Chapter 8

Voice of the Graybeards: Part 1

My breath heaved as I climbed several more steps. The air was getting thinner and thinner as I climbed, and the cold also increased dramatically. As I took yet another step, I counted

"5,746". Supposedly there were 7,000 steps to climb up to High Hrothgar, and I was putting that to the test. Lydia and I had started our trek up the mountain in the early morning and had been climbing ever since. It was difficult to convince a wagon to come over to Ivarstead, but after an extra bribe, we were sent rolling over hills and mountains until we came to Ivarstead, the village at the base of what the Nords called "The Throat of the World." It was the tallest mountain in Tamriel, and the Graybeards, an order of monks, lived at the top. The Graybeards were masters of the Voice, an ancient language that was spoken by the dragons and supposedly held great power. I soon saw the rumors were right. We both stayed mostly quiet on the trek up, but on a particularly steep part of the stairway, Lydia spoke.

"My thane, I know it's not my place to ask- but my experience with your, ah, "situation" yesterday made me curious. Where did you come from? What is your story?".

I waited a few more moments before responding, my breath making icy smoke snake out of my mouth. I didn't know how much to tell her, or how much she would believe. So, I decided to give her the abridged and simplified version of my past.

"I was born 34 years ago, in a country named Hyrule. I have checked every map I can find, and have asked many different people here in Skyrim. Nobody knows where or what my homeland. It simply "doesn't exist". Despite what other people say, I'm not a Bosmer. I'm a Hylian. Anyways, my entire life, I've been going on adventures. These weren't run-of-the-mill mercenary jobs. I literally had to save my country from an invading nation. I managed to defeat the enemy, through many hardships. I traveled to new civilizations, made allies, and delved deep into temples in search of allies to help me fight the ruler of the enemy nation, Ganondorf. After all of my hard work, I was… forgotten. My deeds were unsung, by sacrifices were never heard of. Even a dear friend that I had left me. I tried following her, only to find myself in a different country called Termina. That land had its own troubles which I had to solve. A demon trapped in a mask was my enemy then, which I had to destroy. On that particular adventure, I saw some things I can't un-see. After that, I tried to heal. Honestly, I tried. I settled down on a friend's farm, and it helped. But my trauma, my nightmares, they never truly went away. I think my adventures also gave me a sense of purpose. Without one, I felt… empty. So, I left, after about two decades. I took a boat to see other lands and then…"

I trailed off of my talking. I was taking the boat owned by Morida, but I couldn't remember what happened afterward. My mind strained, searching its depths. Nothing surfaced, and I shrugged helplessly. The last thing I did remember was waking up in the prisoner cart, so I told Lydia about that as well. I finally ended my story with slaying the dragon, and finding out that I was Dragonborn. As I spoke, Lydia hadn't interrupted. She hiked at a steady pace, the click of her hiking staff hitting the stairs the only sound she made. As I finished, she examined me closely with her pale blue eyes, examining me as a warrior would an enemy. She seemed to approve of whatever she found, however.

"You're tougher than I thought. At first, I didn't like the idea of being the Housecarl of an elf. I thought you would be weak. I was wrong on both fronts. Not only are you not an elf, but you are strong- far stronger than I could ever be." Lydia's compliment was serious and genuine. I realized that she wouldn't give them lightly, so I simply nodded in thanks.

Things were silent again as we walked and sometimes climbed up the mountain. I was used to silence on my journeys. It let the sounds of nature fill my ears. Even in the harshest areas like the Gerudo Desert, I stayed silent. It didn't break the serenity of nature or the world around me. While I walked, I could just exist, and listen to the life around me. Lydia seemed to appreciate this as well and stayed quiet after our conversation. As I turned through a particulrarly tall, rocky pass, Lydia grabbed my arm. I looked towards her, puzzled, and Lydia clamped a hand over my mouth. She whispered

"Listen", into my ear, and in a moment, I heard what she was talking about. A huffing, snuffling sound was coming around the corner. Hearing it made me imagine a boar, or perhaps a bear. Lydia's expression seemed grim, however, so it must have been something worse.

"There's a frost troll up ahead. It must be living in the pass, so there isn't any way around it." By this point, Lydia had taken her hand off my mouth, and I considered the situation. I didn't know what a troll was, much less a frost troll. It couldn't be more difficult than slaying a dragon, however.

"We'll try to go around it. If it attacks, go for it.", I whispered back.

My plan did not work. As soon as Lydia and I came around the corner, the frost troll swiveled its head to look directly at us. It had thick, white fur, and was vaguely humanoid. It looked more like an ape, with long arms and bowed legs, except for the third eye in the center of its head. It burped, spitting out a chunk of bone, then roared at us. With a savage look in its eyes, it started to lope towards us. Lydia acted first, firing her bow which she had drawn. It sunk deep into the creature's left shoulder, making it howl in another beastial cry, and it loped towards us faster. I didn't wait for it to come to me. I ran forward, sword and shield in hand. A bash from my shield made it come to a halt, allowing me a clear hit. My sword bit into its side, and blood spilled, staining its white fur crimson. The troll snarled, swiping at me as I backed away. It lunged towards me, teeth bared, claws reaching out to rake at my chest. I tried to duck, but the trolls attack was surprisingly swift. Instead of a clawed blow, a fist impacted my chest instead, knocking the wind ot of me. The troll seemed to smile, grinning its sharp teeth at me until another arrow impacted its body. This time, the arrow struck true, slamming into the eye in the middle of the troll's forehead. It couldn't even scream, it was so overwhelmed with pain. Using its pain as a distraction, I reared back, then thrust my sword deep into its gut. With a final gurgle of pain, the troll slumped to the ground, bleeding. I put it out of its misery with a swift slice across the throat, and all was silent once again.

It took several minutes for both Lydia and I to recover, panting with adrenaline still rushing through our veins.

"Thanks for keeping an eye out for me, Lydia. If you didn't hear it, then we might have been ambushed by the troll.", I said. Lydia nodded in return.

"Of course, my thane. My shield and sword are yours. As a Thane, it is my honor to protect and fight for you." Lydia shouldered her shield and nodded further up the path.

"It shouldn't be too long before we reach a resting spot. We should stop there before night falls." I looked to the sky, and the darkness encroaching confirmed Lydia's statement.

Before I started to walk again, a part of Lydia's statement crossed my mind. "Wait, a resting spot? How long does it take to climb High Hrothgar" I asked. Lydia's head tilted slightly as she considered the question.

"I am not certain, but from what I've heard, it takes at least two days to climb the mountain. Three or four if you are with a large party." Lydia's answer shocked me, though I should have expected as much. As the tallest mountain in all of Tamriel, it was only natural that it would take several days to climb. No wonder why so few pilgrims attempted the climb. It took an hour more of marching, but Lydia and I both arrived at a small camp hidden under an outcropping of stone. A few meager piles of firewood lay in a corner, and the ashes of another fire lay cold in a circle of stones. It wasn't much, but it would suffice. I set up the fire, sparking a piece of flint, and soon it cracked merrily against the bitter cold. I was wearing heavier clothes for the climb, but even so, it was a relief to feel the warmth come back to my nose and face. A quick meal of dried rations later, I lay on my bedroll, staring at the stone ceiling while the snowfall outside slowly turned into a blizzard. The faint crackling of snowflakes falling into the campfire is what lulled me to sleep, though my dreams weren't nearly as soothing.

I opened my eyes to see Helgen around me, burning. Imperial soldiers looked to the sky in terror, shooting their bows at the sky. The black form of a dragon swooped by overhead, spewing another gout of flame onto the ground. Men and women screamed around me, bodies were scattered across the town, and the very earth burned. I found it hard to see through the smoke, but a pair of glowing eyes peered through the ash.

"This world," The dragon said, "This world is new to me… Aan Wuth Lein. I have been gone for centuries, and the Joor, the mortals, seem to have forgotten me. I shall let them feel the terror of the Dovah once more. It will make this world taste all the more delicious when I consume it. Until then, enjoy my "gift", Dovakiin." With another bright burst of flame, my dream lit up in pure heat, and I jolted back awake.

I woke up, wincing at a sharp pain in my shoulder. I had rolled off my bedroll and onto a rather painful rock. Standing up slowly, I heard my bones crackle and pop. I wasn't nearly out of the fight yet, but my body was getting older. I performed several warm-up stretches to ease the pain in my muscles, and soon the pain faded to the background of my head. Lydia still slept, unperturbed by strange dreams of death and dragons. What did the black dragon mean by "consuming the world"? It was, again, a question that only the Graybeards could answer. I took a minute to just look at the world around me, admiring its beauty. Even though I wasn't at the top of the mountain yet, I could see a great deal of Skyrim around me. To the west, I saw rolling hills and craggy mountains with lakes and rivers flowing between them. To the northeast, massive plains of grass and wildflowers bloomed, with evergreen forests bordering it. Whiterun's thatched roofs were also visible, though seemed as small as post stamps from this distance. It was a crisp morning, and the rest of the mountain around me was covered in either thick forest or snow. As I took it all in, a small fox scampered by, chasing after what looked to be… a rabbit? I had only seen masks made after the creatures, as they were extinct in Hyrule. My stomach gurgled, reminding me of just how hungry I was. Could I really hunt one, though? I dug through my pack but found only the non-perishable foods that I had packed. A roll of cheese, a loaf of bread, and some dried strips of a fish called salmon. I wrinkled my nose. Though I was hesitant to hunt a rabbit, it would definitely be better than the non-perishables. Grabbing Lydia's bow and arrows, I stalked off to a nearby copse. I made sure to get settled in a comfortable position in a tree, then waited.

This gave me even more time to think about my dream, though I tried my best to forget about it. It was just a dream, right? Sure, Princess Zelda's dreams were prophetic, but that was due to the power inherited from her ancestors. I had no such power. Or, at least, I didn't anymore. I subconsciously looked at the back of my left hand, where a scar lay hidden beneath my gauntlets. One in the shape of the Triforce. As the years passed, my Triforce piece faded away. I had no clue how or why, but I no longer felt its vigor fill my body, or protect me from evil. I was so deep in rumination that I almost missed a rabbit that bounded by, just underneath my hiding spot. I pulled my arrow back as silently as I could, aimed, then released. A dull "thunk", and a squeal of pain later, the rabbit fell, twitching. I felt bad for its death, but I knew that my food supplies would not last forever. It would be inevitable that I would have had to hunt sooner or later. I hopped down from my hiding place and grabbed the rabbit, which was still warm. Soon, after I had walked back to the campsite, the rabbit was cut into small chunks and was boiling in a small pot that I had packed. Salt and a few herbs from around the area also found their way into the dish. Lydia woke soon after the stew was done, and we ate breakfast together before we continued our trek up the mountain.

After dozens of switchbacks, going up and down peaks in the mountain and sloughing through snowdrifts, Lydia and I stood in front of a grand building. Made from gray stone, the monastery seemed powerful and imposing at its place at the top of the world. Two staircases led to two identical, massive doors, each carved delicately with various scenes and symbols that meant nothing to me. In front of it all was a battered-looking chest, which I tossed a sack into. A few days prior, an old man named Klimmek had asked me to bring the supplies to the graybeards in exchange for some money. I was more than happy to help since I was running dangerously low on money at the time. It was a relief to feel its weight leave my bag. Though it was magical, it did not reduce the weight of any objects placed into it. Finishing that task, I took a deep breath and stepped to the door on the left. I pushed hard, opening the doorway, and entered the monastery of the Graybeards, masters of the Voice.

Translations:

Aan Wuth Lein- A older world

Dovah- Dragon

Joor- Mortal