Traveling to Skyrim

Chapter 2: Home

Perched in a tree overlooking the road where the merchants were supposed to pass through, I couldn't help but think of random things to help pass the time. At first I kept thinking about how much time I've spent sitting here in this tree, but my thoughts turned to a more pressing matter. I was actually quite surprised I hadn't thought of my family until now,wondering how worried they may be. I then thought of my friend's families, and wondered how scared everyone must be. Realizing that I haven't been very considerate about my friend's mental health, I mentally kicked myself. Once we make it back to whiterun, I'll let them have time to ask all the questions they need. My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of horses pulling a carriage coming. I motioned to the rookies to get into position, and I got into mine. Cas and Elena will be the ones robbing the carriage. Sven and I will be the ones who will get it to stop moving. Fenris and Reweja will be the ones to take care of the merchant. This was going to be the setup for each and every merchant who came along. After several hours, we had finally taken care of the last merchant. I escorted the rookies back to the guild, and left them with Brynjolf. He asked if I wanted my cut, and I told him sure, I would probably need the money anyways. Saying my goodbyes, I headed back to the inn. I decided to climb into my room using the window, so that Sam wouldn't see me. It was 6am, and I knew that he would be up, even if the others weren't. Clambering into my room, I quickly changed out of my armor, and put my previous hood back on. I readied my weapons, made sure they were sharp enough to defend us, then left my room. I woke Lindsey and Travis, telling them that we would be heading out soon, and that it was going to be a long trip. I walked downstairs to see Sam having breakfast. I made a good call, going through the window. If I had used the front door, I would be showered with questions. I walked up to him and said," Better hurry up and get ready. We're heading out to a city called Whiterun, where I can ensure that you guys'll be treated like royalty until I figure out what to do." He nodded, and headed upstairs. Lydia greeted me at the doorway of the inn. "Morning, My Thane. Where are we headed today?" "We're going to Dragonsreach. I want to ensure that these guys are in the safest place they can be, while I figure out what we need to do." She smiled, and said that she'll be outside, waiting until we're ready. Thirty minutes later, Lindsey and the others were finally ready. We left Riften far behind, and soon began our journey. We encountered a few wolves here and there, even two frostbite spiders. I let Sam and Travis take care of the spiders, to get some practise. Whenever we crossed mudcrabs, I let Lindsey kill those, as they were quite easy but still gave her fighting experience. Everyone was very happy, and I was leading the group, remaining alert. I heard loud thuds, and stopped. Lydia bumped into my back, as well as the others.

"Oww. Suzannah? Why did we stop?" Lindsey asked. I quickly looked around for somewhere to hide, but only saw the river and a bridge near it.

"Get under that bridge, quickly! No matter what, stay there until I get you!" I yelled, and they quickly complied. Lydia stood by my side, preparing for the danger to come. "Lydia, if I say move, then move. It means I will be shouting at it, and I don't want you to get caught up in it."

"As you wish, My Thane." She said, fear lining her voice. It was to be expected though, Giants were one of the most feared creatures in all of Skyrim. I drew my battle axe, and made sure my potions were easily accessed, then stood, waiting. The rumbling grew, and I looked towards my friends. They were all as scared as Lydia, and I couldn't blame them. I'd had trouble killing giants before, and I imagine this will be quite the challenge. His ugly head finally showed itself over the hillside. I gave a loud cry, and yelled at Lydia to not come close. Taking a deep breath, I shouted," FUS RO DAH!" I knew this shout would be perfect, as it would knock him down and send him tumbling down the hillside. As soon as I shouted, Lydia caught on to what I was doing and quickly clambered up a small tree.She drew her bow, and quickly loaded three arrows. She shot them at his torso, which made him fall over much quicker. We both watched, triumph lining our faces, as he tumbled down the hill. I chased after him, getting ready to start hitting him as soon as he stopped. He stopped, and didn't move for a moment. I got around 10 swings with my battle axe in when he finally started to stand up. He managed to knock me back in the progress, and I readied another shout. "VEN GARR NOS!!" I shouted, sending a giant cyclone that sent him 100ft into the air, and slammed him back into the ground. He was dead now, and I turned to Lydia. I realised I had never used that shout in front of her before, and that was enough to render her speechless. I ran back up the hill, only to be met with a terrifying sight. A mammoth had caught sight of my friends, and was attempting to attack them. Fury built up in my system, and I knew exactly what shout to use to get it away from them. "YOL TOOR SHUL!" A large breath of fire left my mouth, and hit the mammoth square in the torso. It's fur quickly caught on fire, and the flame started to lick at it's tender skin. The mammoth started to run away, with me following quickly behind. Fury still engulfed me, and I used the first word of whirlwind sprint to get closer, and deliver a fatal blow. Catching my breath, I turned to look at my friends, only to be met with a look of fear. Wait... Is my hood on? I felt for my hood, only to quickly realise that it was not covering my face. Well, shit. Now I'm going to lose their trust. I walked slowly towards them, as if they were a frightened deer that would run away at the slightest sound.

"Well, I guess you know why I keep my hood on. I figured it would scare you, and it turns out I was right."Lindsey was the first to recover from the shock, and actually smiled at me. Wait.. what? Why the hell is she smiling at me?

"I wasn't afraid of you for the look, I'm afraid of the power that you have. You can say three words, and it sends a giant into the air and kill him. You can set a mammoth on fire, hell, you could even send us flying off this mountain if you wanted to. I'm shocked at how strong you are, and I'm so glad that you're protecting us, not trying to hurt us!" She said. I risked a glance at Sam, only to see him still looking at me in fear. Travis's expression was neutral, so I figured he was ok with it. I pulled my hood over my head, and Lindsey looked confused.

"Why are you putting your hood back on? I thought we were all ok with it." I wanted to say, I'm better at reading people than you. You might be ok with it, but others... are not. Instead, I said," I feel better when I have the hood on. Also, other people may still be freaked out about it, and I need to take into consideration their feelings too." With that, I started on the path to Whiterun once again, with everyone following behind me silently. The only thing I need now is a dragon to show its fangs. As luck would have it, I heard the cries of a dragon carry over the mountains and make its way towards my ears. The other's heard it, and drew their weapons. "Oh for fucks sake! Can I not catch one break, Mara!?" I yelled at the goddess, and prepared myself to kill a dragon.