[indent]It started with a rumour, as journeys often do.
The dragon borne was dead they said - who knew?[/indent]

[i]T[/i]he taverns had been riddled with the circulating tale of a dragon vanquished upon the watch tower, the bones rattling against stone as the beast’s mighty soul was rent from its heart, igniting like golden flame and absorbed into the very being that was he - Alyx. Saasi had been skeptical to believe it, foolish tales woven under the stars by Bards or whatever purveyor of dreams had concocted, it seems too grand of an epic of burial grounds and arisen creatures of a long forgotten past. She had seen the ruins, the various masonry done under the harsh winters, she had seen the markings and the depictions of heroes and worships under the leathery might of their Draconic lords. But that was all it had been to her, a history, a past of renown that every Nord knew by heart and soul, so what was to keep them from crafting some other marvelous feat? 

But old habits die hard, notions die even slower, and Saasi could not banish the curious reflection of “[i]what if[/i]” from her mind, and no amount of honeyed mead could violate her thoughts as the stories spread and grew, sweltering into more than just rumours. It bled into fear, fear of an unknown future, of Fate, there was a black dragon they began to dread and every mighty gale of wind was told to carry the roar of a dragon that dominated and ruled the mountains high above with their peaks as mere roosts for their sheer legendary selves. Saasi’s mind began to reel and the figurative cogs began to grind from the former deluge of mindless drifting, a sense of purpose spurred her memory, bid for the dark woman to pry further into these rumours, to the point that she began to memorize the woeful songs and poetic prose of those who believed that their very world was meant to burn in righteous dragon fire. Saasi could care less for the fate of Nirn, for it Fate deemed them to die, then so be it - a rest was welcome. But what truly fueled the theories in her heart were those murmurs of scale and bone, eyes of fiery malice and intelligence that no Man, Beast or Mer could ever hope to conquer without their champion of the Thu'um.

Thus, when she inquired about the [i]Dovahfeyn[/i], a title she found interesting if nothing else, various individuals gestured skyward and began prattling on about men of high revere and grace and Throat of the World - something to which meant little to Saasi but in her cross country travels: hitching upon various caravans; making measly coin along the way with her twin axes; and having to endure grueling conversations and social charges, she had further nurtured her knowledge about the Dovah and the late Alyx. About the Grey Beards and the Thu'um, the shout as some would say. Saasi also became an inquirer of the rebellion, of the crests of wolf and bear and the circulating rumour of dragon tongue being utilized in the ascending civil war. The latter was something she knew personally, of no different of circumstances between her family of Crowns and Forebears, and the comparison made Saasi feel more weary, sullen and woeful of this supposed quest to bring down Alduin - the World Eater. It was an ironic notion that dire circumstances would bring the provinces and nations together under one valorous feat, and still people flocked, they swarmed the inns and taverns and masses to Ivarstead where Saasi had found lodging many days prior before the aforementioned swell came. It had bid her to stay within the backdrop, drawing little attention to herself by keeping to her room most of the time whilst others surrounded the foyer. Making way up those steps was something Saasi dreaded during her preparation at Vilemyr, mainly for that dry, biting coldness that Skyrim heralded on a daily basis where as she favoured the southern humidity, the thickest of foliage that brewed with it a steam and tangible air of warmth. But she had shrugged her cloak and swathed a length of fabric around the lower hemisphere of her visage, wished for a massive hearth and unwound her wild, oil slick coloured hair from its plait and let it suffice as enough as she began that Seven Thousand step, unknowingly following and treading behind her companions to come.

---

[i]S[/i]aasi breathed into her cupped palms, producing a plume of white within the breadth of her bitten fingers as she knelt and read the tenth tablet along this cursed journey, the epitaphs before it foretelling a story that she had only recently learned of. She had seen many pilgrims do the same as she was, seemingly enthralled by their prose. Saasi found it alluring, brushing her dark fingers over the grooves in the stone before she swept away from it, peering through the fog where the landscape veered upward, further into an unknown destination. She had contemplated turning back on many occasions, for surely she would see a dragon soon enough as they scoured and scorched the mountain side, but something attracted her further up those steps and as she made this endeavor alone, she reflected. Saasi had been on her own for a long, extended time, and joining with a group of gathered fortune seekers or those yearning for fame did not exactly excite her, she was used to and a beloved of solitude. Saasi did not desire fame or fortune of any kind, and her apathetic dissociation left others ill favouring of her company as she merely gazed and hummed her vague consents into conversation. Her often cryptic intonations left much to be desired with the various layers of herself that she had fortified with the best proverbial lock she could manage. For whatever reason Saasi designated it for, she had succeeded thus far in avoiding most from accompanying her upon her random browse into the country side whilst she came upon shrines, ruins, whatever lost masonry Skyrim had to offer that wasn’t riddled with the occasional bandit troupe.

Her musings left her dismissive of her surroundings, in which she had not encountered much of the ill rumoured fauna on her climb, though occasionally she had seen the snow blotched with the faintest rouge of blood and had wondered on whatever creature the pilgrim had encountered in the frigid wilderness. Saasi shrugged her cloak tighter, her boots sinking through snow before she heaved herself up the final leg of her journey and was distracted momentarily by the view of the province spread before her. The illustration of dipping valleys and ascending peaks and, what she assumed, as homes plotting the landscape between sparse of trees and lakes of natural origin was admittedly breath taking. Saasi breathed in the thin air through the fabric against her lips, her breath coming in quicker inhales as she finally acknowledged the actual height of her ascension, it chilled her to the bone as she gazed up at the looming monastery and hastened her treads at the possibility of that aforementioned hearth she wished upon and used her shoulder to shunt open the ancient doors. 

There was an ominous drone, a deep vibration of sound that signaled her arrival with the marrow-chattering noise of the door falling closed behind her. Saasi momentarily allowed her golden eyes to take in the dark interior and the overall coiling perfume of aged parchment and warm stone, the entire foyer spacious enough for the pottery and paraphernalia of the Grey Beards. There were curious statues and carvings into the walls that Saasi loomed closer to examine when a voice suddenly boomed across her lobe. Her gestures stilled, her fist of iron poised mid-way as she swung about on her boot and faced her would-be hosts. Donned in robes, with their faces veiled by hoods, Saasi examined each and everyone of them, the men seeming to blend into one another by whatever power they withheld, Saasi could feel the tremor of something ancient and benevolent about their dispositions and her former tense posture waned, relaxing for a brief moment as she gazed at them.

“We thought all of the pilgrims had arrived,” one began, his baritone soft and edged in a whisper of some sort, a peculiar accent Saasi had not heard before in a Nord - but she remained silent, as was her custom. Her only indication of answer was to drop her pack, letting it clatter on the equally elaborate floor, in which a woman that had previously stood behind them edged around to the front, brow arched.

“Are you here for the [i]Dovahfeyn[/i]?” she inquired. Saasi blinked, a slow fall of her dark lashes that was enough of an answer as the blonde Imperial was going to receive. Her lips pursed, taking charge and list of the Redguard before who had yet to move or speak for that matter, but there was a harsh edge about her, despite all the forged carelessness and slow, nearly purposely done laziness about her. It was a languid deadliness, and she did not miss the bulge of weaponry upon her spine despite the shrug of her cloak, her capability had yet to be seen, but she was a warrior none the less. How much of one though, Delphine could not wager, not without seeing how she fared with their assemblage. The two squared off their stares, silent hanging heavy before the Grey Beard who had spoken before once again swept forward, the silence and heavy deluge of magic about him made Saasi flinch - it did not go unnoticed.

“You have journeyed a long way, much like the others before you.” He uttered carefully, gesturing vaguely for Saasi to follow as he began presumably leading her towards the others he mentioned. She merely gave the blonde woman one more glance before following after the man, dragging her belongings as she went.

“Your arrival is a tad late though no less appreciated, for we need everyone for this sort of feat. We have briefed the others on the details of this quest so allow me to do so now...”
---

[i]S[/i]he listened carefully to what the Nord - who introduced himself as Arngeir and the woman as Delphine - explained about their coming journey. She was vaguely informed about the mentioned settlement though had not been there herself, what was more tantalizing was the mention of the burial sites and that they had found a stone depicting their locations - something the Dragon Born had at least accomplished before his demise. Saasi did not relinquish her cloak of the swath of fabric from her face, declining Arngeir with a shake of her head when he bid her to make herself welcome among the fort. She did yet know of what she would face with the companions he spoke about, though light in his introductions - probably on purpose she presumed - saying she would witness for herself. And so she would, as the Nord bid himself else where, to prepare their lodging he said and advised she rest soon when able. Saasi merely watched him go and squared her shoulders beneath her wardrobe before sweeping among the meeting still within full swing. There was a slight heaviness, a former tension that was eventually beginning to dissipate as Saasi made slow, light movements towards the council, she was careful and languid in her movements and stoic as ever when the smaller, fragile looking Breton finished her introductions and Saasi found her gaze lingering when she spoke of magic, of course, she pondered for a moment and flashed her eyes else where. Though unassuming in appearance, much like she was, the Redguard knew better than to assume based entirely upon first impressions. Her inclination towards the rouge was much more than what she presented, though her factual potential had yet to be revealed.

Saasi, still donned in her cloak, made a mental document of the others seated and found a rather diverse group in which she was somewhat impressed by, it seemed everyone felt obligated to try and vanquish the dragons and save Nirn, for whatever personal agenda. She reflected on her own reasons and found herself a little less than noble, not that she would say so aloud. 

Golden eyes glanced about then, finding something peculiar in the - she assumed Breton by his construct - man with eyes as piercing as the depths of Oblivion, she shuddered, something about him was entirely off that she found unnerving. More so now that she noticed the man standing off in the shadows with hair a shade to rival the snow outside, her fingers curled into fists as her stare swept aside, lingering on the Imperial and Nord sitting aside one another. She took stock of the Khajiit and Argonian, having encountered some before on her times spent in various docks and harbours, though disfavoured publicly here, Saasi found them no different than any Mer or Man and nodded in the slightest flick of her chin. The Redguard then pin-pointed her gaze of honey upon the man standing full in a unique set of armour, elaborated in pallid lines upon ebony plating, he was a Redguard like she was, though perhaps with an edging of Imperial blood through his veins. He looked valiant enough though Saasi could only base such upon first impressions. The rest seemed capable enough, save for those with magical inclination she thought otherwise and waited for a breadth of moment to see if any others would speak up in introduction.

Though not exactly punctual, Saasi knew that it was better to arrive late than not at all, she did not provide an explanation as to why and merely shrugged her cloak back from her shoulders, allowing the mass of fabric to gather down her curvature and barely expose the twin axes upon her backside and reveal most of her armour. Her mass of wiry hair was another matter as she slowly wound the erratic threads into a plait with precision and carefully unwound the fabric from her face, exhaling aloud as she finally breathed in the warmth of the room and the peculiar aroma of the companions gathered about. Smell and sense was vital, Saasi thought and twisted a lock of ebonette away from her marred cheek as she regarded the council once again.

“Saasi,” she spoke, her voice bearing with it a slight husk, her eyes avoiding most as she settled for the book that their scaled friend was writing within with a flourish Saasi found distracting. Though she wasn’t keen on revealing her plethora of abilities, she knew that secrecy would only prevail so far, and with a gesture of brushing her fingers down the fur festooned about her hips - stalling for time as it were - she addressed them once again:

“I’m capable enough, if not more so,” Saasi announced, cryptic as ever. “A warrior, if you must know. A pilgrim, a traveler, whatever title suits you.” She grappled for her axes, arms crossed behind her as if finding comfort within the weapons before sweeping her eyes across them once again, taking final note. If they inquired more after her strengths, then she might be inclined to answer, otherwise she felt as if her initial greeting was enough to satisfy their palates of knowledge - sure enough her appearance would vouch enough, would it not? Though introductions were vital, first impressions more so, Saasi couldn't find herself finding comfort among the mass of them and found it a tad unsettling with that peculiar sense of [i]something[/i] about a couple of those in the meeting. However, she bit the inside of her cheek, opting for silence again as she merely seated herself with an easy grace, movements purposely done down as she leaned back against stone and crossed her arms across her bodice and looked her leg over her knee, eyes drawn to the curious scrawling of the Argonian in their midst.