Child (Book 2)

Chapter 13

Sofie snores gently in her sleep as she rides on my back through the quiet streets. The guards open the palace door for me and I thank them as I step through. When I enter the war room, Stormblade Galmar and Ulfric are already there waiting for me, along with another Stormblade, clad in armor identical to Galmar's. Ulfric nods to him.
"Take the girl up to her room." he mumbles. The man stumbles forward and awkwardly takes Sofie in his arms; I doubt anyone told him this would be one of his duties when he was promoted.
"Have you gentlemen been waiting for me? I apologize for the delay." I tell them.
"We were just discussing battle strategy for tomorrow. We were wondering if you had any suggestions, Dragonborn." Stormblade Galmar says. I grimace; I never imagined it to be a title.
"Unblooded, thank you. What's the plan?" I correct him. The Stormblade shrugs it off.
He walks me through the plan; I'll be deployed on the front lines, hopefully to inspire the other inexperienced Unblooded alongside me. The drawbridge next to the main gate will more than likely be shut; my job is to find a way over the gate and to pull the release lever so that the other regiments can get through. The front regiment will remain behind to look out for any Legion reinforcements, while the second and third regiments will continue into the city. The second will take care of the guards and soldiers in the streets while also guarding the third regiment behind them. Once a path through the city is cleared, Stormblade Galmar and the commanding officers of the third regiment will make their way into Dragonsreach to receive Jarl Balgruuf's surrender. What happens from there is uncertain.
"Are we clear on that, Unblooded?" The Stormblade asks.
"Crystal." I reply, my voice strained.
"What is the problem, Nova?" Ulfric says gently. I look up at him, breaking my gaze from the map; The Stormblade gives me a suspicious look, one I'm quite accustomed to by now. I sigh deeply.
"Ulfric, I was born in Rorikstead. Before I came to Windhelm, I was living in Whiterun with the Companions. Whiterun is my home, I couldn't bear to see it sacked and destroyed by this war. Would it be too much to ask that the soldiers do as little damage to the city and its inhabitants as possible?" I ask carefully. Stormblade Galmar rolls his eyes.
"Of course not, Nova. Whiterun is a very important city to Skyrim, we'd never survive after the war without it. They've been instructed to only attack guards and Legion soldiers, and to stay out of all of the homes and businesses until we've taken the city. Just to be safe though, I'll be sure to tell them again." He tells me.
"Even then though, you can't expect to bring a battle into the city gates and the city to go by unscathed. Though unintentional on our part, there will be physical damage." The Stormblade says with his arms solemnly crossed. Ulfric widens his eyes and shakes his head at him, but Stormblade Galmar dutifully ignores him.
"Nova, I promise you Whiterun will survive this war." he tells me, looking me in the eye.
"However, we can't promise anything for that traitor Balgruuf, now can we?" Stormblade Galmar says with a smirk.
"No executions, Galmar. We've been over this."
"Ah, but why? You'd love to see his head roll as much as I would." Stormblade Galmar whines.
"No, Galmar. You know why." He warns him.
"Alright, alright... Here's something I'd like to discuss. Novariana is the Dragonborn of legend, and she's on our side. It changes things." The Stormblade says. This time, Ulfric is the one to roll his eyes.
"Believe it or not, Nova, Galmar actually agreed with your assessment that telling the world that the Dragonborn is with us would be beneficial to our cause." Ulfric sighs.
"And you're still not convinced?" I ask.
"What I'm not convinced about it whether it would be beneficial to you." Ulfric says. "I wanted to wait for your explicit permission—"
"You have it. Tell all your soldiers; write a letter to General Tullius yourself, if it pleases you. Just make sure they know it does not change my rank. I'm not handing out orders to anyone." I insist.
"Agreed." Says the Stormblade.

     ~

I arrive at the camp early in the morning, two days later. Everyone is asleep, everyone but Stormblade Galmar, of course; I don't think he sleeps. The camp has been set up in an empty field behind the farm outside Whiterun where I first reunited with Aela. I step into Stormblade Galmar's tent, and it appears he's drawn out a map of the city.
"Reporting in, Stormblade." I say as I remove my helmet.
"Unblooded. I've been working on finding a way to get you past the front gate; Skyrim can't afford to lose you in this battle. I had another Unblooded scout out the area, and he found a small path that goes over the wall and directly to the walkway over the drawbridge, where you'll find the release lever. I can't promise that the Imperials won't try to stop you, but hopefully they won't give you much trouble." He explains.
"Oh no, they won't be a problem. Are the others prepared?" I ask.
"I hope so. I worry, Ulfric has placed all of the newest recruits on the front lines. These are all Unblooded, young men and women who've never known life away from the farm or the city walls, think war is a game. He put all of our Great War veterans in the second regiment. Won't be getting much sleep tonight. I hope he knows what he's doing." He sighs.
"Get some rest, Galmar. It'd be good for you." I tell him as I exit the tent, eager to find some breakfast.
"That's Stormblade to you." He says half-heartedly over his shoulder.