Dragon Training
Sonin walked with less of a limp now, feeling satisfied for the first time in four months. She was dressed in her dragon scale leather armor with her hair freshly braided and washed by Lydia. Tullius was to be eating lunch with Balgruuf now and discussing the war. Sonin wasted no time in making an appearance to speak to the general. She has hope he will be more reasonable than Ulfric.
“Good morning Dragonborn,” Balgruuf smiled a little too wide as she strolled into Dragonsreach.
“My Jarl,” she nodded to keep appearances, “Thank you for the invitation to lunch, I was hoping to speak with you and general Tullius today.”
“You were huh?” Tullius eyed her calmly but with suspicion.
“We may have gotten off on the wrong foot,” Sonin took the seat across from him, “My apologies for my behaviour yesterday. I was travel wary and lost my temper. I hope to have more pleasant exchange with you today.”
“The blade at my throat was a little over the top,” he smirked at her, “but from what Jarl Balgruuf has said of you, I will be willing to overlook the transgression this one time.”
“Thank you,” Sonin took a sip of the honey mead in front of her, “If you don’t mind, I would like to get down to business.”
“Of course,” Tullius replied.
“You may speak freely in my halls, Sonin,” Balgruuf slipped and used her name.
She nodded her respect, “Alduin’s return is no mere fairytale. The dragon that attacked Helgen, that was the world-eater. He was cast forward in time centuries ago by previous warriors who could not defeat him. I fear that, alone at least, I will not be able to end him either.”
“What do you propose, now that you got your cease-fire?” Tullius questioned.
“I need the backing of an army, but I have no idea how to get to Sovngarde with them. I don’t even know how to get myself there,” She admitted, “But if you are willing and able, sparing some troops I can train to take on the hostile dragons left here will ease the struggle for myself. Then I can focus on Alduin.”
“You can train soldiers to kill dragons?” Tullius sounded doubtful.
“Aye,” she replied strongly, “I taught each of my housecarls and some of my other companions. I have no doubt in my ability to teach your men.”
“Would this offer be exclusive to the Legion?” He questioned.
“I cannot promise that. I have yet to speak to Ulfric and discuss the matter. I need all the men I can get,” Sonin answered.
“Are you confident Ulfric will even speak to you?” Tullius questioned again.
“Ulfric and I have...a past,” Sonin admitted to the older men, “We were both in Helgen and I saved his life from a dragon once.”
“I have a feeling from the rumors there is more to it than that,” Tullius added.
“Aye,” she blushed slightly, “but that doesn’t matter now. Are you willing and able to lend the manpower to help take on this dragon crisis?”
“I’ll speak to my legates on it,” he replied, “but I think I could spare the men. It would help if you came to Solitude with me so I can oversee your training.”
“A reasonable request. I can do that,” Sonin agreed.
“Then we have an understanding,” Tullius softened his gaze.
Sonin raised up her tankard, “Let us toast to a more unified future for Skyrim.”
“I can drink to that!” Balgruuf clanked his tankard.
“Aye,” Tullius raised his and drank.
…
Sonin left with Tullius that afternoon, shortly after their lunch had ended. She had Lydia help her back a few bags to last the probable month it would take her to train a dragon slaying unit. Riding on top of Ennoonan, Sonin kept directly beside Tullius. He had a small squadron of legionaries with him, keeping a slight distance from the fabled Dragonborn .
“So,” Tullius spoke, “You claim to have seen the gods?”
“Oh yes. Briefly. I did die, but Akatosh felt that I deserved a chance to change that fate. He came to me as a golden dragon and cast me into Oblivion. Only to return to Tamriel if I could survive.”
“I take it you managed, since you are with us today?” Tullius felt intrigued.
“I had some help. Sanguine is fond of me and helped guide me through the toughest spots,” she replied.
“The Daedric Prince?” He questioned.
“Aye. He is a friend of mine,” Sonin answered, “So is Sheogorath, in a way.”
“Any other princes you communicate with?” Tullius was amazed, yet warry.
“No. The rest tend to have too many evil intentions for my tastes. Sanguine just likes having a good time. Any other questions, general?” Sonin smirked at him.
“Now that you mention it…” he looked at her through a sideways glance, “Jarl Ulfric?”
“Oh, that,” Sonin looked to the ground, “It was a long time ago and I don’t know what rumors you’ve heard but...the base of the claims is true.”
“Are you loyal to him?” Tullius asked.
“What?” Sonin turned and faced the older man, “No. Ulfric’s cause has many flaws. I have no taken a side in this war for that very reason. I have no love of the Thalmor, but neither do I want Skyrim to be only for Nords. I’m half Breton afterall.”
“I thought you looked a little off to be a Nord,” Tullius agreed.
“Half nord. My father was a proud man and my mother a proud citizen of the empire. They meet in Skyrim as they were both traveling merchants and the rest was history. I have claims to both sides of this war, but I would rather see it halted and come to a peaceful resolve.”
“Then we have something in common,” Tullius replied, “I don’t enjoy this war at all.”
“Yet you bow to the Dominion’s wants,” Sonin shook her head, “I don’t understand.”
“We can’t face against the Altmers without a united front,” Tulllius halfway explained.
Sonin’s eyes widened at the realisation his words brought, “I see.”
“We should camp here for the night,” Tullius spoke and held up a hand signal to alert the troops.
Sonin set up her small tent next to Tullius’, tying her horse to one of the posts loosely. She sat at the fire, snacking on a roasted slab of rabbit meat and listening to the tales being told around her. She smirked as one man told a clearly embellished tale.
“Pst,” a young woman next to Sonin gathered her attention, “Are you really the Dragonborn?”
“Aye,” Sonin replied, “You look like you have questions. You may ask them freely.”
“Is it true you’re in bed with the Stormcloaks?” She boldly asked.
Sonin spit out her drink across the fire and gathered the attention of everyone around her, “Is that what people are saying?”
“Yes ma’am,” she replied.
“Damn. Uh, no. I have not taken a side in this war,” Sonin answered.
“Do you really devour the souls of dragons?” An Orc asked from across the way.
“Aye. It’s amazing,” Sonin paused, “Like every inch of your body ignites at the same time.”
“Nice,” he pounded his chest.
Sonin answered a few more questions before turning in for the night. She stripped to her small clothes and wrapped herself in a fur lined robe to keep out the cold. Sleep found her easy.
…
The trip to Solitude was easy as they arrived midday. Sonin was out of her armor and in traveling leather trousers and a simple lined tunic. Tullius occasionally found his gaze resting on her ample cleavage as it bounced along with the horse. Rikke was not happy with the presence of the Dragonborn that saved the life of the rebellion leader, but caved at the idea of bolstering their forces with training against dragons.
Rikke gathered her finest men and women for the training that was to start immediately. Sonin met them out in the courtyard with Captain Aldis. The captain immediately caught Sonin’s eye. He was handsome and well groomed, rare for the Nords of Skyrim that actually saw battle. Sonin managed to gather his attention too, still beautiful even with her new scars.
“Hello,” Sonin approached him with a slight sway of her hips, “I am-”
“The Dragonborn,” he opened his mouth in amazement, “It is an honor,” he extended his arm to embrace hers.
Sonin clasped it in the typical Nord manner, “No need for titles for me, Captain,” she smiled at him, “Just Sonin is fine.”
“Well Just Sonin,” he grinned, “It is a pleasure to have a capable woman such as yourself here to shape up these men and women.”
“I don’t know about all that. I’m just showing them how to handle a dragon,” Sonin replied humbly.
“You two done?” Rikke was annoyed at their smiling faces.
“Of course Legate,” Aldis called his troops forward along with the elites under the Legate.
Rikke explained the situation to the men and women before them and turned them over, with Tullius watching from a distance. His eyes rarely straying from the Dragonborn.
“Alright legionnaires,” Sonin cleared her throat, “I will be summoning a dragon here to train you. Your weapons will be blunted to keep from actually injuring him. Please make space for his landing.” Sonin raised her head to the sky and called upon her thu’um, “Sildu!”
A young male blood dragon appeared shortly after, startling everyone outside and making the guards nervous. Sonin chose Sildu for this challenge specially for his size. As a younger dragon he was still large, but could fit in the courtyard without taking out any walls.
“Dovahkiin, nii los pruzah wah witnesse hi,” he spoke with a cheerful tone not heard often.
“Ahrk hi, Sildu. Daar Muz hind wah krif,” the men watched with surprise and fear as Sonin spoke back in the dragon’s tongue.
“I see,” the dragon switched to the little common tongue he knew.
“I thank you for your help,” she patted the young one’s head and faced the crowd again, “Sildu will take to the sky. This is where you want to start engaging any dragon until you can properly ground it. Aim for the flesh of the wings, it’s tough as hide but still the softest spot aside from the ears.”
The men all aimed their bows with blunted arrows, raining shot after shot until Sildu lowered himself on the ground. Some men were in obvious need of further bow training, both Sonin and Aldis noted.
“From here,” Sonin approached the dragon, “You will have a few options that will depend on what you are comfortable with. Are there any battlemages here?”
“Aye!” A few troops held up their hands.
“Good. You will not do it now to Sildu, but in the future use lightning to drain the dragon of their magika. If you already know the opposite nature, then use that too.” Sonin began pointing to crucial parts of the dragon’s anatomy. “For my two handed warriors, you want to take the flanks. The belly is your target and the head and tail are what you’ll need to watch for. Sword and shield, you will be the ones at the mouth. If there is a capable mage with you, have them cast a ward to protect you from their thu’um. If not, your shield will be your best friend. Watch the teeth as you will be in the most danger.”
The men looked to be taking mental notes of her words. “Now,” she moved on to the lightest of the warriors, “My dual wield friends, you will have the task of trying to end the beast entirely. With your agility, you will race up the back of the dragon and plunge your daggers into the softest tissues you can reach. If you can make it to the head, go for the eyes. If you think you have a clear shot, there is also a soft spot in the center of the skull where the neck meets. If making it to the head is not an option, dig into the neck and hold on. It will try to shake you.”
Aldis and Tullius watched with astonishment as Sonin’s dragon let each man strike at it with their blunted blades and try to climb on top of the beast. The men kept at it for hours as Sonin barked orders and encouraged them. She was proving herself a great instructor to the Legion, all thanks to her previous skill with the Companions.
“That should do it men,” Sonin announced as it began to grow dark, “Now you know how to take on a dragon.”
The men and women shouted their pleasure and dispersed for the night back to the barracks. Sonin met up with Captain Aldis after thanking Sildu for his help.
“They should make you Captain,” Aldis remarked as Sonin approached.
“I don’t know about all that,” Sonin rubbed her neck, “They wouldn’t be half as easy to teach if you hadn’t molded them first.”
“I doubt that,” he smiled at her with all his teeth. “What do you say to a pint with me?”
Sonin smirked, “Who am I to refuse?”