Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Skyrim and you all know the rest!

Author's Note: I got an unexpected off day so I decided to write this chapter for you guys while it was still fresh in my mind. Moving on, thanks a million for all the reviews you gave. It shows that I'm doing something right and really makes my day. And now without any further ado, allow me to present you with the next update!

CHAPTER 4: The Journey Begins

The sky was red with blood and gigantic tongues of flame exploded from the heavens, slamming into the earth with an alarming fury. The ground shook and rocks exploded everywhere as houses and buildings were destroyed mercilessly.

Among the confusion and destruction, a dragon's roar echoed loud and clear.

People screamed and ran for their lives. A brave but foolish few, mainly cops, tried to fight the invaders with what little ammunition they had. But the cops and civilians who fought against them were in panic mode and none of the bullets hit their targets.

The few that did bounced harmlessly off the thick dragon scales and ricocheted off somewhere or even onto a person doing more harm than good.

It was chaos.

But nonetheless a brave few determined to fight back. Throwing caution to the wind they revealed their most dangerous secret to the entire world in an attempt to fend off the apocalypse: Magic.

That's right.

Men, women, and children wearing old-fashioned robes threw spell after spell at the beasts in the air from well-worn wands. But that did little good for every witch and wizard in Great Britain knew that magic did little against a dragon.

And all the dragon keepers were the first to go in a surprise attack by the invaders from another world.

HARRY JAMES POTTER! A dragon roared, its voice translated by a rogue mage and amplified with a Sonorus charm. Your era is at an end! The Wizarding World is destroyed. Hogwarts is ruined and the few safe havens you might have known have shunned you, being too weak and cowardly to accept refugees. Give yourself up and you might spare what little is left of your country. Refuse, and I shall destroy you. But not just you; first I shall slaughter your friends and loved ones before your eyes in the most cruel and vicious manner I can. I will make the self-styled Dark Lord Voldermort look tame compared to what evils I can do. Choose wisely, Potter. The fate of the world rests on your shoulders.

With one last final roar, the dragons flew off leaving an eerie silence in its wake only broken by agonized sobs and plaintive cries of pain and grief.

Harry Potter awoke with a start, jolting into an upright position as he cast about frantically for his wand. He was drenched in a cold sweat and his black hair was matted and tangled, his green eyes glazed over from disorientation. His breath came out in ragged gasps, his chest heaving as he struggled for air.

Where was he? Had he been involved in anther accident that landed him in the hospital wing? As if on cue, his eyes got adjusted to the darkness and his mind cleared. Heaving a weary groan, Harry collapsed back into bed his eyes wide and his chest heaving as he struggled to calm down.

Even so, however, the nightmare flashed continuously before his open eyes as it was etched firmly in his head. He didn't recall much of his past but he knew it was a dark one, filled with danger and threatened by vengeful villains time and time again.

Despite all that, he had won in the end and had found a small measure of peace. But now that was all for nothing since he was thrust into this strange new world and yet again: Another conflict. This time, it was worse than ever before with fire-breathing, talking dragons, a civil war, humanoid elves (something told him they were a lot smarter and more dangerous than the ones back home), and Merlin knew what out here.

He just wanted to get back home and be at peace. It was like he was a pawn on a chessboard to the powers that be. He'd win a game for whatever colour and after the game would end, he'd find some peace and quiet as the boards and pieces would be packed up and saved for a later date. Then his life would turn upside-down again and he'd be locked in another conflict, one far worse than ever before.

He wanted to get back to his previous life since something told him that if he did, he'd escape this whole new meaning of evil. But now the nightmare, no – vision, suggested otherwise. As always, "Harry Potter Dreams" meant something and always foretold some sort of danger he was about to face. Why he couldn't have a normal dream was beyond him. Heck, even a wet dream would be a nice change!

But no, he had to have a nightmare and a warning at that. Whatever powers that be existed, they were determined to mess with his head and drive him to the point of insanity. So long as they got what they wanted, they didn't care whether he left with his brain and memories intact. He knew that coming here was partly his fault but something told him other forces were at work and they needed his help.

He also knew, or at least the dream told him, that if he did not stop this threat of dragons then returning to his world would not help matters. If anything, they'd make things worse since his new enemies would stop at nothing to hurt him for upsetting their plans with his new and unexpected arrival. He was a stranger, a wild card. He did not follow the rules of this world and was clearly some sort of alien.

But one thing was certain: He'd hunt down the dragon and finish him for once and for all. Harry Potter knew full well that in the past he hated bullies, even dragon-sized bullies, and now was no different. The dragon had to go and he'd lend a hand in getting rid of it. He didn't know what good an amnesic, teenage wizard could do but if he could do anything he would. It would save lives, especially those in his world.

With that thought in mind, Harry felt an inward calm and smiled faintly. His plan made, he sat up slowly and glanced around the room. He saw a fresh change of clothes on a chest beside the bed. It was a brand new uniform of Imperial armour and some kind of dark blue robes similar to the ones he had seen the mages wearing. Glad for a change of clothes from his tattered old uniform, Harry stood up and shivered as the cold mountain air washed over him.

Heaving a sigh, he hastily pulled on the robe and gasped aloud as he felt a wave of healing wash over him. Except, it wasn't any ordinary healing: It was magical. For some odd reason, the robe was clearly magical as it rejuvenated his magical core and gave him a lot more magical strength than he had before. Grinning, he picked up the armour and fumbled with the straps as he pulled it over his robes. It was awkward and uncomfortable but he'd have to get used to it. People used swords and arrows in this place and he needed all the protection he could get.

Eventually, he was finished and shuffled his feet around as he tried to get used to the feeling of Imperial boots. The armour was surprisingly light but still weighed something and would definitely slow him down. But it was either that or have his insides spilled out. Neither options were preferable but he wanted to avoid the last one by far. Grimacing at the mental image, he glanced around for anything else of value and spotted a satchel on the table.

He shuffled over to the satchel and opened it. The first things he noticed were some odd-looking vials in three different colours: Red, Blue, and Green. There were a good number of each as well as some food, namely cheese, bread, and apples, and a couple flasks fashioned out of hide that probably contained water. The satchel also contained a dagger, a ring, a bag of coins and a note.

Frowning thoughtfully, Harry took out the note and scanned it.

Dear Harry Potter,

I am afraid to say that the departure of Ulfric Stormcloak and his friends made me have to leave Helgen unexpectedly in pursuit of them. I wanted to see you off but duty calls. If you ever decide to join the Imperial army, seek me out in Castle Dour in the City of Solitude. Seeing as you found this note, I take it you found the other supplies I left you. It's not much but the dragon attack left little else in Helgen. Whatever you wish to do, ask the guards outside for a map and horse, they will know what to do. Now you leave me little else to say but fair well and good luck on your journey, wherever it might take you.

May the Eight Divines be with you,

General Tulius

Harry heaved a sigh and put the note down.

The man seemed pretty decent and he would have liked to ask him some more questions. But he also wanted to get a move on and it seemed like that mage in Whiterun was the best option somehow. He would like to visit the mage's guild also but the man was apparently doing research in dragons and that seemed like Harry's best bet if he wanted to defeat his newfound enemy.

Heaving a sigh at his reluctantly-accepted quest, he put everything in the bag and slung it over his shoulder. He also noticed an Imperial sword lying sheathed on the mantle place over the hearth and decided to take it for extra protection. It felt good to be armed and made him feel a tad bit safer. With a bounce in his step, he opened the door and stepped out onto the front porch.

The scene that greeted him was a sad one filled with smoke and charred, broken-down buildings. An oppressive feeling hung in the air making him shudder. Thankfully, he was shaken out of his reverie by someone calling his name.

"Potter, sir!" A voice cried aloud.

Harry groaned quietly and turned around, stifling a wary feeling.

"Yes?" He asked, feeling relieved to see it was just one of the mages who he had fought with in the dragon attack.

"Are you leaving Helgen?" The mage, a woman, asked with a hint of worry in her voice.

"Yes," Harry sighed. "I'm heading for Whiterun to seek out the mage there and learn more of the dragon attack. Since it seems to have some kind of grudge against me, I have to get rid of it before it does any more damage. Want to tag along?"

The woman smiled dryly but shook her head.

"As much as I'd love to go off on an adventure with the now-most famous mage in all of Cyrrodill," She quipped. "Helgen calls for my aid. I must tend the wounded and help rebuild the town. Perhaps our paths will cross again but I wish you all the best. Do you need any help for your journey?"

"General Tulius told me to ask for a map and a horse," Harry shrugged. "I could see how a map would be helpful but I don't really know how to ride."

The mage smiled in amusement. "No matter, I have a map for you then. It is a gift we mages put together in gratitude for you standing up to the dragon."

"No problem," Harry grinned.

It felt nice to be thanked for once.

The mage smiled and pulled out a map from her robe. She spread it out and Harry saw the map of a country on it. However, there were only a few names across the map and icons under the names. The map was incredibly detailed though, complete with three-dimensional lakes, valleys, and mountains that seemed to be shrouded in a type of mist.

"Incredible," He breathed.

"Thank you," The mage blushed. "This is a rather unique map that will allow you to teleport to the marked locations after you have explored them."

Harry grimaced.

"I think my arrival here had something to do with teleportation," He grumbled. "And I don't have nice feelings about teleportation from my past, although I can't quite remember it."

"Don't worry," The mage said softly, with an apologetic look. "This was made by our strongest spells and none of them are strong enough to transport you to another world. You don't have to use it for what we have dubbed "fast travel" but it might come in handy to find your way. If you touch the icon of whatever location you wish and chant penitus, an even more complex version of the interior map will appear. It will only show what's closest to you so if you are in a small house or are on a floor of the house then it will show most of the main features of the place. If you are outdoors or in a town or city it will show what's closest to you with the names and icons included. Unfortunately, we weren't able to implement fast travel for the interior maps."

The mage stopped to catch her breath and Harry realized his jaw had dropped open in surprise so he quickly closed it. He briefly remembered having a similar map and using it to get out of some tricky places except that it was different and had no fast travel. This could be awesome and would definitely make his journey easier.

"Thank you," He said gratefully. "This will be a huge help. Is there any way I can repay you?"

"Defeat the dragon and that will be more than enough," The mage smiled.

Harry blushed since she looked rather pretty and he got only redder when the mage smirked and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. She chuckled good-naturedly at his plight and gave him one last look before turning around and darting off to some other mages who were standing nearby and whispering heatedly to themselves.

Still in a daze from the kiss and the information, Harry heaved a sigh and, after a glance at the map, began his journey to Whiterun.

TO BE CONTINUDE...

A/N: So I know a lot of people will be mad about the whole "fast travel" thing but I like using it. Harry doesn't right now though but might use it if time's an issue. He's still pretty wary since he disliked teleportation in the books and his arrival here and all. But enough rambling and I eagerly await your reviews.

Until next time!