After the events of today, I felt the need to purchase a journal and start taking down my thoughts. The one I brought into Skyrim with me was lost in Helgen, along with everything else the Imperials had taken from when I was captured.
Today... I don't even know where to start talking about it. I suppose I should start at the beginning.
When I woke this morning in Riverwood, I expected to run a message to the Jarl of Whiterun, and then I would simply be free to pursue my quest. Instead, when I arrived, he had another small task for me. It turned out that the task was something I'd already done; His wizard wanted me to fetch a tablet from Bleak Falls Barrow, but I'd already found it; Once I'd given it to him, that task was complete.
Before I could leave, a guard came with a report of a dragon at the Western Watch Tower. Jarl Balgruuf asked me to go with the detachment. I was curious to see if it was the same dragon I'd seen in Helgen. I didn't know what we might be able to do if it was, but I went along anyway.
When we arrived, we had a fight on our hands. It was not the same dragon from Helgen, that much I could tell instantly; But it was still a force of nature, flying about, blasting fire and... speaking. I don't recall any legends that dragons could speak, but at first I heard strange, alien words that tugged at my memory, before they finally resolved into what I thought was the common tongue. As I write this, I am no longer certain that it was the common tongue, or if I somehow understood its speech.
With arrows and eventually my blade, we took the beast down, though several guards lost their lives in the battle. In the aftermath, I approached the beast again, to get a closer look, now that it was dead, but then something strange happened. As I came near, the dragon's flesh seemed to ignite from within, becoming naught more than glowing cinders, quickly drifting and burning away, leaving only the skeleton.
At the same moment, I felt a queer energy flowing from the dragon's remains into me, filling my limbs with a wild restlessness, and burning a word into my mind. It felt strangely akin to what had passed when I approached the wall in Bleak Falls Barrow, the one with the strange glyphs carved into it. Unlike then however, I almost felt like I knew the word, and it blazed brighter and brighter in my mind until I felt it rip its way from my lips.
Fus. As the word echoed strangely in the air, a force blasted out with it, enough to set the heavy bones of the dragon's skeleton to rattling, and I felt a bone-deep lassitude sweep through my body, and I barely kept my feet. By the time I'd recovered my balance, the Whiterun guards were clustered around me. The Nords said that I had "shouted", which apparently meant I was "Dragonborn". I've never heard of any of the Dragonborn Emperors having any sort of shouting-related magic, so I'm not entirely certain what they were talking about. The word no longer blazed in my mind, though I avoided saying it again, so I tried to put it behind me, and headed back to Whiterun.
However, when I returned to Whiterun, just as I neared the gates, I heard a strange sound, echoing from the mountains all around; It was another strangely familiar word: Dovahkin. The Jarl tells me that this was someone called the Greybeards, and they were summoning me. I do not know if I shall answer this summons; I do not know what I shall do with any of this.
Still, I think it is possible that these events may have some bearing on my quest, so it may be unwise for me to ignore it. I think for now I must see to immediately practical concerns; Lodging, food and the coin to pay for both. Living in Skyrim will not be cheap, and the dangerous living I've done so far will only add further expenses in the form of potions and equipment. Still, there must be something I can do around here to earn some money; Perhaps the suggestion of that Redguard I bumped into in Dragonsreach might have merit; Mercenary work might suit me. For now, however, I will relax here by the fire a bit longer, and have a meal. I have experienced a local food called "Horker loaf" which, while strange and difficult to eat, was both rich and satisfying. Perhaps I will ask Hulda if there is any more.
The morning will be plenty of time to decide how to react to this summons from the Greybeards, and to see what hints might be found regarding my quest here in Skyrim.
(Follows Episode 3)
