Master Arngeir and the Ghosts of the Past
Inside the monastery was dimly lit by two braziers sitting at the bottom of two sets of stairs. Ragged banners fluttered in the wind that blew past Emily through the open doors. Jagged holes, like those found on the word walls, had been cut into the faded fabric.
"Hello," Emily called, "Anybody home?" She heard footsteps and a figure, a man robed in grey, walked slowly across the centre of the room towards them. His face was cowled and he had a knotted grey beard. "I'm answering your summons," Emily continued, "Are you one of the Greybeards?" The old man nodded.
"I am Master Arngeir," he said, "I speak for the Greybeards." At these words he gestured back further into the room where three more robed figures were emerging from the adjoining rooms and corridors.
"May we come in?" Emily asked.
"You have brought others with you?" His question was not accusing, merely curious.
"My companion, Serana," Emily replied, "And our guide, Lydia."
"Very well, you may enter," said Master Arngeir and Emily pushed the door open wider and the three of them stepped from the doorway. They followed Master Arngeir into the centre of the room.
"Before we go any further," said Master Arngeir, turning to face Emily, "We must first ask a small test of you so we can make sure you truly are Dragonborn." Emily noticed the other Greybeards nodded but said nothing.
"What kind of test?" she asked.
"Let us taste of your voice," Arngeir replied.
"Taste of my voice?" said Emily uncomprehendingly, "What do you mean?"
"Shout at us so that we may know your Thu'um for ourselves," Arngeir explained. Emily nodded.
"I know only one word," she said.
"That is fine," said Arngeir, "Everything has its beginning." Emily drew a deep breath and shouted a single word.
FUS!
The blue energy erupted from her open mouth and struck the Greybeards, causing them to stagger back.
"Sorry," Emily said quickly, putting a hand over her mouth.
"Dovahkiin," Arngeir replied, "There is no need for apologies. As followers of the Way of the Voice and practitioners of the Thu'um we are not so affected as other mortals. You cannot harm us."
"Why am I Dragonborn?" Emily asked. It was the question she most yearned to ask.
"Because the gods wish it," Arngeir replied, "There are those who believe that Dragonborn come into the world during times of great strife." Arngeir's voice faltered here for a moment as though he was not comfortable with the subject. "But we will talk more of that later."
"But I'm not a Nord," Emily said, "Nor was I born here."
"That is not important," Arngeir explained, "Dragonborn can hail from anywhere and be of any race."
Emily didn't feel like explaining her otherworldly origins so she let the matter drop. Instead she asked, "Are there any other Dragonborn?" Her thoughts returned to the blood spattered stone carving and the body.
"There have been many down through the ages," replied Master Arngeir, "As for now, we do not know. It's a matter of conjecture as to whether more than one Dragonborn may exist at any one time. All we know is that you are the only one to be revealed to us thus far."
"I see," Emily replied, "So, what happens now?"
"That depends," said Master Arngeir, "Why exactly have you come here?"
"Because you summoned me," Emily replied, "And the Jarl said I should come."
"What is the Jarl to your own will?" Master Arngeir replied, "You still made a choice therefore you have a reason."
"I…well, I want to find out why I'm Dragonborn," Emily answered, "What it means."
"Then we can guide you in that pursuit," said Master Arngeir, "Come, it is time to assess your Dragonborn abilities." Emily followed him further into the hall.
"First we will teach you the second word of Unrelenting Force," began Master Arngeir, "Master Einarth will be your teacher." Another of the Greybeards, almost identical in appearance to Master Arngeir save for his beard being unknotted, stepped forward. He made a gesture with one hand as he spoke a single word and a shockwave rippled from his hand across the stone floor. In its wake deep gouges carved themselves into the ground where they began to glow like hot coals.
"Step forward, look and learn," Master Arngeir instructed. Emily did as he asked and as she gazed on the gouges they seemed to swim before her eyes and unconsciously she found herself mouthing the word written there. How she was able to read and comprehend it, she knew not. The glow in the gouges receded and this told Master Arngeir that the word had been learnt.
"You learn a new word like a master," he said, "Now Master Einarth will gift you his knowledge of 'Ro' which means balance. With it your Thu'um will be more precise." Master Einarth stood facing Emily and she felt an energy pass between them, ruffling her hair and causing the candles by the doors to flicker. Then Master Arngeir spoke up again. "Now, another test," he said, "Masters Einarth, Wulfgar and Borri will conjure spectral targets. I want you to strike them with your Thu'um. Consider this a test of your accuracy."
Master Wulfgar was the first to step forward.
"Viik lo sah," he shouted at the ground before him. The floor blossomed with blue energy and from it rose a figure. It was identical in appearance to the man who conjured it save for its pearlescent blue quality. Emily shouted, adding to the shout the second word she had learned. The energy that now burst from her open mouth swirled, focusing in on the ghostly visage and when it struck the Greybeard aspect, it staggered back as though under the influence of a powerful gale.
Master Borri and Master Einarth followed one after the other and their aspects, too, fell before Emily's Thu'um. Shouting, though she hadn't known it two weeks before, felt as second nature to her as speaking or seeing.
"Your Thu'um is precise," said Master Arngeir when the test had concluded, "Next we will see how you learn a new shout. For this test we must go out to the Courtyard."
With that he and the other Greybeards led them towards the back stairs which led to two sets of iron doors.
The courtyard was large and comprised of a flat area on the edge of the cliff. Dominating it was a large stone tower with a fire burning at the top. Another fire burned at the base and over near the cliff edge stood a set of iron gates out on their own with no accompanying wall. Emily thought this strange until Master Arngeir explained the next task.
"Master Borri will teach you, 'Wuld', the first word of Whirlwind sprint which will allow you to run swiftly with the breath of Kyne at your heels, speeding you along," he explained, "Then you must use your new shout to pass through those gates before they close. He gestured to the iron gates. Emily nodded and waited as Master Borri whispered the word of power and again the rippling shockwave crossed the ground, leaving the claw-like gouges in its wake. Once more Emily gazed upon them and read the word in the unknown language. Master Borri gifted her his knowledge before crossing over to the iron gates while Master Wulfgar took up his position between two stone posts.
"Bex." Borri spoke the single word and the iron gates flew open as if on their own. Then Master Wulfgar shouted. The first two words Emily heard but the third was lost in the howling gale that sprung up around him as he surged towards the gates. They closed long after he had passed through and then it was Emily's turn. She took up her position where Wulfgar had stood moments before. The call of, 'Bex,' was given again and the gates opened. This time Emily shouted as she broke into a run and immediately a whistling sound filled her ears as a howling gale sprang up at her back. She felt as though she had wings on her heels as the gale sped her on toward and through the gates. She heard them close behind her with a clang.
"Well down, Dragonborn," said Master Arngeir, "But these are only your first steps towards your destiny."
"My destiny?" Emily questioned, "What is my destiny?"
"That we cannot tell you."
"How come?" Emily asked.
"You must find it for yourself," Master Arngeir, "We can only show you the path. Whether you follow it or not is entirely up to you."
"I asked you before about whether or not there are other Dragonborn," said Emily. Master Arngeir nodded. "The reason I asked is because of what we found on our way up the seven thousand steps."
"What did you find?" Master Arngeir asked.
"A pilgrim had been murdered by one of the stone carvings and there were words written in her blood on the stone. They said, 'The True Dragonborn comes.'"
"Then it sounds to me like someone is looking for you," said Master Arngeir gravely, "And their intentions are far from benevolent."
"I was afraid of that," said Emily.
"I think, with this new information, I know what path we must set you on," said Master Arngeir, "Follow me." With that he turned and headed back into the monastery. They followed. He led them to a small antechamber where a desk stood. Sitting upon it was a map of Skyrim.
"Scattered throughout Skyrim are word walls where words of power are inscribed in the dragon tongue," explained Master Arngeir, "To face this unknown foe you had best be prepared. Whirlwind sprint and Unrelenting Force will serve you well but there are other words. Other shouts." He gestured towards the map. "The first words I want you to seek out are the three that make up the disarm shout, a good defensive shout that does exactly what it says. Too many people put all their energies into learning things that will harm. Few think of their own defense."
"Where can I find the words?" Emily asked.
"They can be found in Silverdrift lair, Snowveil Sanctum and on Eldersblood Peak. With each place named he pointed to a location on the map. "To unlock the meaning of these words you must absorb the lifeforce of slain dragons," Master Arngeir continued. Emily gulped at the thought but remained silent. "Return here when you have the words and I will set you upon your next path."
"Do any of the Greybeards know the disarm shout?" Emily asked.
"All of them do," Master Arngeir replied.
"Then, can't we just come back here and ask your knowledge like with the last two?"
Master Arngeir shook his head. "No, Dragonborn, you must temper the words you learn with experience so your wisdom is not outstripped by the strength of your Thu'um."
"I understand," said Emily solemnly, "May we rest here for a while?"
"Yes, High Hrothgar is open to you and your companions, Dovahkiin. The living quarters are along that corridor."
"Thank you," said Emily as they made for the archway that led onto the corridor. She paused at it.
"By the way, I want you to know my real name," she said, "It's Emily." Master Arngeir simply smiled and nodded.
Emily sat down on the edge of the bed. It and most of the furniture in High Hrothgar was made of stone, built for service and not for comfort. The only concession was made in the form of a sabrecat pelt stretched taut across it.
"Where do you think we should go first?" she asked. She had her map open on her lap and had marked down each of the locations on it.
"They're all a fair distance," Lydia remarked, "We should probably visit the farthest, Snow Veil, and then we can visit the other two on the way back to High Hrothgar."
"That's the words sorted but how about the dragon?" Emily asked, "We can't just bank on one of those to appear as we need it."
"That's a chance we'll have to take," said Serana, "For now we'll focus on what we do have control over." She turned to Lydia. "Will you be fit to travel?"
"I should be," Lydia replied, "Those potions of yours did their work." She patted the bandages and winced slightly. "Maybe a little tender yet," she conceded, "But I can travel."
They spent the day in the monastery. Whilst Lydia rested Emily set herself to exploring as much of the old monastery as she could. She discovered a large room with a stone table surrounded by numerous chairs. At the centre burned a fire in a shall brazier. Emily supposed this was the closest the Greybeards had to 'central heating'. Smiling slightly at her own joke she left the room.
The Greybeards had a great many books and for well over an hour she sat cross-legged, absorbed in one volume or another. It wasn't long before Serana too found this room and they read together in a companionable silence.
Throughout the day on her wanderings Emily came upon the Greybeards meditating before the small windows of the monastery or sitting in quiet contemplation. Indeed an air of silence hung about the place at all times, broken only when she, Serana and Lydia spoke to one another. When she asked Master Arngeir why this was so, he told her that the voices of the other Greybeards were too powerful and they could not speak without using the Thu'um. This power, though unlikely to harm those of the Dragonblood, would be dangerous to others.
"Do you think that will ever happen to me?" Emily asked Serana as they sat in the sleeping quarters, "If I keep using the Thu'um? Will I have to stop speaking?"
"If that ever did happen to you the whole world would be doomed," Serana chuckled, "I've never known you to go longer than five minutes without speaking. Why, you even talk in your sleep?"
"I don't, do I?" Emily asked, "What do I say?" This last question she asked half anxiously. There were thoughts better left unspoken for now and when she did speak them, if indeed she ever spoke them, she wanted to be fully conscious.
"A lot of mumbling mostly," Serana replied, shrugging her shoulders, "And something about someone called Maylene." At this Emily sat bolt upright. She had almost forgotten about Maylene. Or so she thought.
"What did I say about her?" she asked.
"Something about how you needed time to think," Serana replied, "That it wasn't working. You mentioned her before, didn't you?" Emily nodded.
"We didn't part on good terms," she said, "That's why I went to Norway. To get away and give myself time to think. She made me feel like I was a terrible person if I went out for the night, told me I was a drunk if I had one pint of beer. She didn't like me talking to other women. When I got to Norway it felt…it felt like…freedom." Serana moved a little nearer to her.
"I might miss Earth at times," Emily admitted as she looked up at the vampiress, "And my family but I don't miss her."
"Why did you pay court to her?" Serana asked.
"We met at the Glastonbury festival," Emily explained, "That's a music festival in Somerset. Everyone pitches their tents in the fields and listens to the bands that come to play. She'd pitched her tent a little ways off. Then the first night of the festival a storm hit. Nothing new there but it ripped away my tent. She let me stay in hers and we got talking." Emily looked at her hands that her folded in her lap. "She seemed alright then," she replied, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "So we kept in touch after that."
"Then what happened?" Serana asked gently.
"Then we would meet up in the holidays or weekends when time would allow," Emily continued, "And after a time she invited me to come live with her. That didn't last long. Almost as soon as we were under the same roof she began to show her true colours."
Emily rubbed at one arm as she paused for a moment.
"I moved out shortly after," she said, "Got myself a little place of my own. A bedsit. But we still talked once in a while. I don't even know why."
"How long after that did you go to Norway?" asked Serana.
"All that happened in the space of about four years," Emily answered.
"She sounds horrible," said Serana quickly. Then she faltered. "I mean…"
"No, you're right," Emily replied, resting her hand on Serana's arm, "She was horrible. I think it took until the trip to Norway for me to fully realise that myself. Thanks," she said, "I think…I think it did me some good to talk about it." Serana smiled at the Earthling.
"Well, you were there when I wanted to talk about my father," she said, "I think the least I can do is return the favour." Emily smiled back.
"Guess we'd better start packing for our trip tonight," she said, "Back to the frozen North."