 The player character accompanies the Blades in search of Alduin 's Wall , a prophetic <unk> located in an ancient Blades fortress known as Sky Haven Temple . While the Blades set up in the temple , the player character learns that the ancient Nords used a special Thu 'um against Alduin called " <unk> " , representing mankind 's comprehensive hatred for the dragons , to cripple his ability to fly so they could engage him . To gain more information , the player meets the ancient dragon Paarthurnax , the leader of the Greybeards who was once one of Alduin 's most feared generals . Paarthurnax reveals that Alduin was not truly defeated in the past , but was cast into the currents of time by the use of an Elder Scroll in the hope was that he would never reemerge . The player manages to locate the Elder Scroll within the ancient <unk> ruin of <unk> and uses it to peer through a window in time , when Alduin was first defeated , learning the powerful <unk> Shout to combat Alduin . 
