I sagged down against the wall and watched as Ash walked over to make sure Adien was alright. I would be useless to Ash and myself if I went weak in the knees every time a dragon was near or died. I know I was born with the soul of a dragon and that Akatosh had something in mind for me. What that was, I don't know, but I was starting to think that it didn't have anything to do with Alduin.
I stood up and slowly walked over to Ash and Adien, guards were telling him he was Dragonborn and telling him to try to shout, he shrugged and said he'd try. Walking a little way away from the rest of us, he did.
I heard the words and felt what they did and instinctively knew I could do the same if I had to, but it would cost. I knew this word, it was the one on the wall in the Barrow we had cleared.
"I told Adien that we had planned on visiting the Greybeards and that traveling together might be for the best. But first, we will go and tell the Jarl about this dragon and the watchtower."
Adien and I talked on the way back to Whiterun and we found that we had both gained knowledge of the word from that wall, though to Ash it was nothing but a pretty light and babbling.
"You know that Ulfric can use a Thu'um, but he is not Dragonborn, he learned. So you may be able to learn also, I mean if you hear the word walls." Adien sounded serious and also hopeful.
"It will be something to ask the Greybeards when we get there." I shrugged, " Plus a dragon only has one soul and there are two of us, so it's not a given that I can't absorb souls like you, just the fact that I don't think I can." He nodded.
We asked Adien not to say anything to the Jarl or anyone else. He could take all the notice and Ash winked and I told him the Ladies might find him even more fascinating. He smiled and I heard a deep rumble in his chest, internal laughter.
Even the Jarl said Adien should go visit the Greybreads and gave all three of us a reward for our part in defeating the dragon. We went to the Inn after selling off some of the loot and dragon pieces that the Alchemist and Smith were interested in.
We talked over the route that we should take to Iverstead, with Adien suggesting a high pass, we would have to leave before daylight, so knew it would not be tomorrow as supplies would be needed.
Three days later we managed to leave Whiterun, a storm that we knew would be a blizzard at high altitudes took two days to move on. It was well before dawn and the gate guards were not happy about opening up the gates.
We climbed the high switchback trail up and over the mountain and made the pass an hour before sunset. Adien set up the Fur-lined tent while Ash and I got a fire going. He put several large flat rocks at the inner and outer corners of the tent and smaller ones along the side, front, and back.
"The wind blows hard up here and to lose the tent is to die. The rocks on the inside are for the ones that we are going to heat in the fire, then place on top of them." Adien explained, I blinked and told him I thought I could use a spell to heat them after they cooled down in the middle of the night. I practiced the spell on one of the cooking stones to make sure it would work.
We slept much warmer than we would have, due to Adien's knowledge of camping in these cold climes, they were things we would remember for later. My spell did work and when I woke in the morning, before I moved out of my furs, I heated all four rocks and the one under the tea-pot.
I heard male chuckles as I got up and put the thicker silk gambeson over the thin one I had slept in, then my armor and cloak. I went and stoked up the campfire and put the stew pot on it, then went back inside and had a warm cup of tea.
We made it to Iverstead by late in the evening, a troll having slowed us down some. Another day to provision and we were on our way up the 7,000 steps. I think we were halfway up the frozen steps when the dragon attacked, all I can say is at least it was using a fire breath attack and helped to kill a troll.
This time I was between the Dragon and Adien and I did not absorb the soul, it passed right by me. I could feel the agony of its death and I was glad I would not have to live with that inside me. Adien said he felt no emotions, just knowledge that was suddenly in his mind. I to had felt that knowledge and looked with sadness as the history of the dragon passed quickly back out of my grasp, I could not even recall his name in moments.
Though I felt a hollowness in my stomach and felt like crying, my knees had not turned to water and I didn't feel shaky at all. We made it up to High Hrothgar and one of them met us near the door. He looked from Adien to me and back again.
"Welcome to High Hrothgar, I am Master Arnegeir and I speak for the Greybeards. That a Dragonborn should show up at this time in history." He looked back and forth between us again. I sighed and stepped forward.
"While we are both Dragonborn, I think Adien is the one you are looking for. He is the one whose Thu'um you heard." Master Arnegeir went on to test Adien, showing him different Thu'um's and lending their knowledge to him. I said nothing when showing him the Thu'um's also taught me.
I paid more attention when they lent him their knowledge because even though there was a gifting of power to Adien and none to me, I still learned the meanings and knew that if Akatosh lent me the power I would be able to use the Thu'um's also.
They had one more task for him to prove his worthiness to be their student, though that isn't exactly what they said. As we went back down the mountain to Iverstead, we had a good talk.
"Adien, Brother of my soul, do not let them dictate your conscience, they have an agenda that may or may not follow your moral code. He said nothing to me, did not offer training, did not ask to hear my Thu'um."
" You can use a Thu'um? You didn't say, then again your right they didn't ask." I turned slightly so that I was facing away from both men and pulled the essence of my magic and projected it...* Fiik Lo Sah*" We watched as a spectral twin of myself stood looking at us.
"For the Love of Mara. I know you have your own monsters to fight, but if you need my help?"
" We don't know what it is we face, so we may at some point ask for your help. If you get in a pickle, call on us. I think if you project your Thu'um in the same words the Greybeards used to call you, I would be able to hear it anywhere in Skyrim and maybe beyond."
"So like them, you can learn, like a newly made dragon, you can learn, but you're right, I will be careful. They should have asked." I sighed.
"Yes, but let's not stand on the side of the mountain debating what they should have done and what I can learn. My Thu'um will never be as powerful as yours, but Akatosh may lend me the strength if it's really needed. Warm mead is on me!"
I stood up and slowly walked over to Ash and Adien, guards were telling him he was Dragonborn and telling him to try to shout, he shrugged and said he'd try. Walking a little way away from the rest of us, he did.
I heard the words and felt what they did and instinctively knew I could do the same if I had to, but it would cost. I knew this word, it was the one on the wall in the Barrow we had cleared.
"I told Adien that we had planned on visiting the Greybeards and that traveling together might be for the best. But first, we will go and tell the Jarl about this dragon and the watchtower."
Adien and I talked on the way back to Whiterun and we found that we had both gained knowledge of the word from that wall, though to Ash it was nothing but a pretty light and babbling.
"You know that Ulfric can use a Thu'um, but he is not Dragonborn, he learned. So you may be able to learn also, I mean if you hear the word walls." Adien sounded serious and also hopeful.
"It will be something to ask the Greybeards when we get there." I shrugged, " Plus a dragon only has one soul and there are two of us, so it's not a given that I can't absorb souls like you, just the fact that I don't think I can." He nodded.
We asked Adien not to say anything to the Jarl or anyone else. He could take all the notice and Ash winked and I told him the Ladies might find him even more fascinating. He smiled and I heard a deep rumble in his chest, internal laughter.
Even the Jarl said Adien should go visit the Greybreads and gave all three of us a reward for our part in defeating the dragon. We went to the Inn after selling off some of the loot and dragon pieces that the Alchemist and Smith were interested in.
We talked over the route that we should take to Iverstead, with Adien suggesting a high pass, we would have to leave before daylight, so knew it would not be tomorrow as supplies would be needed.
Three days later we managed to leave Whiterun, a storm that we knew would be a blizzard at high altitudes took two days to move on. It was well before dawn and the gate guards were not happy about opening up the gates.
We climbed the high switchback trail up and over the mountain and made the pass an hour before sunset. Adien set up the Fur-lined tent while Ash and I got a fire going. He put several large flat rocks at the inner and outer corners of the tent and smaller ones along the side, front, and back.
"The wind blows hard up here and to lose the tent is to die. The rocks on the inside are for the ones that we are going to heat in the fire, then place on top of them." Adien explained, I blinked and told him I thought I could use a spell to heat them after they cooled down in the middle of the night. I practiced the spell on one of the cooking stones to make sure it would work.
We slept much warmer than we would have, due to Adien's knowledge of camping in these cold climes, they were things we would remember for later. My spell did work and when I woke in the morning, before I moved out of my furs, I heated all four rocks and the one under the tea-pot.
I heard male chuckles as I got up and put the thicker silk gambeson over the thin one I had slept in, then my armor and cloak. I went and stoked up the campfire and put the stew pot on it, then went back inside and had a warm cup of tea.
We made it to Iverstead by late in the evening, a troll having slowed us down some. Another day to provision and we were on our way up the 7,000 steps. I think we were halfway up the frozen steps when the dragon attacked, all I can say is at least it was using a fire breath attack and helped to kill a troll.
This time I was between the Dragon and Adien and I did not absorb the soul, it passed right by me. I could feel the agony of its death and I was glad I would not have to live with that inside me. Adien said he felt no emotions, just knowledge that was suddenly in his mind. I to had felt that knowledge and looked with sadness as the history of the dragon passed quickly back out of my grasp, I could not even recall his name in moments.
Though I felt a hollowness in my stomach and felt like crying, my knees had not turned to water and I didn't feel shaky at all. We made it up to High Hrothgar and one of them met us near the door. He looked from Adien to me and back again.
"Welcome to High Hrothgar, I am Master Arnegeir and I speak for the Greybeards. That a Dragonborn should show up at this time in history." He looked back and forth between us again. I sighed and stepped forward.
"While we are both Dragonborn, I think Adien is the one you are looking for. He is the one whose Thu'um you heard." Master Arnegeir went on to test Adien, showing him different Thu'um's and lending their knowledge to him. I said nothing when showing him the Thu'um's also taught me.
I paid more attention when they lent him their knowledge because even though there was a gifting of power to Adien and none to me, I still learned the meanings and knew that if Akatosh lent me the power I would be able to use the Thu'um's also.
They had one more task for him to prove his worthiness to be their student, though that isn't exactly what they said. As we went back down the mountain to Iverstead, we had a good talk.
"Adien, Brother of my soul, do not let them dictate your conscience, they have an agenda that may or may not follow your moral code. He said nothing to me, did not offer training, did not ask to hear my Thu'um."
" You can use a Thu'um? You didn't say, then again your right they didn't ask." I turned slightly so that I was facing away from both men and pulled the essence of my magic and projected it...* Fiik Lo Sah*" We watched as a spectral twin of myself stood looking at us.
"For the Love of Mara. I know you have your own monsters to fight, but if you need my help?"
" We don't know what it is we face, so we may at some point ask for your help. If you get in a pickle, call on us. I think if you project your Thu'um in the same words the Greybeards used to call you, I would be able to hear it anywhere in Skyrim and maybe beyond."
"So like them, you can learn, like a newly made dragon, you can learn, but you're right, I will be careful. They should have asked." I sighed.
"Yes, but let's not stand on the side of the mountain debating what they should have done and what I can learn. My Thu'um will never be as powerful as yours, but Akatosh may lend me the strength if it's really needed. Warm mead is on me!"
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