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There was always a fire in her eyes. Ever since the day Uskerva was born, her unnatural crimson red eyes with black sclera always contained a fire within.
Now, she stood in front of the fire, cerulean flames flickering over her gaze.
“But for today, return to Jorrvaskr. Triumph in your victory. And lead the Companions to further glory.”
Those parting words from Kodlak echoed in the Orsimer’s mind. She sat on her knees, trembling, tears threatening to drip onto the stone floor.
Of course, it was a wonderful thing to have cured Kodlak and free him to his desired afterlife. But Kodlak was the first soul in Skyrim to truly make her feel welcome in the once-foreign land. She would miss him a great deal.
When Uskerva blinked, her eyes let loose a tear or two. She sighed so deeply that the Wolf Armor constricted her lungs a bit in the process. Her gloved hands moved to wipe her eyes on the fur lining her gauntlets. And underneath a curtain of red hair, her ears perked up.
“Are…are you alright?” Aela softly asked.
The Orc turned her head to the left and saw the Huntress offering her hand to help her up. Oft a fiery and impatient one, Aela in this moment had chosen gentleness. Kindness. A reprieve from the difficult battles the two had just fought together.
It took her a moment before she found her voice to speak again. “Yes, I…” Uskerva stopped herself upon realizing how her voice wavered so, threatening to fully cry. She couldn’t do that in front of Aela. Not now. This was supposed to be a moment of triumph. What exactly happened?
“Take your time.” She almost sounded like she was speaking to a child, letting them know everything would be okay. Uskerva could only hope everything would be fine in the end.
“...I’ll be fine. Thank you.” Ever so delicately, Uskerva grasped Aela’s hand, and the Nord woman helped lift her back to her feet.
Aela cleared her throat. “So…did I hear right? Did Kodlak say you were to lead the Companions?”
“Yes,” Uskerva bowed her head, “and it’s as much a surprise to me as it is to you.”
She threw her hands up in a yielding manner, blue eyes widening. “No, no! Your strength and honor are apparent to all.”
Hearing this, Uskerva’s eyes snapped open again — though she did not make eye contact with the woman before her. Her warpaint-stained cheeks became warm with flush. The fierce and mightily beautiful Aela the Huntress had just dealt her quite the compliment, and truth be told, she did not know how to handle herself upon hearing it.
“A-Aela…” Uskerva stammered, feeling her heart caught in her throat, pounding heavily.
“Say no more,” she replied, a smile spreading across her lips, “because it is a tremendous honor to be the first to address you as Harbinger. Congratulations, Uskerva. You’ve done a fantastic job to get to this point.”
“Gods, Aela…” the Orc whispered.
Before either woman realized what they were doing, Uskerva had thrown herself into Aela’s arms and took her in an embrace that came from deep yearning.
For as long as she had known of Aela, she had her eyes on her. Her captivating beauty as well as her dominance in battle struck her down and made her feel weak, but it became quickly apparent that Aela sought out strength. So, just for her, Uskerva made herself stronger. Bolder. Wiser. She trained and trained over the months, becoming extremely proficient with her greatsword, and somewhat skilled with a bow.
As the two were around each other more, they bonded over tales of valor and personal details. On more than one occasion did the Nord become vulnerable and confide in Uskerva — especially following Skjor’s sudden death. And Uskerva respected her boundaries. Never once did she push her over the line, and never once did she demand anything of her that she knew she couldn’t give. This, however, meant that she had to keep her feelings bottled up all that time.
Tonight, she’d hit her breaking point. The bottle cracked, and the feelings of love, admiration, and adoration filtered through.
Little did Uskerva know, these small actions meant a lot to the Huntress, and she grew to respect the then-whelp deeply.
Little did she know…
Aela was taken aback by the sudden gesture. This did not mean she disliked or rejected it — in fact, she returned the embrace as quickly as she could. The two stood in silence for a minute, hugging, heads leaned against one another.
“...Aela?” Uskerva asked after what felt like a lifetime of hugging.
“Yes, Harbinger?” Aela gently responded.
“You can call me Uskerva. No formalities necessary.”
“Alright, Uskerva…”
“...I love you.”
Aela pulled away to stare into what felt like Uskerva’s own soul. The direct eye contact did not make her nervous; it made her feel mesmerized. She could feel the heat in her body rising, her heart rate out of this world.
“I love you, too.”
She gasped sharply, hands quickly clasped over her gaping mouth.
The ginger-haired woman chuckled. “Put your hands down, silly.”
And so, Uskerva obliged immediately. She could’ve sworn she would be the next to keel over if her heart did not calm down.
Aela began to lean in to kiss her — slowly — as if unsure of herself. It seemed to be a surprise to her as well that they’d just laid their feelings bare, in front of all the Companions of old.
It was as good a time as any to do so.
“Whoa-ho, what’s with this?” An outside voice sharply interrupted.
Aela recoiled away from Uskerva and groaned.
“None of your damned business, Vilkas,” she barked, swapping back to her snappy attitude in an instant.
“Well, that’s not very nice,” Farkas interjected. The two brothers slowly approached from the entrance to the main chamber.
“Great, you’re here, too?” She frustratedly stated, throwing her arms in the air.
“What exactly is going on, you two?” Uskerva cocked her head at the twins.
Vilkas shrugged. “We grew unquiet awaiting your safe return. So we thought we ought to track you down and see your progress for ourselves.”
“The spiders are dead, so it’s safe for me to come in,” Farkas said matter-of-factly.
“But it seems you have other matters afoot, no?”
“Beat it, Vil.” Aela snarled.
Uskerva shook her head. “Stay your tongue, Aela. It’s true that we banished Kodlak’s beast, and he departed for Sovngarde.”
“That is excellent news. So, what of the Companions now?”
“Kodlak’s final words to me were that I should ‘lead the Companions to further glory’.”
Vilkas's initial reaction was tempered. “I must be honest…I wouldn’t have expected someone like you to be the Harbinger, but Kodlak trusted your judgment, and so will I. Good luck, my friend.”
Farkas, on the other hand, had a big, doofy grin on his face. “You don’t gotta worry about me. I do what I’m told. But congratulations! This is big!”
Uskerva smiled back, albeit a bit awkwardly. “Thank you, all of you. Truly, you are what’s making my life feel any amount better right now. All this pressure, being the Dragonborn…”
“Well, we’ll always be here for you.” Farkas approached her with open arms, and she accepted warmly.
“So…what do you all say?” Uskerva prodded after pulling away from Farkas. “We head back to Winterhold and get some drinks?”
The three Nords seemed to contemplate her words, and each in their own way denied the immediate offer.
“If you don’t mind, this place is worthy of some time spent,” were Aela’s words.
“I would like to look at some of the carvings in the walls,” was Vilkas’s excuse.
“And I go wherever Vilkas goes, but you shouldn’t wait for us. We’ll be there eventually,” Farkas offered a sheepish smile. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, I’ll see you all there and rent us rooms.”
With a small wave, the new Harbinger ascended to the top level of the tomb and braced herself to face the cold. What she didn’t expect was that the high of the moment would carry her through the brisk air of Skyrim. Having the Companions at her back meant the world to her.
Especially Aela.
Things seemed to finally be turning up for the Dovahkiin. She only hoped it would remain that way.