Chapter 32: High Hrothgar

[26th – 27th of Hearthfire 4E 201]

We were in the month of Hearthfire, which, if I recalled properly, was equivalent to September back home, so that the time of sunrise was probably about average for the year. We, that is Fiona with her two housecarls Lydia and Rayya and me, had arrived from Falkreath on the day before, and I had helped the Bosmer to become Thane in that hold, too. According to Akatosh, I was supposed to assist and protect the Dragonborn, and getting another capable warrior lady as companion was probably going to be valuable for her safety and for her upcoming tasks.

I woke in my bed of straw in the barn behind the Ivarstead inn with the first indication of dawn, when the sun was still below the horizon, but there was a hint of red on the eastern sky. Briefly I washed my body in the cold river, and for a few minutes I enjoyed the scenery around me. While there was still darkness around me, the light of one of the moons was sufficient to highlight the peak of the 'Throat of the World' against the sky; with the high mountain to the west, the hills and more flat area around the lake to the east, the houses in the town small and mostly built from wood and the small river with a few rapids right here, I could have as well been in a small town in the Alps. A part of me wished I could just stay and relax for a few days, but there were things to do, and meeting the Greybeards was something Fiona should probably not delay too much. Hopefully, once we were in High Hrothgar, there would be some time to relax for me while the Dragonborn got her education started, I guessed. As a matter of fact, I could only hope that the Greybeards would not send me back and only allow the Dragonborn access to their monastery. I was looking forward to both ascending the stairs – seven thousand or less or more, I did not plan to count them – and to seeing this mythical place for myself.

After a last look around I went inside to get started on breakfast. Wilhelm was still asleep, but he had told us in the evening before just to grab what we needed, and we had paid in advance. I laid a table with food, mostly bread, cold meat, and some fruit, and then I woke up the ladies.

Half an hour later we crossed the stone bridge and started our ascent. The sun was just coming up over the lake east of town, and I liked the view. While I could an occasional yawning from one of the ladies, I really enjoyed starting a hike in early morning, and if it been my choice, I would have left even earlier. I did not know how long we'd need to get up, but we all had our bedrolls with us, and Fiona had an extra warm fur coat to use later on. My own load was quite heavy, as I had volunteered to also take the supplies Klimmek had handed over on the day before, but with my wonderful strong body that was going to be all right; at least we had a proper path with steps, and unless the way up was much different from the one in the game, we would not have to cross a glacier or climb vertical walls or so.

The first few hours were easy and without surprises; there was no snow and only a couple of wolves showing up. A few hunters were around, taking care of the wolves and claiming the pelts, and the occasional pilgrim was coming down, maybe from a night of meditation halfway up. We had a quick chat with them, but none of them had gone all the way up, and two pilgrims told us that the upper section of the steps was known to be dangerous, both due to the slippery path on the steps coated with snow and ice and a lurking frost troll; that was expected and not news to us. We encountered the first stone tablets etched in wayshrines close to the steps, but I did not bother to stop and read each of them. I had forgotten what they were good for, and Fiona and Lydia had certainly looked at them during their first ascent. Maybe another time, and as I was sure that this was not going to be the last time we climbed the stairs, we'd take the time to read all ten of them and muse about their meaning at some time in the future.

I enjoyed the exercise of walking uphill, and the stairs did not bother me much. Besides, as Fiona was with us, we did have to go slow and adapt to her speed. Despite their heavy armor, Lydia and Rayya – she had changed into heavy armor, too, before we had left Falkreath – also coped very well, but they were both trained warriors. Fiona, though, was breathing heavily, and she needed more and more breaks. Once we had had lunch and started to get into an area where the stairs started to be partially covered by snow and ice, she slipped a few times and almost fell, until I offered:

"Fiona, just let me know if I can help."

She looked at me and asked:

"And how are you going to help? Are you suggesting to carry me?"

"Yes, exactly."

She shook her head, snorted, and continued, and I understood that that was not an appealing option for her. To some extent I probably still was the dangerous predator in her eyes, ready to devour her if her housecarls did not pay attention, despite me speaking her native language and despite the conversations we'd already had. In addition, maybe she also had the ambition to make the ascent of her own.

When we got to the fourth stone tablet, we met a pilgrim, a female Nord, who introduced herself as Karita. She did not bother to talk much and just mumbled:

"Walking the Steps. Meditating on the emblems. I make this trip every few years."

I asked if she had been further up and knew what was waiting for us, but she shook her head:

"Keep an eye out for wolves and more dangerous beasts if you're headed up the path to High Hrothgar; I am not going further up."

Another warning; however, we already knew about the frost troll, and we hoped to be able to cope with it and any other potential dangers in the upper section of the steps.

Soon after the encounter with Karita it was obvious that Fiona was totally exhausted, and for now her two housecarls took her between them, with both of the Bosmer՚s arms linked with one of the ladies. By doing that, they could pull her with them, and that seemed to help. Just before dusk we found a nice spot between some of the last proper trees for a camp. I collected firewood, and soon we were sitting around a small fire, eating supper from our supplies.

Once again Lydia and Rayya insisted on taking the night watch, and I did not mind that at all. When I was in my sleeping bag later on, in horizontal position, I felt my muscles and tendons, specifically those in my legs, but that was all right. In my previous life and with my old body, I had usually tried to avoid exertions mostly, and I had only done little sports, like swimming, hiking, and downhill skiing, but now I grew to like feeling my body when it had to work hard. I had heard before that some people enjoyed the feeling from pushing their body to its limits, and I had never been able to understand that, specifically not in my previous life, but now my own feelings certainly tended in that direction.

I was very glad that I had spent the money on a properly fitting and nicely padded bedroll. Out here on the bare ground and without a roof, just having a few branches above us, it allowed me to sleep reasonably well. Fiona and her two housecarls also had their bedrolls, and for one night that would do nicely.

Just after dawn on the next day we continued our ascent, and we reluctantly moved out from the mountain pines or so into the wind and snow after we had stowed our belongings in our backpacks once more. Klimmek had been entirely right about winter being present up here all year round, but fortunately we were prepared for that. Nevertheless, I hoped that we'd be able to reach the monastery until the end of the day; camping outdoors above the tree line and without proper shelter would not be nice, not even for me.

Not long after we had started our hike for the day, with Fiona walking on her own for the time being, I saw that small canyon with rock and ice walls ahead, which I remembered well from playing; this was the one where we'd most likely have the frost troll waiting for us. I cautioned my companions to slow down, and indeed, my eyes noticed a suspicious white beast above an overhang; with its off white color, it was barely distinguishable from the snow and ice around it. I pointed out what I saw, and Lydia agreed:

"You have got good eyes, indeed, seeing that white furred beast against the bright background. So, a frost troll again, maybe even the same one we encountered before; let's just do it."

"Lydia, you know that trolls have some self healing capability?"

"Sure, as we have seen last time, but Rayya and I can do this."

"What if the troll overpowers the two of you and gets to Fiona?"

"One of us has to stay close to our Thane!" Rayya insisted.

"But one of us alone will not be enough against that beast!" Lydia objected.

"What about an alternate approach?" I asked.

Both housecarls scowled at me: "No, please don't!"

"Maybe you could just listen first and decide later?"

The Dragonborn decided to chime in:

"He's right; let's listen first at least!"

"All right, my Thane" both warrior ladies conceded reluctantly.

I was not sure if my idea was better, but I wanted to get it out for discussion at least:

"So, what about that: Rayya and I move forward a little and hide on both sides of the path, Lydia stays with Fiona right here, and Fiona starts attacking with arrows. Most likely the troll will approach, and when it is between Rayya and me, Fiona shouts 'FUS'. That should at least stop the troll for a few seconds, so that I can attack with flames and my axe. I will jump back, the troll turns towards me, and Rayya can attack from the other side, using her scimitars. We can repeat that a few times, and if the troll decided to go for Fiona, there is still Lydia for defense."

The two housecarls looked at me, pondering the plan, and then Rayya admitted:

"Actually, that's not a real bad plan. My Thane, what do you think?"

Fiona replied: "I do not have a clue if that's a good plan or not, and I do not know at all how strong a frost troll is; as you know, my memory from the last time we got here is pretty vague and hazy. If you all agree, I will go along with it."

After some discussion Lydia and Rayya accepted my plan, and the Redguard warrior and I found good hiding spots behind some larger rocks. I reminded the Bosmer to shout when the beast had just passed me, and then the young Bosmer let her first arrow fly. Due to the distance and the unpredictable wind, this one missed, but her second one was a hit. As we had anticipated, the troll dropped down to the path and approached, with long arms swinging. Fiona managed to send two more arrows and Lydia managed to get one off, and while they barely managed to slow down the beast, I got a closer look. The frost troll was about as tall as I was, and it looked remotely like a gorilla, a big one; with the three eyes, though, it radiated more power than a big ape. The beast's arms reached down almost to the ground, and they looked strong enough to kill with one swipe. Fortunately, the troll did not move very fast, but I almost trembled when it got past me; Fiona shouted 'FUS', and the beast yelped while being driven back a few meters. That was the perfect position for me, and I shot my flames at it from some distance. It turned in my direction and raised an arm, so that I was glad to be not too close. Rayya reacted very swiftly and drove both of her scimitars into the troll's body from behind, pulling them out again and jumping back. As predicted, the troll whirled around, and I closed the distance to sink my axe into it, but failed to get it out again right away. This cost me, as one of the claws grazed my right arm and caused a long gash. The troll changed direction now and headed for Fiona and Lydia, but it was wounded and slower than before. While the beast's first injuries started to close already, Lydia got into action, and while the troll was focused on her, Rayya attacked from behind once more. I joined in and blasted a fireball with the last drops of my magicka reserves, and finally, in an admirable show of engagement, the Redguard housecarl jumped up and cut the troll's head off, which ended the fight.

Nobody else but me had suffered an injury, and as I had expanded my magicka with the earlier flame attack, I swallowed one of the healing potions from my back pack, and when I had recovered, I got my axe back from the dead troll's body. Grudgingly Lydia admitted:

"So, it looks like your plan was not so bad after all, Khajiit."

"Thank you, my lady."

Now the sturdy Nord even smiled a little, and maybe in a few more years I might be able to have her use my name rather than 'Khajiit', too.

From now on our main enemy was the weather. Once we had left the partial shelter of the small canyon where we had encountered the frost troll, there were no obstacles any longer for the freezing wind, and at times the wind carried snow and ice with it, too. The cold was not so much a problem for Lydia, the Nord warrior lady, but a little bit for me and a lot for Fiona; Rayya refused to comment, and maybe she just considered the environment as part of the burden she needed to carry for her Thane. Despite her fur coat, Fiona was shivering, and it was obvious that the freezing wind together with the steep path was too much for her. Finally Lydia suggested:

"My Thane, although I do not like the idea myself, you should reconsider and accept what was suggested yesterday. If you allow that Khajiit to carry you for some time, we should be able to proceed much faster, and sure you don't want to spend more nights than necessary outdoors in the cold. This way, that Khajiit is at least good for something. As much as I hate to admit it, he's the only one strong enough to carry you. Neither Rayya nor I could carry you going uphill for more than a few minutes, I believe."

The petite wood elf was too exhausted to talk and just nodded. I was a little bit offended for being referred to as 'that Khajiit' once again rather than by my name, but this would take time to change. For now, I handed over most of my load to Fiona's two housecarls and then knelt down, and Lydia helped the petite Bosmer to get on my back; she wrapped her arms around my neck and I got up again. Now we could proceed at a reasonable speed, and while I felt that I might not be able to carry her for the entire rest of the day, I should be able to do it for an hour or so at least. The Bosmer had her fur coat wrapped around both of us, so that some of my body heat could get to her, too.

Our progress was slow, but steady, and about once every hour we rested for a few minutes to catch our breath; with me carrying the tiny Bosmer during extended periods of time, even my body needed that. Of course we made sure not to rest too long to conserve our body heat. Two times an ice wraith found us, but my flames took care of that threat quickly, although properly aiming at a swirling and flying enemy was tricky.

When we could finally see the high walls of the monastery in the distance, I paused for a few minutes to enjoy the view. For the last few hours, wind had howled around us and clouds had limited the viewing distance, but now, for a brief time at least, the clouds lifted. We could see some of the path ahead of us, up to the monastery in the distance, and in the other direction, northwest to southwest, the rest of the world seemed to be covered in a white blanket. There were only few gaps in the cloud cover, but for a few moments I could see Dragonsreach far down, and a few minutes later there was some water area visible which I assumed to be Lake Ilinalta in another direction. Further to the left, roughly south of us, one could see more mountain peaks, and that had to be the highest elevations of the Jerall Mountains and the border to Cyrodiil. This was something I had always enjoyed in my previous life; doing some hiking in the mountains and reveling in the view some special places offered. Up here, on the highest mountain in Skyrim and maybe even entire Tamriel, the view was great indeed, even with all of the clouds around. I knew quite well that we were not even close yet to the actual mountain peak, but this was more than good enough, for now. However, Fiona was still cold and exhausted, and we'd better hurry to reach the building and get there to a hopefully warm interior; with all of the walking on snow, ice, and cold rock, even my heavily padded paw like feet were getting cold. Fortunately, we were able to get close to the monastery; once we had reached the final steps, Lydia dropped Klimmek՚s supplies into the big chest outside, and we stepped up to one of the doors.

The large door opened up in front of us like by magic, but nobody was seen in the hallway. Once we had all entered the building, the door closed behind us, and our eyes needed a little time to adapt from the almost blinding light outside to the dim illumination in here. Slowly we followed the hallway until we got into the main hall, and it appeared that the four Greybeards must have sensed our approach, as all of them waited in here, like a reception committee. One of them, presumably Arngeir, stated slowly and with a deep voice:

"So... a Dragonborn appears, at this moment in the turning of an age."

Of course they recognized, or at least assumed, that only the Dragonborn and party would make the full ascent. Fiona was too exhausted and cold to reply right away, so that I responded for her:

"Greetings, Greybeards. The one who may be Dragonborn is on my back, and she is cold and exhausted from the long climb. Is there a chance she can rest and warm up for some time, please?"

The Greybeard bowed his head and replied:

"We can offer a warm room, food and a bed for her, but first we need to see if she really has the gift. We do not usually allow visitors in our sacred place, but the true Dragonborn and company are of course welcome. Dragonborn, if it's you indeed, let us taste your voice!"

Fiona had apparently recognized that this had been addressed to her, and from her position on my back she replied with a meek voice, while her arms were still tightly wrapped around my neck and shoulders:

"But I cannot shout at you; I do not want to hurt anybody!"

"Your consideration is appreciated, but do not be afraid; your Shout will not harm us."

I turned sideways and Fiona shouted 'FUS' right at Arngeir. He staggered and was pushed back a few steps, and a few decorative vases and such got destroyed. The Greybeard did not seem to mind, though, and his face lighted up; his reply was stated with some respect:

"Dragonborn – it is you, indeed. Welcome to High Hrothgar. I am Master Arngeir. I speak for the Greybeards. Now tell me, Dragonborn, why have you come here?"

Lydia cut in now: "Old man, can't you see that she is totally exhausted? Can't we discuss that later?"

Arngeir seemed to understand: "Of course. Please excuse my eagerness, but it has been a long time since we last could welcome a Dragonborn in our halls. Let me show you to the guest room."

We passed the other Greybeards and were led to a large room which already had a fireplace spreading some heat. There were two beds in the room, a wide one and a narrow one, and there was a table with lots of food on it. I stepped close to the smaller bed, and Lydia had to help unwrap Fiona's arms from around my neck, so that I could carefully drop my load on the bed; Lydia made sure that Fiona was laid down properly so that she could rest. The poor girl was asleep again, and the shout she had displayed had probably taken her last reserves.

The Greybeard explained:

"We have only this room here as a real and proper guest room, but there is another room right next door which one of you could also use. It has only one single bed and not much else, though. We are not prepared for many visitors up here."

I had a look at the other room, and while it was much smaller, it had a bed which was almost long enough for my tall frame. It did not have a fireplace of its own, but a thick and warm bed cover, and I decided that this might work for me. I looked at the two housecarls and asked them:

"Lydia, Rayya, will it be all right if I use this small room here and you take the large one together with Fiona?"

They both nodded, and we had an agreement, so that I told the Greybeard with as much politeness as I could muster:

"Master Arngeir, thank you for your hospitality, and we will be all right. I hope that the Dragonborn will be properly rested tomorrow morning to discuss further details with you and your colleagues."

The Greybeard seemed to be a little bit disappointed, but conceded:

"Indeed, she does look quite exhausted. So, yes, let's talk more tomorrow".

With those words he left, and we started to arrange our belongings. Lydia and Rayya admitted that they were also reasonably exhausted and tired, and that applied to me as well, specifically as I had carried Fiona part of the way. We decided to retire early, even though the sun was just sinking below the horizon, and although this place did not have a fully equipped bathroom, of course, I was shown to a small room with a tiny stream of water passing through it, this was at least better than a bush or rock on bare ground.

I felt very happy and comfortable when I was able to stretch my body on a proper bed again. Due to the cold air around – small slits without cover allowed outside air in – I used my sleeping bag and the bed cover above it, but at least no cold wind could get in here, and soon I was feeling quite cozy. Carrying Fiona for some periods of time and going uphill all of the time had been demanding, but I had managed, and I had refused to show any signs of weakness to the others. Yes, it had been a fulfilling day, and I was looking forward to finding out what we'd experience up here during the next days.

[Author's Notes: Getting up to High Hrothgar in two days is not extremely unrealistic. I did plenty of hiking trips in the European Alps in my younger years, and gaining about one thousand meters of altitude in a single day, plus getting down again, was about my limit. None of the trips I did, though, had the icy winds.]