Disclaimer: I do not own the Elder Scrolls series

A Place to Belong: First Steps

Bright red eyes open in flash as a thousand memories were pushed to the fore front of his mind. He was a child in the Imperial City, walking around the market with his mother. Around them the people whispered.

"She must have been unfaithful."

"The child must be cursed."

"The boy should be put out of his misery."

The boy closed his fists in anger, as the poorly hidden words met his ears. It was a painful truth but a truth all the same that he did not look like his parents. They had simple dark hair, eyes and a fair skin tone, well his skin was pale, eyes red, and hair gray almost white in color. His anger built until his mother smiling gently put her hand on his shoulder.

His anger was forgotten as he looked at her smile. Her smile was a powerful thing it always put him at easy. His father was a simple smith that taught him the forge, and a former soldier who taught him the way of the blade, and shield.

They were happy, life was simple and routine, until his eighteenth year when both his parents took ill, the local healer could not help, so he took care of them during their final days. The last image of them was of his mother's smiling face, once so of life, now colorless and cold but it still put him at easy.

He buried them and tried to move on, but still people whispered.

"I heard he killed them himself."

"He sacrificed their souls to gain favor with Molag Bal"

"If the boy should have been put down years ago, maybe that poor couple would still be alive."

It took all of his control not to strike the fools down, but it made his plan to leave the following day much easier. With everything packed he said a prayer for his parents and headed toward the border for Skyrim. Well he knew that the land was chaotic because of the Civil War he also knew that chaos bred opportunity.

He was quite right because not soon after he arrived by ship into the crown jewel of Solitude, he had taken a bounty for the heads of some local bandits. From then on the next few months were filled with cave explorations, bandit killing, and inn visits. But just as life seemed finally stable again, it once again took a U turn.

The man was making his way to Markarth as he heard the beat of giant wings as the sun was eclipsed by a huge creature. A crash that shook the earth was heard a few miles away, quickly the man ran and caught up to the beast only for his breath to be taken away as he took in the beast's appearance.

Dying a few feet in front of him was a dragon, its dark blue scales red with blood. One of its eyes opened to reveal a golden eye as it last word was whispered in the man's head.

"Dovahkiin"

The next moment the dragon was engulfed in a magical light that slammed into the man and he was knocked off his feet. He awoke a moment later and saw the dragon was now a skeleton, but the man's eyes looked toward the mountain that towered over the skyline. A feeling pulled him toward the mountain and he followed it.

With a shake of his head the man cleared his memories away as he stood up and pulled his cloak closer toward him to ward off the cold. He was now halfway up the 1000's steps and on his way to meet the Grey Beards. He hoped that they knew what was happening for his dreams once full of his parent's smiles now were filled with visions of a black dragon, a burning keep, and the endless screams of dying people. Hopefully these old men would have answers.

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