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The story of how Fahdonmul defeated Alduin in the Dragonborn's absence continues - it will run to eight chapters.

Icon art by  den-99

While Sweet-Roll-Devour is my creation, I owe a lot to an anonymous contributor writing a fanfic about him, which helped gel his personality. Skyrim and its characters are property of Bethesda, of course.

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Chapter 2 - Elder Knowledge

Sweet-Roll-Devour perched mournfully on a rock, while the elder dragon Paarthurnax perched upon his word-wall and meditated. The large, orange dragon stared into space himself for half an hour, considering the lessons the Old One had taught him.
Breath, focus. Speak only in true need... Sweet-Roll-Devour had never been big on conquest and violence anyway, but it was good to know that others felt the same, and he had taken well to the Way of the Voice.

"Old One...?" he called gently.

Paarthurnax craned his neck to look at the larger dragon. "Hmmm?" he rumbled.

"Fahdonmul has been gone for a week," the Ancient Dragon said. "Is he safe? Should I go and aid him...?"

"He is seeking a Kel," Paarthurnax reminded him. "An Elder Scroll... This is not like hunting a cow, or buying armour from a weapons shop. Mortals can spend their whole lives seeking such a thing and still not find it. Further, he needs a specific Scroll in particular. The odds are against him, I fear."

"We cannot wait a mortal lifespan!" Sweet-Roll-Devour protested. "Alduin's power grows... If he does not find it soon, we may have to consider another plan."

"If Bormahu truly wishes him to succeed against Alduin, He will have taken that into account," Paarthurnax decided. "A path would have been laid to guide the Dragonborn to victory, and Fahdonmul can follow it too."

"I guess so..." the other dragon said, and then turned abruptly, as he saw Paarthurnax was gazing into the distance. Not meditating, but watching something.

"He comes," Paarthurnax said.

"Alduin!?" the other dragon whimpered.

"No... Fahdonmul. But it does not mean victory. He may have come to keep us updated, or as you say, consider another plan."

The distant silhouette of the brown dragon grew swiftly, and as he came in to land, they noticed an ornate gold case clutched in one of his large, taloned feet. He dropped it into the snow, and then descended with a loud thump, looking extremely pleased with himself.

"You have it... the Kel!" Paarthurnax exclaimed in common, looking deeply impressed. "Time shudders at its touch... Well done indeed, Dovahkiin..." he added, and and then abruptly fell silent.

Fahdonmul stared at the wise old dragon as if he had gone mad, and the old one craned his neck to look away.

"Are you quite well, Old One?" the brown dragon asked nervously, in dovahzul.

"My pride is deeply wounded," Paarthurnax admitted, awkwardly turning back to face him. "You must understand, Young One. For whole eras I have been planning for this moment, rehearsing what I would say to the Last Dragonborn, if they succeeded in such an impossible task - and also, how I would say it.
"I did not expect I would be saying it to a fellow dovah, for this was not the prophecy. I had forgotten myself."

"The prophecy will be fulfilled," Fahdonmul said stubbornly. "Alduin will be defeated. Just not quite the way it was intended."

"I have been pondering that," Paarthurnax said slowly. "While you were away fetching the Kel... It is known that our old enemies, the Akaviri, carved a wall with the Last Dragonborn Prophecy. Alduin's Wall, it is called... and I have seen sketches of it, taken by mortal allies long ages past.
"While the prophecy itself originally came from the Scrolls, this carving is where most people know the prophecy from. All have assumed from the carvings depicted, that a Dragonborn would be the one to defeat Alduin."

"This is so," Fahdonmul agreed. "The carving was considered a wonder of the world at one time. I read descriptions of it in the olden days."

"Yes... But have you also considered how fanatically the Akaviri have sought the extermination of our kind?" Paarthurnax asked. "They have passed their blind hatred down the aeons and spread it to the Dragonguard, to the Blades, who unthinkingly took it as given that we have to die, without even understanding the reasons.
"Can you truly see the Akaviri willingly carving your likeness in stone as the hero of the age? A dragon as world saviour...? It may be that you always were the Chosen One... but the Akaviri distorted the prophecy by refusing to accept that a fellow dovah could be the agent of Alduin's undoing.
"Certainly, they did not show the harmony of the dragon cults before they turned sour, and they did not even include me in their depiction of history, for all that I helped grant the Tongues the gift of the Voice to aid them against Alduin."

"As did I," Fahdonmul reminded him. "Of course, I could, even then, assume the form of a Khajiit by my command of Alteration magics. Perhaps this confused them into thinking I was a Dragonborn. Mages practised in soul-magic have oft thought me to be Dragonborn, for in my disguise as a kaaz, I am indeed 'the soul of a dragon in the body of a mortal'."

"The fact that you have obtained the Kel..." Paarthurnax said. "You are doom-driven. I begin to believe. Perhaps you truly are the one."

"I will pray for guidance," Fahdonmul cautioned. "Prophecy or not, Alduin is the first-born of Bormahu - I cannot in good conscience plan to rob my own creator of His most favoured child, without seeking His consent."

"How did even you obtain that... thing?" Sweet-Roll-Devour broke in, gesturing nervously at the Elder Scroll with his snout.

"Oh," Fahdonmul said. He uttered a small Shout and a large sack appeared in front of him, with a dead cow lying next to it. The ancient dragon's orange head perked up as the scent of cakes reached his nostrils.

"For me...?" Sweet-Roll-Devour asked excitedly.

"For you, old friend," Fahdonmul said. "I mourned your sad loss back in the First Era. But... I do not want to make the Old One jealous. The cow is for him, if he wishes it.

"As for how I obtained the Kel, my first action was to seek out the library at Winterhold College. To do this, I enrolled as a student to gain their trust. Things went astray, and through an improbable series of events, I became arch-mage."

Sweet-Roll-Devour looked upset at this news, and craned his head towards his ally, fixing him with an unhappy expression.

"Fahdonmul, the Old One tells me you have played the part of a Khajiit assassin during your long wandering centuries," the large orange dragon pointed out suspiciously. "And many High Elves have been found headless lately, with a Khajiit in shining black armour seen nearby. And now you claim to have become arch-mage in one week?! Surely you did not... dispose of him...?"

"I did not murder my way into the role of arch-mage, no," the brown dragon sounded insulted. "I am Strong-Friend. For all that I despise the Thalmor, I am an ally to mortals and have long tried to help them.
"No... at Winterhold, they discovered an artifact of colossal power. This artifact, and the resulting attempts of greedy mortals to harness its power, led to a number of unfortunate incidents."

Fahdonmul sighed. "In the end, a Thalmor agent seized it for his own and was driven insane by his lust for power. Yes, I did decapitate him, and I did do this as a Khajiit assassin, but only after he had already murdered the previous arch-mage and become a threat to the entire province. He had to die.
"Yes, I do understand that this sounds suspicious, but it is true. Having a crazed Thalmor accidentally destroy Skyrim might well have stopped Alduin, but at the cost of far too many lives - mortal and dov alike.
"I put an end to all that by slaying the agent. In recognition for my aid in saving the College from its own folly, I was placed in charge of it. This position greatly aided my researches into the location of an Elder Scroll. It may indeed be that I am doom-driven and was meant to find the Kel for such an unlikely chain of events to bear fruit."

"What will the mortals of the College do when they realise their new arch-mage is big and scaly and breathes fire?" Sweet-Roll-Devour asked worriedly.

"That is a problem to be considered when and if Alduin is dealt with," Fahdonmul pointed out. "For if I fail in that, all else becomes irrelevant. That said, the roof of the building is flat, and just the right size for a dovah to rest upon. Given its age, I am certain it was built for our kind to use, when mages still bartered with us for our wisdom. So they have no right to complain if their chosen arch-mage should decide to reinstate that policy."

"As for the Kel, it was in an ancient Dwemer machine, far beneath the surface. They had built it to interpret the Scroll for them, without it damaging their sight as it often will to mortals. Such a treasure I must report back to the College, for it is a wonder of the ages, assuming Alduin does not make this the last age.
"I had to descend into the depths that men call Blackreach. Now that I can openly fly as a dovah once more instead of posing as a Khajiit, it pains me a little to have to assume mortal guise," Fahdonmul sighed. "But it was worth it for the Kel. I also met Vulthuryol," he added.

"He lives still...?" Paarthurnax looked deeply interested. "I thought him to have been slain, like all the others..."

"Vulthuryol has been trapped deep underground for several eras," Fahdonmul said. "There, he conquered a number of Falmer and other mortals in the caverns of Blackreach to do his bidding," Fahdonmul said. "He was surprised and hostile at the presence of another dovah, at first fearing that I had come to rob him of his territory... and his ziil.
"For my part, I feared that this might come to blows, tooth, claw and Voice - but the little-combat of tinvaak proved enough and he has acknowledged the Rightness of my Thu'um. He will not serve Alduin, not that the Dark One is likely to find him, or indeed, reach him even if he knew."

"I should also add that Vuljotnaak has been raised by Alduin to help him conquer all. His heart is not in it, though... and he is simply circling and taking out his frustrations on cows. Together, we destroyed a Thalmor death squad, and he confided to me then that he would much prefer Alduin gone. He has heard the whispers that I may be the Chosen One, and will serve me if I should prevail."

"That is reassuring," Paarthurnax said, sounding pleased.

"I also startled Alduin while he was raising Nahagliiv at Rorikhofkah. Alduin fled the scene after I dropped a rock on him, and I completed the ritual in his absence. Nahagliiv has pledged fealty to me as his Thuri, and I now understand the process he uses to restore the slain."

"Alduin will kill you for this," Sweet-Roll-Devour whimpered. "For assailing him, for stealing his minions, for thwarting his designs... He will know!"

"Only if Nahagliiv tells him," Fahdonmul said. "Long years ago, in the Second Era, I forged rings of great power. One of them grants stealth and invisibility. With this on, Alduin could not see me and I did not use my Voice... Though he may suspect."

"This is welcome news," Paarthurnax said. "But if Alduin does not already know you oppose him, he will - as soon as you use the Kel."

"Then I suppose I had best get this over with," Fahdonmul said, eyeing the scroll with trepidation. "It is one thing to obtain such a powerful artifact... but another to use it. I hope that the reading of this thing will not be my undoing."

He sighed to himself. "Mortals say that to live fully, one should seize the world itself by the throat and force it to give you what you want," he continued. "But when we of the dov did that very thing, it earned us only hatred and condemnation. I wish they would make up their minds."

"May Bormahu smile upon you," Paarthurnax said as Fahdonmul opened the scroll telekinetically.