Kapitel 453: Jarl' Meet Again

"Hmph, look who it is, the legendary traitor himself! Ulfric Stormcloak." Igrod Ravencrone, Jarl of Morthal all but spits as she sees Ulfric walk in with his housecarl Galmar Stone-Fist.

"I see you are well Igrod, surprising, most think to hand over their position well before moss starts to grow on them and the stench of rot sets in." he calmly retorts as he sits himself at the large circular table that the others Jarls were. He then glances over to Elenwen who was standing at the side of the room with her everpresent arrogant expression, "I see you're still here too, don't you have some puppies to kick? Or should I say kittens? The loss of Elsweyr must have hit the Thalmor hard, especially with how you're all now fleeing from Hammerfell."

Elenwen sneers, "Worry not, Ulfric, the phases of the moons matter little in the grand scheme of things. The same could be said for your Province-wide tantrum."

"Indeed, this is but a tantrum compared to the wrath I'll cast upon you and the Summerset Isles. You and your kin have made many enemies, all of which would gladly light the kindling that'd see you burn." Ulfric threatens with clear promise in his word. The Thalmor Ambassador takes no notice of it however, simply continuing to sneer in his general direction.

*Clak*

High King Torygg next walks in, pausing momentarily as he surveys the room and all of the Jarls present. "You're all here then, good, we have much to discuss." he states as he takes his seat. "First, I'd like to thank you, Ulfric, for putting our disagreement on hold while we attempt to deal with the issues that'd been disturbing Skyrim as of late."

Ulfric gives a short nod, "Your people are my people, regardless of where we stand, never forget that." he says, though, everyone present easily notices his specific wording.

Torygg ignores the potential implication and gives brief smile in return, "I'm sure you've all received word, not to mention noticed the ruin that used to be Solitude's walls. This was caused by an agent of Sheogorath, a giant mud crab that led an army to storm my gates. It's only through the will to fight of Solitude and the assistance from one Michael Tahlin that we go away with little to no losses."

Elenwen squints her eyes at this, "The same man who'd slaughtered a Thalmor Advisor for the College of Winterhold in cold blood?" she asks from the side, getting a glare from many of those present.

Torygg holds in a sigh and turns his gaze to Savos Aren, the Arch-Mage of the College of Winerhold who'd been requested to be present here for obvious reasons. "I'd had rumours but thought they were all hearsay. The Michael Tahlin I met didn't seem to be frothing at the mouth like a bloodthirsty berserker...?"

Savos wets his lips, "A former Apprentice, one with high potential who'd unfortunately gotten into a scuffle with the Thalmor known as Ancano-"

"In which he savagely took him by surprise with a spell to the back!" Elenwen asserts, believing Savos to have been party to it in order to remove any Thalmor influence in the College... Indeed, ever since hearing about what'd happened to Ancano, no people in a high enough position dared to try and replace him.

Ulfric slams his palm down on the table with a scowl, "Let the mage finish, mouthy elf bitch!"

"Damn you, Ulfric!" Igrod randomly exclaims in response, regardless if such words were called for or not.

"Quiet Igrod, you aren't finding any allies here by acting like some sort of Banshee, Balgruuf the Jarl of Whiterun states before turning to Elenwen, "I too would like to hear the Arch-Mage's account. As someone who was actually there and not liable to misstate the truth."

Torygg nods, "Arch-mage, continue." he says with a small wave.

"The situation that led to Thalmor Ancano's death was first instigated by said person. He'd apparently decided to goad a drunk sixteen-year-old girl into a duel for scuffing his clothes or some such... The duel began, and Ancano seemed to take great satisfaction in decimating the girl, she'd only recently started her education so the result was a given...

The moment she started taking wounds however is when Michael Tahlin decided to step in. He interrupted the duel by punching Ancano in the face hard enough to send him tumbling backwards..."

"Against the rules of your College." Elenwen adds despite herself.

Savos nods, "Which is why he is currently expelled... I intervened when it looked like Ancano was going to be killed, allowing the Thalmor mage to use a magical device to escape, enraging Michael... Then we all spotted Ancano fleeing via the bridge that connected the College to Winterhold..." he pauses, wondering if he should reveal who was truly responsible for the magic.

"Hmph, sounds about right for a Thalmor." Ulfric remarks, giving Savos some time to ruminate on his choices.

"Tactical retreat or not, Ancano was still a member of the Thalmor, and should not have been ambushed from behind. If anything, Michael Tahlin is the true coward!"

Torygg shakes his head, "I find that hard to believe since I personally watched the man dive headfirst into an army of mud crabs alone..."

"Aye, I'd take offence to anyone calling the twice-saviour of my city a coward. That boy is one of the few people I could see matching the legends of old." he remarks, high praise considering not even the Companions could get such words from him.

Eventually, he decides to just place Michael as the one responsible. Even with all the witnesses, it would be more believable for a well known and powerful mercenary to be capable of such damage. Plus, he had a soft spot for Megumin... Having her hunted down like an animal was the last thing he wanted. "Michael then decided to ignore my words and cast a spell upon the fleeing elf, obliterating him and the bridge..."