Bond Of Blood

Chapter 51

"I have never been so scared," Elisif muttered.

"Yet you have faced worse than this. Elenwen comes to mind."

Elisif nodded. She sometimes dreamed about the moment she thrust an elven blade straight through that Thalmor bitch's chest, the look of horror and shock on that usually smug face always made her feel better.

I can do this. The people await.

Elisif strode through the doors, and into a wall of noise as several thousand people started cheering and yelling. She held in her annoyance as some could be heard shouting 'Skyrim for the Nords!' and walked to the balcony edge, looking around at the sea of faces. Then she glanced to her right and felt better when she met the gaze of the Dragonborn and her immortal lover.

She smiled at the two of them before looking back to the crowd, raising her right hand in the air.

And several thousand people went silent within seconds.

Rikke stepped forwards, holding what seemed to be a crown made of dragon fangs. Elisif blinked when she realised it was the Jagged Crown itself, an item long since thought to be a myth, a relic lost to time.

"People of Solitude!" Elisif began, smiling as a roar from the crowd answered her opening words. "For years, fathers, mothers and sons fought against each other. For years, the proud sons and daughters of this land fought for honour, glory and a desire to be free!"

She waited for a moment as the crowd bellowed again, looking at the sheer number of people that were watching her. Yet she felt no fear, as though every single fear she had once possessed had been washed away. Elisif looked over to Morgan once more and seeing her vampire friend smile at her calmly was all she needed to force herself onwards.

"For years, blood was spilled, families torn apart and outsiders turned away for not being a Nord. We were foolish, naïve and were it not for an 'outsider', we would not be here today!"

She paused again as the roars of the crowd echoed all around, the majority screaming the title of the woman who had been placed to fulfil a destiny she had no inkling of being a part of.

"Dragonborn! Dragonborn!"

Elisif smirked as Morgan gave a simple wave, even as Serana placed a comforting hand on Morgan's lower back, out of sight of any onlookers.

"Morgan Aurelius sacrificed so much in defeating the World Eater, Alduin! For two years she travelled this wondrous and dangerous land, helping any who asked for aid and asking for nothing in return!"

Elisif shook her head.

"Yet did that change anything? No. We were too proud to lay down our arms when the dragon menace had been dealt with. We continued to fight each other, weakening our core strength and allowing the Aldmeri Dominion to gain the advantage. It also allowed Ulfric Stormcloak to continue his advance, until only Whiterun and Solitude remained loyal to the Empire that had kept us safe for years."

Boos were mixed in with cheers and Elisif gripped the marble balcony as hard as she dared.

"And what did we do? We dragged the Heroine of Skyrim into this pointless war. And with it, we denied her the courtesy and honour we should have offered her years ago!"

She glanced at Morgan and Serana, who looked shocked at her words.

"Once again, we forced her to fight. But this time, it was not the blood of dragons that she was forced to spill, but our own. But now I have the chance to say what I should have said long ago."

Elisif turned and dropped to one knee, ignoring the gasps around her and the silence of the crowd.

"Morgan Aurelius. I only speak for myself but may I apologise for the treatment that you and your family has endured since you arrived here. From an attempted execution from the Empire that you served faithfully, to the sneers and insults you must have had to cope with since your 'transformation'. I am sorry for everything. Empress."