Turdas, 2nd First Seed, 4E 205. Letter to Balgruuf the Greater, Jarl of Whiterun.

My good friend Jarl Balgruuf,

I thought I would write one last time simply as a friend and before protocol gets in the way.

As I am now to be Emperor I cannot keep the title of Thane of Whiterun that you so generously awarded me. The official paperwork returning the title should arrive shortly.

I will be keeping Breezehome for use by various people employed within my orphanages and the College of Winterhold.

I have also hired Lydia full-time as Headmistress of Dragons Keep School for Orphans. She has been exemplary in her duties as housecarl and you should be very proud of her and all your guards.

I was wondering how Nelkir is doing. Did you spend some time in the Temple of Kynareth with him?

You are probably wondering about a lot of the news filtering through so let me briefly state the facts,

• I am to be crowned Emperor Wulf Septim.
• I am the son of Saint Alessia and Tiber Septim and was born in Roscrea.
• I will be marrying my beloved Princess Rigmor of Tamriel. She is a Royal Princess via her Mede bloodline.
• Milady Rigmor will be Queen and joint ruler of Tamriel with equal power to me.
• You will soon receive invites to coronations and wedding.
• We are expecting a child foretold by ancient prophesy as the harbinger of peace for all of Nirn and the catalyst of co-operation and respect between man, mer and beast races. Her name will be Kintyra.
• We will be facing a threat from Akavir of proportions that dwarf anything Tamriel has faced before. The slime who dirtied the Ruby Throne before me colluded with Tsaesci and Akaviri vampires who are building a fleet to invade within the next four to six years.
• Milady and I must do what we can to unite all of Tamriel if we are to resist and defeat this threat.

Rigmor and I had no intention of taking the Ruby Throne but The Divine had planned for centuries that it be so.

The threat from the Akavir undead is not just to the mortals of Nirn but our Gods as well. With my companions I have already defeated similar threats from Alduin, Malacath and others but I have been warned by The Divine this will be by far my hardest task.

Yet we are also to be parents and as you know that’s a full time occupation itself! We must spend time relaxing and treating Kintyra as a child and not overwhelm her with responsibilities.

I think Skyrim is in excellent hands with High Queen Elisif.  She is loved by the people and listens to her advisors. Ulfric would have been a disaster leading up to this invasion. Have no doubt, any province that weakens Tamriel will need a change of policy or leadership and we will pursue such knowing not just The Divine but all mortals need it to be so.

How is the Gildergreen? It was growing at a remarkable rate last time I saw it.

A while ago I spoke to Odahviing and asked if he would visit and speak to Farengar. He was going to arrange the visit via The Greybeards. It is important that Dov are no longer treated as myth or feared. Farengar showed no respect when my friend was captured. It took a lot of convincing but Odahviing knows that education of the ignorant is important and we suspect Farengar had only ever heard the biased tales of The Blades. People mistakenly believe Mages are wise and their words are to be believed without question. I hope they had that meeting and that Farengar is more careful when he speaks of the most ancient and wise Dov.

Hopefully Milady Rigmor and I can visit soon as friends with minimal pomp and ceremony.

Until then I wish you and your family only the best.

Wulf, Dragonborn and Champion of The Divine.

Sundas, 5th First Seed, 4E 205. Reply from Balgruuf the Greater, Jarl of Whiterun.

It was so good to hear from Your Majesty,

There have always been rumours and stories in abundance about yourself and Princess Rigmor and I often rely on you to tell me what is true and what is not. The difficulty being that even the most preposterous claims seem feasible where you are concerned. So I am not surprised to find Gods in your parentage or that Rigmor is royalty.

I was forbidden to fight in the Battle of Whiterun by Emperor Titus Mede II. He wanted his Jarls alive if they were to fight and retake Skyrim if you lost. I did watch the whole thing from atop my battlements. When Princess Rigmor rode up on her horse with the Sons of Talos following she was the most regal person I can ever recall seeing.

Kintyra is a child of both Mede and Septim lineage. She will have an undeniable right to rule and could accomplish much by that being the case.

The Gildergreen is beautiful and the Temple is reporting more pilgrims per month than they previously had per year.

Nelkir is doing very well and we are closer than we have ever been. His brother and sister have been far more attentive and inclusive and the bond between the three is strong.

We did speak to Priestess Danica and she advised that simply sitting under the new Gildergreen and talking openly will heal such wounds as the secrecy and shame caused. As a family we have spent quite some time under that magnificent tree having meals and laughing and enjoying each other’s company. I am confident Nelkir’s darkness is no longer of concern.

Both boys have shown interest in undertaking Kyne’s Sacred Trials. According to Froki they can do it together but that means the Guardians will be stronger. It is good to maintain Nord traditions but I wish there was less danger!

We received a message from The Greybeards explaining Odahviing wished to meet and talk not just with Farengar but myself as well. After a few messages back and forth we organised a time. We put up flyers and had town criers warning of his visit.

I was sitting on my throne when Nelkir walked up and pointed to the skull of Numinex. He asked if we are barbarians. He wanted to know if we display the skulls of defeated Men and Mer. When I said we didn’t he asked why we think it is OK to display a Dovah’s skull.

He got me thinking and I chose to gather the skull all the bones of Numinex we had in the basement. It took quite a few men and a lot of hard work but we eventually had them altogether on the Great Porch sitting on a cargo net. I had the whole lot covered in cloth.

Yesterday myself, Farengar, Proventus and Irileth watched as Odahviing approached with a sense of awe. They are majestic and graceful whilst in flight. Despite his attempt to minimise downdraught we were all hard pressed to keep standing when he landed with a thump!

Odahviing settled with his head on his forelegs and we all dragged up chairs so we could have a long talk.

Farengar apologised for his behaviour and then we talked about the cause of the Dragon Wars and the extermination of the Dov in Akavir. Odahviing explained the persecution by The Blades was really just a continuation of the Akavir slaughter and your wish for Dov to be treated like any other sentient species was an idea that Tiber Septim once had but implemented badly.

When I told Odahviing of your parentage and your ascension to the Ruby Throne he laughed. Loose shingles fell from the roof and Farengar fell backwards in fright which caused all of us to join in the merriment.

Odahviing explained that you often talked about things that would change if you ever became Emperor. Making Dov citizens was one thing you said would happen. We all agreed with him that it would be a great step forward for Tamriel.

A few hours into the talks Nelkir appeared from a hiding spot and approached Odahviing. He greeted him in Dovahzul and bowed as if greeting a head of state. The dragon placed his head a few feet from Nelkir and rumbled his reply in common and Dovahzul.

I asked Nelkir how long he had been hiding and Odahviing chuckled and said the ‘boziik kiir’, the ‘bold child’ had been hiding behind a column all along.

I was so proud of Nelkir as he apologised for our forefather, Olaf One-Eye, keeping Numinex captive. He then walked to the pile of bones and removed the covering and told Odahviing that all warriors deserve burial in the tradition of their people.

Odahviing crawled to the bones and sniffed them then turned to us all. He advised he now had some thinking to do and that we should step back while he alights. He pulled the ropes on the cargo net so the bones were secure and took off with them.

I had the distinct feeling Odahviing left so abruptly because there was great anger bubbling under the surface when he saw the bones. An anger he needed to wrestle to control as you once described it to me. I remember the time you warned the remaining Stormcloaks that you would show no mercy and wipe them out. Many gave up the lost cause but you allowed a writer from one of the major news sheets to watch and report what happened to those who did not. The brutality of the slaughter described shocked many but they realised you let loose the wrath of the Gods upon your enemy and were justified.  

You have described to me how you have to fight that impulse to kill without mercy and how it is a curse of all Dov. Odahviing demonstrated to me that Dov like him can be our friends but we have to be aware of their anger at all times.

I hope he gave Numinex the respect and burial my forefather did not.

I am looking forward to seeing yourself and Princess Rigmor in the near future.

You have done many great things for Skyrim, Tamriel and all of Nirn. The greatest to me was saving Nelkir from the darkness. I can never than you enough.

Jarl Balgruuf the Greater.