She made her way up and over the mountain then up towards Riverwood. It was only about fifty minutes later as she came down from the heights, she found more dead. She came upon the terrible site of a Khajiit caravan.
Its people scattered dead across the road, lying dead in the snow and dirt. As she examined the tracks, the lay of the wagons, the dead Khajiit, she could see that this had been done by something unnatural and not something that would normally be born of this world.
The warning of the dream came back to her, and she slowly slid out her sword and placed her shield in her left-hand so she could be ready. She stood there for a moment listening, but whatever had been here, killed all these Khajiit, no easy feat of itself, considering what fierce warriors they could be, had left as the woodland around was quiet, normal, nothing out of place.
Khajiit, from Ta’agra, the spoken language of them means desert dweller. They are cat-like people who come from Elsweyr, a region that lies on the southern coast of Tamriel. It is divided into two major climates: savannas, badlands, and dry plains in the north, and fertile land of jungle and rain-forests in the south.
Many of the other races commonly thought of the Khajiit as good thieves and acrobats but also known to be good sailors and fierce warriors. Although, most cities, especially in Skyrim would not have allowed them inside the city walls out of fear of being robbed blind, they were allowed to setup camp outside the gates and trade and barter their goods with the locals who liked to spend time with them.
She slid her sword back in its sheath, placed her shield on her back and continued to work her way down towards Riverwood. She decided to take a cautious approach, not knowing what to expect. She crossed the White River and made her way up above the small falls that fell off the cliff sides across from the town. She felt it would give her a good advantage to observe without being noticed before going into town or passing by.
As she arrived and took up a spot across the river from Riverwood she was shocked by the total ruin of the town. All that remained were skeletal frames of what was once people’s homes, their business, the inn. All of it appeared to be in shambles now. She watched in silence with the wind blowing through her hair. There was nothing moving in the town although the wood mill wheel was still turning.
It began to snow lightly, she thought quietly, “the tears of Riverwood falling from the heavens like snowflakes.” She thought to herself, “What happened here, just like in Helgen, ruins and rubble, no people, all of it left shattered.” She had made her way up with the snow beginning to fall lightly, the darkness was beginning to set in. She thought, “What ends was all this destruction for, what purpose did it serve to destroy so many lives, so much. There were families living there in Riverwood. What became of them I wonder?”
She looked one more time, with her eyes swelling with tears from what she had witnessed so far, “Oh Talos, what has happened to this land that was once the home of so many families? Are they all gone now, have they all gone to Sovngarde or some other place for the final rest?” She continued across the upper ridge and came across something from another age, an Oblivion Gate. She mused, “What portent does this bear upon my future and what is to come for Skyrim.”
She then went down towards an overlook she remembered would allow her to view the way down from Riverwood towards the crossroads near the Honningbrew Meadery. She mused briefly, “they made a fine ale she can remember having at the inns in Whiterun.”
As she made her way down to the overlook, there it was, the place of her dreams. She could almost hear the voice again, “Here you will stay, here you can begin to reclaim what had been lost and restore hope to this shattered land.” She continued with her thoughts, “I’ll make my way down to that outcrop below. There I can observe the place and make sure it is safe to make my way across the bridge and investigate the home and its surroundings.
She thought while observing below, “I wouldn’t think there would be anyone around since so many of the towns and its people appear to be gone, either to their final rest or migrated to some other province where they could live in peace and raise their families.”