Paarthurnax sat on his perch atop the Throat of the World, meditating as he had been for an age. It was now Year 201 of the Fourth Era. Having been removed from the world at large since the end of the Dragon War, the white dragon had seen very little change but knew such change had been wrought since. Ever since Alduin was banished by the Elder Scroll used by the first Tongues, Paarthurnax knew that he wasn't gone forever and he would return. The white dragon knew that his zeymah had been forced into their father Akatosh's realm and he wondered if he could see all as Akatosh did as he was shunted through it. Where Alduin would come back was known but not when. The Monahven had been where Alduin had fallen to the Elder Scroll, which left a Time-Wound behind. He would come out of the other side of the Wound itself. Paarthurnax had taken it upon himself to guard the mountain and he passed the time teaching the Way of the Voice. Time meant nothing to a dovah. They existed outside of it. Alduin could return at any moment from Paarthurnax's perspective.
The Old One, as he was once called, wondered how Alduin perceived his journey through Akatosh's realm. Was it a slow crawl or would it appear instantaneous? Would it be both? Such questions were beyond Paarthurnax. All he knew for certain was that Alduin's return was inevitable and he would be angry when he did. It troubled the white dragon. Having maintained his vigil on the Monahven since the Merethic Era, he knew his strength as a fighter had faded from his passivity. If he wasn't careful, Alduin would surely cast him down with either tooth or Voice and could very possibly end him for his betrayal so long ago. All Paarthurnax knew of what was to come after Alduin's return was this promise of Akatosh sending the Lastborn to take care of the issue. Over the ages, the ancient dragon had learned bits and pieces of what was known as the Dragonborn Prophecy. Akatosh would bless another with his blood and this Laat Dovahkiin would be tasked to do what the First Dragonborn, Miraak, had refused to do.
Paarthurnax, had he been younger, would've felt anger at the thought of Miraak. The First had been a priest in the Dragon Cult and when he revealed his powers, it had taken the dragons by surprise. They didn't know what he was, only knew he was a traitor to the order and he came into this terrifying power of ripping the souls out of dragons after slaying them. Paarthurnax himself had been tasked by Alduin to take Miraak down. While the Old One handled the Traitor's allies, he sent Vahlok to assassinate Miraak. After that, things got murky. Some reports claimed Vahlok had succeeded in slaying the abominable Dragon Priest while others claimed that Hermaeus Mora interfered and snatched Miraak away to Apocrypha. Either way, Miraak had spooked the dragons enough that they named him Dovahkiin, Dragonborn. As the years passed, Paarthurnax came to understand that Miraak had been blessed by Akatosh for the sole purpose of bringing Alduin to heel. Since he rejected that destiny, it made sense that Akatosh would choose another to take up the mantle. When Alduin returned, the Last Dragonborn would also be walking in Mundus. Paathurnax didn't know who his father chose but he would know them if and when they arrived at High Hrothgar. He would observe from on high and then permit the Greybeards to let them come to the summit.
Suddenly, the Old One felt a shift on the winds and the Time-Wound turned an angry red. "He comes." he thought. A distant roar echoed from within the Time-Wound. A large black shape was flung out of it and slid across the ground. Alduin roared, shaking his head and looking around wildly. He saw his younger brother sitting on the broken Word Wall and his red eyes flashed. "Traitor! My teeth to your neck!" he snarled before lunging at him. Paarthurnax managed to jump over him and landed hard behind him, watching as Alduin turned to face him again. It seemed his journey through Time, on top of the wounds he received from the Tongues, had both weakened and exhausted the Firstborn. "You have returned, at last, Alduin. I've waited many long years for this day," he said, squaring up against the black dragon.
Alduin's lordly head turned to look out over Keizaal for a moment. His journey through the Time-Wound had given him insight as to what had transpired in the world during his absence. Indeed, he had been the one to subtly suggest to Mehrunes Dagon that he instigate what history would call the Oblivion Crisis. Akatosh's plot against him was known to him, taking the form of what he knew to be the Lastborn. Even now, he could hear the song of dragon blood close by. His traitorous brother seemed deaf to it but Alduin had to learn as much as he could before he exacted his revenge and then hunt down the one their father destined to defeat him. "Do you not hear it, Paarthurnax? The song of our father's blood?" he asked. "I hear it. Though it is faint, I know the Lastborn has come. Whether they know it or not matters little. You realize what this means, do you not?" Paarthurnax asked. "Geh. I shall not be beaten by a mere mortal ever again. The pawn of our father shall fall to me when I find them. None shall stand between me and my destiny. I shall cast all of Keizaal down for betraying me!" Alduin growled, his rage evident.
"I will not let you!" Paarthurnax declared. With a roar, the white dragon lunged at the World-Eater. Alduin roared in reply and dodged the blow. He sank his teeth into Paarthurnax's neck and shook him. The two scuffled ferociously and it seemed the World-Eater had regained the strength he had lost. He slammed his brother's head into the ancient Word Wall, breaking it more than time's passage had. One of Paarthurnax's horns snapped off from the blow and Alduin followed up by slamming his face against the ground, breaking a chin spike. The Old One managed to free himself and swung his tail, hitting the Firstborn in the face. Alduin roared before taking to the air. "You've grown weak, Paarthurnax! I know you've spent the long ages of this world wasting away up here, waiting for my return! You couldn't defeat me before and you cannot hope to best me now! That I once called you zeymah...a mistake I will not make again. A curse on you!" he taunted. Paarthurnax rose into the air after him and the two dragons battled it out in the sky. When their Thu'um failed to make the other yield, Alduin heard the song shift and knew he had to finish this bout quickly. He couldn't afford for the Lastborn to slip between his claws. He had to end them as soon as possible because they posed a threat to him.
Diving at Paarthurnax, Alduin reached out with his clawed feet. He hit his brother with enough force to send him crashing into the summit where he lay still. Coming down lower, the Firstborn pumped his wings as he glared at the Old One. "Curse your weakness, Paarthurnax. You meant to distract me from the Lastborn but know in this moment that you failed. You will not stand in my way again. Once I raise an army, your life is mine to claim." he said, before flying off to the southwest towards Falkreath Hold. Paarthurnax lay in the snow, blood flowing from large wounds. Alduin had spoken true when he said that he could do nothing to stop him. Little did he realize that Paarthurnax's role wasn't to stop him but to aid the one sent by Akatosh to do just that. He prayed that whoever and wherever the Lastborn was, they would survive the coming encounter. For now, all he could do wait and heal from his battle. If destiny willed it so, they would soon find their way to his strunmah. He needed only to listen for the song of Akatosh's blood. It was faint, meaning the Lastborn hadn't yet awoken to their destiny. He predicted that whenever Aldiun was done with his first move, regardless of the Last's survival or not, he would raise Mirmulnir from his grave in Whiterun Hold. His burial site was the closest. Should the Last survive, Mirmulnir would likely be the second dragon they'd face and hopefully, defeat. His soul would be devoured and they would fully awaken as the Last Dragonborn. Only then would the Greybeards summon them to the mountain. Paarthurnax had faith in his father's wisdom and was confident that the Last would survive their encounter with Alduin wherever that first meeting took place. He would be patient.
Alduin flew over the pine forests of Falkreath. The song of his father's blood grew ever louder and his red eyes narrowed. He roared, wanting everything that drew breath to know he had returned. Below, forest animals fled in terror but he ignored them, singularly focused on his mission. He roared a second time, letting his rage be known to a world that had forgotten him. Circling around a small mountain, he encountered the small settlement of Helgen. The song was loudest here and he knew the Lastborn was within his grasp. Alduin came to land on the fort and stared down at the mortals. Screams were rising from the populace but his focus had zeroed in on his target. It was a Bron vahdin...a Nordic woman. The World-Eater's rage was thrice increased by this discovery. For one, Miraak had been a Nord himself so the idea that Akatosh had plotted against him by blessing another of their wretched race was insulting on its own. The bigger insult came from the realization this joor had no idea what she was. She was staring up at him in terror, knowing him for what he was but not who. The final insult was the fact her head was on the chopping block. For what crime, he didn't care. The insult came from the idea that the humans around her were planning on denying him his revenge.
Alduin Shouted, sending a storm of meteors down before following up with Unrelenting Force. A soldier moved in front of his target, clearly wishing to protect her. Alduin used Unrelenting Force again, shoving some mortals back. The woman he was after was indeed the Dovahkiin. She had instinctively withstood the power of his Thu'um. That wasn't a skill easily taught. Chaos claimed the town and Alduin cared little that he lost sight of his target in the mayhem. The mortals would pay for attempting to deny him his revenge and for forgetting him. Even if the Last should escape him this day, Alduin would begin raising his army once more. He could sense Mirmulnir nearby, somewhere in Whiterun. When a dragon died and there was no Dovahkiin around to devour it, their soul became locked in their bones and only Alduin could revive them. Mirmulnir was among the weakest of their kind but he would be more than a match for mortals who had lived their lives never knowing a living dragon. Nirn was left unprepared for the return of the dragons and Alduin intended to exploit that to the fullest extent of his power. So long as the Lastborn remained ignorant of Akatosh's plot to use her against him, Alduin did not fear the power she held within. As he flew around Helgen, killing as many mortals as he could and seeing his destined foe from time to time as she tried to escape him, Alduin's mind had but a single thought.
Zu'u los yol. Zu'u los dinok.
Dovazul:
Geh: yes
zeymah: brother
Bron vahdin: Nord woman
joor: mortal
Zu'u los yol. Zu'u los dinok: I am fire. I am death.
A/N: And no, I couldn't resist referencing Smaug. It would be something Alduin would say.