Potema Septim Potema Septim , also known as the Wolf Queen , was a Queen of Solitude in Skyrim ' s hold of Haafingar during the Third Era . She was the daughter of Pelagius Septim II and Quintilla . Her efforts to claim the Ruby Throne resulted in the War of the Red Diamond , which only ended with her death . Her actions during the war cemented her reputation as one of the most notable necromancer s in Skyrim ' s history . She is also one of the few historic figures to have been viewed by scholars as " unambiguously evil . " The Last Dragonborn may fight her in 4E 201 as Potema ' s Remains , in which form she displays the ability to shout . She is the primary antagonist of the quests " The Man Who Cried Wolf " and " The Wolf Queen Awakened . " Biography . Early life . Born to the Septim bloodline in 3E 67 , Potema was presented to her grandfather , the Emperor Uriel Septim II ; upon seeing the baby , he remarked that she looked " " like a she - wolf about ready to pounce . " " Potema grew up in the Imperial City , with distant parents , and a womanizing brother sixteen years her senior . She was tutored , and had also found the time to sneak around the Imperial Palace and pick locks , stealing documents that she used to blackmail members of her family . Courtship and marriage . By the age of 14 , Potema was a famous beauty with many suitors , but she was married to cement relations with King Mantiarco of the Nord ic Kingdom of Solitude , potentially following the misplacing of a marriage document to her older sister that Potema herself stole . Despite the arranged nature of their marriage , the elderly King Mantiarco loved her , allowing her " all the power she wished . " New Emperor and the birth of a son . In 3E 97 , after many miscarriages , the Queen of Solitude gave birth to a son , whom she named Uriel after her grandfather . Potema planted suspicion in Mantiarco ' s mind that his son by his first wife was not his , causing Mantiarco to proclaim Uriel his heir . Potema and Antiochus . Two years later , Pelagius II died , and Antiochus , Potema ' s brother , became Emperor . Potema allegedly threatened to blackmail him with a forged letter claiming him to be a bastard , but she was rebuffed . Mantiarco died the springtime after Pelagius , and Uriel ascended to the throne of Solitude , ruling jointly with his mother . During this time , Potema spent much of her time entertaining nobles from across Skyrim , High Rock and Morrowind gaining allies and spreading discontent against the Emperor . Both Potema and Uriel were visiting the Imperial Court in 3E 112 when Antiochus died , and Potema immediately challenged the rule of his daughter and heir , Kintyra II , claiming her to be a bastard . Potema ' s appeal to the Elder Council was ignored , and she returned to Solitude to assemble troops for war . War of the Red Diamond . Potema directly led troops for much of the war , including , in one account , the attack that led to the Empress ' capture in High Rock , and may have been involved in her execution at Castle Glenpoint . She also led troops in the subsequent rally of Imperial troops , commanding armies in Skyrim during the Battle of Falconstar in 3E 127 . During this battle , she received word that Uriel had been captured at the Battle of Ichidag in Hammerfell . Later that year , he was burnt alive in a prison carriage by an angry mob while en route to the Imperial City to face trial . On hearing the news , many of Potema ' s allies deserted and swore allegiance to Cephorus I . Decline and death . The War of the Red Diamond may technically have ended at Uriel ' s death , but Potema fought on for another ten years , summoning daedra and undead to fight for her . She is documented as dying after a long siege in 3E 137 . Some claim that she either infected her castle at Solitude with her evil , or passed a charmed wolf pendant on to her nephew , who would become Pelagius III . Both of these are attempts to explain his later madness . Interactions . Falk Firebeard , the steward of Jarl Elisif the Fair , sent the Dragonborn to investigate Wolfskull Cave near Solitude . Investigating the deepest reaches of the cave , the Dragonborn discovered a cult of Necromancers , attempting to summon Potema and bind her soul for their own purposes . They were believed to be unsuccessful , until Firebeard sent the Dragonborn to retrieve Potema ' s remains to prevent any such dark ambitions from being actuated again . Styrr , a priest at the Temple of the Divines , led the Dragonborn to Potema ' s catacombs below the temple , where her skull sat . When the Dragonborn located the remains , it was discovered that although necromancers were stopped , Potema ' s spirit was summoned successfully and she was able to exist as a hostile specter , a ghostly phantom of her former self . Returning the skull to Styrr after defeating the Wolf Queen , the Dragonborn learned that Potema dabbled in necromancy while still alive , explaining why she was able to escape and stay as a ghost with free will after the ritual of the cultists failed . The priest also mentioned that had Potema been successfully resurrected , she would have the most legitimate claim to the Cyrodilic throne , which would have effectively ended the Mede Dynasty and revived the Septim Dynasty .