A Strange Pilgrim's Journey [[Open]]

[Ande]

And if Ande knew any of this, he would probably object politely to it. And then maybe violently if it came to that.

"There is always an ice troll up here somewhere." He stated to the winds, deciding to make conversation after they hiked in silence. The Altmer held both of his arms wrapped around himself to keep the heat in, but alternated to letting them swing at his side when he moved a bit faster. Unfortunately, he had nothing to protect himself against the cold other than his mage's robes, but (while they were better than most clothes) wind still found ways to get it, even if it was by making the fabric itself cold.

[nidhug]

Nidhug smiled lightly at that. He'd rather like to see a troll. He had heard much about them and how dangerous they were. However, he had the sort of confidence that came with being a deeply religious man. It was the attitude of "my patron god is on my side, but if he deems this the day that I die, at least I will accept it without fear." He glanced over at the Altmer, chuckling softly.

"If we do encounter a Troll, perhaps we should smear you with its fat. It would not smell good nor would the texture be good to the feel, but at least it would keep you warmer," Nidhug commented in a joking manner.

[Ande]

Ande had looked back at Nidhug with a look of utter mortification until he realized it had been a joke. He laughed a bit with the Nord then, "Of course. I will simply have to look forward to it," which probably wouldn't be too long. There really always was a troll somewhere on the way up to High Hrothgar, often under that overhang area that you were forced to walk through.

He glanced over at the Nord who walked on as if there was no snow, or wind, or freezing cold, "What's your name, stranger?" he asked, keeping his hands folded and hidden in his sleeves to protect them from the cold.

[nidhug]

Nighug gave his Altmer companion a glance when he asked for his name without offering his own first. In all his life he had always been taught to offer your own name before asking another's. Of course, this stemmed out of the fact that the Cult believed names held power, especially if you knew their face. If you knew someone's name and face there were very nasty things you could do to them without having to be in their presence.

However, Nidhug gave a small smile and inclined his head, "I am called Nidhug, a humble priest of the Great Dragon. Now tis only fair you tell me your name, since you now know mine."

The statement that he was a priest of Akatosh, the Great Dragon, was not a total lie. Many of the Dragon Cults had awknowledged Akatosh and Alduin as two faces of the same coin. The Great Dragon who was the Father of All and the World Destroyer who would end all things when the proper time came.

[Ande]

A priest of Akatosh? This man certainly didn't look like a priest.

The Altmer smiled, "Of course. The Nords call me Hans, but my given name is Ande. I am a Mage of the College of Winterhold, however infrequent my stay may be there. You may call me whichever suits you best," he stepped on a harder piece of snow and almost slipped, catching his balance and continuing to walk up the stairs without trouble. The slip had caused a tiny peak of panic in him though, as there had been once in the past when he'd fallen down half of a set of the stairs on the way up the mountain. Ice was a terrible thing when you were climbing stairs.

"If you don't mind me saying, you are not like any priest I have ever seen." he commented, completely ignoring the almost-slip he'd had on the stairs.

Ande had never encountered a Dragon Priest in person, and therefore did not relate the armor Nidhug wore to Alduin in the least. He had noted that the armor looked more ceremonial than most armors, as it left the sides completely open to attack.

[nidhug]

Nidhug lightly took Ande's arm to help him get his balance when he noticed the Elf slipping. Being raised away from the typical "NORDS ONLY" mindset of many of his kinsmen, he had none of the racial prejudice most Nords had towards all others.

"I think I prefer Ande... Hans doesn't suit you," he stated, letting go once Ande had gotten his balance back. The comment about him not being like other priests did not phase him in the least. The Dragon Cults had long been banned, so if any had wished to survive they had to go underground. And even then there was no guarantee of survival, as shown by the demise of the cult at Forelhost (which would be Nidhug's next pilgrimage in order to pay his respects). Nidhug's cult had been very lucky to survive for so long until someone had come along and wiped them out... damned Stormcloaks...

"I'm from a very eclectic order, so I'm not surprised," Nidhug stated. First rule of the Dragon Cults, you never said you were in a Dragon Cult to a stranger you just met. Stating so was tantamount to suicide in most cases.

[Ande]

Ande smiled and laughed a little at the comment, "No, it doesn't. But it was the most Nordic name I could think of," he thanked Nidhug under his breath for the help, recrossing his arms tightly over his chest as they continued up the stairs. He of course did not know that this man had been raised without the nationalist prejudice of most Nords, but was still pleased to have met a Nord that did not treat him like some disgusting beast who may or may not have eaten their family members in the past.

The Altmer smiled even more when Nidhug declined to give more information on his 'temple', "So I take it by that that you don't want to tell me about your order? Fine, keep your secrets." he chuckled, looking up the mountain and the stairs once more. They still had a long way to go. Both of them weren't even half-way there yet.

[nidhug]

Nidhug hummed softly as he continued at a swift pace, wanting to reach High Hrothgar in order to continue his mission. In the end, that was all that mattered to him.

"As I said, it is a very eclectic order. We were persecuted greatly in the past, making us very wary of outsiders," Nidhug explained, keeping his eyes on the path before him.

They were approaching the troll overhang, meaning things were about to get interesting again fast... feeling the energy in the air, Nidhug prepared a fire bolt spell, holding it as he heard to troll's heavy breathing, the beast appearing with a roar. Smiling over at Ande, he let the spell go.

"Very interesting to look at, these trolls," Nidhug commented airily, not in the least concerned that they could be dying if something went wrong...

[Ande]

Ande treated the situation grimly, two fire bolt spells ready in his hands as soon as he saw and heard the troll. He slung both of the fire balls at it, keeping his distance and watching his footing in the deep snow, "Maybe the first few times. Not anymore though." he cringed when the troll screamed in pain and fury, charging at them. The Altmer responded by firing more balls of fire and backing up a few steps, ready to put up a ward and summon a sword.

[nidhug]

Nidhug made sure to keep his distance from the beast, the scent alone turning him off. He was quick with his fire ball spells, sending them towards the Frost Troll as he continued to back up at a quick pace. The Troll roared and raged in pain as the fire spells burnt its flesh. However, the beast was getting far too close for Nidhug's comfort, so he drew his Ancient Nord Greatsword, one of the weapons that had been in the Cult's small armory near the ceremonial Dragon Priest Armor.

Blocking an attack with his sword, he looked to Ande as if to say "it's all you, my brother." He would keep the troll's attention on him, allowing Ande to do as he needed to bring it down. Nidhug did not mind the scratches the creature made towards him, ducking each blow with ease as he blocked, the creature roaring in frustration at this Nord who would dare defy it.

[Ande]

Ande took the hint, conjuring one sword and slinging another fire bolt before conjuring another. The mage took one large step forward and swung down, using all the momentum his body could possibly muster and driving his swords down on the troll's back. The huge thing screamed, and even more odor was released when it was cut deeply. The Altmer let the swords dissolve into nothing, quickly side stepping and placing his hands inches away from the troll's back, following the beast as it turned in fury to face him. He kept himself behind it by taking wide, quick steps, charging his fire bolt spells again before firing both at once into the large gauges he's just made into the troll's back. They had already begun to visibly heal before the fire got to them.

The mage had done this before in desperate times on a mountain far away and without help. Back then it had been a gamble that he'd needed to do if he had hoped to survive. Now, he had back up in case it failed.

Angry and in more pain, the troll whipped around with its elbow leading the way, trying to catch the Altmer and beat his face in. Ande ducked the attack and put his hands to the troll's chest before firing two more bolts of fire point blank, taking a few steps back in order to avoid the next attack. But snow was an unforgiving sort of material, and he stumbled, catching the tail end of what could have been a jaw breaking upper cut from the troll. Ande fell back flat into the snow, experiencing some whip lash and tasting blood in his mouth.

[nidhug]

Nidhug had made good on his silent promise to keep the Troll's attention, up until that last moment. Growling lightly, Nidhug decided it was now or never. It was bad form to let someone you just met die on you. Taking one hand off his sword, he shot a fireball at the troll to get it's attention back onto him, but also to set it aflame for his next action.

Taking in a breath, he decided to Shout. "YOL!" The Frost Troll, in its pain and stupidity had rushed directly at Nidhug. The beast stepped full-force into the flames coming from Nidhug's mouth, roaring in pain. Just as Nidhug lost breath, and thus the flames, he took a few steps back, the broken and burnt body of the troll falling hard in front of him. Sheathing his sword, he stepped over the fallen beast to check on Ande.

"Are you alright, my brother? That was quite the brave act," he stated, ignoring the fact he had just Shouted in front of a stranger. He'd deal with the fall-out one way or the other.

[Ande]

Ande sat up a bit uneasily, opening his jaw experimentally and closing it gingerly. He'd felt his teeth click together pretty hard due to that uppercut, and right now he was tasting blood in his mouth from some sort of damage in there. The mage leaned over and spit out some blood into the snow, eyes traveling to the dead troll and staying there before he looked up at Nidhug. If he were a lesser man, he would have sworn he was just hearing things. But he knew what he'd heard,

"You... You used a Shout," he stated tentatively. He knew that Nords, with extensive teaching, could learn Thu'ums without being Dragonborn. But right now, this was the time of Dragonborns. What were the odds that he would... that he could meed another Dragonborn right here, right now? "Are you... Dragonborn?" perhaps it was too much to ask for. A Nord that didn't hate elves, and who was also a Dragonborn? Surely that was an unlikely combination.

[nidhug]

Nidhug smiled lightly, the snakeish look returning to his features as he held out his hand to Ande to help him up. Here was something he could admit, knowing that the Elf was on his way to High Hrothgar and also since he seemed to be genuinely surprised by the fact Nidhug could Shout, he felt no reason to hide what he was.

"Yes, Ande, I am Dragonborn," he stated. "I'm searching for others like me to assist me with something. That is my purpose for going to High Hrothgar."

True, he probably wouldn't reveal his full intentions until they reached High Hrothgar, but there was no sense in hiding it now that he has used a Shout.

[Ande]

Ande looked dazed from the impact, but a sudden energy, curiosity and surprise lit up his face, "Wow. That's... That's just..." he smiled with a lack of anything else to say, laughing a little. What were the odds indeed. He hadn't met any of the other Dragonborns, even though the Graybeards had told him they were out there. They all traveled so often in such a large land that they'd missed each other; but then this happened,

"I haven't met any other Dragonborns during all my time in Skyrim. I've been searching for Thu'ums for over half of my life, and now I meet you here," the Altmer took the offered hand, his other hand wiping at a line of blood that had dripped from his lips. He looked quite happy, free hand hovering over his face as he charged a basic restoration spell,

"You must be here about Alduin, then."