspects were truly eye-opening."
"And that is?"
"Think of the flow of time as a river, then this river forks into many rivers and canals. The Dragon God was once a great river then he broke into those smaller ones. The largest of them is Akatosh, the second largest is Alduin, the smaller ones are the rest of the Dragons." The Dragonborn explained.
"A Dragon Break?" Sybille asked, "Even among the scholars of the arcane arts, that is still debatable."
"Surely since there is a way to prove as those who remember it are just a select few who prefer to keep their mouth shut and not to cause another break." He answered.
"So with every break whether we knew about it or not, new dragons are being born?" She asked.
"While that is a very grim idea, it is not far from the truth. Still, the Argonian and the Akaviri beliefs insist that the Dragons are wandering spirits who fall to hunger and feed on other divine spirits to attain immortality. This Divine Spirit they feed on is probably the Source River I mentioned before as the Origin Dragon of Time." He answered again.
"It is like a cycle." She concluded.
"More of a Paradox since you can never see the cycle anyway." He sighed.
With the two smartest people in the room speaking at their own pace, the reality became clear to those who listened.
Alduin is real.
Sybille Stentor isn't denying it and she is the most knowledgeable person in Solitude… meaning…
"Is the end upon us?" Asked a man with pale expressions.
"No, not at all." The Dragonborn replied with all the chill in the world.
"So what is the aim of Alduin if not destroying the world?" Asked another.
"At first, Alduin was supposed to destroy the world over 4000 years ago. Instead, he ruled over the Nords and established himself as a God. So… what makes you think he wouldn't do that again?" The Dragonborn replied.
Jon was lying at this point. Indeed Alduin refused his fate to destroy the world over 4000 years ago and ruled over it instead but it seemed that the Harbinger of the End of Time had a Change of Heart, he is willing to destroy the world this time.
Why?
The last thing that happened to Alduin was the Dragon War when the Nords overthrew their masters and infuriated Alduin. As far as he is concerned, he is going to destroy them all by eating the World they refused to live in. However, once he was cast ahead of time to the Fourth Era, Alduin was still in a state of rage and hell-bent on ending humanity.
Sadly, Jon doesn't have an insider on Alduin's mind.
"So…" General Tullius spoke, "You're asking for more assistance?"
While Jon was foreshadowing the threat facing Skyrim, it seemed General Tullius got the wrong message.
"Assistance?" The Dragonborn asked, "Not at all."
He then held up the scroll on which the pact is written on.
"This paper says that I'll stay out of your way." Jon said, "I'll also assume that it means you're staying out of mine."
That is no way just a normal Nord warrior, everyone thought. He's strong enough to bring down dragons, he's smart enough to argue with Sybille, and he's crafty enough to play the Imperial Politicians.
Someone familiar falls under the same criteria.
"We pray for your success, Dragonborn." The General backed off with a smile.
He got what he wanted but it still left him with a bitter taste in his mouth. The Dragonborn signed the paper and walked to the armor guarded by the legionaries. He removed the cover from the armor and so he saw the armor.
A Plate Ebony Muscle Armor with a red crystal insignia on the chest. It was padded from the inside with a chain mail that came from its openings and covered all the body parts. Jon loved what he saw as the curse was surely lifted.
The Legionaries carried the plate to Jon and offered to deliver it to a room if he wanted to wear it right away. The thing about it is that the Dragonborn is a little bit too small in terms of body size to the armor which was fashioned for the father of the minotaurs. (Jon was using Lust to alter his body size)
However, the Dragonborn held the Lord's Mail from them, and in an instant as if the armor came to life, it immediately started to shake and opened itself up to bounce on Jon and fit on him like a black liquid. (Obviously, Greed's equipping function)
While the situation seemed bizarre and arcane, the Godly miracle was proved once the armor fitted itself to be fit for the Dragonborn as if it was forged for him.
"By the Gods!" Many people stood up to watch the miracle and then it was all perfect.
"Dragonborn!" Alina called.
The people around her realized that she was cheering for him and all woke up from their daze to follow her cheer.
"DRAGONBORN!"
It was then when the Dragonborn was recognized by the Empire and the People of Solitude as a great pillar of the important events that are yet to come.
Amidst the cheering, the Dragonborn walked out of the Temple. Yet before he set off, Jarl Elisif ran to him.
"Dragonborn." She called.
He looked back at her and the sun on his back was making his silhouette darker to merge with the ebony he is donned in.
"You're off to a dangerous fight, you could get yourself harmed. At least tell me who you really are!" She said with a face showing sincerity and concern.
The Dragonborn had a stern expression on his face but when he replied, his voice was even more hoarse.
"It's not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me."
And he jumped up so fast and so high that he was way out of the city just by one jump. At that moment, Alina noticed the blush on Elisif's face.
"Fucking corny motherfuckering son of a bitch!" (Alina)
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