A few hours later saw Eriah on her way back to Whiterun. As she suspected, Bleak Falls Barrow had been housing draugr. A fight with one of them had caused her to break the sword she had taken from Helgen when it hit her with the same Shout she had been hit with by the black dragon (which surprised her) but she found a more worthy weapon, a steel warhammer. While her mother had given her training on a variety of weapons, Eriah took to both sword and hammer in skill with an affinity to hammers overall. It left her without many options in defense since warhammers were two-handed weapons, making shields impossible to wield, but she was well-trained in hammers and wouldn't need one often. Of course, this was before she learned the dragons were returning. Still, if things got too dicey, she could always fall back on swords. Her excursion into the Barrow, draugr notwithstanding, was rather interesting. A group of bandits was camping out in the main entrance and she soon found a Dunmer deeper within, trapped in spider webs. He promised to help her deeper into the barrow but once freed, he ran off on her, forcing her to chase and then kill him. He had a golden claw on him with three symbols on the palm. She had taken it with her, thinking she might need it. And need it, she did. The claw was a key to a door that led to the main chamber.
Inside, she found the Dragonstone in the grasp of a Draugr Warlord. A short fight later found Eriah victorious with the Dragonstone in hand. That's when she noticed a strange wall. There were odd patterns carved into it, like an ancient script, and a word was glowing. Approaching it, Eriah felt something in her soul stir. The feeling faded, leaving her wondering what had happened. She made tracks out a shortcut and headed back to Riverwood to return the golden claw, which she had learned was stolen from the owners of the general goods store. After that, she headed back to the city. She made her way up to Dragonsreach and headed for Farengar's office. She paused in the door when she saw the wizard speaking to a hooded figure. "You see? The terminology is clearly First Era or even earlier. I'm convinced this is a copy of a much older text. Perhaps dating to just after the Dragon War. If so, I could use this to cross-reference the names with the other later texts." he said. "Good. I'm glad you're making progress. My employers are anxious to have some tangible answers." the figure said, revealing it to be a woman.
Eriah waited for their conversation to close when Farengar noticed her. "Hmm? Ah, yes, the Jarl's protege! Back from Bleak Falls Barrow? You didn't die, it seems." he said. Ignoring his guest for the moment, the young woman shot him another withering look. Did he really doubt her abilities? Farengar cowed a bit before noticing what she had in her hands. "Ah! The Dragonstone of Bleak Falls Barrow! Seems you are a cut above the usual brutes the Jarl sends my way." the wizard said, excitedly. Eriah slapped her forehead after he took it and turned away. "Stendarr have mercy." she cursed under her breath. "I got you the Dragonstone. What next?" she asked, a bit louder. "That is where your job ends and mine begins. The work of the mind, sadly undervalued in Skyrim. My...associate here will be pleased to see your handiwork. She discovered its location, by means she has so far declined to share with me. So, your information was correct after all. And we have our friend to thank for recovering it for us." he said.
Eriah looked at his guest, noticing she was a Breton about two decades older but still youthful and strong. "You went into Bleak Falls Barrow and got that? Nice work. Just send me a copy when you've deciphered it." the older woman said. "At least someone appreciates my skills." Eriah thought. They were then interrupted by Irelith. She seemed frazzled, not the sort of thing that happened often with Dunmer. She explained that a dragon was attacking the Western Watchtower and led both Eriah and Farengar to where Balgruuf sat. A guard was standing before the throne and the housecarl asked him to tell everyone what he had told her. Seemed the dragon had come from the south, making her wonder if it was the black dragon. Balgruuf asked for her service one more time and Eriah quickly agreed. She had to know if it was him. She followed Irelith to the city gates where they met up with more guards. The Dunmer explained what was going on and soon, they were on their way down the road across the plains.
They soon reached the Western Watchtower and it was clear the dragon had been there. The place was in shambles but there was no sign of the dragon. "No signs of any dragon right now, but it sure looks like he's been here. I know it looks bad, but we've got to figure out what happened. And if that dragon is still skulking around somewhere. Spread out and look for survivors. We need to know what we're dealing with." Irelith ordered. Eriah pulled her warhammer from her back and slowly started to fan out. That's when a frantic guard came out of the tower towards them. No! Get back! It's still here somewhere! Hroki and Tor just got grabbed when they tried to make a run for it!" he said in a panic. Eriah let the conversation fade to background noise as she got this strange sensation in her soul. A roar sounded and rounding the mountains was a dragon. But it wasn't the black one. This was a brown dragon, slightly smaller than the black had been but no less dangerous. Eriah felt her soul react to the dragon as if it were a challenger, just as it had to Ulfric. She dove out of the way as the beast spewed fire. With that, the fight got underway.
Unlike the black dragon, her foe didn't seem to take special interest in her, which made it easier to fight when it was trying to tear them all apart. After a bit, the dragon was downed and he roared, blood pouring from wounds. Eriah ran up to him, raising her warhammer. With a yell, she slammed it into his skull. The dragon reared up and did a surprising thing. He spoke. "Dovahkiin! No!" he roared. He collapsed to the ground, dead. The young woman slowly stood tall and the group gave a collective gasp. The body started burning from the inside out, leaving a skeleton behind and Eriah saw something flowing from the body into her own. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. She felt a strange power thrum within her and she looked at herself, wondering why she felt different. She then looked at her companions who were staring at her as if they saw a ghost. "I can't believe it! You're...Dragonborn..." one guard said. Eriah tilted her head in confusion. "Dragonborn? What do you mean?" she asked. The term sounded familiar. Growing up in the Empire, she knew the Septim Dynasty was also known as the Dragonborn Emperors. She thought it a fanciful term, since the symbol of the Empire was a dragon.
"In the very oldest tales, back from when there were still dragons in Skyrim, the Dragonborn would slay dragons and steal their power. That's what you did, isn't it? Absorbed that dragon's power?" the guard asked. "I don't know what happened to me." she said, honestly. "Only one way to find out. Try to Shout...that would prove it. According to the old legends, only the Dragonborn could Shout without training, the way the dragons do." he suggested. Eriah had no idea what was going on but things were starting to fall into place a bit. This explained much, like why her soul reacted the way it had to the black dragon, Ulfric, Aela, and the one she had just slain. If it was true she was Dragonborn, that meant she had a dragon soul. Irelith wasn't buying it. With some more pushing, however, Eriah decided to take a gamble that perhaps there was some truth to all this. Closing her eyes, she instinctively knew how to voice the Word she now knew she had gotten at Bleak Falls Barrow.
Taking a deep breath, she let it out. "FUS!" she Shouted, almost knocking a guard off his feet. The guards were awed. "That was Shouting, what you just did! Must be. You really are Dragonborn, then..." the one said. "That was the hairiest fight I've ever been in, and I've been in more than a few. I don't know about this Dragonborn business, but I'm sure glad you're with us. You better get back to Whiterun right away. Jarl Balgruuf will want to know what happened here." Irileth said. "Will do." Eriah said, departing. Her mind was racing with the knowledge she had gained. While it prompted more questions, it did explain a few things such as why the black dragon from Helgen seemed to have it out for her. Had he known what she was before she did? She was nearing Whiterun when she heard booming voices suddenly crack the sky. "DO VAH KIIN!" it shook the very air. Startled out of her mind, Eriah had ducked and covered her head. As the echoes faded, she slowly looked towards the Throat of the World. "What in Oblivion was that?" she wondered, as this strange compulsion to answer the call started tugging at her soul. Ignoring it for the moment, Eriah stood back up and continued on her way to Dragonsreach.
Upon entering the palace, she approached Balgruuf. "Good. You're finally here. The Jarl's been waiting for you." Proventus said. "So what happened at the watchtower? Was the dragon there?" the Jarl asked. "The watchtower was destroyed, but we killed the dragon." Eriah reported, still thinking about that battle and the call that issued from Tamriel's tallest peak. "I knew I could count on Irileth. But there must be more to it than that." Balgruuf prompted. The newly discovered Dragonborn, if that's what she indeed was, took a deep breath. Was he even going to believe her? "When the dragon died, I absorbed some kind of power from it." she explained. Balgruuf leaned back in his throne, studying her with interest. "So it's true. The Greybeards really were summoning you." he said. Confused, Eriah inquired further and learned the Greybeards were a group of men who followed the Way of the Voice and lived in the monastery known as High Hrothgar at the summit of the Throat. She then asked what they wanted with her.
"The Dragonborn is said to be uniquely gifted in the Voice - the ability to focus your vital essence into a Thu'um, or Shout. If you really are Dragonborn, they can teach you how to use your gift." Balgruuf explained. Eriah thought about it as Hrongar told her that this hadn't happened since Tiber Septim's day, back when he was Talos of Atmora. That made her seriously consider things. Talos was the patron god of her people, the same god the Empire was trying to strip the divinity of at the behest of the Aldmeri Dominion. If it was true that she was walking the path of Talos, then that explained why she felt the need to return to Skyrim. She had been following destiny's pull. What that destiny was, though, she didn't know yet but she had a feeling it had to do with the black dragon. Perhaps High Hrothgar was where she would get some answers. She had never imagined that so much would've had happened to her just by returning to the land of her birth. Balgruuf thanked her for her service and she went on her way. The compulsion to answer the call was growing stronger.
She was passing the steps leading to Jorrvaskr when she sensed someone watching her. Pausing, the young woman looked up to see the male Companion from the giant battle watching her pretty intently. She wondered what he was up to. Why was he looking at her so intently? Eriah tilted her head at him. Though she hadn't given him much thought before, she had a vague notion he had been watching her all day. It was only now that she was taking notice of him. Despite the distance, Eriah felt their eyes connect and it felt as if she were being drawn in. As if a connection was being forged between her and the Companion. She turned slightly towards him before, tempted to ask him what he was doing, before remembering that she had more pressing matters. Feeling a bit confused, she broke contact with the Companion and continued on her way out. For some odd reason, her face felt a bit warm but she pushed it to the back of her mind. It didn't take long for the unusual encounter she had with the Companion to fade into the background as she sold a few things she had picked up in the barrow to Adrienne, bought some supplies, went out to the stables to buy a horse, and was on her way. Balgruuf had told her the 7,000 Steps to High Hrothgar lay in Ivarstead, a small village in the Rift's western corner and the quickest way was to go through Riverwood and past Helgen, a place she intended to circumvent. Who knew where the black dragon had gone when he flew off?