Dragons...
Many years ago, before the rise of Tiber Septim, before the Great Empire, man made dragons into a myth. They were only the subject of old Nord legends and fairytales passed down to their children. No one believed they ever existed...until now...
Delphine sighed with regret in her heart as she stood at the summit of the Throat of the World. The chilling winds of the mountain whipped her scorched blonde hair into a flurry as snow and flecks of ice pelted her burned, calloused cheeks. Below, Skyrim lay in smouldering ruin. Flames as high as mountains lit the blackened night, smoke and dust so thick, it blotted out the stars and the moons.
"We were fools..." She muttered under her breath. Her armor, the armor of the Blades, sworn to protect Tamriel from this ever looming threat, she once felt pride wearing it. Now...she felt ashamed. Metal plates were singed and tattered, torn beyond repair as the woman who donned them.
"The gods lied to us! The Scrolls lied to us! We prayed! We waited for his return....but he never did. Alduin has destroyed Skyrim...and we couldn't stop him! Just mere mortals!"
A tear fell from her eye, caught by the frigid, howling winds, as from her armor, she pulled a pendant, clutching it in her hand...and falling to her knees.
The pendant...it had belonged to her dearest friend and most valuable comrade...
"Esbern...my comrades...Tamriel... I have failed you. Oh Divines...please...I beg your forgiveness..."
She staggered to her feet...and from the mountain she cast herself. Tamriel's hopes...they had died with her...
A new age had dawned upon the land, a tyranical reign of fire and terror. With none to oppose Alduin, he swept across Skyrim like a plague, delivering death and discord. Those who did not bow were incinerated... The Dragon Cult returned in full force soon after, conquering the land, as there was no Empire left to defy them. They enslaved the people, forcing them to build great temples and cities in honor of their Dragon Gods and offering unwilling slaves...as sacrifice.
Gone was the pantheon of the Nine, and ushered in, Alduin the World Eater.
There is no hope for Skyrim, no hope for Tamriel. With Alduin as Lord, the world shall burn...till only ashes remain.