Chapter 32 The Cry of the Reachfolk
Morning arrived far too quickly.
A cold breeze slipped through the cracks of the ruined stone walls, brushing against my cheeks just as a pair of rough hands seized my shoulders.
I jolted awake heart hammering while Esbern shook me with surprising strength for someone his age. His hood half-slipped, and his breath came out in hurried puffs of mist.
"Alex!" he rasped, voice trembling with pure panic. "Alex, wake up there's a dragon! There's a dragon!"
His wide, terrified eyes weren't even looking at me they were fixed upward, toward the pale morning sky above the jagged peaks of Sky Haven Temple.
A low, distant roar rolled across the mountains like thunder.
"That dragon is heading straight for the temple!" pointing with a shaking hand.
My mind lagged behind reality, still fogged by sleep. I blinked rapidly, feeling the remnants of dreams slipping away like fading smoke. My pulse quickened, breath catching in my throat as adrenaline slowly forced my body awake.
I sat up too fast, nearly stumbling as I pushed out of my sleeping bag.
"A alright, I'm up, I'm up !"
The ground was cold beneath my bare hands, dew dampening my palms. The morning air smelled of pine resin and stone dust. Birds that usually chirped at dawn were silent an eerie stillness swallowing the forest.
I scrambled toward the two bedrolls beside mine.
Delphine was still asleep, arms crossed over her chest, snoring lightly like someone who had survived too many wars and refused to wake up early anymore. Astrid, meanwhile, slept on her side, hair covering half her face, looking surprisingly peaceful for a Dragonborn.
I dropped to my knees between them and shook their shoulders urgently.
"Hey wake up!" My voice cracked with the rising urgency in my chest. "A dragon's been spotted! Get up!"
Astrid's eyes snapped open immediately, her training kicking in. She pushed herself upright in one swift motion, hand already reaching for her sword as her gaze sharpened like steel.
Delphine, in contrast, groaned like I had just told her the inn ran out of mead.
"What ? Why so early…?"
"A dragon!" I shouted.
That woke her up.
She bolted upright, eyes wide, hand instinctively reaching for the dagger she hid under her pillow. The three of us exchanged a quick, breathless look fear, confusion, adrenaline before the next distant roar shook loose dust from the ancient temple walls.
The sky outside darkened briefly as something massive passed overhead.
And all of us knew
This wasn't going to be a normal morning.
The dragon hadn't noticed us not yet.
It cut across the mountain range like a living shadow, its massive silhouette blotting out the rising sun. Each beat of its wings sent a rolling boom through the valley, like distant thunderstorms striking one after another. Loose snow cascaded down the cliffside, shaken free by the creature's sheer force.
Its attention, however, wasn't on us.
Its head angled downward, icy blue eyes locked on the Forsworn village outside Sky Haven Temple.
We watched from our vantage point a rocky ledge near the temple entrance as the beast dipped its wings and began its descent. The air around us grew colder, frost forming at the edges of the stone beneath our feet.
Then
With a deafening roar, the dragon exhaled.
Not fire.
But a blinding, white-blue torrent of pure frost.
The icy breath washed over the Forsworn huts, freezing wooden beams in an instant. The sound of shattering ice echoed through the valley as several structures collapsed at once.
Astrid sucked in a sharp breath beside me.
Delphine grimaced, jaw tight.
Esbern clutched the railing of the stone pathway so hard his knuckles went white.
I licked my dry lips and looked at the others.
"Hey… should we save them? Or what do we do?"
My voice came out quieter than I expected partly from the cold, partly from the weight of the decision hanging in the air.
Esbern straightened slightly, stroking his beard with a troubled frown.
He looked like he wanted to give an answer, but his eyebrows knit together in uncertainty.
"I'm afraid I know little of the Forsworn," he muttered. "Only that they are… native tribes of these wilds."
Delphine, however, didn't hesitate.
She stepped forward, arms crossed tightly over her chest, her breath steaming in the freezing air. Her eyes narrowed as she watched the chaotic village below.
"I don't know what goes on in those Reachmen's heads," she said sharply. "They don't side with the Nords or the Imperials. They're unpredictable. Dangerous."
She shook her head, scoffing under her breath.
"Barbarians, all of them. Helping them is pointless they won't talk to outsiders unless you're one of their own."
I glanced at her, catching the tension in her shoulders, the way she pressed her lips together.
Of course she felt that way.
Delphine was a Nord raised with stories of the Reach wars, of Forsworn uprisings, of blood feuds passed down through generations. Her stance made sense, even if I didn't fully agree.
The freezing wind whipped past us, carrying another distant scream from below.
Astrid clenched her fists.
Esbern swallowed hard.
Delphine's expression hardened.
And I knew
This choice wasn't going to be easy.
In the game, I had always wondered
Are the Forsworn good or evil?
Back then, sitting in front of a screen, it was easy to judge. Easy to categorize pixels as enemies or allies.
But here… in this world of cold winds, real screams, and real blood…
I found myself thinking back to everything I had learned.
"They're not purely evil…" I murmured to myself, watching distant Forsworn running in panic. "They're… neutral."
I pressed a hand over my chest, feeling my heartbeat thump beneath my palm.
"The Forsworn only wanted their land back. Land that once belonged to their people."
Because of that, some of them resorted to violence.
Some did awful things.
Some allied with Hagravens dark, grotesque creatures that twisted their souls for the promise of power.
I inhaled sharply, exhaling a puff of mist into the cold air.
"So yeah… some Forsworn are good. Some are evil. Just like any people."
My gaze slid to Astrid.
She stood at the cliff's edge, wind blowing her hair back, eyes fixed on the burning chaos below. The muscles in her jaw tightened, then relaxed. Her fingers always steady were fidgeting with the strap of her gauntlet.
She was torn.
I could see it in her posture, her expression, the slight tremble in her breath.
So I made the choice simple.
"Astrid," I said gently, stepping beside her. "You decide."
She turned slightly, her blue eyes meeting mine.
"Whatever you choose, I'll support you fully."
Her brows lowered, conflicted. She glanced down at the Forsworn again at the running children, the shouting men, the collapsing ice-covered huts. Her throat bobbed as she swallowed.
Saving them meant risking ourselves.
Letting them die meant letting a dragon gain strength.
Two painful options.
Finally, Astrid exhaled a long, heavy breath that fogged the air in front of her.
"You know…" she murmured, voice soft but resolute, "I've earned the title of hero in several places."
She straightened her back, gripping the hilt of her sword.
"So let's save them."
Delphine instantly frowned, folding her arms tightly.
Her eyes narrowed like she had just bitten into something sour.
"Are you sure, Astrid? What if they betray you?"
She gestured sharply toward the Forsworn village.
"They're wild tribes. Barbarians. You know that."
Astrid's shoulders tensed.
She turned slowly toward Delphine, her expression cold but controlled.
"So what?" she shot back. "They're in danger. Right now, that's all that matters."
Delphine opened her mouth, but Astrid raised a hand stopping her.
"I've made my decision. And if they betray me later…"
She shrugged slightly, though her eyes were fierce.
"Then they betray me. I'll deal with it when it happens."
I couldn't help smiling proud, relieved, a warm sensation spreading through my chest.
"You heard the Dragonborn," I said with a grin. "Let's save them."
This world wasn't a game.
There was no "hostile radius" or scripted aggression.
These were real people fearful, desperate, trying to survive.
And I didn't want to lose my humanity.
Not here. Not now.
Delphine hesitated, jaw clenched, conflict flickering across her face.
"…Fine," she muttered at last.
I shrugged casually, lifting my hands.
"If you don't want to come, we won't force you. You can stay here if you want."
I added the last part with a teasing, slightly mocking tone.
Delphine's left eye twitched. Her nostrils flared.
"Fine! I'm coming," she snapped, stomping forward like an offended cat.
Astrid chuckled under her breath.
Esbern shook his head with a tired sigh.
I pretended not to smile.
We hurried to pack what remained of our camp bedrolls, cooking pots, scattered embers every item materializing neatly into my system inventory.
In less than a minute, the clearing looked as if no one had ever been there.
Then, with urgency pressing on our backs, we mounted the horse carriage and headed down the winding path toward Karthspire, toward the Forsworn, and toward the dragon that awaited us.
Karthspire
Chaos had already erupted long before we arrived.
The Forsworn village usually loud with drums, chatter, and the crackle of bonfires was now a storm of screaming voices and splintering wood.
A thunderous roar shook the valley as the frost dragon descended from the clouds, its wings slicing through the air like massive blades. With each flap, gusts of freezing wind blasted across the settlement, scattering dust, straw, and snow.
The Forsworn were already in panic.
Horns blared deep, haunting notes that echoed through the rocky canyons.
"RUN! RUN! A DRAGON!!"
"Protect the children! Move! MOVE!"
Mothers clutched their sons and daughters tightly, dragging them toward crude shelters of wood and hide. Some fathers lifted their children onto their shoulders, sprinting barefoot across the icy ground.
Forsworn warriors scrambled to form a defensive line. Their outfits made of bone and fur rattled as they moved, faces painted with frantic, shaky war paint.
"Men, ready your weapons!"
The chieftain shouted, voice raspy with fear.
"Archers prepare your arrows! Magic users, gather your spells!!"
Arrows were drawn hands trembling.
Shamans muttered incantations voices cracking.
Others simply prayed.
Even the Hagraven appeared limping, feathers shedding as she shrieked into the sky. Her clawed fingers twisted into grotesque shapes as she summoned dark magic, her eyes glowing with feral madness.
Then the dragon struck.
It swept down like a falling comet slamming into the center of the village with an impact that shook the earth. Snow and dirt exploded into the air.
The dragon inhaled
and unleashed a freezing torrent of pale blue frost.
Everything it touched froze instantly.
Wooden huts crystallized and shattered.
Tents stiffened, covered in layers of ice, before collapsing like fragile glass.
A group of warriors tried to shield their families
They turned half-frozen mid-sprint, their bodies cracking and crumbling to the ground like brittle statues.
Screams filled every corner of Karthspire.
Women cried out as they shielded their children.
Men roared in pain as they fell arrows slipping from their numb fingers.
Shamans tried to hurl fireballs, but they were extinguished by the dragon's freezing aura before they even hit the air.
The Hagraven shrieked in desperation.
Instead of helping her people, she grabbed Forsworn men by the hair and shoved them forward using them as shields while she hid behind their backs.
They died instantly.
But she survived.
Cowardly.
Shaking.
Pathetic.
The dragon saw her.
Its pupils narrowed.
With a furious dive, it crashed toward her. The Hagraven tried to run, legs wobbling
The dragon's jaws closed around her in one swift bite.
Bones snapped.
Feathers scattered.
Silence fell.
The remaining Forsworn several women, two injured men, and three trembling children stared in disbelief.
The creature they worshipped…
their "protector"…
their source of power…
was eaten like a snack.
The dragon roared again, frost leaking from its jaws.
It was badly wounded arrows sticking out of its scales, burn marks on its wings but its strength was still monstrous.
Its stomach began to glow blue.
A bright, eerie pulse of energy expanded beneath its ribs.
Another frost breath.
A final one.
The Forsworn huddled together, clutching each other tightly mothers shielding children with their own bodies, warriors sagging in defeat.
They knew they were about to die.
Then
CRACK!
A bolt of lightning speared down from the sky, exploding against the dragon's skull and making it recoil with a stunned roar.
A voice boomed across the battlefield:
"HEY! STUPID LIZARD! OVER HERE!"
"COME KILL ME! OR ARE YOU TOO SCARED?! HAHAHA!!"
We arrived just in time.
Astrid stepped forward, shield raised.
Delphine drew her blade, face pale but determined.
Esbern, preparing spells.
And lightning crackled across my fingertips, the air humming with power.
The dragon turned toward us furious, wounded, and ready to kill.
The real battle was about to begin.
The dragon let out a thunderous roar that shook the very stone beneath our feet a deep, ancient sound that made even the horses whimper and pull against their reins.
Astrid didn't flinch.
With a sharp exhale, she planted her boots firmly into the ground, raising her Daedric shield. The red glow of its magic-resistant enchantments pulsed like a heartbeat, rippling across the metal as she braced for impact.
WHOOSH!
A torrent of frost erupted from the dragon's maw. The breath slammed into Astrid like a blizzard made of knives, coating the ground, rocks, and trees in a sheen of ice.
Astrid gritted her teeth, pushing forward.
"Come on!" she shouted, her voice half-growl, half-battle cry.
Behind her, we sprang into action.
I thrust my hand forward arcs of electricity crackling around my palm.
"LIGHTNING BOLT!"
BOOOOOOM!
A spear of lightning shot from my fingertips, ripping through the air and striking the dragon's flank. My enchanted ring hummed as it replace used mana back into me, allowing me to fire again and again without pause. The scent of burnt scales filled the air.
Delphine dashed to the side, drawing her ordinary iron arrows no enchantments, no special effects. Her expression tightened.
"Tch these are useless…" she hissed, but still fired relentlessly. Each arrow bounced or splintered on the dragon's frozen hide, but she refused to stop. When the dragon turned toward Astrid, Delphine switched tactics aiming not at its body, but its eyes, its mouth, its wounds.
Even if her arrows didn't kill, they made the dragon blink, hesitate, snarl.
She was buying Astrid survivable seconds.
Esbern stepped beside me, beard fluttering in the cold wind.
"Stand clear!" he yelled.
He thrust his arms outward, summoning flame atronachs leaving embers in the air.
She screeched and hurled fireballs with explosive force.
Esbern followed with his own barrage
Fireball!
Firebolt!
Lightning!
Each spell struck the dragon with the desperation of a man who knew his arsenal was limited but his will was unshakable.
Astrid roared and charged.
She leaped onto the dragon's foreleg, shield bashing its snout, forcing its head to the ground. Ice splintered beneath her boots as she swung her sword upward, cutting along its neck.
The dragon screeched and tried to shake her off, flinging shards of frozen dirt everywhere.
One powerful beat of its wings threw her backward
"Astrid!" I yelled.
She slammed into the ground, rolling, breath knocked out of her.
The dragon reared up, chest glowing with blue frost, preparing a killing blast.
The Forsworn wounded, exhausted, terrified watched helplessly.
Mothers shielded their children.
Warriors clutched crude axes.
Two women stood between the dragon and the smallest children, trembling but refusing to move aside.
A spark lit inside me.
"No. Not happening."
I sprinted forward recklessly, planting my feet between the dragon and the villagers. My fingers tingled with power.
"HEY! Frozen chicken!" I shouted. "COME TRY FREEZING ME!"
The dragon's head snapped toward me.
It inhaled.
"Oh-oh crap "
Suddenly
Astrid burst back into the fight with a roar, tackling the dragon's neck from the side and slamming her shield into its jaw, redirecting the frost breath skyward. The icy stream exploded into the clouds like a winter storm.
"Alex!" she shouted. "Don't just stand there!"
"Right! Right!"
We attacked together.
Lightning scorched its wings.
Atronachs exploded in fiery bursts.
Delphine climbed onto a boulder to get a better angle, loosing arrows toward every open wound.
Esbern conjured another flame atronach even though sweat beaded on his brow he was pushing himself to his limit.
Finally
With a guttural roar, the dragon collapsed, its massive body shaking the earth.
Astrid didn't hesitate. She plunged her sword into the creature's skull. The last tremor faded.
The wind began to swirl.
Ancient words echoed faintly as Astrid absorbed the dragon's soul blue, ethereal light wrapping around her like a vortex.
When the glow faded, silence hung for a moment.
Then
The Forsworn erupted in cheers.
They rushed forward women bowing their heads, children swarming Astrid, tugging at her armor, speaking excitedly in a language I didn't understand.
Astrid rubbed the back of her neck, suddenly shy.
"I… uh… just did my job," she muttered.
I nudged her shoulder, grinning.
"Look at you. Real hero of two factions now."
She blushed slightly, still catching her breath.
"No… without you all, I wouldn't have survived. And without them weakening the dragon… none of us would."
Esbern smiled warmly. Delphine crossed her arms, trying not to look impressed.
As the Forsworn guided us toward the village center, I whispered:
"Guess we're their heroes now."
Astrid exhaled softly, a rare warm smile forming.
"Then… let's act like it."
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