Lorkhan's Eclipse [A Skyrim Fanfiction]

5. The Fallout

We relocate to an overgrown area at the far end of the island the mill stands on. Gerdur's husband and Alvor's wife join us, and their kids try to join in but are told to keep an eye out for any Imperial patrols.

"Things look quiet enough here," Ralof says, as Hadvar sits on the edge of a massive tree stump. "Well, until we showed up."

"Hilde's been talking about seeing a dragon half the morning, but other than that it's just been a normal day," Hod says.

"Is it true about Helgen?" Gerdur asks, "It's gone? Dragons attacked?"

"Just one, but yeah," Killian nods, "Imperials had us all lined up for execution, then that thing fell out of the sky and started raining meteors on us."

"Execution?"

"Oh, you haven't heard?" Gerdur turns to Sigrid, "Apparently it's 𝘯𝘰𝘵 Stormcloak propaganda, the Legion has silent executions without trials just down the road!"

"Please, enough," Hadvar says, suddenly sounding exhausted. Ralof joins him on the stump, as Hadvar straightens up, trying to pull his armour away from his back, "Sigrid, did you have any of that liniment?"

"You got more burns?" Ralof asks, looking at Hadvar. He holds himself differently now, and I sense it's because he feels safe here, despite Gerdur's cold glare. He nods, as Sigrid disappears back over the bridge.

"I kept getting in the damn thing's way," he chuckles bitterly, fumbling with his armour, "Metal armour is good until you've got dragon's fire at your back."

"Consider it payback for trying to get my sister killed," Killian says. Hadvar looks up as he fumbles with his armour fastenings. "I'll work with you, but I won't forgive for that. Not ever."

"I should expect not," Hadvar grimaces, letting the armour slide off him, "You're the one with the Seer's knowledge though. Who else made it out?"

"Nobody,"

Everyone turns to him in shock. Nobody?

"Well, Ulfric and Tullius, but everyone else died," he corrects himself. I recall the little boy, the civilian that clung to me while we dove out of the dragon's way.

"Everyone else died?" I ask, "The civilians, too?"

"If you go back now, you'll find a smoking ruin with charred corpses everywhere. They're too burnt to even identify," Killian explains. Hadvar leans forward, burying his face in his hands.

"I should have taken them with us," he shakes his head, "I 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 have—"

"We didn't even 𝘵𝘳𝘺 to help anyone," Ralof tells him, "At least you did what you could."

"I should have done more," Hadvar stands suddenly, moving away from the group as he shakes his head, "I 𝘭𝘦𝘵 everything happen around me, I was just "following orders", now..."

"To be fair, Ulfric could have Shouted the dragon down," Killian tells him, "He was the only one there with the power to actually do anything, and he didn't."

"But Jarl Ulfric got out alive?" Gerdur asks, leaning forward.

"And General Tullius," Killian adds, "The war will keep going."

"Who wins it?" I ask. We haven't explained to the other locals how Killian knows what he knows, but they seem to have accepted he's some sort of seer.

"Depends who the player character sides with," Killian replies, "I mostly focused on the dragons storyline. Politics isn't my thing."