Indira Skyrim Fic

Disclaimer: All familiar characters belong to Bethesda Studios. I own Indira Rosebed.

Chapter 36: Learning the Secrets

I was in good with the Greybeards, according to Delphine. Yes, I was; they had taught me much in the way of understanding the power of the Dragonborn and what it meant to have this sort of power. Yet, somehow, I could not help that they had not taught me everything I wanted to know. Perhaps it was for the best at the time; I was relatively inexperienced with the power that I had at my disposal, and I had thought I had learned the limits of some of those powers. But, I had journeyed all over Skyrim, crawling through decrepit dungeons and encountered ghastly creatures and monsters, all the while, learning new words and attacks, sharpening my skills with my blade, bow, and Thu'um. I was stronger now; stronger than I had ever felt before, and I only felt I could get stronger, and, the way to do that was to defeat Alduin.

I arrived at the mountain top, learning that the Greybeards had just arisen for their morning duties. Arngeir was sitting in a chair, reading an ancient text. He looked at me and nodded an acknowledgement. He asked how I was doing, and I told him of some of the adventures I had been a part of. Arngeir seemed to smile at that; he knew I was training with the power I was blessed with. I felt a little nervous as I voiced a question I had about the shout that defeated Alduin.

Arngeir's face darkened. He asked me,

"Did you speak with the Blades?"

I told him,

"I went to Alduin's Wall and saw it. They said it was the only way to stop Alduin was some sort of dragon shout."

I was careful not to mention Delphine or Esbern; who knows what might happen, or who was listening in on us that would do them harm. Arngeir glared at me,

"You wretched girl! You were supposed to develop this power maturely! Do you have any idea what you are doing, helping those people; the Blades?! This was not what being a Dragonborn is about!"

He would have gone on a tirade, but, a booming voice suddenly silenced him. I could barely understand it, but, it seemed to be coming up from higher in the mountain. I cringed a little at it; it was not anything I had ever heard before. This seemed to be much louder than a dragon's roar, yet, I could not help but wonder if it was.

Arngeir sighed, visibly calming down. He said,

"I apologize, young one. Our leader, Paarthurnax, our founder; he has heard you asking about the shout and he would like to see you."

I asked,

"Another Greybeard? How come I do not meet him the last time I was here?"
Arngeir said cryptically,

"When you meet him, you will understand why. Come with me."

I could see the other Greybeards coming with us, and, as we ventured out into the cold, Arngeir explained,

"Our founder is located further up in the mountain, which is impassible because of the strong currents. However, I will teach you a shout that will get you through them."
We stood at a gateway of sorts, and I could feel the biting cold from here. The air was also thin, and I began to have a hard time breathing. I shook my head, trying to remain focused, but, with the air not being what it was on the ground, it was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe. I should not try and run, unless I absolutely had to.

Arngeir then began teaching me the words to the shout to clear the way for Paarthurnax. Before he began, I asked why Arngeir could not teach me the shout. He said that the knowledge was lost a long time ago, but the creators knew it well. He also said that the founder would know more.

Clear Skies.

That was the name of the shout that would clear the weather and get me to their founder Paarthurnax. The words were traced onto the ground and, as I stood over each one, the word's power came into me. Their knowledge of controlling the weather, clearing the rain away and letting the bright sun into the valleys and hills was entering through me. I felt a calmness; it even became easier to breathe somewhat as I exhaled each word off of the tip of my tongue. Then, I finally unlocked all of its power. Arngeir said that this would be the last thing he could teach me; that, despite me helping the Blades, he knew I had come a long way from when I started. I used the shout and cleared the harsh, cold winds away. I was off up the mountain.

I had to work fast, and, seeing as the weather would return to its normal state if I did not keep moving. The icy, chilly weather made it treacherous for me to just normally pass through, but, with the Clear Skies shout, it was far easier. You might even say it was a breeze.

I finally reached the top, and the skies had darkened. It seemed the inclement weather did not affect the very peak of this mountain, and, I noticed nearby, a dragon wall. I was about to approach it when a loud chuckle could be heard. I could hear something swoop down on me and, as I looked up, I saw it.

A dragon.

I swallowed, and my first instinct was to find cover, but the dragon chuckled. This dragon was different than the others I fought and, as I watched in awe, the dragon seemed to stand and take a bow. He greeted,

"Greetings, my dear Wood Elf. My name is Paarthurnax."

I was a bit confused and flustered. I was expecting another human, or someone of my size to greet me, not a glorious dragon! Yet, somehow, I do not know why; every fiber in my body said that I should be running and hiding. This dragon was different than any other dragon I had encountered, even Alduin. Paarthurnax seemed to smile and said,

"Ah, you are surprised to see me? Were you expecting something more…unimpressive? Something more…human?"

I swallowed loudly, knowing that I was driving his patience, but, at the same time, I had no idea what I was going to say. What was I going to say to this dragon? The large dragon then looked at me and said,

"I have been watching you for some time, my dear Wood Elf. You impress me with your skill in the Thu'um. How about I have a taste of your power?"
He shifted his head to the wall,

"Learn the word over there. Feel its power course through your very being."

I slowly approached the dragon wall, every so often looking back at the dragon, to see what he would be doing. I approached the wall, and then, felt a rush of heat enter my body. The words for fire. I could not believe I was learning the words of fire breathing. Parrthurnax looked at me and laughed,

"Ah, so you have learned the words. You felt it, did you not? The power in them?"
I then felt the dragon give the knowledge to unlock these words. The power was somewhat different; burning. I was learning how to burn things and my fists clenched down tight. I closed my eyes, trying to fight back tears and, as I turned, he said to me,

"Now, show me your power. Show me how much you have learned of your Thu'um. Release your fiery breath upon me!"

I looked at him. He almost was taunting me, daring me to attack. I had no choice. I had to do this. I was not going to let him taunt me. I do not know why, but I had a feeling that, if I did this, I was going to live. He was testing me, I just knew it in my heart he was. I whispered a prayer to the gods, hoping I was right. Then, I let him have it. The full power of my fire breath Thu'um.

Paarthurnax stumbled a little, but then began laughing heartily. He said,

"It has been far too long since I had someone of such skill speak to me in the ancient tongue."

I saw him take off and fly up to the stone. I then asked him about the dragons shout that could stop Alduin. According to Parrthurnax, the particular shout I wanted to learn was not made by dragons, but by mortals, channeling their anger and resentment of dragons into one glorious shout. The only way that I could learn it is if I go back to the times of the ancients and learn it directly from them.

I asked how that was possible to travel back in time like that, and Parrthurnax explained that Alduin was from the past itself. I blinked in confusion and he explained that Alduin was supposed to be sealed away forever, lost in-between time itself. However, the very mountain that I was standing on was the source of that time wound, as Parrthurnax explained. I would need an Elder Scroll, something that the ancient Dwarves had locked away in one of their cities to learn the shout that would defeat Alduin.

Dragonrend.

He then looked at me and smiled, and I immediately began to shiver again. I brushed my hair back. I had seen that type of predatory smile before; on some men in Skyrim that wanted their way with me. He said that, if I returned with the Elder Scroll to this location, then, he would help me open the Time-Wound and travel back.

I had little choice but to agree to it...

Next Chapter:

Learning of the Elder Scroll…