Saga of the Dragon War: Part Two, Of The First Tongues

First part here.

Lots of myth-echoes in this part. I tried to emulate Kirkbride's style in the Aldudaggas and Five Hundred Companions, hope I succeeded or at least did well enough.

Of The First Tongues

In those days the Dragons and their Priests harried us to near defeat, and their strength overwhelmed us, and their Voices spoke our doom. And we hid in the Hjaalmarch tattered and near destruction, and Kyne wept as she had not since Shor's heart was cut out and he was slain by Merish trickery. And in the rain and the lightnings not even the joy-snow of the sky whales could lighten our hearts; for against the power of the Dov, and the Priests, and greatest of all AL-DU-IN, there seemed no victory.

And lo! Amidst our camp one of the Dovah descended, white as Alduin is black, and asked to speak to our clever-men and elders. And we were a-feared of him, and drew bows and shivered our spears, but he spake to us:

“Fear me not! For I am come from KAAN, war-widow of SHOOR whose heart is Missing, and I bring tidings of new hope. For much she weeps over you, and your dream of Liberty which dies in its cradle, and so she has commanded me to give you the Voice of the Dovah. For though you have the power of the Voice the Dovah keep the knowledge of it from you (save for their priests) for if you had it you would overthrow them.”

Then we said, “What is your name, Dovah? And how may we know to trust you?”

And he said: “I am PAARTHURNAX secondborn son of BORMAHU AKA-TUSK, and you may know that you may trust me because were I your foe all of you here would be already walking the whale's-way to Shor's hall.”

And Vargrim, a hothead clever-man who came from Snowhawk, said to PAARTHURNAX, “Let us train already in the Voice, for there is no time to lose!”

And PAATHURNAX said: “First I must discern who I may teach. Let your greatest warriors come before me and drink of my Voice. Those who live shall be fit for my teaching.”

And we came before PAARTHURNAX, our greatest warriors, one-thousand-and-eight in all (for this was a decided number). There was Haldor of the Sixteenfold Shield, whose bulwark had held back the lightnings Shouted by NAKHRIIN of the whaleskin cloak; and Ulfbjorn the Stormfang Axe who had slain one hundred and forty four of the dwarves who live in Dunkreath (and this was a thing unheard of, for the Deep Folk are crafty and use armour that is like a living skin of metal, and pikes that shoot killing sound, and half-living metal men to fight when they feel cowardly); and Svalja the clever-woman who had learned, it is said, from the Dov FEYKROMIIN in his crooked house; and Hjalmar who would turn into an eagle-Man at the full moons; and Jorn who fought bare-handed, and whose blow had broken the face of HEVNORAAK so that from then on it was never seen again; and many many others.

And PAARTHURNAX Shouted Words those who heard them (and lived) did not recall. And when he had Shouted nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine lay dead, and nine alone stood before him (for this too was a decided number). And these nine Tongues are spoken of below.

There was Hakon, who was called One-Eye (for his eye had been lost in a battle at Shearpoint, when KROSIS had struck him with an arrow-shot) and he bore Wuuthrad the Axe forged by Ysgramor to slay elves, for he was Harbinger in the line of Ysgramor (and of Wuuthrad it is said that it will be shattered three times ere a hand truly worthy of it touches it again, and the first shattering is spoken of in this saga). Boisterous and glad he was on the eve of war, but after battle sorrow would quench the fire in his heart, and he would weep. And he wore a cloak of foxhide at all times.

There was Felldir, old and grey-bearded, and far-sighted, and skilled in the clever craft. A greatsword he wielded, and on his shoulder perched often an owl from whose eyes he could see, and knew many knowledges which it whispered in his ear while he slept, so that his skill in clever craft was second only to the Glorious of Bromjunaar.

There were Gormlaith and Valkrys, twin-sister shield-maidens with gold hair and grey eyes, who looked the same save for the war-paint they wore on their faces. Gormlaith was first-born and was glad in battle, and sang as she slew, and laughed at her foes in fierce joy as she hewed them. On account of her beauty many sought to woo her, but she suffered no suitor save one who could best her in battle; and of those there were very few in all Tamriel, such that they could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Her sword was made of the bones of snow-whales, and so was her shield. Valkrys was second from her mother's womb, and wielded a greatsword of ever-ice from the Utternorth, beyond even the Elder Wood, and wore the hide of the Great Bear of Pinemoon, which had claws of iron and eyes of fire, as cloak. And she was not like Gormlaith, for when Gormlaith was glad she was without feeling as she fought with cold-hearted strategy, and often she took ransom of her foemen.

There was Ornar the Storm-Cloak who could run as fast as the hawk flies, and he had two weapons. First was Lightning, and it was a spear as swift as the wind and which swung in mid-air to hunt his froes, and when it struck it would fly back to his hand so he could throw it again. And second was Thunder, a warhammer the weight of a mountain which lesser men could not lift but he held it in one hand, and when he swung it whole ranks of the foe would be destroyed and hurled back. And he was called Storm-Cloak because his cloak was woven from the storm-clouds, and in battle brought them with it to aid him. And when you looked in his eyes you would only ever see endless storms.

There was Helja who was ever-beautiful as a young maiden, and fought with twin swords made of silver. And it was said that she could turn into a moth, and thus spy on her foes, and she won many kings and chieftains over to our cause with her beauty and her sweet songs and the comfort of her thighs.

And there was Ulrika who rode in a chariot pulled by wolves, and was mother of many sons and daughters who gladly followed her to war, and when they fought together with her they both would fight harder and do many worthy deeds, the children so their mother would praise them, the mother to protect her children (for what love is greater than that between mother and child?).

And there was Valdar who wore snakeskin leather tinted black as midnight and had a sword made from the fang of a sea-snake of the far southern waters, and he was a thief and slew cunningly without honour, but we permitted him because he was the greatest of his kind, and he fought for our freedom.

And last of all there was Sigvrid, and it was said that he was first of all our warriors to have slain one of the Dov, and he wore its bones as armour and weapons, and its scales as a cloak, to boast of his victory. For Sigfrid was a boastful and arrogant man, and it is said that of the Dovah he slew he drank its blood and gained power close to that of a King – but not wholly that of a King, for he had drank the blood while it was dead and not still living, and from the throat and not the heart.

This is the count of the First Tongues. May they glory in Sovngarde till all worlds have passed away!