Reborn ~an Alduin Love Story~

Paarthurnax

"Drem yol lok (Greetings)." Parthurnaax flew down to her immediately as she entered the vale utop the mountain. "It has been long, Sizaan."

"Too long, Master Parthurnaax." She lowered her gaze in a respectful bow. Parthurnaax was nothing short of relieved to see her well. It was his idea to have her care for Alduin believing her light could lessen his darkness, but he never meant for Arngeir to banish her so harshly. He turned to him and huffed, disappointed in his pupil's careless anger.

"Leave us," Parthurnaax's stern command left no pause for argument. Einarth nodded and turned from them, Arngier beginning to follow but was quickly stopped. "You remain Arngier." Upon seeing the monk halt Parthurnaax returned his attentions to Sizaan. "What has become of the eldest?"

"Alduin decided to abandon me." Sizaa wanted to say 'again' but thought better of it. She didn't want them to realize how much he had hurt her.

"Hmph. I took him for many things, but a coward-" Master Arngeir's insult was cut short, Sizaa not caring to hear what he had to say.

"We were stopped on our way to Whiterun by two hooded figures who seemed to trouble Alduin deeply. I had gone ahead and by the time he caught up I was found by Davorin." She was speaking to Parthurnaax but Arngeir made it his business to respond.

"Davorin? The dovahkiin's paramore?"

"Yes." Sizaa snapped irritated to say the least with her former Master. "Speaking of who..." her agitation drowned away to sorrow as she remembered the news he had delivered. "He informed us she was murdered. Apparently by the same people who stopped Alduin on the road."

"This is deeply troubling." Parthurnaax's concern was evident as he spoke. "Who were these people?"

"I do not know, a black hood covered their faces so I couldn't see. But they knew Alduin. As I was walking away I caught a glimpse of a red dragon embroidered on their backs."

"She truly has returned. I was hoping the rumours would be proven false." Sizaa frowned. Would Parthurnaax keep their identity a secret as well? She never knew him to be dishonest before but then, she never knew anything about the circumstances of her arrival at High Hrothgar before either.

"Who has returned?"

"Vulsaqhonvol. Or as she is more commonly known: the dovmonah."

"Dragon mother? There are female dov?" In every conversation with, book read about, and interactions with dragons she had never met nor heard of a female of their kind before. She assumed they had simply been formed by Akatosh not birthed like mortal creatures.

"She is no dovah, she was joor."

"How is that possible? How could a mortal woman birth immortal dragons?"

"She is no mere mortal. Atleast not any longer." There was a pause, a single momentary lapse in Parthurnaax's mind as he reminisced on his mother's existence in the earliest years of his life. "But before I explain the mother, a lesson. Lah (magic/energy) flows through all but is not always the same. There is one's personal energy, and then the energy of the cosmos themselves. Every few thousand years a child is born with such an abundance of both personal and cosmic energy their bodies can not contain it."

Sizaan wondered if that could be what her father had witnessed within her.

"Before the dragon's time these children were offered as sacrifices to the rah (gods) when they came of age. The rah were said to remove the lah and thereby preserve the joor laas (human life). This reservoired energy manifested itself into what is now the Unahzaal Toor (eternal flame) that lights what you joor know as Sovengard. It also fuels the soul of every joor or dov that now walks the world. The flame is so powerful even the rah are burned by its touch."

Sizaa couldn't believe something so powerful existed from the spirits of humams.

"Monah was one of these sacrifices. Ostricized and abandoned she could have turned to hatred and cruelty before she was diminished, using her power to destroy those near her. Instead she learned the value of appreciating the pain of others through her own loneliness. Eventually her passionate heart softened those of even her mother who claimed to hate her monster of a child."

'Monster?' If Sizaa was what Parthurnaax described, was she a monster? If she contained something strong enough to harm dieties within her soul, did that make her a monster? She didn't want to think so but her own mother had died because she was born. Her own father left her because she killed her mother. That sounded like a monster to Sizaa.

"However, when the time came instead of removing the monah's spritual energy from her body the father Akatosh had fallen in love with her compassion. He reenforced her human vessel so that she may grow within her own power and from their love the race of dovah was created. Unfortunately for mother, Akatosh loved the joor more than all others, even his children. And even her. When we dov grew too strong Akatosh crimpled our race."

"How?" Sizaa was fearful to ask as she saw the fury and sorrow within Parthurnaax as he thought on his past.

"He eleminated all of the females. Destroying any chance of offspring. I eventually grew to realize the wisdom in this decision. Krosis, this was not always the case. I commited much horror against the joor in service of Alduin's cause to liberate our kin. At the time Mother did nothing feeling bound to honor Akatosh. But no mother could watch her children suffer for long. She took the form of a dragon and reigned terrible ferocity onto the world. She passed beyond all recognition even to herself as she forgot her mortal name. Akatosh was forced to imprison her soul."

"How is she alive again? And what does she want with Alduin?"

"Krosis, vomindok (I don't know). Though I have no doubt she plans to use Alduin to get to Sovengard and enact her revenge."

"How could Alduin-" Suddenly something snapped within her. Images of riding dragon back and a temple high in the sky filled Sizaa's vision. She'd never seen it before and yet she knew exactly where her mind had taken her. Skuldofen. It felt amazing. Places and skills she'd never experienced were suddenly known to her. Just as her lips began to form the words of a shout she never learned a sting like a needle tip drilled through her mind and expanded into a raging fire of searing agony. "What is happening to me?" She practically screamed clutching her head in pain and fear.

"You are awakening Sizaan." Until this point Arngeir had remained silent but watching her ache loosened his tongue.

"Are you saying I'm what the dovmonah was?"

"Geh. You are the last. It has been written that the end of your kind shall awaken when the last dragonborn is slain and defeat the Dovmonah for the final time."

"Why haven't I felt my power until now? Why did I never know of this?" Her heart was racing in her chest as a frenzy of spiritual energy burst from somewhere so deep within her she didn't even know it existed.

"It was not yet time for you to know. We did what we needed to protect you." Arngeir's voice was softer than she'd ever known it to be. Almost as if he was trying to convince himself more than her.

"But what did you do to me?" The weight of the power was so heavy it sent her crashing to her knees but didn't stop there. She felt as though her entire body was being crush between boulders and yet at the same time more alive than she'd ever before.