Skyrim: reborn

The ground shook as Alduin's roar split the sky. Gilgamesh yanked Edla backward, her silver eyes flashing with fury as the dragon's **Unrelenting Force** tore through the execution block. Stones exploded like shrapnel, but his grip on her wrist stayed ironclad.

**SYSTEM NOTIFICATION:**

*DRAGON THU'UM DETECTED.

Copying [Fus Ro Dah]… 23%... 47%...*

"Let go, fool," Edla hissed, her voice colder than a Frost Atronach's breath. She twisted free, but not before Alduin's shadow swallowed them both.

Gilgamesh smirked, golden eyes flicking to the translucent system screen only he could see. "You're welcome, *Dragonborn*."

**SYSTEM:**

*[Fus Ro Dah] copied!

EXP +500 (Dragonborn Proximity Bonus).*

Ralof's bellow cut through the smoke: "Into the tower, now!" Ulfric Stormcloak shoved past, his gag still tight, but his glare sharper than a Daedric dagger. Gilgamesh didn't miss the way Edla's hand lingered on her stolen iron sword—*aimed at him, not the dragon*.

"You're not one of them," she said flatly, nodding at Ulfric.

"And you're not thanking me," Gilgamesh shot back, cracking his knuckles. The system's golden text pulsed in his vision: *Quest Updated: Survive Helgen. Reward: ???*.

"I don't trust men who smile at dragons," she said.

"Good. You'll live longer."

The tower groaned under Alduin's wrath, its ancient stones trembling like prey beneath a predator. Smoke choked the air, thick with the stench of burning flesh. Ulfric Stormcloak, his voice raw from the dragon's roar, barked orders at the two Stormcloak prisoners—**Hjorn**, a burly blacksmith with ash-stained fists, and **Lofn**, a wiry teenager clutching a rusted dagger.

**Ulfric:** (voice cutting through chaos) "Clear the stairs. Now." He turned to Gilgamesh and Edla, his gaze sharp as a honed blade. "Follow. Or burn here."

**Gilgamesh** leaned against the wall, golden eyes flickering with translucent system text:

**SYSTEM:** *Quest Alert – "Ulfric's Pawns" – Refuse order? Risk: Stormcloak hostility +30%.*

He smirked. "Send the *unarmed* ones first? Bold strategy, Jarl. Let's see how your rebels fare as dragon snacks."

**Edla** stood motionless, her silver eyes locked on the cracks spiderwebbing the ceiling. Her blade, pristine and glinting, hummed faintly with frost. "Delay further, and we all burn."

**Hjorn** spat, hefting his axe. "For Skyrim!" He charged up the winding stairs, Lofn trailing like a shadow.

**SYSTEM:** *Party Members Added – "Hjorn" (Level 5), "Lofn" (Level 2). Survival Odds: 7%.*

The upper tower was a death trap. Hjorn running to reach the top, where Alduin's gargantuan form blotted out the wall. The dragon's molten gaze locked onto them.

**Hjorn:** (roaring) "For the—"

Alduin's jaws snapped shut, crushing him mid-sentence. Lofn froze, dagger clattering, as the dragon's throat pulsed orange.

**SYSTEM:** *Party Member "Hjorn" – Deceased. EXP +75 (Proximity to Dragonfire).*

**Lofn:** (terrified) "J-Jarl Ulfric! Hel—!"

Alduin's **Yol Toor Shul** engulfed her. The girl's scream dissolved into ash.

**SYSTEM:** *Party Member "Lofn" – Deceased. Alignment Shift: "Neutral" → "Chaotic Neutral".*

**Edla** stepped forward, her blade trailing frost. "Their deaths are on your pride, Stormcloak."

**Ulfric:** (snarling) "And your hesitation will doom us all."

**Gilgamesh** seized Edla's wrist, dragging her toward a jagged hole in the collapsing wall. Below, the roof of a burning inn smoldered 20 feet down.

**Gilgamesh:** (shouting) "Jump. **Now.**"

**Edla** glared at the gap. "You'll kill us."

They crashed through the inn's roof, landing in a heap of splintered wood.

**SYSTEM:** *HP: 58/100 (Broken Ribs: -10% Stamina).

Edla's Trust: -20% (Total: -50%).*

The inn's common room was

**Hadvar**, his Imperial armor scorched, crouched beside a soot-streaked child—a girl no older than eight, clutching a singed doll.

**Hadvar:** (desperate) "Lyssia—climb to the roof. Tell me if the dragon's gone. *Please!*"

The girl trembled but obeyed, scaling a collapsed beam toward the shattered ceiling—directly into Alduin's line of sight.

**Gilgamesh's** grin faded. His grip tightened on his axe.

**SYSTEM:** *Hidden Quest – "Innocence Amidst Flames":

– Save the Child (Heroic: +1200 EXP, Hadvar's Guilt)

– Use Her as Bait (Ruthless: +600 EXP, Edla's Respect +10%).*

**Edla** watched him, her blade pristine. "Weakness is a luxury," she said coldly.

The girl, *Lyssia*, shook like a leaf, her doll clutched to her chest. "B-but the monster—"

**Old Man:** (slapping her back) "Do as he says, girl! We'll all die if you don't!"

Gilgamesh's golden eyes narrowed. He strode forward, his voice dripping with venom. "*Afraid*, little rabbit?"

**Lyssia** nodded, tears cutting through the grime on her cheeks.

Gilgamesh turned to Hadvar and the old man, his smirk gone. "You'd send a child to her death? What's next

**Old Man:** (sputtering) "boy! Sacrifices must—"

Gilgamesh's hand snapped out, seizing the man by the collar. "Sacrifice *yourself*, then."

**SYSTEM:** *Alignment Shift – "Chaotic Neutral" → "Chaotic Good"*

Before Hadvar could react, Gilgamesh hurled the old man into the inn's shattered courtyard. Alduin's shadow descended. A talon the size of a wagon plucked the man mid-scream, crushing him before vanishing into the smoke.

**Hadvar:** (horrified) "You madman—!"

**Gilgamesh:** (coldly) "He volunteered."