Waking

I don't recall much of what came before.  I was a hero.  I helped save them all.  I went into the very pit of hell and fought the enemy where he lived and defeated him.  When the final battle came, I stood beside my friend as he gave his life to save us.  And they accuse me of murder.  They say I killed the emperor.  But I did not.  The emperor is still there, encased in stone, but they don't believe.

I was arrested, beaten, tortured, my body broken, the magic of my soul stripped.  No longer part of the academy.  No longer licensed with the guild.  My weapons, armour, artifacts, even my homes taken.  My castle of frost burned to the ground by the mages I served.  My castle of arms given to an upstart family.  I know not of my home by the sea or my home in the hinterland - probably sold to enrich the imperial treasury.

And taken chains I was dragged north to be imprisioned forever in that frozen waste land of the Nords.

We passed through the pass Pale, a place of significant history to me in the past.  This time though, there was not a whisper from the ghosts there.  My ancient glory had faded to less than the rags I wore.  My body hurt.  It was no longer my own.  My soul had lost faith.

I was there the day the fire consumed Helgen.  At first I thought it was my friend, returned to life, to wreck vengeance upon those who had wronged me.  And I am not certain at this time if that is not so.  Could my brother Martin have so lost himself into the dragon that he does not remember.  Or maybe he does and he sought me out.  It is worth pondering...this dragon.

I escaped, with the help of a northman.  Stumbling down and north into the cold rocky landscape I found a small village near the river and was able to secure work for food.  Chopping wood of all things.  I have chopped armor and demons and monsters and even men, but now I was chopping wood for my breakfast.  But it was good work and my strength begins to slowly return. 

Indeed, my old self comes back, rising to life again.  This some useless bandits in an old mine discovered to their demise.  And I find that my gift is not extinguished, but rather stunted, seriously so compared to what it was.  I cannot remember the words or the motions.  But I can learn.  I have the gift of fire again and frost and lightening.  And I can heal. The core is there. 

I made a new friend in the town by the river and he joined me as we journied north - I wanted to see Pale pass.  But the imperial forces have locked it down.  I cannot pass south.  I would appear that the north will be my home for some time.

I've me the local leader who wants me to go into some dank dangerous barrow to retrieve an important artifact regarding dragon.  I may, but not yet.  I am too weak.  I was almost killed by some pompous sellswords bought by someone I pissed in this little regional capital I visited.  So I am traveling to a college in the far north to see if I can relearn my gift.