A Blade in the Dark

A Blade in the Dark is the main quest where the mystery of the dragons starts to unravel. The innkeeper Delphine – the “friend” who stole the horn from Ustengrav – finally reveals who she is, and takes you to watch something nobody has seen in thousands of years: a dragon rising from its grave.

Walkthrough

The attic room

At the Sleeping Giant Inn in Riverwood, ask Delphine for the attic room. She gives you the Horn of Jurgen Windcaller from The Horn of Jurgen Windcaller and asks you to follow her.

The secret room

Delphine leads you to a room in the inn and asks you to close the door. She then opens a hidden passage in the back of a wardrobe, leading down to a secret basement. Here she explains that she took the horn to get your attention – and that she is one of the last surviving Blades, the ancient order of dragonslayers who once served the Dragonborn.

Dragons are coming back

Delphine has worked out that the dragons are not arriving from somewhere else: they are being brought back to life from their burial mounds. She knows where the next one is – near Kynesgrove in Eastmarch – and asks you to meet her there.

Kynesgrove

Meet Delphine in the village and follow her up the hill to the dragon mound. Then watch as Alduin himself appears and raises the dragon Sahloknir from his grave. When Alduin flies off, Sahloknir attacks.

Killing Sahloknir

Fight him the usual way: ranged attacks while he flies, melee when he lands, and keep out of his breath. Delphine fights with you. When he dies, you absorb his soul – the proof Delphine needed that you really are Dragonborn.

Next steps

Talk to Delphine. Convinced at last, she shares her suspicion that the Thalmor are behind the dragons’ return, which leads to the next main quest, Diplomatic Immunity.

Rewards

• A dragon soul from Sahloknir
• From now on, dragons can start appearing as random encounters around Skyrim

Tips

• Renting the attic room is free if you have no money; otherwise it costs 10 gold.
• Kynesgrove is near Windhelm. If you have not travelled there yet, the carriage from Whiterun can save you a long walk.