Solitude, the High King's seat, a city of verdant blue, where eagles soar.
Turiano walked with slumped shoulders to the city gate, then puffed out his chest and cast a disdainful glance at the Imperial Guards standing before it.
He strode through the gate, where the streets were sparsely populated. He found an old man and asked for directions to the Bards College, but the old man turned around and punched him on the spot, "Hey! Don't suddenly put your hand on my shoulder, you little brat, get lost!"
The old man's face had three long scars and six war paint marks, making his entire face resemble a primitive totem, barely human. It would have been better if he hadn't turned around, but when he did, revealing his true appearance, Turiano shivered in fright. Then, with a melancholy look, he asked the old man, "You're back?"
The old man paused, then embraced the Nord brother in front of him, "I'm back!"
It was 4E176, and the Great War had officially ended a year prior with the signing of the White-Gold Concordat.
Turiano fumbled in his pocket, pulled out a handful of heavy gold, silver, and copper coins, and said, "Come on, let's go drink!"
In a flash, they bought wine and walked the streets, drinking as they went. The old soldier pointed to a fortress in the city, Castle Dour, the garrison for the Imperial army, The Core of Imperial power in Skyrim. After walking a bit further down the street, he pointed to the blue-domed palace at the end, the Blue Palace.
The old soldier also took Turiano to see the Bards College. The rumors were true; the view from there was expansive, and if one could climb to the top of the tower, it might indeed be taller than the Blue Palace.
More and more old soldiers gathered, calling out to friends, buying wine, and wandering the streets, slowly forming a surging tide. "Who are they?" a child by the roadside asked his mother.
"They are the Sons of Skyrim, Nord warriors, heroes of the Empire."
The Guards paid no mind to these men, but soldiers poured out of Castle Dour. The Nord old soldiers walked in front, with the Imperial soldiers following behind, swords in hand and shields raised.
"What an Empire!"
The old soldiers drank, sighing, "What an Empire! The Thalmor were too overbearing, they started the war, and such a great Empire never realized how weak it was, like a limping old man, easily torn apart by those pointy-faced High Elves."
The war broke out in 171, and by 174, even the Imperial City had fallen. Then a rebellion erupted in The Reach of Skyrim, the main forces of Hammerfell withdrew, and the Breton of High Rock became timid quails. Everything seemed irreversible. But ultimately, the Battle of the Red Ring in Rain's Hand of 175 saw the Imperial allied forces claim victory!
Skyrim was a crucial force in the war; without Skyrim, the Empire would surely have fallen. Yet, afterwards, the people of Skyrim were betrayed by the Empire.
The White-Gold Concordat came into effect, banning the worship of Talos, allowing Thalmor forces to legally hunt down Talos worshipers in Skyrim.
The Thalmor Embassy, a symbol of humiliation, was located on a hill outside Solitude.
The old soldiers surged towards the city gate.
An Imperial captain ran to the front of the crowd, "By order of the General, no Nord is allowed near the Embassy!"
The crowd slowly came to a halt. Turiano walked to the front of the old soldiers' ranks. The captain involuntarily took a step back. Turiano once again looked down at the Imperial with a disdainful gaze. He turned around, facing all the Nord warriors who had fought in the Great War.
This group consisted of old and young, some robust, some frail, some healthy, some disabled. They were silent, like the standing stones in the wilds of Skyrim enduring the wind and frost.
"Last year! The Battle of the Red Ring! I followed General Jonna across the Niben River, surprising the city of Skingrad. Thirty thousand went, and only fourteen thousand came back alive! When we heard the Empire had won, we thought we would be greeted with cheers and peace! But no, because of the White-Gold Concordat, I was discharged and returned home, but my Ah Ma and Ah Ba, my older sister and younger brother, were gone. Why? Because they were captured by the Thalmor and beheaded! Their four heads were hanging on the flagpole in the center of town!"
No one spoke; only the rustling of bushes as the wind swept through the street.
"Earlier this year! Lord Ulfric quelled the rebellion in The Reach, but what happened? He's still locked in prison! Children of Talos, we have endured enough. Even if it costs us our lives, we must vent this anger. We will show these disgusting, pointy-faced bastards what a Nord is! Today! We bring Talos home!"
The old soldiers raised their swords and roared, "Skyrim belongs to the Nord! Fuck the Thalmor!"
The captain shouted, "Stop them!"
They couldn't be stopped, no one could stop them! This was the wrath of the Nords, an ancient, proud race that would not tolerate insult!
The mighty iron tide broke through the futile resistance of the Imperial soldiers. They left Solitude, surged towards the Embassy, smashed through its gates, and attacked the envoys and Thalmor soldiers. News was brought back, and the entire city of Solitude erupted! Merchants abandoned their stalls, blacksmiths dropped their hammers. Nord men and women, adults and children, poured into the streets, shouting "Long Live Talos!" The wave of sound, like the sea, drowned out the curses of the Thalmor in Castle Dour, and terrified people of other races into trembling. The gates of the barracks were tightly shut, and the King in the Blue Palace sat on his throne like a puppet.
In the chaos, Turiano was pulled by the hand by a woman and ran all the way into a ravine. "Who are you?"
"I am your fiancée!"
Turiano's body trembled again. "What?!"
"My name is Gaelina. You proposed to me in Dawnstar six days ago, have you forgotten?"
"Uh? No! How could I forget! But let's not talk about that for now, I need to go help my comrades..." Turiano looked guilty. He had completely forgotten himself when he first saw this girl, and had been led along dazedly for about a mile. It was truly strange.
"If you go back now, they've already dispersed."
"What happens after they disperse is most important. I need to guard against those pointy-faced bastards harming our brothers."
"You absolutely mustn't go. You're the instigator. But with such a big mess, the Empire will definitely have to give the Thalmor an explanation. Then we can rescue the scapegoats, and slowly this matter will pass."
"That's a great idea!"
Sure enough, that night, the execution grounds in Solitude began to try criminals. Turiano and Gaelina, disguised, mingled with the crowd. Listening to the audience's discussions, it turned out that the ones to be beheaded were a few criminals from the prison; not a single one of the truly rebellious old soldiers had been caught.
Everyone watched this farce conclude as heads flew, then happily returned home.
"I didn't expect that old man in Castle Dour to be quite the fox. He gave the Thalmor their explanation without provoking public anger. Excellent!" Gaelina laughed heartily.
Turiano, however, recalled the blood gushing from the prisoner's neck. In that instant, he was so afraid that if his righteous indignation caused his comrades to be beheaded in their own homeland, he would truly deserve to die.
What a stroke of luck.
"You're a real stand-up guy, a true man! I accept!" Gaelina looked at the tall and strong Turiano, her face full of smiles.
"Uh, I think I said I'd sing the best love song in the world..."
"The best love song in the world is a battle cry, of course! Fuck the Thalmor! Hahaha!" Gaelina roared with laughter, slapping Turiano on the shoulder. He felt his shoulder blade shatter.
"Come on, you said you'd find me a ring. Let's go get it, then let's get married!"
Turiano's mind was in a whirl. "Is it that casual?"
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