A/N: My first Skyrim story! :) I'm pretty excited to write this, and I hope you find my main character interesting. This story is going to to incorporate actual plot points and lines from the game. It's a pretty simple plot, following the main storyline, civil war quest, and other random questlines, with some interesting twists, characterizations, and easter eggs. ;) Let's see if you get them. Hope you like it!

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Skyrim. Bethesda does. Sorry.

ARETHIS: DRAGONBORN UNKNOWN

Chapter 1 - Born

Arethis.

Arethis, listen to me.

You have been called here for a reason. Your purpose may not seem clear at first, and you may wish to go back, but you must not. You are the only hope for these people. For this land. Do not turn your back on what you know is right. Do not allow what you know is wrong.

This is the only advice I can give you.

Good luck, Dovahkiin. May the gods be with you.

A jerky movement awoke her. She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the bright ray of sunlight peeking out from behind a dark cloud, reflecting off of the thin layer of snow covering the ground. The steady clopping of hooves and soft whistling of the air in her ears kept her own heartbeat steady in the face of her confusion.

Where am I? she thought. Her eyesight cleared, and she recognized three figures, three men. They were all sitting in the back of a carriage, their hands tied behind their backs. The one to her right, a large, hardy man with long blonde hair and calm blue eyes, had a cloth tied across his mouth. The calmness in his posture confused her further.

"Hey, you. You're finally awake."

She slowly turned her head away from the strange man and looked at another man, similar in looks to the first one with his blonde hair and toughness. His own eyes were cooler, like steel, and almost silver in color, and his voice was a rough, guttural sound that matched his hardy exterior. Despite that, there was also a sort of kindness in his eyes, something like flecks of warm brown, almost gold.

She nodded slowly, still examining him.

He looked thoughtful. "You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us. And that thief over there."

Ambush? She thought. What is he talking about?

Now that he mentioned it, she realized that she had no idea how she had ended up in this situation, nor did she know where they were headed. In fact, she remembered nothing before waking up, except for a soft, echoing voice whispering strange things into her ear…

She didn't have time to respond or ask any questions. The other man in the carriage spoke. "Damn you Stormcloaks! Skyrim was fine until you came along. The Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn't been looking for you, I could have stolen that horse and been halfway to Hammerfell!"

She had not yet examined this man thoroughly, although she could tell already by his hard black eyes – full of fear and hate despite the red fury that colored his tone – that he was hardly worth her time.

They're all the same, she thought bitterly. Pathetic and hateful. She wondered how she even knew that, considering her lack of memories at the moment.

"You there."

Her eyes met his black ones, and she almost scowled.

"You and me," he continued, oblivious to her disdain, "we shouldn't be here. It's the Stormcloaks the Empire wants."

She considered this for a moment. He may have a point…except even I don't know why I'm here. She frowned inwardly, aware of the disadvantage she was in due to her lost memories.

"We're all brothers and sisters in binds now, thief," the silver-eyed man said, grimacing.

"Shut up back there!" the carriage driver commanded.

She had hardly given the driver any attention, but now that she was fully aware of his presence, she realized that he was wearing a full suit of armor. And in front of their carriage was another one with more men tied up in the back.

So we have been captured, she thought, but why?

She glanced curiously at the strange man next to her, his calm blue eyes peering out into the trees as if he barely knew she and the other two men where there.

"What's wrong with him, huh?" the second man queried. His voice had calmed, but he was gazing suspiciously at the strange, blue-eyed one.

"Hey!" the silver-eyed man growled. "Watch your tongue! You're speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King!"

The other man looked surprised. "Ulfric? The Jarl of Windhelm?" His voice suddenly took on a panicky tone, and the fear grew ever stronger in his black eyes. "Y-You're the leader of the rebellion. If they've captured you…oh gods. Where are they taking us?"

The silver-eyed man turned away, looking forward towards the structures that most certainly announced their impending arrival at their final stop. His face was grim. "I don't know, but Sovngarde awaits."

"Sovngarde…" she whispered, a faint spark in her mind alerting her to the familiarity of the word. The spark flashed blue and purple, covering her mind with an alarming white haze that obstructed her thoughts. She tried to push through the haze, to see the colors behind it, only to meet with red eyes, a streak of red and back, and then complete darkness.

She shook her head and realized that she had been closing her eyes.

The silver-eyed man was looking at her when she finally opened them.

"That was the first word I've heard you say," he commented with a very faint hint of a smile. "Sovngarde mean that much to you?"

She nodded. More than he knows…or I, apparently.

"You don't say much."

"I'm aware."

His eyes scrutinized her thoughtfully. "Mysterious…not easily swayed. I like that. What's your name?"

She hesitated for a moment. Then, a faint glimmer of a memory, that soothing voice speaking strange words into her ear that seemed almost like a dream, spoke for her.

"Arethis."

The voice was not her own, she could tell.

Arethis, listen to me.

"Arethis…interesting name. Not a Nord's name, surely. Where are you from?"

You have been called here for a reason.

"Far away," she said carefully, deliberately, without letting on that she knew absolutely nothing about herself.

He raised an eyebrow. "And…why are you here?"

Your purpose may not seem clear at first, and you may wish to go back, but you must not.

"…reasons," she responded, her head aching suddenly from the voice that was jumbling her thoughts and making it difficult to think clearly. "What's your name?"

The man nodded thoughtfully but didn't press any further. "Mine's Raelof. I'm from Riverwood, here in Skyrim."

You are the only hope for these people. For this land.

"And why are you here?" she asked, trying to distract herself from the headache.

Raelof laughed. "I suppose you aren't asking what I'm doing in Skyrim. How I ended up here?" He shrugged. "Just doing what I could for my people. The Empire has taken Skyrim away from the Nords, and me and my comrades only wish to change that. Now tell me, is that so wrong?"

Do not turn your back on what you know is right. Do not allow what you know is wrong.

She didn't respond. Her head was aching badly now, like someone was repeated stabbing it was a knife. She gasped, the pain searing her mind.

What…? she thought. Am I going to die already?

This is the only advice I can give you.

"Arethis? Are you okay?"

Good luck, Dovahkiin. May the gods be with you.

And she fell into darkness, with the word "Dovahkiin" echoing relentlessly until it was engraved into her subconscious.

Arethis awoke once more, this time jolted by rough hands that grabbed her arms and dragged her out of the carriage. Her eyesight cleared quicker this time, and she became aware of the buildings around her and the two people clad in armor that stood in front of her. One was holding a list.

"Who are you?" the man asked.

"…Arethis," she said, deadpan.

The man turned to the steel armor-clad woman next to him. "What should we do? She's not on the list."

"Forget the list! She goes to the block," the woman commanded mercilessly.

"By your orders captain."

Arethis was led to where the others were standing, surrounding a stone block that was stained red with blood next to which a large man with an axe stood. The lump of stone they called the block was almost comical; so small, so insignificant, and yet, men died there. She almost laughed at the sight. It was pitiful.

One of the armor-clad men approached Ulfric. They stared at each other, as if battling with only their eyes; blue versus hard steel.

"Ulfric Stormcloak…some here in Helgen call you a hero. But a hero doesn't use the power of the Voice to murder his king and usurp his throne." Ulfric eyes remained calm, though they had a strength about them that intrigued Arethis further. The armor-clad man narrowed his eyes, and his voice became angrier. "You started this war, plunged Skyrim into chaos. And now the Empire is going to put you down and restore the peace!"

Suddenly, a roar sounded from the distance, echoing ominously. Everyone looked around, surprised.

"What was that?" someone said.

The man who had been speaking to Ulfric looked suspiciously at the sky. Then, he shook his head. "It's nothing. Carry on."

"Yes, General Tullius!" the armor-clad female who had so mercilessly sent her to the block exclaimed enthusiastically. Arethis found her enthusiasm amusing.

The first man was called up to be executed. Arethis watched carefully as the executioner raised his axe, his eyes dull gray and emotionless, and brought it down upon the poor man's neck. The blade sliced through the skin and bone easily, making a loud cracking noise as it crashed through the bone. The head rolled lazily into the box at the foot of the block, and red blood splashed out of the open neck with a sickening slurping noise. The body twitched, slumped and finally rolled off the block, covered with bits of its own blood, like sprinkles, from the initial splash.

It was strangely fascinating to watch. She gazed curiously at the executioner's axe, the blade now soaked with angry red blood, giving it a menacing look as intriguing as it was grotesque. She felt a sudden urge to have her own, although who she would use against was still under debate. She liked Raelof. Ulfric intrigued her. The man she disliked from the carriage ride was nowhere to be found in their group; perhaps that was him, lying dead on the ground up the road with an arrow in his back. She certainly wouldn't be surprised. The other prisoners had given her no reason to dislike them yet. And even the armor-clad ones were interesting enough.

She realized that she was being led towards the block. It was her turn. Her turn to die. To go to Sovngarde? Maybe there, she would find answers.

She rested her head on the block without complaint, facing the executioner. As she was about to close her eyes, she saw a black figure in fly through the sky in distance behind him. She jolted upright and stared at the sky. Had she imagined it?

"Get back down!" someone commanded angrily, shoving her head back onto the block.

She turned her head again so she could see the executioner and the sky behind him, searching for that strange, familiar-looking figure before she died. As the axe was raised, a roar, louder and closer than before, resonated in the air.

And then, she saw it.

A black reptilian figure with wings flew down from the sky and landed on the structure behind the executioner, causing the ground to shake violently. Her vision blurred as her head struck the block due to the force of the quake.

Her senses were shocked and numb. She heard garbled yells and cries for help as she struggled to regain her hearing. Her vision was shaking, and she realized that the structures around her seemed blurry and colored with a dull gold. As her vision went back to normal, she realized that the dull gold was actually an effect of the dark clouds that covered the sky coupled with the growing flames that engulfed much of the rubble on the ground.

It took her only a moment to figure out that the town had already been destroyed in only the few seconds she had been recuperating. She glanced around and saw the armor-clad ones with bows and arrows, shooting at the reptilian figure in the sky. It would swoop down and spray fire from its mouth in retaliation, a red hot inferno that destroyed everything in its path, and then rise into the dark clouds and disappear or burn through the sky towards another part of town, fighting more people.

On the ground a few feet from her, she spotted the executioner, his body limp and lifeless and his bloody axe laying across his body. Her eyes twinkled. She quickly stood up and stumbled over to his body. She reached for his axe.

Before she could reach it, someone else grabbed it and ran off, charging towards another part of town with a primal war cry where the beast was surely waiting.

Disappointed, she stood up again, holding her knees as she attempted to regain her balance.

"Here, let's get moving!"

She blinked as she stared at the shining sword in front of her, held by the rough hands of Raelof. She grabbed it slowly, examining the sleek steel blade that glowed red with the surrounding fire. Her eyes glistened with joy.

Raelof grabbed her shoulder and shook it. "C'mon, the gods won't give us another chance! This way!"

She nodded and ran after him towards an open door, inside of which were only a few others, including Ulfric and an injured woman. The woman lay on the floor, surrounded by blood, moaning. Arethis started walking towards her with the intent of helping to ease her pain, but Raelof put an arm out to stop her.

"Nothing we can do for her," he muttered, grimly. Then he turned to Ulfric, who stood there unbound, his blue eyes as calm as ever with a hint of steel in them. " Jarl Ulfric, what is that thing? Could the legends be true?"

Ulfric's eyes met Raelof's, and then turned to Arethis. They shook her, almost as if they had a physical power of their own. "Legends don't burn down villages," he said.

His words had a truth about them that couldn't be argued with. Raelof nodded, and then yelled, "We need to move now!" to all who could hear.

"I'll go see if there's a way out through here!" one man said as he sprinted up the stairs.

As he left, Arethis looked at Raelof. "Legends?" she asked.

Raelof grimaced. "Don't tell me you've never heard the legend of the dragons."

"Dragons…" she said slowly. Of course. I should have known that's what it was.

"You haven't?"

She shook her head. "But I know what they are." Somehow. But how?

"You must've," Raelof insisted. "Everyone in Tamriel knows the legend of the dragons that used to roam the entire continent."

"I told you I come from far away."

He looked shocked. "You're not from Tamriel? I didn't know that was even poss – "

A loud crash sounded form the up the stairs. Raelof and Arethis looked up in surprise to find the large, black head of the dragon poking through a hole in the wall. It's glowing red eyes glanced hungrily at the man on the ground in front of him, trapped under rubble, before it reared its head and spewed raging hot fire with a screeching sound as piercingly painful and menacing as the fire itself. The man screamed in agony for only a few seconds. Then, the dragon flew away.

Raelof moved quickly. "We'll have to talk later. But for now, let's get out of here!"

Arethis paused and looked at Ulfric, who made no move. She raised an eyebrow, and he smirked back.

"Don't worry about me. I'll take care of myself."

With a nod, she ran up the stairs after Raelof. Together, they jumped out of the hole in the building and landed carefully in a house, careful to avoid the fire and rubble. Once they made it out of the house, they came upon a group of people, mostly the armor-clad ones, who were facing the beast head-on on the ground. They both did a double-take and hid behind a pile of burnt wood.

Raelof examined the area and then pointed. "Over there. They're too busy fighting the damned beast, they won't notice us if we move quickly."

Raelof sprinted off, with Arethis trailing behind him at a slower pace as she gazed at the beast with awe. It fought back ruthlessly against bows and swords. It scales were sleek and black, formed into ominous spikes on its head and back. Suddenly, its red eyes met her own, and she nearly froze. Then it reared its head and roared.

As they continued to run, the image of the red-eyed beast floated in front her eyes. Something about that split-second of eye contact had left her thoughtful. The red was an evil red, yes, but there was also a hint of black, of despair or fear. Or both. A dark nothingness amidst the rage and hate so prominent in his eyes with no pupils. This left her curious.

She and Raelof entered a building, inside of which lay a dead woman with armor. Raelof instructed her to take the woman's armor – she wouldn't be needing it anymore anyway – and practice taking a few swings with the sword.

As she finished putting on the armor, Raelof tensed. "Someone's coming!" he said. He stood beside a door, preparing to fight.

When he noticed that Arethis hadn't moved, he said, "What are you doing? Get ready!"

Arethis shook her head. "I won't."

Raelof opened his mouth to argue back, but then the door opened and two armor-clad ones walked into the room. Immediately, Arethis fell to the ground and pretended to be dead. With her eyes closed, she heard the clashing of blades and the clinking of armor, as well as the screams and moans of the dying. When the room was silent again, she opened her eyes and saw Raelof standing over her, his silvr eyes narrowed, but not in a suspicious way.

"Why?" he asked as she stood up.

She took a moment to put her thoughts together, analyzing her reasons for doing what she did, and spoke deliberately. "I don't want to kill anyone who I have no reason to hate."

"But they're Imperial soldiers, they're enemies of Skyrim! Of the Nor - !"

"When we're battling a beast, no one should be enemies," Arethis interrupted. "Lest we're too busy killing our own to notice the beast has won."

Raelof was silent for a moment, his mouth open with awe and his eyes pensive. Then, he bit his lip, as if considering what she had said.

After a few moments, he nodded. "I think I understand," he said. "But…if we run into more Imperials, I will not hesitate to kill them either. We may be fighting a beast, but I won't stop fighting for my people."

Arethis felt the corners of mouth rise slightly. "Fair enough."

After searching through the bodies, they found a key which led them out of the room. As she followed Raelof, Arethis stared at his back, still smiling slightly.

What an admirable man, she thought. Fighting for what he believes is right. I only hope that I can do the same.

Her mind turned to thoughts of the voice in her head and the message that it left for her. Dovahkiin…

As Raelof and a few others who had joined the escape fought more Imperials, Arethis continued to contemplate the message and the word "Dovahkiin." What was Dovahkiin, exactly? How did it relate to her? When she had passed out in the carriage, it had seemed to clear to her then, but now, she had no idea what it meant. She understood clearly enough that she had been placed in this situation for a reason, although the reason was still a mystery to her. She also understood that she had to be some sort of hope for the people of this land, the people of "Skyrim" as Raelof had called it. What did she have to do? When would it all be made clear to her?

The curiosity was killing her.

As she and Raelof entered a cave, the rocks behind them suddenly collapsed with the force of the dragon's shout above, trapping them into the cave and keeping the other escapees out.

"They'll have to find their own way out," Raelof said tersely before continuing on.

They crept through the cave, stepping carefully and quietly with their weapons drawn as they searched for potential threats. It didn't take long before they came upon a sleeping creature, large and furry, at the other end of the cave. Raelof bent over and whispered into her ear, "Would you like to take care of it this time? It's just a bear. People hunt them all the time. Hardly anything wrong in that."

Arethis shook her head. "No, you do it."

He sighed. "Alright, if you say so." He crept quietly forward, his sword drawn. His intent was obviously to sneak up on the bear and kill it swiftly with his sword. Before he got far, Arethis said, "You don't have a bow or anything?"

He put a finger to his lips, indicating that she shood be quiet, and whispered, "No." He kept moving forward.

When he was within a few feet of the bear, his foot suddenly made a loud crunching noise. He looked down at the ground, panicked, and then at the waking bear, which growled. He moved back slowly and hid behind a rock before the bear could spot him. Unfortunately, as it spun around to look for the cause of the noise, it spotted Arethis, who had been too busy watching Raelof to consider hiding. It growled and sprinted towards her, with only one intent.

Kill.

Kill.

KILL!

With no hesitation, Arethis prepared her sword and, with one swing, decapitated the beast, striking it down with ease. She sheathed her weapon calmly, although her eyes were glistening with a sort of wicked glee.

Raelof ran over to her from across the cavern. "Are you alright? What…" He stopped next to bear, examining her work. "What did you do? I thought you wouldn't kill it."

"It had the intent to kill," Arethis explained, shrugging. "Therefore, I had every reason to return the intent." When Raelof only stared at her, she sighed and bit her lip. "I'm not claiming to be a moral person. I only do what I think is right."

Raelof nodded. "I understand." He looked around, checking for any other threats. "We should go. The exit is that way."

As he began to walk away, Arethis hesitated, a nagging feeling prodding her mind relentlessly, and then exclaimed, "And I don't want to die!"

He stopped and turned to face her. She looked down, slightly flustered that she had shared that feeling. It was an ugly feeling, she realized, that would make her do almost anything, right or wrong. But she didn't want to die. Not anymore.

Still looking down, she said, "Sovngarde may have answers, but not all of them. There are things I want to know that I have to be here for. And I can't die until I know. No matter what." She raised her head, and her eyes met Raelof's. "Is that…is that so wrong?"

Raelof smiled and laughed. "I think that's the most I've heard you say at once. But no, it's not wrong. It's only human."

Those words calmed her racing mind and heart. She smiled slightly too, and then composed herself and assumed her usual cool exterior. Together, she and Raelof crossed the cavern and ran through the winding tunnels after until they saw a bright white light. Raelof picked up his speed, his excitement growing with every step. Arethis did her best to keep up with him as they ran into the light and found themselves face-to-face with beautiful rainbow sunset, the trees and rocks casting long shadows on the shimmering snow.

Then, there was a loud roar, a streak of black, and the dragon disappeared.