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My name is Chamelion. I am returning to Whiterun.

I made my way back down the winding path, carefully wrapping the sapling in a cloth and placing it in my bag as I did so, ducking under the large roots that still had recoiled from the Nettlebane. I was glad I did not harm the tree at all. If I had choices, I would often choose one that would be the most reasonable, not the riskiest. I stopped at the base of the hill, looking back up at the large tree, the sunlight gleaming down on it from the cavern's openings. It's amazing what one could find in desolation.

I turned and made my way down the well-worn path back to the cave entrance, stepping out into the setting sunlight. The mostly-barren region, dotted with just a few trees here and there, had an even eerier feeling in the twilight, and I felt it necessary to return to Whiterun as soon as possible, with both prizes - the sapling and the Dragon's stone - before anything else happened to me.

There was no path from the Eldergleam, giving it more reason to be secluded from most of the world, and I stumbled my way around, looking for the river I had crossed with Maurice (who decided to remain behind, since his pilgrimage was finished), instead finding a series of sulfur pools and hot springs ahead of me. I did spot a large waterfall in the distance and remembered it being there when I was escorting Maurice, so I made that my pinpointed location, and my mental compass as I weaved my way around the large rocks, pools, and the occasional small cluster of trees.

One large hot spring, however, contained a small tent sitting on a flat rock at the edge of the spring, catching my attention. Without thinking, I walked towards the tent, looking around as I did not see anyone in the area. I assumed it to be abandoned, so as any thie- er, adventurer would do, I stepped into the water-

-And right into the loud cry of a woman! The scream in the otherwise quiet air startled me, causing me to lose my balance and land in the water, my lower half now submerged in the hot water. My eyes fell upon a Nord woman, who clearly was relaxing in the hot springs just below my field of view. She clearly looked upset, covering herself with her arms.

...I quickly scrambled out of the water. Clearly, I stumbled into a few bathing Nords, and stuttering a quick apology to the woman, I high-tailed myself away from them. Yes, I said 'them', as there were a couple other Nords at another part of the hot springs also bathing, and the woman's cry got their attention. I preferred to just retreat than try to explain that I just inadvertently stumbled upon them.

Moving on.

Keeping track of the large waterfall, I spotted the river, and nodded in satisfaction, diving immediately into the cool waters and swimming straight across, emerging out of the water and looking around. Beyond the river, I saw the fortress I passed by twice. I decided to approach it, walking around the cliff's side of it before finding the entryway, which was facing directly opposite of where I came from.

The fortress appeared to be well-worn but still functional, although there were no doors. I glanced up at the top of the archway and could barely see a man in a robe peering down at me. It was growing dark, but the braziers were lit so that I could see the man. Not sensing any hostility from him, I took a step forward.

My foot hit something, causing me to stop and look down. At my feet was a dead soldier, still in his armor. I knelt next to him, inspecting the cause of his death, and noted that he was wearing the uniform of the Stormcloaks. I glanced back up to the mage, now understanding what was going on, and quickly ducked under the archway.

From the inside, I could see a wooden ramp on my right on the other side of the wall, leading up to the ramparts, of which I spotted the mage running around on, one hand raised with sparks emanating around his hand. I drew my sword, realizing I was going to get into a fight, and worse, the mage was at an advantage. He could strike me a few times before I could get close to him.

However, the mage was slower in his movements, most likely because he was focusing on his spells, and I ran across the ground, jumping up another set of stairs to intercept the mage, striking him in the face with my shield and sword, eventually dealing a final blow through his onslaught of lightning bolts, striking him in the chest and knocking him off the battlement, into the ground below with a loud 'crunch' as he hit the rocks.

However, I couldn't stop to rest. I felt another jolt of electricity hit me from behind, and I spun around, facing another mage who was channeling her lightning at me. I focused on my own Sparks spell, returning the favor, though it was short-lived. I never was attuned with the magickal arts, and I felt my mana dissipate quickly. However, this did give me a closer chance at the mage, grabbing her head and impaling her throat with my sword.

I looked around, squinting through the night sky to check for any other threats, but sensing none, I looked around the courtyard, looting anything of interest. There was a chest containing some enchanted robes, and an amulet sitting on a pedestal, both of which I took (the latter I could sell for gold, I figure), and returned to the ramparts, walking around the walls to look at the towers for anything, or anyone, of interest.

Atop one of the barracks at the corner of the fortress, I found something interesting. Another mage was standing in the middle of a circle of candles with another dead Stormcloak by his feet. I wasn't sure if he was performing a ritual, but he was quick enough to start attacking me with more lightning. I returned the favor by charging at him, with my shield out, striking him in the chest, and knocking him straight off the tower, into the rocky river below.

I looked over the edge, then turned away, heading down the ramp and towards the door to the barracks that I briefly saw, entering it, and came upon another mage sitting at a table. Her back was towards me, so I took it as a chance to sneak up on her and try to stab her from behind. However, this attempt was interrupted when another mage turned around a corner, spotting me, and letting out a cry of alarm that caused the other mage to get to her feet. Even worse was the fact that this second mage knew fire spells instead of the lightning I was growing accustomed to, and the combination of both of their spells was enough for me to beat a hasty retreat.

Stepping back outside, I frowned, healing myself as I walked around the parapet, making sure not to be surprised by any more mages. The ones that were inside seemed to lose interest in me the moment I stepped out and I preferred it that way. I hopped over a broken segment of the wall and resumed my trek through the forest path, returning to Whiterun.

---

It was dark when I returned to the Bandit's "toll road" and slowed down, looking back up at the towers. At least this time around, I didn't have any potential casualties to get caught in the crossfire, so I approached the bandit, who was kneeling by a cooking fire, stirring some stew.

"You again?" She recognized me immediately. "The toll's gone up; it's 300 gold now if you want to use the road."

I said nothing, grabbing her by the head and slamming it against the rock wall before throwing her at the fire, driving her face into the stew she was just cooking, holding her down as she struggled. The struggling didn't last long; I figure the combination of the burns from the stew and the fact I was cutting off her air were factors in having her drowned in it. I searched her pockets and recovered the gold I paid her the last time.

However, that bandit was just one, I knew that. I drew my bow, crouching low to remain hidden, and opened the door. Immediately to my right, nestled against a set of stairs, was a chest, with an obvious tripwire and a trap hanging above it. The trap itself wasn't very useful, one of those spiked ball and chains that was meant to swing around and strike at anyone looting the chest. However, a quick disarming of the tripwire and the trap remained useless, allowing me to take the Bandits' ill-gotten gains from fleecing the travelers.

At the top of the stairs, there was an opening to my left, leading outside, to a ramp that went up along the tower, meeting the stone bridge that spanned the river. To my surprise and concern, I hadn't encountered anyone on the ramp, and it was too dark to see anyone walking on the bridge, so I slowly climbed up the ramp, switching to the Nettlebane in the process.

To my left, the ramp led back into the tower, where there was a bandit, with his back turned. I quickly snuck up behind him and slit his throat before he could give out a shout. Examining the room, it I spotted another staircase going further up, as well as some various assortment of furniture, most likely meant to serve as a resting spot for the bandits in-between their looting. I made sure to take what was necessary but paused when I heard someone's voice above me. Apparently, I was making a bit of noise that it alerted someone above me.

I crawled up the stairs, into the open night air, and barely avoided an arrow that was aimed at me from behind. I spun around, seeing another of the bandits on top of an observation post, but he had already alerted his comrades, and I could hear voices from below. Damn. I quickly notched an arrow, firing a few of them at the bandit, until one of them lodged into... something, I couldn't tell where, and I saw him fall over the edge of the tower.

I climbed to the top of the post, and ducked as another arrow was fired at me, from the middle of the bridge. I hissed in annoyance, turning around, and stopped as I saw two bandits right at the stairs. I was trapped, but I pulled out my shield and charged at them.

The technique wasn't good enough. I expected to knock at least one off, but then I saw an axe swing around, strike me against the shield, and knocked me off the stairs instead. Instead of falling down into the floor below, as I expected, I ended up on a landing just above the floor. I quickly drew out my dagger, and despite the tight confines, went into a furious battle with one of the bandits, as it was so narrow the other bandit couldn't reach me.

Fortunately, I managed to deal enough damage to one of them to force her back and giving me enough time to drink up a health potion, while the other bandit stepped between us. This bandit, however, couldn't put up much of a fight, as I quickly stabbed him in the stomach, pushed him backwards, and leapt over him as he collapsed onto the other bandit. However, she was quicker than I thought and moved out of the way, as I landed and rolled on the bottom of the stairs, before spinning around to face her.

We kept trading blows, but I noticed that my shield was getting scorched, and I eventually realized that this second bandit, who was tougher to kill, had her axe enchanted with flames. This made her more dangerous, and I presumed she's the Chief of the group, so she had to go down quick. She swung her axe at me, but this time I stepped out of the way, making her lose her balance, and thrust my dagger into the back of her neck, felling her immediately.

I looted her corpse, picking up the enchanted axe, and paused on the stairs, thinking about the second archer Bandit on the bridge, having the need to deal with him in the process. I climbed back up to the top of the tower to see if the archer was within sight; however, the night sky, combined with the darkness of the stones on the other side of the bridge, made that attempt futile. Instead, I traversed my way back down the stairs, heading for the bridge, being wary of any incoming arrows.

I drew my bow and looked around the corner just before the bridge. For once, despite it being nighttime, I was able to see movement of the other archer across the river, except he (I assume he) wasn't near the other tower; instead, he was on a rocky ledge a fair distance away from the tower itself. He also seemed to have lost me, as he resumed patrolling that pathway - if there is a pathway, at least.

Keeping a close eye on him, I crossed the bridge slowly, crouching low to conceal myself as best as possible, and hiding behind some archways built to support the bridge, before I finally reached the other side and in a prime position to snipe the other archer. However, the distance, and the dim light, I noticed, would make it a tad harder for me to aim it correctly, so I waited as he patrolled, judging the timing of when and where to launch my arrow.

My shot missed, despite my preparations. The archer had turned just at the last second of me launching the arrow that it zipped by his head, but it was enough to alert him to my presence. I quickly ducked into the nearby tower, pausing to hear of any arrows that may try to fly at me, but was confused as to the silence I was receiving. I turned to gauge my surroundings in the tower: the wall in front of me was covered by a hill of soil, or the tower itself was built right on top of the hill, and next to the small staircase on my right was a stack of barrels. I assumed this was a storage tower of sorts, considering how far away it was from the main road, and went up the stairs to the upper landing.

There was a door on the landing, and I paused a moment to sense any presence of the archer, before stepping outside. I was greeted with a steep mountain wall a few steps in front of me, but there was enough of a gap for me to see a ramp leading up the tower on my left, and the opening to my right revealed the archer, standing on the cliff's edge. He wasn't aware that I had snuck through the tower, and I also made a mental note about how jagged the path was from the tower to where he was. It made me wonder if he was, basically, stuck there, or if there was a path that goes from the other direction.

Either way, I drew my bow, trying to get a better angle at the archer, and as before, observed his pattern of patrolling, before I launched the arrow. This time, it struck straight and true, imbedding itself into the head of the unsuspecting archer, and he fell to the ground. Satisfied that the entire tower was now clear of bandits, and that there would be no toll on the road, I turned to my left, going up the ramp, to examine the rest of the second tower.

The tower was identical to the previous, however the furnishings were not. I was pleasantly surprised to find an Alchemy table resting in the upper floors, as well as a chest that was easy to loot, including a new mace that I determined would be useful to disenchant. The top floor of the tower resembled another set of sleeping quarters, but a second chest also presented me with a tome on how to summon a familiar. I took this immediately, knowing that having a second, if temporary, helper would be useful in my journeys. Perhaps even allowing me to backtrack to the fortress to deal with the mages within. Though I dismissed that thought, as I needed to finish my previous task.

The top of the tower contained an Imperial Bow that I sensed was also enchanted, so I took it, but other than that, there was nothing else for me to explore. I headed back down, crossing the bridge, and descended the rest of the tower, returning to the road and heading back towards Whiterun.

---

I startled a deer on the way back, but I paid it no mind. Instead my attention was on the hill with the odd stone formation sitting on top of it, something I recall having passed before. There was a faint, but useable, trail that circled around the hill, almost as if leading to the river I had been following, before arcing back up towards the top of the hill. There were also stone arches dotting the path on occasion, and I had the instinct - or a habit, perhaps - of passing through each of these "gateways" as I approached the top of the hill, which I assumed had to be a shrine of sorts.

However, as I turned to look up the hill, I saw a mage emerge from the stone arch sitting just before the shrine, approaching me with hostile intentions. I promptly drew out my dagger - and paused as a large skeleton _also_approached from the same archway, and the distraction was enough for me to lose sight of the Necromancer. Luckily, the skeleton in question was no match for me, and it crumpled to the ground, its bones rolling down the hill before depositing themselves over the cliff edge into the rushing waters below.

I looked back up, confused as to where the Necromancer went, and cautiously approached the shrine. I was met with another set of staircases that continued towards the peak of the hill, under yet another stone archway before I finally reached the peak, meeting up with a single monolith, surrounded by candles. The monolith itself had the engraving of a large eye, with a hole carved clean through the stone just above it. I realized immediately that this was one of the Guardian stones, much like the three I had encountered several days ago.

I looked around my surroundings for a moment. Although I wasn't familiar with the monolith, the clues that had surrounded me - the eye, the candles, and the Necromancer - hinted to me that this was the Ritual Stone, a sign for Necromancers of sorts. Something that I was not into, so I chose to ignore the stone, turned around, and headed back down the path.

I was confused as to where the Necromancer herself was, and as I circled back around the hill, I happened to glance up and spy her staring at me from the hill. She channeled something into her hands and started firing shards of ice at me, so I knew I had to dispatch her, and fast. Thankfully, as I stated before, Mages and Necromancers aren't that strong, so a few quick slashes and she was down in a heap.

The threat gone, I resumed heading down the path, pausing as I saw a random pile of ash on the road. I wasn't sure where it came from, but sifting through the ash, I found a bow and some ancient arrows. The latter I took, leaving the rest behind. A short walk later and I could see Whiterun in the distance, as well as a path branching apart from a signpost. I remembered this was where I went the wrong way, and was curious to inspect the cave I stumbled upon. I went to the right, leading my way back to the cave.

The cave in question was inhabited. I expected that. What I didn't expect, were the trolls that were the inhabitants. Yes, I said trolls. Plural. One troll I was used to seeing, but two of them made me turn tail and run right back out of the cave. I had no intention of being someone's lunch.

I returned to the path, making a hurried pace back towards Whiterun, only to slow down as I caught something that confused me. There were several men lying dead on the ground, with two of them having no clothes on at all, and one other male was very much alive, but glaring at me as he drew his battle axe.

"Back off," he growled at me, but I saw no intention of him attacking me. I opted to comply to his request, continuing to move, but the clanking of metal gave away the fact that he decided to attack me anyway. I swiftly spun around, meeting his axe with my shield, and soon it was a matter of him trying to swing at me, me deftly moving out of the way, and performing some fast swings of my own at the man.

He did take a few good hits on me, regardless, but the battle ended abruptly when he swung, missed, and I charged in, slamming my shield into his head and running my sword across his throat. I exhaled, kneeling to examine his body, and made a surprise revelation that he was wearing a mix of Stormcloak and Imperial garb. He was a scavenger, I discovered, and was interrupting him doing some looting of the bodies that were littered on the road. I had no idea what happened prior to the events, but I took what I thought was important from him, and resumed my return to Whiterun.

---

The rest of the journey back wasn't eventful, thank goodness. The only thing that stopped me was a courier, who somehow knew who I was, and handed me a letter from the Jarl. I blinked, taking the letter and opening it quickly, wondering what the Balgruf wanted of me.

Only, when I opened the letter, it wasn't the name Balgruf that greeted me, but one from someone named... Siddgeir? From a city known as Falkreath. It was telling me that he could use my assistance in his city, and that I could be a Thane of Falkreath. While I was intrigued by that alone, he continued to mention about me being able to own a parcel of land where I could build myself a home.

'Why not,' I thought to myself. 'I could accept his offer, have something to my name.'

Entering Whiterun, I paused for a moment to organize my belongings and new treasures, and noted it was still dark out. I paused to borrow the Blacksmith's workshop to improve my apparel, then entered the Drunken Huntsman. There were a few things I was curious about.

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I immediately approached the shopkeep, and after a bit of light chatter, I finally asked, "why the name Drunken Huntsman?"

The Bosmer let out a sigh. "Yes, I hear that question often." He leaned forward a little, explaining: "My brother Anoriath and I came up with it one night after consuming... rather too much mead. After our drinks, we went out for a moonlight hunt. We got separated, and in his drunken state my brother mistook me for a deer." I winced. "He shot an arrow that pierced my..." He faltered for a moment, clearing his throat. I could sense a bit of embarrassment in his tone. "well, rump. After such a memorable adventure, we knew we had the name for our shop."

Deciding to change topics quickly, I asked, "Who should I talk to for work?"

This immediately lightened his mood as he answered, "Try Hulda, the innkeeper at the Bannered Mare. It's just up the road, near the market." He thought for a moment, and added, "You should check in at Dragonsreach, too. There's so much going on these days, the Jarl or his Steward might have need of help."

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After our conversation concluded, the Bosmer and I did a little bit of business, and with my backpack lighter but by coinpurse a bit heavier, I left the shop, making my way to the Temple of Kynareth. I did have a sapling to deliver, after all.

However, I made the mistake of trying to talk to her while she was asleep, and with a frown, I settled myself on one of the wooden benches that flanked the main room of the temple, letting exhaustion take over, and I fell asleep promptly.

---

I wasn't sure how long I was out, but when I woke up, I could feel the faint rays of the morning sun through the latticework of the windows, and I slowly got up from the bench, stretching myself to get rid of the soreness I developed, before looking for Danica. Thankfully she wasn't too far away, having just woken up herself. Once she spotted me, she seemed eager for information.

"Do you have the Eldgergleam sap?"

I shook my head, producing the sapling. I was mentally surprised that it never seemed to have changed at all from when I first obtained it. "No, I brought a sapling instead."

She took the sapling, but I could tell on her face that she was confused. "but... I can't run the Temple without the support of people who are inspired by the Gildergreen. How can this little tree bring new worshippers?"

I shook my head and pointed at the tree. "Maurice said that renewal is more important than maintenance."

She stammered. "I..." She sighed, looking down at the tree, her face softening immediately. "You're right, of course. It can be hard to hear the winds of Kynareth, when all you hear are the rabble in the temple. Death feeds new life." She looked up at me. "I'm sure that, in time, this little sapling will grow into a new Gildergreen that will tower over Whiterun." She smiled as she set the sapling down on a table. "Thank you."

*************************************************************************************

I decided to ask another question. "Has the Stormcloak uprising affected your duties?"

"Somewhat, yes," she responded. She turned to one of the wounded laying on the makeshift bed. "At first it seemed a distant thing, heard only in the idle speech of guards and traders. When the wounded soldiers began to return from battle, I did what I could to help them." She motioned to the other men and women lying on other beds, which made me uneasy seeing all the wounded. "As more of the sick and injured came to the temple, my work as a healer became more important than my duties as a priestess." She turned to me, crossing her arms. "I wish only an end to the fighting, so that I can tend to the temple once more."

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I gave a sage nod, looking around the temple again, as we departed. I had one more task to finish, and that was back to Dragonsreach. I paused to look at the dying tree as I left, resting a hand on the trunk, whispering a small prayer to it, before moving towards the numerous stairs that led to the top of the city, once more.

Entering the building, I headed immediately to Farengar's room, pulling out the tablet that I was sent to obtain such a long time ago. However, I slowed down as I noticed another person - a cloaked woman - in the same room. She was reading from a book on the table.

"You see?" Farengar hadn't noticed me as I approached, as he was speaking to the woman. "The terminology is clearly First Era or even earlier. I'm convinced this is a copy of a much older text. Perhaps dating to just after the Dragon War. If so, I could use this to cross-reference the names with other later texts."

The woman straightened up, closing the book. I was able to catch a glimpse of her face before I realized who it was - it was Delphine, the owner of the Sleeping Giant in Riverwood! What was she doing here? "Good. I'm glad you're making progress. My employers are anxious to have some tangible answers." Employers? I was curious as to who her employers were, and what exactly they were searching for. However, that was not part of my issue.

"Oh, have no fear," Farengar assured her. "The Jarl himself has finally taken an interest, so I'm now able to devote most of my time to this research."

"Time is running, Farengar," Delphine responded much too quickly for my taste, "don't forget. This isn't some theoretical question. Dragons have come back."

I stiffened for a moment. Clearly, the word about dragons having returned was spreading faster than I anticipated.

"Yes, yes. Don't worry," Farengar himself looked a little tense. "Although the chance to see a living dragon up close would be tremendously valuable..." He continued rambling about something, before Delphine looked over in my direction.

"You have a visitor." I blinked, then remembered my original purpose, turning to Farengar, as he now noticed me.

"Hmm? Ah, yes, the Jarl's protégé! Back from Bleak Falls Barrow? You didn't die, it seems."

"Well, when one has gone into the Barrows and finds a backdoor entrance, it makes the task much easier," was my dry answer, holding up the tablet and handing it to Farengar.

"Ah!" He took the tablet eagerly. "The Dragonstone of Bleak Falls Barrow! Seems you are a cut above the usual brutes the Jarl sends my way." I felt offended at that, gritting my teeth in a low hiss.

"Right, I got you the Dragonstone. What's next?" I crossed my arms, ignoring the fact that my voice had gotten a bit... curt in its speech, though if you were here to witness the actual conversation and not be reading my entries, you'd understand why.

"That is where your job ends, and mine begins," Was his answer. "The work of the mind, sadly undervalued in Skyrim." I couldn't deny that statement, as I glanced briefly to Delphine. He seemed to notice, and motioned to her. "My... associate here will be pleased to see your handiwork. She discovered its location, by means she has so far declined to share with me."

He turned to Delphine, holding the Dragonstone. "So, your information was correct after all. And we have our friend, here, to thank for recovering it for us."

Delphine looked at the Dragonstone, then to me. "You went into Bleak Falls Barrow and got that? Nice work." She turned to Farengar, her voice going into what I could call 'business mode'. "Just send me a cop-"

"Farengar!" I turned around at the new voice, as the Dunmer housecarl, Irileth, ran in, slightly out of breath. "Farengar, you need to come at once. A dragon's been sighted nearby."

All three of us reacted differently; me in shock, Farengar with surprise, and Delphine... simply left the room. Irileth turned to me. "You should come, too."

"A dragon!" Farengar, naturally, seemed excited about the news. "A dragon! How exciting! Where was it seen? What was it doing?" He sounded like a child asking so many questions.

Irileth seemed a bit annoyed about it as well, as all three of us left the room and approached a set of stairs that were off to the side of the Jarl's throne, slightly hidden behind the wall. "I'd take this a bit more seriously if I were you. If a dragon decides to attack Whiterun I don't know if we can stop it."

The three of us, along with a Whiterun Guard, all climbed the stairs, with me taking the tail end of our little 'troupe' into a small room that looked more like a... I supposed I can call it the Strategy room? As there was a table in the middle of the open room with various flags pinned to parts of the map. The Jarl himself was standing by a set of doors.

"So, Irileth tells me you came from the Western Watchtower?" He was questioning the guard, as the latter approached with a salute.

"Yes, my Lord," he simply responded. Irileth urged him to continue. "Uh... that's right. We saw it coming from the south. It was fast... faster than anything I've ever seen."

"What did it do?" Asked the Jarl. "Is it attacking the watchtower?"

The guard shook his head. "No, my lord. It was just circling overhead when I left. I never ran so fast in my life... I thought it would come after me for sure."

I tilted my head slightly at this one. The dragon didn't attack the watchtower. Was this the same dragon from Helgen? If so, why did it not attack this time?

Balgruuf clapped the guard on the shoulder, smiling. "Good work, son. We'll take it from here. Head down to the barracks for some food and rest. You've earned it."

The guard saluted once more, before turning and heading back down the stairwell. Balgruuf turned to Irileth. "Irileth, you'd better gather some guardsmen and get down there."

Irileth's expression never changed as she responded. "I've already ordered my men to muster near the main gate."

Balgruuf nodded. "Good. Don't fail me." He turned to me immediately. "There's no time to stand on ceremony, my friend. I need your help again." He motioned to Irileth. "I want you to go with Irileth and help her fight this dragon. You survived Helgen, so you have more experience with dragons than anyone else here."

I stiffened for a moment. I wasn't sure if I had the capability of taking on a dragon, backup or no. Plus, I only technically survived Helgen because I was running for my life, not because I was fighting the dragon.

Balgruuf then added, "But I haven't forgotten the service you did for me in retrieving the Dragonstone for Farengar. As a token of my esteem, I have instructed Avenicci that you are now permitted to purchase property in the city."

That was interesting news. I had one Jarl who heard of my 'adventures' and requested my assistance in exchange for some property, and now Balgruuf has also offered me some land for purchase. Was there something about me that I wasn't aware of?

As I pondered this, Balgruuf also handed me a pair of leather boots, to my puzzlement. "And please accept this gift from my personal Armory."

I accepted the gift, looking puzzled at the boots for a moment. I could sense an enchantment from them, but what type of enchantment, I wasn't able to find out, as Farengar broke my thoughts when he spoke up.

"I should come along. I would very much like to see this dragon."

"No," Balgruuf stopped him abruptly. "I can't afford to risk both of you. I need you here working on ways to defend the city against these dragons."

"As you command," Farengar mumbled, clearly disappointed that he was unable to meet this dragon. However, in my mind, I knew Balgruuf was wise in his decision. I did not know if the enchanter had the abilities to fight against the dragon himself, and he would be at a high risk if the dragon did decide to attack.

"One last thing, Irileth," Balgruuf added, just before I turned to leave, "This isn't a death or glory mission. I need to know what we're dealing with."

"Don't wory, milord," Irileth replied, "I'm the very soul of caution."

Both she and Farnegar left the room, and I followed shortly afterwards. With a dragon sighted near Whiterun, it didn't bode well. But at the same time, I was puzzled. Why would a dragon approach Whiterun, but not attack it? Was it looking for something else? Food, maybe?

I left Dragonsreach, Irileth just a few steps ahead of me, as we headed down the stairs, past the Gildergreen, into the market square, and towards the front gates. Irileth slowed down just as she approached the small guardhouse near the gate, where a small group of Whiterun soldiers stood. Irilieth addressed them as a commander would her army.

"Here's the situation. A dragon is attacking the Western Watchtower." The guards expressed their shock, talking over each other at once. "You heard right! I said a dragon! I don't' care where it came from or who sent it. What I do know is that it's made the mistake of attacking Whiterun!"

"But Housecarl," spoke one of the guards, "how can we fight a dragon?"

"That's a fair question," Irileth admitted. "None of us have ever seen a dragon before, or expected to face one in battle." She paced back and forth in front of the guards, and I moved to give her room to do so. "But we are honor-bound to fight it, even if we fail. This dragon is threatening our homes... our families. Could you call yourselves Nords if you ran from this monster? Are you going to let me face this thing alone?"

Several of the guards responded with a resounding 'No', but one of the guards close to me muttered, "We are so dead..." I decided not to point that out, letting the Housecarl continue her speech.

"But it's more than our honor at stake here. Think of it - the first dragon seen in Skyrim since the last age." There was a pause, before she continued, "The glory of killing it is ours, if you're with me! Now what do you say? Shall we go kill us a dragon?"

A resounding cheer came from the guards. I could now understand why Irilth was assigned to her position. She clearly had been involved in wars in the past if she was able to raise up the morale of the guards. Nonetheless, I had my doubts...

"Let's move out!" He immediately stormed towards the doors, as if her motivational speech also influenced her. The guards followed her, along with myself.

I had no idea where this watchtower was, so I allowed Irileth to lead, as we left the city, going past the stables, and heading to the right of the main path, in a direction I hadn't gone to yet in my travels.

From a distance I could see a lone tower standing in the middle of an otherwise empty field. I saw no activity of a dragon nearby it, so it made me wonder if the same dragon had given up. I glanced up into the sky, the nearly clear blue meeting back at me, with scattering of clouds breaking the otherwise sapphire color above me. I glanced to my left, studying the grand mountains I was sure I had climbed up and down several times before. I could even see what I assumed were the Barrows I had explored, peeking over the ridge.

My pacing slowed down, as we got closer to the tower, and I could see the remnants of a fire scattered about the grounds surrounding the tower. There were several broken stone parapets, though I couldn't tell if this was from the dragon, or if this was from some other force long before they reappeared.

I took a few steps forward, before I realized the footfalls of my comrades had stopped. I turned around, seeing that Irileth and the entourage were standing near a large rock formation.

"No signs of any dragon right now," Irileth observed, "but it sure looks like he's been here." She turned to the guards. "I know it looks bad, but we've got to figure out what happened. And if that dragon is still skulking around somewhere."

She drew her sword, and the guards followed suit. "Spread out and look for survivors," she commanded, and the guards did so. "We need to know what we're dealing with."

I agreed, and approached to tower as well, as we spread out to look for any clues as to what had been happening. I myself prepared a summon familiar spell, wondering if the extra hand would help in facing off the dragon.

The smoke stung my eyes once again as we walked around the tower, making it hard for me to see anything. Thankfully I didn't smell any burning flesh, unless the smell of burning foliage was masking the scent, or perhaps my snout had grown numb to the scent due to the Helgen attack.

I climbed up the broken ramp, into the tower itself, along with a guard, before we were both startled by another guard who bolted out of his hiding place, pushing the first guard away.

"No! Get back! It's still here somewhere! Hroki and Tor just got grabbed when they tried to make a run for it!" He shoved me aside and ran out of the tower, only to collide into Irileth, who grabbed him by the arms and stared into his eyes.

"Guardsman! What happened here? Where's the dragon? Quickly now!"

"I don't know!" The guardsman responded, cowering near the ramp. A low roar, very faint at first, rumbled over the mountains. "Kynareth save us, here he comes again..."

It took me a while, but as I looked over the mountain, I could see a faint image of a bird flying overhead... only to see the bird getting larger, the wings getting wider... the beak turning into a pointed snout with horns...

"Dragon!" One of the guards shouted, and I chanted my summoning spell, watching the dragon circling about, before diving low to the ground, turning wide, and hovering just above us. It let out a sound that almost sounded like it was speaking...

...and then a white-hot flame struck me hard, forcing me to retreat. I focused hard on my spell, looking down at the ground, and released it after I finished my chant, and hid around part of the stonework, muttering my healing spell.

"Brit grah," I suddenly heard. It didn't sound like any of the guards, or Irileth. "I had forgotten what fine sport you mortals can provide!"

...The dragon can speak?! I decided not to focus on that, drawing my bow and watching the dragon's flight patterns. I waited until it had paused in the air, and noticed that its head was already bloodied, possibly from a previous fight. It turned and breathed another stream of fire, but not at me. Instead it was aiming at something else; something... or someone I couldn't see, but I continued firing off my arrows, trying to aim for the head, hoping to strike a weak spot.

It circled again, then dove low, flying towards two of the guards - they must have been the ones targeted earlier - and struck one of them with its head, sending the guard flying as it arced back up into the sky. It circled once more, firing an arc of flames on the ground, going around the tower, then landed on the same rock formation I had been hiding behind earlier. However, it was only briefly, as it launched back into the air, ready to strike one more time.

"I'll see you burn!" I heard Irileth, somewhere, shout out, as she and the rest of the guards continue to launch their arrows, until the dragon itself landed a distance away from the tower. I continued launching my own arrows, dodging to one side as a fireball rolled across the ground, scorching the grass until it struck the wall, leaving a searing-hot, but non-damaging, burst of heat on my body.

I rolled to one side as another fireball was fired at me, and launched one more arrow, striking it in an open wound. The dragon suddenly roared out, and I could swear I heard it say "Dovahkin?! Noooo!" before it collapsed on the ground.

I froze for a moment, shaking, panting, the shock of the battle itself finally dying down and replaced with the burning feeling of those fireballs and firebreath on me. However, Irileth broke my thoughts.

"Let's make sure that overgrown lizard is really dead." After a moment, we all approached the body of the dragon, but I paused as I watched the dead dragon suddenly start crackling like a fire, the skin and scales dissolving away.

"Everybody, get back!" She commanded, but my legs... they couldn't respond. It forced me to move closer to the dissipating body, my eyes transfixed on the lifeless body of the dragon we just killed. Eventually the body erupted into flames, but for once, I didn't feel any heat. Instead, it felt more like a cool rush of wind blowing across my body, and I could... hear words... chanting.

It sounded like the same chanting from the wall in the Barrows.

Suddenly, I felt something rush into my body, and I could briefly feel the power of the dragons flowing through me. I felt my throat tighten, briefly, before everything returned to normal. Well. Mostly normal. The dragon... still lay in front of me, but it was now a literal skeleton.

I also had obtained knowledge from the dragon. I didn't know how, but I realized that the Barrows contained some sort of Wall that allowed me to learn the words of the dragons... Before I knew it, my mouth opened...

"FUS!"

I felt a powerful shockwave emerge from my mouth, but was surprised that it didn't knock me back. What did get knocked back, slightly, was the skeleton in front of me. I stood there stunned, as one of the Whiterun guards ran up to me and the dragon, looking at the two of us for a moment. I myself was still standing slack-jawed, wondering what just happened.

"I can't believe it! You're... Dragonborn..."

I stammered for a moment. "W-...wait, Dragonborn? What do you mean?"

"In the very oldest tales, back from when there were still dragons in Skyrim," the guard explained, turning to the skeleton as he continued, "The Dragonborn would slay dragons and steal their power." He looked at me. "That's what you did, isn't it? Absorbed the dragon's power?"

Is that what I did? I blinked a few times, looking back over to the skeletal dragon. This would explain the several things I was witnessing all at once... if this was true. "I... don't know what happened to me," I finally got my mouth to move to respond.

"Well," the guard explained, "you can Shout now. You couldn't before, right? That can only mean one thing. You must be Dragonborn."

...I can Shout? Was that force of air a Shout?

"Dragonborn?" Another of the Whiterun guards approached. "What are you talking about?" He was accompanied by the rest of the guards and Irileth.

"That's right!" Another of the guards stated. "My grandfather used to tell stories about the Dragonborn. Those born with the Dragon Blood in 'em. Like old Tiber Septim himself."

"I've never heard of Tiber Septim killing any dragons," another guard commented.

"There weren't any dragons then, idiot," said the first guard. "They're just coming back now for the first time in... forever."

The second guard spoke up again. "But the old tales tell of the Dragonborn who could kill dragons and steal their power." He turned to me. "You must be one!"

I could feel my mouth moving, but no words were coming out. Dragonborn? Tiber Septim? Shouts? What was going on?

"What do you say, Irileth?" The first guard turned to the Housecarl, who had been studying the dragon the entire time. "You're being awfully quiet."

"Come on, Irileth," the second guard persuaded, "tell us, do you believe in this Dragonborn business?"

Her response was cuttingly cold, but I was expecting as such from the Housecarl at this point. "Hmph. Some of you would be better off keeping quiet than flapping your gums on matters you don't know anything about." She motioned to the skeleton. "Here's a dead dragon, and that's something I definitely understand. Now we know we can kill them.

"But I don't need mythical Dragonborn," she continued. I wasn't sure if she meant she was dismissing me as one or just in general. "Someone who can put down a dragon is more than enough for me."

"You couldn't understand, Housecarl," said one of the two guards that were discussing the Dragonborn myth. "You ain't a Nord."

I felt myself wince at that statement. However, Irileth's response was of being offended than anything else. "I've been all across Tamriel. I've seen plenty of things just as outlandish as this. I'd advise you all to trust in the strength of your sword arm over tales and legends."

Although, the other guard seemed to ignore her, turning towards me. My eyes were still transfixed on the skeleton. "That was Shouting, what you just did! Must be. You really are Dragonborn, then..."

I turned to look at the guard that spoke to me, then to Irileth, then finally to the dragon.

This...just got way more complicated than what I expected.

My name is Chamelion.

I am Dragonborn.