Elle was very interested to hear more about this dragonstone and the information it contained, eagerly awaiting an answer to Nil’s question when Irileth charged in and announced the dragon’s presence. Unlike the wizard, who seemed to be very excited, a sudden fear gripped her and she turned several shades paler, looking at the dunmer woman in horror as she explained. Her expression had gone from a happy intrigue to dread in a matter of a few words. No, this couldn’t be. Helgen was supposed to be the last that she saw of the creature, and now it was here? The dreams, the claw, the shrine, the dragonstone that she just so happened to pick up, the creature itself. Something was going on, and she didn’t like it. Not one bit.

[color=ed1c24][i]I know you.[/i][/color]

She slowly turned her head to look up at Nil in pure terror as he spoke to her. The last part of his question caused her heart to drop to the pit of her stomach. That was what she feared, but there was no way that was possible. [color=00B2EE]“It couldn’t- I- I’m just- I’m not-” [/color]she stuttered, but she couldn’t find the words to finish her thought, and everyone had started going up the stairs. It took her a moment to make herself follow, but she quickly tagged after Nil, assuming a place beside him as she listened to the exchange between the Jarl and the guard before he turned and spoke to her. He wanted their help fighting the dragon??? Just because she had made it out of there didn’t mean she knew how to kill the beast. Far from it. She wanted nothing to do with his, but she didn’t know how to decline. She couldn’t say no, no matter how much she wanted to. She took the axe that was thrust into her hand, still a bit bewildered and trying to find a gracious answer. [color=00B2EE]“Thank you, um, that’s very-“[/color] but Nil had interrupted, which she was very glad for. She would’ve made a fool of herself if she had continued. 

[color=79CDCD]“I should come along. I would very much like to see this dragon,” [/color]Farengar requested as Irileth turned and headed for the stairs. [color=CDAD00]“No,” [/color]Jarl Balgruuf shook his head, [color=CDAD00]“I can’t risk both of you. I need you here working on ways to defend the city against these dragons,” [/color]he instructed. [color=79CDCD]“As you command,” [/color]Farengar replied obediently, though clearly discouraged. Maybe she would have had the same reaction a few days ago, but now, she wanted to run in the opposite direction as far and as fast as she could. [color=8E388E]“Head to the main gate,” [/color]Irileth said to Elle and her taller companion, [color=8E388E]“We’ll leave as soon as the rest of the men have gathered.”[/color]

Eilonwy stood quite still for a moment, before turning on her heel and striding down the stairs at a rather alarming pace, the axe still clutched in her hand. It was useless to her, far too heavy for her to wield and she was no good with an axe anyway, especially one of this caliber. She halted abruptly at the bottom of the stairs and handed it to Nil as she said quietly, [color=00B2EE]“You can have it, I don’t want it,”[/color] then she continued forward towards the doors. If she was going to do it, she wanted to get it over with quickly. She wouldn’t be of much help anyway and would most likely just be off to the side while everyone else fought the dragon. It probably wouldn’t see her as a threat anyway, not with warriors like Nilovas and Irileth around. She was so much smaller compared to everyone else, it would be a miracle if it even noticed she was there.

That thought was comforting as she made her way to the double doors that led back out to Whiterun, the afternoon air quite pleasant and clear. It hardly agreed with her mood, but she supposed it was better than rain. She headed down the stairs that led up to Dragonsreach back to the courtyard containing the large dead tree. She paused for a moment, taking a seat at one of the benches and saying to Nil,[color=00B2EE] “You go on ahead to the gate, I’ll be there in a second.”[/color] She wanted to take a minute to wrap her head around this and trade the rather banged up armor for the leather that she had been presented with. It was much more comfortable and fit her quite well, which was a relief. If she was going to have to fight this beast, she didn’t need to be trying to deal with armor that was too big for her. She dearly hoped it wasn’t the same one from Helgen, but then again, how many dragons were out there? So far, there had only been news of the one, and that’s what she dreaded more than anything. 

She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before getting up again and continuing through the town toward the gate. By the time she got there, Irileth was already there with the rest of the force, which didn’t look nearly big enough in her opinion. She went to stand next to one of them while the dunmer spoke. [color=8E388E]“You heard right, I said dragon!” [/color]Irileth was saying as she paced in front of the group, [color=8E388E]“I don’t much care where it came from or who sent it. What I do know is that it’s made the mistake of attacking Whiterun!”[/color]

[color=EEE9BF]“But Housecarl… how can [i]we[/i] fight a dragon?” [/color]one of the guards piped up, his brow knitted with concern and uncertainty. 

[color=8E388E]“That’s a fair question. None of us have ever seen a dragon before, or expected to face one in battle,” [/color]Irileth stood still and rubbed her chin thoughtfully, [color=8E388E]“But we are honor bound to fight it, even if we fail. This dragon is threatening our homes… out families. Could you call yourselves Nords if you ran from this monster? Are you going to let me face this thing alone?”[/color]

[color=EEE9BF]“We’re so dead,” [/color]the guard next to her whispered to his friend as Irileth continued.

[color=8E388E]“But it’s much more than our honor at stake here. Think of it - the first dragon seen in Skyrim since the last age. The glory of killing it is ours, if you’re with me,” [/color]she stated, trying her best to raise everyone’s spirits. The guards murmured in agreement, nodding and muttering to one another. [color=8E388E]“Now, shall we go kill this dragon?” [/color]Irileth asked, raising her voice. 

A general yell of agreement rose from the men, although Elle wasn’t feeling as enthusiastic. The dunmer’s little speech worked for them, but she was still feeling like she was nailing the lid on her coffin. Irileth smiled, turning towards the gate as she said,[color=8E388E] “Let’s move out.” [/color]

Everyone followed in a group after her, Elle trailing at the rear as they broke into a jog once outside the city gates. Elle could feel her heart rate rising as they made their way to the road, and not just from the exercise. She was scared, very much so at this rate. She wasn’t in the heat of the moment, adrenaline pumping through her veins like in Helgen. No, this time she was voluntarily walking towards this thing that had haunted her nightmares and had been nearly everywhere she turned since her escape. It was getting weird, too weird to be coincidence anymore. How in the world was she connected to dragons? She was a nomad from a little family that never belonged anywhere and the most experience she had with the creatures was what she read and the stories she was told. Now suddenly, she couldn’t seem to escape them. She would have brushed it off, but Nil hadn’t heard the war cries or seen the letters on the shrine. As far as she knew, he wasn’t having any dreams about them either. What were the odds that she would pick up that slab of rock and carry it with her and it turn out to be a map of dragon burial sights? it was almost too much to wrap her head around. 

She didn’t really notice the rolling hills and general beauty as they head towards the last place the dragon had been seen. She could see a tower appearing int he distance, and not much seemed to be wrong with it at first. There was no sign of the monster anywhere in the sky. Maybe it had flown off again. However, upon closer inspection, she was sorely mistaken. They came to a stop about fifty yards from the devastation, Elle covering her mouth with one hand at what she saw. Now, the destruction in Helgen had been far worse, but she hadn’t really taken the time to look at it, and she had been outside the walls by the time the attack was over. Now she could see what happened when these beasts attacked. The tower was in ruins, though still standing. broken walls and rubble were strewn everywhere, fire crackling on the ground and smoke curling from nearly everything. There was no doubt that if they got closer, they would probably see the bodies of the men who had been left behind. 

[color=8E388E]“No signs of any dragon right now, but it sure looks like he’s been here,” [/color]Irileth said, shaking her head as she looked at the scene before turning back to the group behind her, [color=8E388E]“I know it looks bad, but we’ve got to figure out what happened. And if that dragon is still skulking around somewhere.” [/color]She started towards the tower, sword drawn, and ordered, [color=8E388E]“Spread out and look for survivors. We need to know what we’re dealing with.”[/color]

It seemed pretty obvious to Elle. The dragon had swooped in and laid waste to the place before taking off again. Clearly they were dealing with something that was too much for them to handle.[color=00B2EE] [i]If an entire city full of imperial soldiers couldn’t fight it off, how could we hope to make it out alive?[/i] [/color]Still, she drew her sword and followed, swallowing her fear and trying to keep it from her face as she headed after the others toward the ruined western watch tower. She moved forward, looking around at the ground, gripping her blade tightly. She drew close to the tower, climbing up onto the broken bridge when suddenly a single man rushed at her from inside yelling, [color=EEE9BF]“No! Get back! It’s still here somewhere! Hroki and Tor just got grabbed when they tried to make a run for it!”[/color] he cried frantically. 

Her eyes widened and she looked up at the sky as a familiar bellow rent the air. [color=EEE9BF]“Kynareth save us,” [/color]the survivor breathed, looking at her dead in the eye, [color=EEE9BF]“here he comes again.”[/color]

Suddenly, everyone was shouting and running around, looking up at the sky in search of the creature. Elle stood rooted to the spot, looking up and trying to figure out where the sound had come from as chaos ensued. She could hear Irileth trying to call for order and barking commands, but she was more focused on trying to pinpoint where the thing was so she didn’t get fried.