I look back upon those days and I realise after I had taken the marriage-oath with Vilkas, I had made my peace with staying in Skyrim. Skyrim was home now, it was in my bones, and I had everything I wanted. And I also realised, now that I was Harbinger and wed-bonded, I had run round in a circle once again. I had learned what it meant to run from fate – and I had learned the merit of facing it head on. There would be no more running. It was time to do what I was meant to do. And that meant that even revenge had to wait; more and more dragons were being sighted and while I had learned new words of Shouts, I still didn’t understand them all. I had to get back to the Greybeards and accept my wyrd.
For several days, we stayed inside our small house in Whiterun as was the Nord custom, eating and talking and laughing, learning about each other and realising the choice we had made was a good one. I told him everything – from my earlier days as a cut-throat and sneakthief, to the time I spent among the thieves in Riften, and my conversation with the Greybeards – they were much on my mind now, and even during these days I was thinking about them. Vilkas marvelled, and shook his head in disbelief but he listened even so.
“So now you head off and away to the Greybeards again,” Vilkas murmured quietly as he held me in his arms. ”I’ll go with you.”
I sighed and shook my head. ”I need you to stay here, Vilkas. Someone has to keep the Companions working and in line. Aela is too aloof and Farkas…well, he’s Farkas.”
“Aye, I know, love, but it grieves me to know you’re out there where I cannot fight at your side.”
“I’ll take you when I can – but we’ll still have much to do here, Vilkas. There’s work to be had, new Companions to train, and you don’t want those whelps running rampant do you?”
“I take your point,” Vilkas grunted, that stern glare on his face now. “Milk-drinkers, the lot! But I will go up the Steps with you even so. If it means I wait like a valet in High Hrothgar until you are ready to depart, then that is what I will do.”
And so, after making sure that things were squared away at Jorrvaskr, we made our way up the Seven Thousand Steps – with quite a few pauses, as this time I read the words and took in the meaning. Vilkas was with me, and I suppose that made it easier, somehow.
I left Vilkas at the door and strode forward, seeking out Arngier, and I found him meditating outside. He looked up at me, but there wasn’t any surprise on his features, rising to his feet smoothly.
“Hail, Speaker of Thu’um,” he said calmly. ”I can see by the look in your eyes that you have done much, and have made peace with your wyrd.”
“I have, Greybeard,” I said with a slight bow. ”And it seems I have a lesson to learn from you, yes?”
Without further ado, and not much aplomb, I was taught to move as fast as the wind with a Shout, taking the understanding into myself and learning with an ease which I sensed caught them all by surprise. I was not shirking my duty or wyrd this time; a job needed doing, and I would do it. This resolve however wasn’t quite enough.
“There is a task we must ask of you before we can teach you more, ” Arngier continued. ”In a place named Ustengrav, there is a horn of one of the first heroes of the voice, the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller.”
“It’s a tomb, isn’t it?” I sighed, dreading it already, but knowing I was going to have to do this task before I could progress. ”Fine…show me on the map and I will see it done.”
I strode out with Vilkas, and gave him a wan smile. ”Have I mentioned how much I hate draugr?”
“Frequently,” he said, giving me a gentle hug. ”Shall I come with you?” I frowned, remembering the fact I could now run even faster than before – something which I doubted the Greybeards had taught me just for fun.
”I have a feeling you won’t be able to follow me,” I replied. ”Return to Jorrvaskr, and when I return I’ll come to you.”
We parted ways and I retrieved my horse, making my way to Ustengrav, one of the biggest burial mounds I have ever seen; treacherous as the Nords seem to enjoy, with traps and spiders and cunning puzzles, but I managed to run with a dizzying speed to cope with them all. And draugr; yes, I still hated them, and they were strong and powerful, but so was my Thu’um. I left them as so much dust, though one or two gave me pains.
I made my way into the tomb centre, and found an elaborate altar where I assume the horn must have been…but no horn did I find. I looked everywhere, but there was nothing. Nothing but a piece of parchment, a note scrawled from “a friend”.
I scowled, muttering curses of both Nord and Bosmer origin, then sighed. Someone was well aware of me, then. Was it some elaborate game of the Greybeards? It didn’t seem their style however; they never left High Hrothgar, and I doubt they would have done this just to prove a point. Whoever had the horn was in Riverwood – I was well familiar with the place of course, and even if I would perhaps not see Ralof there, I could see how his sister was doing and perhaps pay her for her hospitality before.
So, still seething and covered in corpse-dust, I struggled out of the crypt and rode to Riverwood proper, stopping at the small inn and paying a quick visit to Gerdur to hear that Ralof had returned to the Stormcloak territory. I gave her a few coins (which she graciously tried to refuse, but I slipped into her pocket anyway when she wasn’t looking) then went to the Inn.
I entered the rather sleepy ins and studied the people inside, then narrowed my eyes slightly. I had seen this blond woman before – the one in the dress but with bearing which was anything but a peasant. Ah yes, the woman speaking with that court mage. Curious, indeed. I approached her, giving her a rather bland look, then put some gold on the table.
“This for your attic room for the night,” I said calmly, watching her reaction. She stared at me a moment, but I must say her recovery was very quick.
”We…don’t have an attic room. But…well you can take the one on the left, follow me, please.” Deftly she pocketed the gold, and then led me to the rustic rooms. Adroitly, I closed the door then turned and folded my arms, waiting.
“So, you remember me, yes?” she began, still studying me with a stance that had me on my guard, even though I was on firmer footing.
“Yes, and you remember me, seeing as I’m one of the few Bosmer around,” I said quietly. ”Interesting way of getting my attention…now, about that Horn?”
“Yes, you’re right, I’m the one who took it.” She turned to the chest at the end of the bed, and unlocked it with an iron key, handing the Horn to me.
”Now, I really need to speak with you, privately if you don’t mind.”
“Well, I’m here,” I said, tucking the Horn into my packs. I opened my mouth to say more, but she opened a wardrobe and then pressed the back panel to one side. I raised both brows as it revealed a secret room down a small flight of stairs.
”Through here, please, my cover has held so far but I won’t take any chances.” This woman was full of surprises. I followed her down, studying the small room; armour, weapons, maps, books…it was quite the setup.
”Who exactly are you?” I asked, turning to stare at her.
“My name is Delphine. I’m part of a special…organisation. I took the Horn to attract the attention of the Dragonborn.” She paused a moment, and I couldn’t help but give her a slightly wry smile.
“Not what you expected, I’m sure,” I said rather blandly. ”But you have my attention. Surely, you could have just asked around, people would have told you. What “organisation” is this?”
“I’d like to give you more information,” she said rather earnestly, “but I can’t right now. Not yet. But here’s what I can tell you – I’ve been figuring out what’s happening with the dragons. I now know what these dragons actually are.”
“That doesn’t seem too difficult,” I said. ”They’re dragons, they’ve come back.”
“No, they haven’t,” she insisted. ”It seems that someone is actually resurrecting them. They’re not new…they’re coming back to life.”
This caught me by surprise. But then I thought about it – I absorbed souls, and there was always nothing but bones left after I slew one. Wasn’t that rather…odd? Unless there was nothing but bones and soul to begin with. I shuddered, but it was something learned.
“Okay, we’ll assume that’s correct,” I said dubiously. ”But then where does that put us?”
“We need to find out who is making the dragons rise up again, and it seems that it’s actually following a direct pattern, going this way toward a place called Kynesgrove,” she pointed on the map on the table before her. ”I think if we can get to this tomb here – it hasn’t been visited yet, I’ve checked it out – then we may have a chance to find out who is actually raising these dragons and see if we can take them down.”
“Well then surely you don’t really need me for that,” I said. It seemed she was leaving something out, or perhaps that was just my perception. However the way she eyed me confirmed my suspicion.
“That’s just it – no one can actually permanently kill dragons. The souls just come back. Only the Dragonborn – or someone like him – can do that, by absorbing the soul.”
“Him?” I said, raising a brow, and she sighed and waved a hand.
”We Imperials know the Dragonborn through the male line. It’s not impossible for Dragonborn to be female….but…”
Ah. So she didn’t think it was me, then. At any other time, I may have agreed, but I had been through too much, and time was of the essence at this point. There were dragons rising up, and at this rate there would maybe be too many for even me to fight. I had tarried too long – but no longer.
“Right, then I think we’d better get ready to go, don’t you?”
Delphine shrugged. ”I’ll have to get some travelling gear on, but if you can find your way to the mound, I’ll meet you there at Kynesgrove. Be quick, we may not have much time to catch the mage raising these dragons.”
I went out and fetched my horse, but this time I went to get Vilkas as well – he was out training behind Jorrvaskr, and his face lit up when he saw me. I imagine I did the same when I spied him, too.
“All is well, my dear?” he asked, sheathing his sword.
“Well enough; no Horn but how about we go for a bit of dragon-hunting in Kynesgrove? Interested?”
I didn’t have to say anything else. He shouted some orders to his brother and Aela, gave the new recruits a parting glare that nearly turned their legs to water, and then we were off, riding in the fading light toward a dragon’s tomb.
