Vaenyr nods, following Hadvar's advice, and looks around the keep's armory. He quickly finds a rack of standard Imperial swords, slightly thinner than in-game. He picks one up, testing its weight and handling, mentally comparing it to a late Roman spatha. After giving it a few test swings, he picks up a sheath and holster for it, setting them aside as he searches for some armor or clothing. After a while, he finds a set of Imperial heavy armor that is large enough for him to wear, although it is still a really tight fit.
After putting on the armor and attaching the sword to his belt, he returns to Hadvar, who is trying to open the metal gate to the rest of the keep. After watching him struggle and curse for a while, Hadvar eventually turns to him.
"Okay, this gate is stuck. Could you try to bust it open?"
Vaenyr is about to reject the idea, but a small part of his mind does want to test out his new body's actual strength. So, he nods and motions for Hadvar to get out of the way.
"I can try, I guess. But don't fault me if it doesn't work."
Hadvar nods and makes way for him. Stepping in front of the gate, Vaenyr grabs two of the horizontal bars, pulling up on them with a small groan. The gate creaks, being lifted out of its hinges; the small forged caps over them pop off. Vaenyr steps back with the gate, dropping it next to him with a smirk. Hadvar chuckles and steps through, walking through the now gateless doorway.
"Guess you are as strong as you look, my Breton friend. Right, have I told you my name yet? I am Hadvar, lieutenant of the Imperial Legion of Skyrim."
Vaenyr follows the man through the gate, down the large spiral staircase. He takes in the man's introduction with a smile, retorting,
"Well, my name is still Vaenyr. Now, what is the plan, lieutenant?"
Hadvar laughs again and points forward, where Vaenyr can spot another gate.
"After this, we can go down into the cell block, from where we will make our way through the tunnel that leads outside. My uncle lives in Riverwood, the next closest village from here; there, we should be able to get some help. And just call me Hadvar."
Vaenyr nods, then grabs the lever to the gate in front of them.
"Well, let's go visit your uncle then, right?"
Hadvar nods and is about to walk through the next gate, only to be forced to block a large greatsword with his shield as two Stormcloaks ambush him. Vaenyr quickly rushes in after Hadvar, pulling out his sword and parrying the second Stormcloak's large axe, pushing it to the side as he slashes the woman's abdomen. Her thick gambeson does block most of the damage from the blade, but the force behind it does push her back, causing her to fall to the ground. Hadvar takes advantage of his now distracted opponent and stabs him in the neck with his own sword.
As the first Stormcloak drops to the floor while spewing blood from his neck, the other one tries to stand up, but she topples over and vomits a mix of blood and bile, clearly having sustained a more serious injury than she thought. Vaenyr steps forward and cuts her neck open, watching as she quickly bleeds out onto the floor. Surprisingly, he does not feel any guilt over killing her. Maybe the violent death in his former life made him less susceptible to feeling guilt.
Hadvar steps up to the next door, opening it and looking down the next stairwell.
"Seems empty, but we should stay cautious. Expect more Stormcloaks from here on out."
Vaenyr nods and shakes the blood off his blade, then follows Hadvar down to the next floor of the keep. As the two arrive at the tunnel to the cell block, there is a small quake, which collapses the tunnel in front of them. Hadvar growls in anger and motions to a door to the side.
"We might be able to go through the storage rooms; the wall there was already unstable last week, and it might have fallen from the quake."
Stepping through the door, the two can indeed spot a large hole in the wall, but it is guarded by three Stormcloaks. Getting spotted almost instantly, the largest of the three tries to behead Vaenyr with his axe, forcing him to dodge. After that, he grabs the shaft of the axe and uses it to pull the man closer, skewering him on his drawn sword. He turns to Hadvar, who is currently attempting to block both of the remaining Stormcloak's attacks with his shield. Stepping over, Vaenyr stabs one of the two in the neck before letting go of the grip and punching the other one in the back. The man is pushed forward, falling right onto Hadvar's sword, the blade stabbing through his eye and coming out the back of his head. Hadvar pulls his sword free with some effort, then gestures to the barrels around them.
"Hey, maybe we can find some healing potions around here; take a look. I will scout ahead."
As the man rushes forward through the hole in the wall, Vaenyr takes a look at his own sword before deciding to take up one of the greatswords the Stormcloaks used instead. He then looks through some of the shelves quickly before following Hadvar through the hole and into the next room. After running through the short tunnel, Vaenyr arrives in what he knows to be the torture chamber, where Hadvar and two Imperials are fighting another group of Stormcloaks.
With the advantage of being unseen, Vaenyr raises the greatsword he picked up, beheading the man in front of him, freeing up the hooded man the Stormcloak was fighting. The man gives him a nod, then turns around and shoots out a bolt of lightning at the other Stormcloaks, hitting one in the back and killing him. With the advantage now clearly in favor of the Imperials, Hadvar manages to kill another of the distracted Stormcloaks, while the other Imperial soldier bashes the final Nord with his shield.
The four stand between the bodies of their enemies, and the hooded soldier turns to Hadvar, who is sheathing his sword. "Lieutenant Hadvar, right? Thank you for the help. Here." The man throws Hadvar a bag, then motions to the dead prisoners in the cells.
"This is the last I got out of these guys. If you get the chance, bring it to a Legate; they might be able to work something out from it."
Hadvar nods and gives the two soldiers a quick salute, then turns to you. "Let's get going, Vaenyr. It's only down this tunnel, then through a cave from now."
Vaenyr nods and follows Hadvar down the next tunnel, stopping him shortly before the next turn. "Hey, Hadvar, I hear someone talking."
Hadvar nods and pulls his sword out again, putting up his shield. "Yeah, I can hear it too now. Sounds like they have an archer, so try to stay behind me."
With a silent agreement, the two slowly walk around the corner, stealthily stepping out from the tunnel into the larger cave. A group of Stormcloaks is spread out over the rocks, with an archer standing atop the exitway they need to get to. They sneak along the side towards the exit, but they get spotted by one of the Stormcloaks, who tries to call out to the others; however, a quickly thrown dagger to his face silences him for good.
Unfortunately, the now-dead man falls over, his greatsword clattering to the ground and alerting the other Stormcloaks. Hadvar elbows Vaenyr, then lifts his shield up to block the arrow that flies toward them. At the same time, the other Stormcloaks run at them with their weapons raised, but Vaenyr manages to make light work of them. He kicks the first guy back, grinning as he hears the man's spine crack against the wall, then blocks the blade of the second opponent. The third Stormcloak tries to hit him with a thrown axe, but Vaenyr catches the weapon in mid-air, throwing it back at the woman. As she dodges the axe, Vaenyr grabs the man in front of him, pushing his head down onto his blade before rushing out of cover to stab the woman in the neck with the other sword.
A shiver runs over his back, and Vaenyr drops his sword, reaching out into the air, gasping as he feels an arrow caught in his hand. Hadvar and the archer are equally surprised, watching him drop the arrow, frozen in shock. They quickly manage to return their attention to the fight, though, with Hadvar blocking the next arrow with his shield before finally managing to stab the archer through the foot, pulling him down and bashing his face in with his shield. He then turns back to Vaenyr.
"Fuck, you really are a beast, aren't you? Did your parents have some Redguard blood or something?"
Vaenyr chuckles and shrugs, then jumps up to the exit after Hadvar.
"No clue, man. Let's get out of here now, right?"
Hadvar chuckles and nods, pulling a lever that lowers a bridge in front of them. After they step over the bridge, another quake hits the tunnel, causing them to look back at the now-collapsed tunnel, the bridge destroyed and any way back cut off. Hadvar sighs, then continues forward, motioning for Vaenyr to follow.
"Fuck, let's hope the cave doesn't collapse too. Let's rush."
The two start to run, moving down the cave through another layer of tunnels until they eventually emerge in a small cavern, a light shining through a window in the cave's ceiling. Hadvar stops, spotting a large brown bear sleeping right under the opening. Vaenyr follows his gaze, then gestures to Hadvar, asking whether they should sneak by or attack the bear while it is resting. Hadvar thinks for a moment, then gestures back, signaling for them to sneak along the side and out of the exit, without alerting the bear. Vaenyr nods and starts to walk to the exit, taking the longer path Hadvar indicated, quickly arriving at the crevice that leads to the exit. Hadvar tries to follow him, but he stumbles over a root, falling and catching himself on his shield. He tries to stay silent, but the sound of his shield hitting the ground is unfortunately too loud.
The bear growls and shifts, rising up from its sleeping position, sniffing the air as it tries to find the motionless pair. As the bear turns towards Hadvar, Vaenyr uses the opportunity, rushing in from behind and slamming his sword down on the bear's back. The metal hits the spine of the bear, a loud crunch echoing through the cave as the bones shatter under the force, the bear letting out a loud roar that reverberates through the cave. Hadvar quickly gets up, rushing in and bashing the bear's face with his shield.
The wooden base splinters against the bear's skull, but the metal frame gets stuck in the bear's neck, which tries to fight back against the two, letting out another roar and swinging its claws towards Hadvar. The soldier barely manages to evade getting disemboweled, the bear's claws leaving marks on his armor. Vaenyr pulls himself onto the bear's back, lifting his blade and stabbing down right into the neck of the animal, his blade sticking out from the bear as it topples over dead.
The two men give each other an exhausted nod before leaving the cave through the crevice, stepping out into the forests of Skyrim. Hadvar lets out a happy laugh, only to fall silent again as the dragon from earlier flies overhead. After making sure that the creature is no longer in sight, he turns back to Vaenyr.
"Well, follow me; I will get us to Riverwood."