Once the party finished with their morning routine they quickly packed up camp and continued their journey west in the direction that Kydin had seen the mountain range earlier that morning. After spending a few hours on the road that they called the "Imperial Highway" he saw that the land here was very different compared to the harsh cold frigid terrain of Skyrim. Here the land so far appeared to be fairly flat to allow for easy travel while in Skyrim the ground was cold and rocky providing travelers with many difficulties depending on the weather. Also the temperature here was far warmer than what Kydin was used to. Was it like this all year round or was this just the height of summer of their yearly seasons? As strange as Kydin found it to be in this new land he couldn't help but compare it to the land he once called home. Recalling snippets of memories from his childhood Kydin thought back on the days in his native land, Cyrodiil. How he remembered the season of autumn with its crisp days of ever changing colour. The vibrant colors the leaves would turn during those few short months was a sight to behold. Back in Cyrodiil it was easy to tell which season was which. In Skyrim the seasons weren't so obvious. It was always cold up in the northern lands, but he didn't mind it. Though there were times every now and then where you were fortunate enough to enjoy the weather of a typical spring day.

Walking with the group Kydin found himself in the middle of the party with Alistair's dog Bane trotting ahead of them with his master and Wynne leading the way, followed by himself, Morrigan, and Leliana, and finally with the great giant Sten bringing up the rear.

"You look very odd," Leliana commented looking at him very closely inspecting his dented armor.

Kydin sighed inwardly. The little redheaded woman had somehow decided to attach herself to him making random comments now and again while attempting to start up a conversation with him. Kydin knew her game, but right now he wasn't one for playing, not when he had so much on his mind. He was trying to get all the jumbled thoughts in his mind somewhat organized. So you could imagine how, at the moment, the girl was starting to get on Kydin's nerves with her endless prattle. He thanked the Nines that Morrigan wasn't so chatty.

"Oh, really?" he asked with a touch of sarcasm.

"Yes," Leliana brighten with the thought of her thinking she had finally coaxed him to speak. "Your weapon, your armor, you look like you're from a whole other world."

You have no idea,he thought to himself.

Alistair looked back at the two seeing Kydin's reluctance in participating in the conversation. "Looks like we've just adopted another Sten into our group." Kydin knew what he meant. Not once since Kydin had been with the group had he heard the giant speak. He guessed that Sten was more of a man of action than words.

Wynne chuckled at Alistair's comment, "Leliana, give the poor lad some space."

"But look at his armor," she continued despite the elder woman's advice. "Can you honestly say, Wynne, that you have ever seen armor like that before. And it's so white, what sort of material is it made out of? It looks like very solid protection, but the coloring is so odd. Is it something only found in your homeland or—"

Kydin cut her off, "That's because it is made out of human bone," he said seriously.

Leliana was appalled, "W—Wh—What?" she stuttered.

Kydin remained silent for all but a moment before he laughed, "Sorry, couldn't resist putting a little scare in you, lass," he sobered. "Besides, does this look like it is made out of the stuff?" gesturing with his hand showing off his gauntlet, "But my armor is made out of bone-dragon bone as well as scales. The strongest material there is."

Kydin had been so focused on Leliana's expression that he hadn't noticed how his little joke affected the rest of the party.

"Whew," Alistair breathed, relieved, "You said that with such a straight face that you really had me going there for a minute."

"Bah, human bone is too brittle anyway," Kydin joked.

The redhead didn't find much humor in his words, "I find that hardly amusing."

Wynne sighed shaking her head, "I believe that was his way of telling you to give him some room to breathe, dear."

"You shouldn't believe everything you hear, lass," Kydin warned her. But serves her right for being so nosy.

"Your face was priceless, by the way," the witch smirked with glee evident in her eyes. At least one woman in this group had some sense of humor. As cruel as it may be.

"But dragon bone?" Alistair asked, "I thought that kind of thing was rare?"

"Perhaps in your land, but in mine there are more than enough of them."

"But dragons are thought to be extinct," he said with a touch of confusion. "No one has seen one in years."

Funny how that works, Kydin thought. "They were only found in legends in our land too not long ago. But just because you haven't seen them with your own eyes doesn't mean that they don't exist."

"Hmmmm, there are definitely traces of magic left behind. As for the source of it, that remains to be seen for the moment. Paarthurnax, would you please describe in more detail this light you saw?" Tolfdir asked.

Every detail was essential if he and the handful of mages he brought from the College were able to fathom what had triggered the events here on the mountain. Yes, the senior mage, along with Brelyna and three other experienced enchanters had traveled from the College of Winterhold to stand upon the peak of the Throat of the a World to investigate the disappearance of their Archmage. And they were in great awe when they first saw the gates of High Hrothgar as very few outsiders ever set eyes on the structure and even fewer had been allowed inside its grand halls. You could imagine how even more amazed the mages were when they met the Greybeard's leader, Paarthurnax, an ancient white dragon who looked as aged and withered as time itself.

"At first it was white and it blinded me for but a moment," the dragon spoke in mortal tongue. "When it died down I thought it to take the color of a bright sea blue."

"I see," Tolfdir said his mind overflowing with possibilities. "Such bursts of magical energy are very rare, but are not unheard of."

"But Tolfdir," Brelyna said now able to find her voice in the dragon's presence, "since the incident with the Eye of Magnus there have been a string of supernatural occurrences all across Skyrim. Is it possible that the Eye could have played some part in this?"

"I was just thinking the same thing, Brelyna. It is quite possible that the Eye of Magnus is the sole cause of this incident."

Arngeir and the rest of the Greybeards that stood with them appeared intrigued. "What is this Eye you speak of, Tolfdir?" he asked.

After soon arriving at Hrothgar, Tolfdir and the other mages were curious as to why all the Greybeards, except for Arngeir, never spoke. After asking the Greybeard about it Arngeir explained how their voices were so strong that they could shake the whole of High Hrothgar. He even allowed a brief demonstration to prove just how true his words were. Now they all understood why Arngeir spoke on behalf of all the Greybeards.

Tolfdir began his explanation. "The Eye of Magnus is a large, ancient and magical artifact that Kydin found in Saarthal a number of months ago when he first joined the College. We brought it to the College believing it to be of Aedric origin for on its surface there were similar markings that one would find on an Elder Scroll. We meant to study the orb for it seemed to be made out of pure energy, but a mage, Ancano of the Thalmor, began to abuse its power. Needless to say Kydin and I were able to put an end to him before the Psijic Order intervened."

The order was known to be one of ancient and of great magic-wielding. They were the first to develop Mysticism, one of the Schools of Magic that had the power to unravel the mysteries of the universe if properly applied, before there even was a name for it. Their headquarters were known to be on the island Artaeum, the third largest of the three islands that made up the Summerset Isles and also the most mysterious. It has been written that Artaeum had a habit of disappearing over the course of history. In fact the island and the Psijic Order had vanished again nearly a hundred years ago so when Kydin had told Tolfdir of his encounter with one of their members, Nerien, in Saarthal he was beyond words. It was a great compliment to be contacted by the order for they have only ever dealt with those they felt were worthy.

"Power is an awful temptation to all mortals," Paarthurnax rumbled.

Arngeir looked up at the dragon. "Have you heard of this Eye of Magnus before, Master?"

"I'm afraid not," the great beast sighed. "But if the mage says it is of Aedric origin then it is possible that their relic is far older than I."

"What became of the Eye?" the Greybeard asked the mage.

"I am none too sure myself," Tolfdir admitted. For the last thing he remembered of it the Eye had been in the Hall of Elements at the College one moment and the next it was gone. "After all, it was Kydin that had explained to me of what had become of it. All I know is that it is now under the watch and protection of the Order. After the incident I saw it was beyond clear that this world was not ready for such a power."

"I am sure it was for the best," Arngeir nodded. He appeared very pleased to hear of the actions that his student, Kydin, had performed at the College. "But, Brelyna," he addressed the mage with a concerning tone, "you mentioned something about strange incidents happening across the land. What part does the Eye play in that?"

Tolfdir answered for her since he had a little bit of a better understand as to how the Eye worked. "With Ancano toying with the Eye he had caused its condition to become unstable, therefore, causing it to release great bursts of power. The power of the Eye has caused rifts in space across all of Skyrim to open and allow strange spirit energies to enter our world."

"But if a rift had opened, why isn't it visible to us?" the dark elf asked.

Brelyna made an excellent point. Though Tolfdir knew that the elf had helped closed more portals than he himself had, he knew well enough to know a portal when he saw one. "Perhaps it has closed," he mused. It seemed unlikely, but where magic was concerned there was always numerous probabilities to take into account.

"But Kydin and I have closed many rifts all over Skyrim. What could be so special about this one?" It was true that besides Kydin himself Brelyna was the next best person who had the most experience when dealing with the rifts.

Tolfdir considered her words. "That is an excellent question, my dear, and one that I hope to answer," he said walking a short distance from the others just out of reach from the dragon's wall to survey the area around them. "But maybe the rift is just not visible to us at this moment. See just over there in that space how the land there seems to move in a strange way?" he pointed with his finger just next to the Word Wall. "See the way the snow falls in the air there? Now just why is that? Do you see it or are my eyes just not what they use to be?"

Brelyna and the other Greybeards joined him. "No, I see it too. It almost looks to be like an illusion."

"That is the Time Wound where the three heroes of Skyrim had banished Alduin many centuries ago," Paarthurnax explained perched on his wall. "In order to prevent Alduin from winning the Dragon War they used an Elder Scroll to cast him out of their time and into the future to our time."

"An Elder Scroll?" Tolfdir gaped upon hearing this new information.

Arngeir and the rest of the Greybeards knew very well about the details concerning that war. "Could it be possible that even after so many years that some of the Scroll's magic still lingers?"

"No, not lingers," Paarthurnax corrected the Greybeard, "but awakened."

"Master?"

"Not days ago did Dovahkiin bring an Elder Scroll to this very mountaintop and in that very same space did he summon the power of the Scroll to go back in time to learn the ancient Shout that had been the downfall of Alduin."

Arngeir sighed with just a touch of frustration. "That boy never tells me anything."

"So, let us go over the events," Tolfidr suggested. "Kydin and Alduin were engaged in battle, but disappeared without a trace. What if a rift caused by the Eye had opened up by one in a million chance in the Time Wound? Just think with the combined power of the Eye and the Scroll, even with a fraction of its power, an unimaginable and infinite number of results could be created."

The silence that followed was proof enough that the thought didn't sit well with any of them, especially Brelyna whose concern for Kydin had instantly increased ten fold. "I shutter to even think of it."

"Aye," Tolfdir agreed. "So, if we were to somehow reopen the portal, who of us could say what exactly occupies the space beyond it?"