Some weeks after his arrival in High Hrothgar, Vardall's training was progressing quickly. In that time, the Greybeards introduced him in The Way of the Voice and taught him everything they could about the Thu'um. There he learned how to use and control his shouts in a better way, even shouts being almost natural to him as breathe, Vardall never refused help to make him even better.
Another great part of his time, Vardall spent meditating with Arngeir, as a way to better control his emotions and not let his anger overrule over him so easily. Also, how Vardall still knew very little about Tamriel, he also used part of his time inside the Greybeards library, where he heavily studied about Tamriel and all that this unknown continent had to offer, from it's histories, races, the gods and planes of Oblivion, cultures and major events. But even so, his studies were more focused on Skyrim, the story of the dragons, what exactly was a Dragonborn, and Akatosh, the Dragon God of Time. Vardall felt himself back on the Circle of Magi, but without the constant and oppressive watch of the Templars all the time. It was a sensation that he loved as for one of the few times in his life, he felt himself free.
As for Vardall's friends, surprisingly, they all stayed with him. Lucien spended his time also studying in the Greybeards library and about High Hrothgar and the Greybeards himselfs. As Vardall's Housecarl, Lydia swore to protect him from anything, no matter the place or time, so she also stayed in High Hrothgar, always ready for anything. Sofia was... a curious case. She stayed in High Hrothgar for some time, but soon left. "A monastery isn't a good place for me to get booze and get laid." She said before she left. But then after a week, she returned and never went away again, refusing to say why of the sudden change of mind. Lydia even joked, saying she had a crush on Vardall and that's why she returned, which Sofia was fast into saying 'No' every time, which led to lots of discussions between the two women.
Vardall continued his routine of training, meditation and studying, and before he could notice, one month had passed since his arrival in High Hrothgar.
After one more training lesson, Vardall was back in the library, studying a little more about Tamriel. This time he was reading a book about the Oblivion Crisis and he was so focused on the book that he didn't hear Lucien entering the library.
"Hey, Vardall." Lucien's sudden voice on his side calls Vardall's attention. He abandons his book and turns his attention to him.
"Hmm?"
"Arngeir said that he wants to see you. It looks important." Lucien said. Vardall arched one of his eyebrows.
"What do you think he wants?" He then left his book upon a table and started following Lucien.
Lucien just shrugged his shoulders. "It's probably something about your training, if I was guessing."
Arriving in the central part of High Hrothgar, Vardall and Lucien saw all the Greybeards waiting for them.
"Arngeir?" Vardall speaks, looking confused to Arngeir. He had the same sensation of when he saw Greagoir, Irving and Duncan discussing back on the Circle tower, right after he completed his Harrowing.
Arngeir was with a little smile on his face as he started talking. "Come closer, Dragonborn."
Vardall then gets closer to the Greybeards. "What's going on?"
"Your training progressed more quickly than expected. You learned in a short time what many took years to learn." The elder man said. "Now... it's time for your final trial."
Vardall didn't demonstrate, but he was very anxious for this final trial. "What do you need me to do?"
"You must go and retrieve the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller, our founder, from his tomb in the ancient fane of Ustengrav."
"Right away, then."
Arngeir nods. "Remain true to The Way of the Voice, and you will return." Then he and the rest of the Greybeards move out of there.
"I'm gonna call the girls." Before Vardall could talk anything, Lucien already did that.
"I appreciate that. I'm gonna take my gear as well." Lucien nods with Vardall's answer and goes to call Lydia and Sofia. Vardall goes to his room and wears his steel plate armor and takes his orcish greatsword.
Once he returned near the exit of High Hrothgar, he already saw Lucien, Lydia and Sofia, all ready.
"So... we're going to risk our lives in another Nordic tomb only to get a horn?" Sofia said. Lucien must have already told them what they needed to do.
"Oh, come on... We already killed a dragon. Are you afraid of some old walking bones now?" Vardall said, joking and with a smile on his face.
"This is going to be exciting. My first time into an authentic Nordic tomb. Hope we don't find too many Draugr." Lucien said.
"Or spiders..." Vardall murmurs.
"Let's just be careful, okay?" Lydia said. "And... where is this tomb, anyway?"
"It's somewhere close to. .. Morthal! Yeah, Morthal. I saw it the location on a book the Greybeards had." Vardall said. His studies about Skyrim wasn't limited only to it's history, but also to its geography. "I also took a map to help us."
"Great, then let's go." Lucien said and all of them went out of High Hrothgar and made their way to Ustengrav.
"Who, with his faculties, would think that biuld a city right upon a marsh was a good idea?" Vardall points to the city of Morthal as he speaks. Morthal was only another small town if compared with Whiterun.
"You get used to this, don't worry." Sofia was trying to hide a smile on her face, but without success. Vardall only sighs and makes his way to Morthal.
While crossing the town, several people started to gaze at Vardall and his friends in a strange way. "I guess this place isn't very welcome to outsiders."
"You're right, it isn't." Lydia said. "Let's just go take that horn and get out of this place."
"Where's Ustengrav, by the way?" Lucien asked Vardall.
"It's..." He looked at the map in his hands. "...Northeast of here, crossing the marsh."
They all exit Morthal and enter even more on the marsh. Surprisingly, there already existed a type of trail marked on the ground so they all followed it. They all were approaching Ustengrav, dealing with some Mudcrabs on the way.
"So, this is the place." They all were now in front of Ustengrav. Vardall put his map aside.
"Everyone ready?" All his friends prepared their weapons and confirmed.
Vardall smiled. "Good. Let's go." And they all entered Ustengrav.
That place had everything any other nordic tomb had. Skeletons, traps, Draugr... There was even some necromancers inside the tomb, but nothing Vardall and his friends couldn't handle. The only minor problem was that the tomb was gigantic. If they had to guess, they all spend an entire day exploring that place, but that would pay off once they found the horn.
After many hours exploring, the group finally reaches what looks like the end of the tomb. They all cross a stone bridge in direction to a type of altar, while totems emerge from the water. A decorated altar could be seen at the end.
"Amazing..." Lucien was speechless with all this.
Getting close to the altar, however, instead of finding the horn, all Vardall found was a note. Why? Why this always happen with me?!" Vardall grunted.
"Crawling through an tomb infested of skeletons, spiders, Draugr and who knows whoa more... for nothing at the end?! Whoever left that note will have a lot to answer for!" Sofia shared Vardall dissatisfaction.
Taking and opening the note, Vardall started to read loud and clear to everyone.
"Dragonborn, I need to speak to you, urgently. Rent the attic room at the Sleeping Giant Inn in Riverwood, and I'll meet you. A friend."
"A friend? Do you know who took the horn?" Lydia asked while Vardall thought.
"No. But I pretend to find out." Vardall said.
"Agreed." Lucien crossed his arms. "We must go now to Riverwood and find out who took the horn."
Vardall noticed a way right behind the altar, it was possibly an exit.
"Come on. Let's have a few words with this 'friend' of mine." Then all the group makes their way and leaves Ustengrav, right to Riverwood.
The walk to Riverwood was relatively calm. Of course, if you don't count the wolves, bears, bandits and even a Spriggan that attacked the group. Vardall and his friends went directly to the Sleeping Giant Inn to look for that 'friend'
"So who do you think is your 'friend'?" Vardall didn't even answer Lucien's question, he was too busy looking around the Inn.
"I don't know. All of you stay here and I will check the place out. I think it will be easier if I don't have an army behind me." Without even waiting for an answer from his friends, Vardall moved around the Inn. His friends decided to tag along and just act normally.
"Welcome to the Sleeping Giant Inn. What can I do for you?" A female voice called Vardall while he passed close to a little alchemy lab. He looked to his back and saw a Breton woman. He had a strange Deja Vu sensation, like he had already seen that woman in another place.
"Yeah... I would like to rent the attic room." Vardall's words made the woman arch her eyebrows and change her body language a little, so something as she was expecting trouble. Vardall noticed that.
"Attic room, eh? Well... we don't have an attic room, but you can have the one on the left." She said as she pointed to the room in question. "Make yourself at home." So she left Vardall alone and entered a room.
Vardall made his way to the room the woman indicated to him. His friends saw everything, but before they could do anything, Vardall made a sign with his head and hand for all of them to wait there and to not follow him. They were all a bit reluctant, but ended up accepting.
Inside the room, Vardall closed the door and waited. He knew this could be a trap so he was on guard, prepared for anything. After some time, the door of the room opened and the same Breton woman from before was in front of him.
"So you're the Dragonborn I've been hearing so much about." She said as she made a move to take something that was hidden. Vardall became even more alert and was ready to cast a spell on her in any case she pulled something to try to kill him, but in the end she only took something Vardall was looking for.
"I think you're looking for this." She gave the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller to him. Vardall was totally confused now.
"We need to talk. Follow me." Before he could ask anything, the woman started to exit the room.
"I have a bad feeling about this..." But even so, Vardall followed the woman to another room. Before he entered, he quickly signed to his friends to stay steady in case of any trouble.
"Close the door." The woman ordered once they're both inside. Vardall obeyed and the woman opened a closet and, to Vardall's surprise, moved a panel inside the closet, revealing some stairs to a secret room.
"Now we can talk." The woman went down the stairs and Vardall followed her inside the secret room. Inside the room existed a big table, several swords in weapon racks, some chests and barrels, an alchemy lab with several ingredients upon a shelf and more.
"The Greybeards seem to think you're the Dragonborn. I hope they're right." The woman says as she leans on the table and looks to Vardall.
"They're right. I'm the Dragonborn." The woman didn't sound convinced with Vardall's words. "I hope so. But I will not assume anything only because the Greybeards say so."
"You better have a good reason for dragging me here."
"I just wanted to make sure this wasn't a Thalmor trap." Vardall archs one of his eyebrows. "Do I look like an Altmer to you?"
"You're tall as one, maybe even more." There was a little humor in her words, even though she didn't demonstrate it in her expression.
"Well, thanks for the compliment." His height was one of the things Vardall was deeply proud of. "Then go on, I'm listening."
"My name is Delphine, I'm part of a group that's been looking for you... well, someone like you, for a very long time. If you really are Dragonborn, that is. Before I tell you any more, I need to make sure I can trust you."
Her words make Vardall cross his arms. "Why are you looking for a Dragonborn?"
"Because we remember what most don't - that the Dragonborn is the ultimate dragonslayer." She then throws a book right in front of Vardall. He recognizes the Book as the Book of the Dragonborn, a book that Vardall already read several times in this last month. "You're the only one that can kill a dragon permanently by devouring it's soul. Can you do it? Can you devour a dragon's soul?"
"Yes. That's how I first learned I was Dragonborn."
"Good. You'll have a chance to prove it to me soon enough." Vardall had the feeling that Delphine wasn't telling everything to him. "I don't have to prove anything for you, only to myself. But... I think I can open an exception ONLY this time." Delphine's expression remained unchanged. "Fair enough."
"What's the part you're not telling me?" Vardall asked.
"Dragons aren't just coming back, they're being resurrected." Vardall arched his eyebrows with her words and became more curious. "They haven't gone somewhere for all these years. They were dead, killed off centuries ago by my predecessors. Now something's happening to bring them back to life."
"I would not be surprised if that truly is the case." Vardall already saw his share of crazy things back on Thedas: A fanatic cult who worshiped a dragon, Darkspawns who can talk, The Mother, and the Fade itself. But Tamriel was on another level of craziness, and all the events that already happened in this continent surpass several things from Thedas. "But what makes you think dragons are coming back to life?"
"Because I've visited their ancient burial mounds and found them empty." Delphine says as she shows a map to Vardall, with several marcations. "I've figured out where the next one will come back to life. We're going out there, and you're going to kill that dragon. If we succeed, I'll tell you anything you want to know."
"How did you figure all this out?"
"You should know. You got the map for me. The dragonstone you got for Farengar, remember?" Vardall knew it; he already had seen Delphine somewhere else.
"It was you in Dragonsreach..." Delphine nods her head in confirmation. "So you were paying attention. Yes, I arranged to have Farengar recover the dragonstone for me. It's what I do. I make things happen from behind the scenes. And work, here you are."
"Where are we going?" Vardall asked as he looked on the map.
"Kynesgrove. There's an ancient dragon burial near there. If we can get there before it happens, maybe we'll learn how to stop it."
Vardall looked back to Delphine. "Kynesgrove is near Windhelm, isn't it?" Delphine nods. "Yes. We can reach there in a few days, so I suggest we go now."
"Agreed." Vardall then marked Kynesgrove on his map. "Let's go kill a dragon."
Vardall swears he saw the little glimpse of a smile on Delphine's face. "Let me grab my gear, then we can go."
While Delphine prepared herself for the trip, Vardall headed back to the Inn. Up there, his friends saw him exit the room he entered several minutes ago.
"My Thane!" Lydia screamed relieved as she, Sofia and Lucien approached Vardall. "What was all that? Who was that woman?" Lucien was curious, as everyone.
"She was the one who took the horn from Ustengrav and left that note." That made everyone confused. "What? It was her?"
"Yes. She seems to be just a simple Inn owner, but she's much more."
Sofia was even more confused. "What do you mean?"
Vardall shrugged his shoulders. "Even I don't know everything. I don't trust her, but right now she's our best lead on how to stop the dragons."
"What's our next step?" Lucien asked.
"We're heading to Kynesgrove, a little settlement near Windhelm. If her information is good, a dragon is going to be resurrected there." Now that made everyone even more confused.
"A dragon being resurrected?!" Sofia asked, a little scared. "I'll explain everything on the way." He then went to Lydia and gave her his coin bag. "Here, Lydia. Buy ourselves some supplies, it's gonna be kinda a long trip."
"As you command, my Thane." Lydia then went to buy food and supplies and while they're all waiting for her to return, Delphine shows up, fully equipped with a leather armor and one of the many curved swords Vardall saw in her secret room.
"I'm ready. You're all ready?" She asked Vardall and his friends. "Almost. My Housecarl is buying some supplies for us." And just after Vardall finished talking, Lydia went back.
"Here, my Thane." She gives the coin bag back to Vardall.
"Thanks, Lydia."
"Well... Now that you're all ready, we can go." Delphine said and Vardall nodded. His friends weren't understanding very much and he noticed that. "Oh, yeah. This is Delphine, she's the one who took the horn from Ustengrav and all that I already tell all of you."
"We don't have time to waste." Delphine then just passed through everyone. "The soon we reach Kynesgrove the better."
"Then lead the way." Vardall told her. As soon she went a little further, he whispered to his friends. "It's going to be a long trip..." Then he followed Delphine, with his friends right behind him, all going to Kynesgrove.
The whole group spent the next few days going to Kynesgrove. They stopped several times along the way to set camp and rest. During those moments, Vardall and his friends tried their best to get some more information from Delphine, but never did it. She remained secret all the way, refusing to speak more in a moment.
During one more night camping on their way to Kynesgrove, Vardall was sleeping, a rare night of sleep where he was not haunted by nightmares or memories of his past actions. Suddenly, during his sleep, he hears a strange noise and promptly awakens, trying to get his greatsword. But, before he could even get up, he was received by the sensation of a dagger on his neck.
"Ah, ah, ah..." A female voice right on Vardall's side whispers. "Let's not make unnecessary movements, shall we? For the sake of your friends." The woman giggled as Vardall looked at Lydia, Lucien and Delphine and saw several persons also with daggers on their necks and prepared to kill them. They all had strange bright eyes and... fangs.
Vardall widened his eyes. "Oh, no..." They're all surrounded by vampires. He then felt the dagger even more pressed on his throat.
"No more talk." The vampire said as she entered more in Vardall's point of view. He now could see her bright eyes.
"We got lucky to find your camp, we haven't fed in a long time." She whispered and opened a big smile, where Vardall could see her sharp fangs. "All of you look to have such tasty blood. Especially you." She looked deep right into Vardall's bright blue eyes. She then held Vardall's black long hair tightly, removed her dagger from his neck and pressed down his right eye.
"How about just a little sample of blood?" She smiled sadistically again. "If you scream, your friends die. Including her.
Vardall then finally saw that Sofia, who was watching the camp while the other sleep, was also being made hostage. And then, the vampire started to deeply cut Vardall's flesh. He did his best to not grunt or show pain as the very sharp dagger cut though his face. The vampire cut Vardall's face until his lower jaw, cutting even though his beard. Blood obviously dropped from the cut and stained the dagger's blade. Tainted, corrupted blood of the Darkspawn, a death sentence to everyone, even himself. A symbol of the sacrifice that means becoming a Grey Warden and also the main source of their power.
"Your blood has a... exotic smell." The female vampire said, deciding to taste Vardall's blood. She then licked his face, right on the bleeding cut. But soon as she tasted Vardall's blood, she immediately backed off, grunting in pain.
"Ah! It... burns!" The vampire's sudden action called the attention of her friends and made all of them divert their attention for a moment. All this noise also awoke Vardall's friends and Delphine, she quickly noticed what was going on and promptly caught her sword, striking the one of the vampires and getting into a combat position. Vardall used that opportunity and hit the same vampire who cut his face with a fire spell. She was too weak to dodge and was hit by the fire, screaming in agony while she was burned.
With the distraction that was created, Lydia and Lucien, all of them now awake, also use this opportunity to strike the vampire that was most close to them and get ready to the fight. Sofia quickly punches the vamoire who was holding her and also takes her sword.
"Kill all of them!" One of the vampires yelled to the rest of the group. Vardall and his friends were surrounded, not just by vampires, but also by several vampire thralls. Seeing this scenario, Vardall decides to do something he hasn't done in a long time. While his friends battle against the vampires, he join a quantity of mana and focus, remembering the lessons Morrigan taught him, he shapeshift himself into the form of a, deformed and terrible bear, with exposed bones, extremely sharp teeths and claws, with bony spikes getting out of all his body. He shapeshifts himself into a Bereskarn.
"What in the name of Molag Bal is that?!" One of the vampires watches terrified while a shapeshifted Vardall roars and charges upon him, knocking him to the ground. Taking that chance, Vardall quickly bites the vampire's throat and sheds it out of his body.
Not wasting any time, he charges into a thrall this time. The thrall tries to hit him with an axe, but before he could do it, Vardall hits him on his belly with his claws, opening a great wound and getting even more soaked in blood. The thrall knew in great pain and then Vardall used his claws to heavily hit his head.
Then suddenly, a vampire takes this opportunity and sticks a dagger on one of Vardall's legs. He roars in pain and immediately turns back and hits the vampire. She falls on the ground and before she can get up, Vardall starts to completely shred her with his claws and mouth. By the end the vampire was nothing more than a pile of flesh without her limbs and Vardall was with some of her guts in his mouth.
"Fall back! Fall back!" Noticing they're all being killed, one of the vampires cries to all of them retreat while they still can. The vampires and their thralls run away, leaving several ripped bodies of their group behind. Vardall watches them running away while he spits the guts in his mouth.
Vardall was completely soaked with blood, and he could notice the fear in the gaze of his friends, his actual form not helping in anything. He then shapeshifts himself back to his human form, immediately falling on his knees, panting. Shapeshift was always very costly to him, being the main reason he didn't use those skills very often.
"What... what was that?" Sofia asked, a little scared, just like everyone. Even Delphine was afraid, with her sword ready for any sudden attack from Vardall.
"Vampires trying to eat us or... whatever." Vardall said.
"No, I'm talking about that... thing you turned yourself in."
"It was just... another of my magic abilities." Vardall then removes the dagger from his leg, grunting in pain.
"I... already heard of a type of magic similar to that." Lucien said. "But... I thought only a Bosmer could do such a thing."
"Well... I can tell my skills have nothing to do with the Bosmer. Look... it's a long story that I can explain in another time. But what about some help here?"
And so, everyone helped Vardall with his wounds, but still a little nervous about the past events. They all took Vardall to a nearby river to clean him from all the blood and to treat his wounds. Thanks to Lucien healing spells and some of the healing potions Vardall had, he was feeling a little better in no time. But even so, the cut that the vampire made under his right eye was deep enough to leave a scar.
After treating his wounds and resting for some more hours, Vardall was decently fine to continue their travel. They still needed to reach Kynesgrove, so even with some pain, they all continued their walk, and after several hours, the group finally arrived in Kynesgrove.
At the first look Kynesgrove looked normal, just like any other settlement they founded on the way.
"It looks like we arrived too early." Sofia said as he observed the place.
"Or too late. Let's go check the burial." Delphine passed through him, following a trail that led to the dragon burial. Vardall and his friends followed her until there, and once there they found the burial still intact.
"Hmm... It looks like your friend is right, Vardall." Delphine then checked the burial more closely. "But the next place is here, I'm sure."
"So we'll need to wait until something happens." Lucien said. "Agreed. Let's go to that Inn back there." Vardall suggested. But even before any of them could move, they all heard a roar in the sky. Before they all could do anything, the same black dragon that attacked Helgen passed flying upon them.
"By the nine!" Lydia shouted. Even though they were all in plain sight, the dragon didn't attack them.
"That dragon! I know that dragon!" As Vardall yelled, Delphine turned his attention to him. "What!? How!?"
"He is the one who attacked Helgen!"
They all returned to watch the dragon, as he focused his full attention to the burial and started to make a sort of process to bring that dead dragon back to life.
"Sahloknir, ziil gro dovah ulse!" He started speaking in the dragon language and using a Thu'um that Vardall didn't recognise. "Slen Tiid Vo!"
As he ended shouting, the stone that covered the burial broke, and a skeleton of a dragon left from it's inside.
"In the name of Talos!" Delphine yelled as everyone watched the skeleton of the dead dragon as his body rejuvenated over his skeleton, growing muscles and eventually flesh. As the dead dragon was being regenerated, the black dragon gazed and focused his full attention to Vardall, it looked like he was looking right into his soul. But eventually he stopped gazing at Vardall, as he looked back to the dragon, now fully resurrected and not just a skeleton.
"Alduin, thuri! Boaan tiid vokriiha suleyksejun kruziik?" Sahloknir, the previously dead dragon, focuses his attention and speaks with the black dragon. The name Sahloknir speaked sent a shiver down Vardall's spine. That black dragon was Alduin? The World-Eater?
"Geh, Sahloknir, kaali mir." Then once again, Alduin looked back right to Vardall. "Ful, losei Dovahkiin? Zu'u koraav nid nol dov do hi." Vardall could feel the dragon was talking right to him, but he didn't understand anything of what he was saying.
And even so, Vardall was almost paralysed. He read about Alduin during the whole month he was in High Hrothgar: The firstborn of Akatosh, destined to destroy the world for a new one to be created, but instead ruled over humans with an iron fist.
"You do not even know our tongue, do you? Such arrogance, to dare take for yourself the name of Dovah." Alduin spoke specially to Vardall before turning his attention to Sahloknir.
"Sahloknir, krii daar joorre." And so Alduin left, letting Vardall and his group to be killed by Sahloknir.
I know that one full month sounds like too much time to a Dragonborn to train with the Greybeards, but I wanted a certain time lapse on the story to make Vardall learn more about Tamriel and not get confused all the time or only depend on someone. Also a huge thanks to the user zack32 from who helped me a lot.
Translation:
Alduin: Sahloknir, ziil gro dovah ulse!
Sahloknir, ever-bound dragon spirit!
Alduin: Slen tiid vo!
Let your flesh be restored! (Flesh against time.)
Sahloknir: Alduin, thuri! Boaan tiid vokriiha suleyksejun kruziik?
Alduin, my overlord! Has time come to revive the ancient realm?
Alduin: Geh, Sahloknir, kaali mir.
Yes, Sahloknir, my trusted ally.
Alduin: Ful, losei Dovahkiin? Zu'u koraav nid nol dov do hi.
So, you are Dragonborn? I see none of the dragonkind in you.
Alduin: Sahloknir, krii daar joorre.
Sahloknir, kill these mortals.