14 Aftermath

Thrull Thrullson had gone to Sovngard. The damage done to his face and head was too much to be overcome. Being thrown into the pillar was the final injury for the grizzled warrior.

The Companions were a morose group. Thrull was well liked and a sworn shield brother. Aela was taking it extra hard since it happened under her watch while she couldn't do anything to save him. Mathred was dejected because he was knocked out of the fight and couldn't help his shield brother. This was a rude awakening for Ria. Thrull's death was a grim reminder of the dangers that come with being a Companion.

Rictus was sad about the death of the Companion, but he had just recently met him and didn't interact much. Seeing him die made it more impactful, but Rictus still thought of him as a stranger.

Anska acknowledged his sacrifice but was distracted by looking for the scroll which was the whole reason for this expedition. She quickly wandered off towards the doorway behind the dragon priest's tomb while the rest gathered near Thrull's body.

Aela was the first to speak.

"Despite our loss, we still have a job to do. Mathred, take Ria and start going back through the ruins and gather anything of value. Beware of traps and draugr we may have missed. Take no chances. Rictus and I will follow Anska to keep her out of trouble."

As the other 2 left, Aela remained standing over the body of her fallen friend. Her eyes gleaming with a wolfish tint at the thought of her diminished pack.

Rictus stood by her and tried not to think too much about the lingering smell of burnt hair and flesh.

Without turning, Aela addressed Rictus.

"Is there anything you can do to fix his helmet? I've seen you move stone; can you fix metal? He has worn that old thing for as long as I can remember. Seems wrong he may not have his equipment at its best for Sovngarde."

Rictus looked over the fallen Companion. The fireball had destroyed Thrull's face and distorted his helmet into a twisted mess.

"I may be able to help. I could potentially even fix some of the wounds to his face."

Aela stared at the mage for a moment.

"A true warrior has no reason to hide the wounds which sends them to Sovngarde. Do what you can for the helmet. I am going after Anska."

With that said, the huntress stalked away.

Rictus didn't really get why the warrior woman put so much more thought into the helmet than Thrull's face. He partially wanted to fix it for his own selfish purposes due to the smell and how hideous it made the warrior seem. Burns are not for the weak of heart or stomach.

Rictus gently removed the helmet with telekinesis. He began picturing how the helmet used to look before as he prepared to mold it back to shape.

Using magic to manipulate metal was always more challenging than stone. Rictus theorized it had something to do with density, but that required more materials before he knew for sure. One thing he had learned was, manipulating a person's equipment was much more challenging than plain metal. The reason was of course magic. From what he had observed, every person had a magical aura. It seemed magic in this world was just a simple part of life even for those who would never even cast a spell. This magic would slowly seep out of a person and into the things around them. The impact was only very close to the body as it seemed to dissipate the further away from the body it went. So, if someone wore a certain helmet all the time, it would slowly be marked by their mana. Rictus believed this could explain some of the legendary weapons and armors used by legends of old which had some sort of magical effect but were not enchanted the traditional way.

The more magical the object, the more resistant it was to change. It could still be changed. It would just require more time and effort. Sadly, this meant Rictus couldn't instantly defeat his opponents by using their own equipment against them like Magneto could. If it was a brand-new weapon or armor, it may be a different story though.

Rictus had a disturbing thought about the theory.

'My belief and thoughts influence my spells. Could the reason I can't manipulate metal as well as stone, or easily crush someone who is wearing armor because of this belief? I wonder how much subconscious belief plays into magic. If I teach someone my spells, would the way they use the spell differ from mine, or would they copy me? If it is different, and I observe it, could I then replicate the way they cast the spell. Hmm…something to think about in the future at least."

Rictus quickly finished fixing the helmet and placed it carefully back on Thrull's head. He then made a note in his grimoire about looking into the impact of belief and thoughts on how a spell performs. Next, he started to make his way towards where Aela and Anska had went.

Before he fully followed them, Rictus stopped to look at the ashes which was all that remained of the dragon priest. Rictus noticed the edge of something slightly distorting the ashes. Holding his breathe, Rictus reached down for the object. It was of course the coveted dragon priest mask. Rictus could not really remember the effects of the mask from the game, but knew the masks usually had some useful enchantment. Deciding it was only fair, Rictus took the mask for himself and hung it at his waist for now. He would investigate it more later. He also picked up the staff of fireballs, a walking stick which shoots fireballs is always a good thing. Rictus knew the Companions would be okay with him keeping these things since they were magic related, and he had been the one to defeat the creature.

Rictus finally made his way into the back room where he found Anska and Aela. Anska was busy looking over a scroll and muttering to herself. Aela was being more practical and looting the place of valuables. At the back of the room was an iconic sight.

It was a word wall.

Rictus started to feel his heart beat a little faster. He was always a fan of the Shouts and thought they were a cool aspect of the game Skyrim. He could hardly breathe as he made his way to his first word wall to learn his very first Shout. As he neared it, he could basically hear the iconic Skyrim music blasting in his ears.

Rictus was not sure what he was expecting to happen. There was no effect at first. Then Rictus began to feel something stirring in his gut.

*Grgurgurrgrggr*

Aela looked over at the mage in surprise.

Rictus sheepishly rubbed the back of his head as he let out a little chuckle. Apparently, his stomach rumbled enough Aela could hear it. He couldn't believe he was hungry at a time like this. Aela quickly went back to her search for valuables. Rictus could have sworn a little smirk had played across her lips, but her stoic face gave no hints of mirth.

Rictus was not sure what had come over him. He really believed for a second, he would learn a Shout. Rictus carefully scanned the wall and tried to find anything magical about it or the many words written on it. The letters appeared like scratches on the stone wall. Rictus could tell there was something magical going on with the word wall, but he wasn't sure what exactly.

"These word walls are spread throughout Skyrim. They are written in what is believed to be the Dragon Language."

Rictus was surprised to find Anska standing beside him looking at the word wall as well. Rictus wondered if she had more knowledge about this place than she let on.

"What does this one say?"

"How should I know? I'm no greybeard. They are the ones who know about this kind of stuff if the rumors are to be believed. Maybe it has something to do with Vokun. It is his crypt after all." Scoffed Anska as she went back to her scroll.

After staring at the wall a bit longer, Rictus decided to see what Anska's scroll was all about. Peeking over her shoulder, Rictus found out he couldn't understand the scroll either. The words on it appeared like the ones found on the word wall, but not quite the same either.

"Can you even read this?" Curiously asked Rictus as he gave up trying to decipher the scroll as well. Words and languages were not his forte.

"Not yet. It is in ancient Nordic, so a couple things are familiar. It will take me some research to be sure about its contents, but it should be what I have been searching so long for."

Anska seemed to savor the moment as she softly held the scroll in her hands.

Eventually, Mathred and Ria made their way back to the group. Rictus noticed a couple more cuts on the duo. It seemed there were some traps missed on the initial decent. Rictus quickly went over to them and healed the cuts. With everyone gathered again, Aela addressed them all.

"We have done what we have set out to do. Though we lost one of our own, he went out fighting a great enemy which will surely see him to Sovngarde. We will take him back with us and give his body a proper send off. If there is nothing else, we will depart the wretched place. Once we get back to the surface, we will make camp for the night and head back home tomorrow."

Everyone nodded at her little speech. They were all ready to leave this place. As the group started making their way, Rictus noticed Anska had not moved.

"Are you coming Anska?"

She shook her head at the group.

"I greatly appreciate what you all have done for me. I think I will spend a little more time here just incase I missed something regarding the scroll. Your payment for the job is already waiting in Whiterun. I will always remember this. Thank you."

While the group started to exit, Anska stopped Rictus.

"The others will not appreciate it, but I want to give you this spell tome. I noticed you use your familiar quite a bit. This spell tome is for a flaming familiar. Thought you could appreciate it. Think of it as a bonus for saving our lives."

With that done, the Rictus caught back up to the group and finally left the ruins.

Once they reached the surface, the group made a hasty camp and got a fire going. Its cold this far north no matter the season. Aela quickly left the group to go hunting for dinner. The howls of a massive and ferocious wolf could be heard for the next hour. Ria was worried while Rictus and Mathred had a knowing look on their face. The huntress had some pent-up anger to let out apparently.

After a couple hours, Aela returned with a deer for dinner. The group enjoyed a quiet meal together as they stared up at the beautiful night sky. The stars were shining brightly this night. Rictus always enjoyed the night sky, and its natural beauty. Rictus looked at the group he had spent the past few days with. They were a decent bunch. While not to the level of true friendship, they were connected through battle and loss of a fellow warrior.

"I don't think I will be headed back to Whiterun with you. It has been a pleasure working with such fine warriors, but I think I may take a little detour and see some other places in Skyrim. Maybe the College of Winterhold has some good books. I could use a little rest and a good book."

The rest of the group accepted his declaration easily. They had grown fond of the mage during their short time with him. Fighting through the ruins with him and how he was not afraid to battle with them definitely helped. He had fought valiantly with them which is all a member of the Companions could ask.

Aela's opinion had probably changed the most about him. She had not wanted to take him at all with them, but it could have turned out much worse for them without his magic to help them. She now viewed him as an asset.

"I understand. I was skeptical about bringing you along, but you proved yourself more than worthy. What shall we do about your portion of the valuables?"

Rictus was a little impressed the proud huntress had basically said she was wrong about him. He didn't really care too much about most of the things they found in the ruins.

"I will take the mask and staff of the dragon priest as well as the grand soul gem we found. Other than that, I do not really care about the rest. Besides, Kodlak already paid me."

The Companions seemed to perk up a little at this. Mathred and Ria were happy because it meant they had a larger cut of the profit. Aela was interested that Kodlak had already paid the mage before they even completed the mission. It made her curious as to what he saw in Rictus.

"That will work for us. You deserve those as being the one to finally defeat that monster as well as being the only one who uses magic here. If you ever find yourself in need of more work, the Companions will always welcome you. I at least would always welcome you as part of the pack."

Aela had a bit of a smirk as she finished talking. Rictus was not really sure how to take the last part of what she said. Did she mean werewolf or just part of the team?

"Thank you for the offer. I would be willing to help the Companions out again if they are ever in need of magical support. I do not know how long I will be gone. If any of you ever need my help, just leave drop a message in the letter holder at my house in Whiterun. Kodlak should know where to find it."

With the last bit of business taken care of, the rest of the night passed quickly as they all rested and recuperated. When they were going off to bed, Rictus noticed Ria grab Mathred and take him into her tent. It seems they were going to blow some steam off after the battles of the day.

Rictus looked up to see Aela staring at him. She seemed to be contemplating something as she looked at him. A small smile and shake of the head were all Rictus saw before she disappeared back into the woods.

After the various displays, Rictus happily went back to his tent to get some sleep.

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[A/N]: Sorry for the shameless asking, but if I could get a review or 2 I would appreciate it.

I would even post an extra chapter if I get at least one more. I like hearing people's opinions on the story, even if it's to say the story sucks.