As I stand near the front door, my gloves, mask and hood on and ready to go, I swing two glass swords, loving the way they cut through the air. I twirl them one last time before vanishing them into my inventory. Glass is light, and perfect for loki's fighting style. Speaking of... I turn my head as a hear the door upstairs open and armored feet against the wooden stairs. Observing the black-armored figure I think to myself, I was right. It does suit him.
"How does it feel?" I ask.
He reaches the bottom of the stairs, and makes a show of fiddling with his armor as he walks my way.
"It will take some getting used to, but it fits well, and I like the feel of it," he says, his helm adding an almost metallic-like ring to his voice.
I nod once, "Good. May it serve you well."
Gesturing for Loki to follow I lead us out of the house and lock it behind us. The sun shines bright, indicating about mid-day. Tonight, will be the salvation of Whiterun. Or it's destruction. The Companions need to be made aware of the situation, and convinced to lend aid. Loki and I match pace as we set out to Jorrvaskr, stepping in time on the cobblestone road.
"Who exactly are the Companions?" Loki asks.
"The Companions are considered heroes and great warriors, and while it's true that they do good and fight well, they are more just glorified mercenaries. They are hired to do grunt work, like killing off a pack of wolves that's been causing trouble, or killing an escaped convict. They have a dislike for magic, though a higher tolerance for enchanting and alchemy. They value combat skills mostly, and you have to be at least somewhat decent in a weapon to join. I am friends with their leader, Kodlak, who sometimes consults me for jobs, and is one of the few I can bear to be around for longer than a minute."
I cannot see Loki's face, but I am sure he is annoyed. It seems he, like me, get annoyed with closed minded folk who think with their sword.
"That's an interesting construct," Loki says, referring to the upside down boat made into a building that is the Hall of Jorrvaskr.
I open the door to the right and enter the building, "Yes, quite."
The inside hasn't changed at all from the time I last was here. Though, a few new faces can be seen around the table. The drinking, eating and merriment comes to a halt as the door shuts noisily and the attention is turned to Loki and I.
Whispers start up again as Loki and I walk past to the living quarters. It seems that word has reached that there is an army at the door, and people are starting to wonder what's going on.
As I walk through the door, a metal chest bumps into me, a huff of air leaving my breast.
"Lydia!"
"My Jarl! I am so sorry! I should have watched where I was going!" the flustered housecarl babbled.
I grasp her shoulders to calm her, " Drem(peace). It's alright. I'm here to see Kodlak. Is he in his room?"
Lydia nods her head, "Yes my Thane, along with all of the inner circle. I believe they are discussing the soldiers outside whiterun. Then again, that is everyone's topic of discussion right now."
"Good. Come Lydia, you might as well hear this, as I do not want to repeat myself later."
With Loki and Lydia at my heels, I head to kodlak's room. The door is shut, and behind it I can hear arguing voices. When a knock on the door, the room goes quiet, then a gruff "Not now!" is shouted at the door. The voice, unmistakably Vilkas, is reprimanded and a soft "Come in" is heard. Kodlak.
I open the door to the inner circle sitting strewn out around the room, Kodlak in his chair, and Vilkas standing next to him.
"Ah! Solace, my dear! Come in!," Kodlak smiles warmly and gestures me forward to the chair next to him.
I feel all eyes on me and my followers as I sit, Loki and Lydia standing behind me.
"What brings you here?" the old man inquired.
"As I'm sure you all know, an army has come to Whiterun."
Though I already had their attention, I can feel their interest at my words.
"Two armies, to be exact. The Stormcloaks and the Imperials have both come to claim Whiterun, and await the Jarls decision."
As I expected, chaos erupts and everyone is demanding answers. Kodlak, though is silent as he meets my eyes, his age apparent in his eyes, so light a blue they are almost white. All of the Companions come to a hush as Kodlak raises a hand. When all is silent, he nods at me to continue.
"The Jarl, myself and others held counsel and have decided that neither side is worthy of allegiance and that if Whiterun was to join one, the ensuing battle would burn us to the ground."
I allow them to process the information for a while, and amongst the angry faces sat a confused one.
"Then...what are we going to do?" Farkas asks, voicing everyone's question.
Looking around the room I see determined faces, some laced with fear.
"A plan has been put into effect. Tonight, something from both camps will be stolen, and evidence that the other side did it planted. When light comes, a fight will ensue, giving distraction for archers to send flaming arrows into their supplies, and for their horses to be set loose. The forces left alive from the battle will have no choice left but to retreat and regroup."
By the silence, it seems no one knows what to say, or were waiting on Kodlak's word.
The old man asks, "What do you need of the Companions?"
"Archers. They don't have to be too precise, the tents are easy targets. We need archers on either side sending flaming arrows to the other. It has to look like they're doing it to each other."
Kodlak strokes his beard in thought, "It shouldn't be too difficult if we're careful. We'll have to be quick about it."
"Send the archers over the side of the walls," Vilkas says, ever the strategist, "Ladders won't be hard to get ahold of, and they won't be seen leaving the gates. Then have them hide behind the the rocks, broken walls and gates outside the city."
"Look," Aela the Huntress cut in, "I'm all for a hunt, but this is a bit above our pay grade."
"Which is why we won't ask to be paid!" Farkas interjected.
Skjor is disquieted by his statement, "We can't go around doing things for free! We have weapons and armor to pay for! And mouths to feed!"
"Enough," Kodlak states calmly.
"You can count on us," he informs me, "We will see Whiterun protected. I will sort out the squabble."
I nod in gratitude, "Thank you Harbinger. Your assistance is appreciated."
I stand up to leave, trusting Kodlak to do what needs to be done.
As we exit the building Lydia mumbles quietly, "So it's finally happened. The war has come to Whiterun."
"Krosis(sorrow)," I say to her, "It has."
"Why do I get the feeling nothing is going to be the same after tomorrow?"
I leave Lydia's question unanswered, because we both know the it will not.
"Lydia, head on home. Loki and I have one more thing to do here. Have dinner ready on our return."
"Yes, my Thane."
Lydia heads back to the house, and I take Loki around the sid of Jorrvaskr and into the training grounds out back.
I summon one of the glass swords and flip it around, presenting the pommel to Loki. He takes the sword from my slowly, obviously confused.
"What am I to do with this?" he asks.
"Show me what you were taught," I reply, drawing the other glass sword for myself.
Loki looks from his sword to me unsurely. At his hesitance, I add, "I think I might know why you had so much trouble with swordsmanship. Bo. Humor me."
He does and enters into an attack position. I nod to him and he charges me with an arch of his blade.
I deflect his swing easily, and sidestep. He turns back around and lets out a series of swings, each is blocked by my sword.
Huffing in frustration he snaps, "I don't understand the point of this. I told you that swords are not my strength."
"Nid." I acknowledge, "But this is not your fault. You were taught wrong."
"It worked for my brother," he says bewildered.
"Your brother is a man of force and strength, you are a man of speed and precision. What works for him will not work for you."
Loki seems to consider my words.
"What am I doing wrong?" he finally inquires.
"You use blunt strength," I start, "Don't use as much effort. Watch me. Stand at the ready."
He returns to his fighting stance and I charge at him, but instead of attacking head on, I twirl both body and blade around his block and mimic a slice to his side, the blade hissing against his armor.
"Why attack head on, when you can attack from the side?" I implore.
"You fought with the sword as if you were fighting with a dagger," Loki says, surprise and intrigue coating his tone, "How?"
"As I said before. They are not that different. Let me show you," I hold my hand out for his sword.
He hands it over willingly, and I twirl both swords in different swipes, slashes and blocks in demonstration, then hand both swords to Loki, I say, "Treat them as you would your daggers, but mind their length."
He starts slow, but builds up speed. It is clear to me it will not take long for him to get the hang of it.
"Pruzah. Good." I summon to me my twin ebony blades, "Now. Attack me again."
He does so, and I see an immediate change. He twirls his left blade into a strike and I cross my swords in a block. His right blade, is flipped into a backwards grip and struck up behind where our swords our locked as he drags it through my block while crouching, coming up in a twirl similar to the one I performed on him. I chuckle as I feel one of his blades against by back while the other is pointed at my throat.
"Pruzah," I twist my sword behind me, knocking his away from me while turning to face my opponent, "Again."