Here is chapter two! :D

Yes, I know this entire chapter is one long flashback. We will be getting back to the part set during the Thieves Guild quest, I promise. I just didn't want to miss out anything from this scene, because it's all so important to Sha and Keeth's story.


The journey back to Darkwater Crossing took several hours. They could have made it in better time, but they both preferred to travel at a leisurely pace. Derkeethus was still weak from a week of half-starvation, and he didn't want to exert himself. J'shana seemed to sense it, because she hung back slightly, always walking at his pace, though he had a feeling she could have gone much faster.

As they went, so Derkeethus learned a little more about her. Every so often, she would stop as if she had walked into a wall and drop down to her knees beside some sort of plant, carefully examining the flowers and leaves. Most of the time she would shake her head, get up and continue walking as if nothing had happened, but occasionally she would cut a little off with her dagger and slip it into one of the pouches at her waist. Perhaps she was an alchemist; Derkeethus knew that stealth fighters often used potions and poisons made from plants to give them the edge they needed in combat.

J'shana didn't talk about herself much, even when Derkeethus asked. All she would reveal was that she'd been born in Elsweyr but had left when she was seventeen 'against this one's will.' For two years she had lived in Cyrodiil before coming to Skyrim about a month previously. That made her only nineteen, a few years younger than Derkeethus. It surprised him – her face and voice were certainly youthful, but her manner was not.

Derkeethus, for his part, had told her about his life in Darkwater Crossing, and explained how he'd come to be imprisoned. J'shana had smiled, that small but bright smile, when he'd admitted to secretly harbouring dreams of adventure, and told him why she'd entered the cave in the first place. 'This one is – I mean, I am – on my way to Riften. I never was much good at reading maps, though.'

'So you're an adventurer?'

The Khajiit had hesitated, her whiskers twitching slightly. 'I suppose I am.'

Derkeethus had said nothing, but a thousand different emotions had welled up inside him – admiration, wistfulness, and above all, awe.

Evening had been fast approaching when he had finally caught sight of his beloved home, somehow looking more beautiful and welcoming than it had when he had left, lying nestled at the waterside. Derkeethus found himself walking faster subconsciously.

As he grew closer, he saw one of the figures up ahead turn in his direction. There was a pause; then a squeal of delight split the air. 'Keeth! You're back!'

Derkeethus let out a startled yelp that quickly became a delighted laugh as Hrefna sprinted over to him, cannoned into him and full speed, and threw her arms around him. He hugged her tightly, his mouth hurting from smiling. 'I'm back,' he murmured.

Hrefna released him, but only so that she could look at him while she bombarded him with questions. 'You've been away ages, you said you'd only be a few days! What happened? Where have you been? Did you find anything interesting? What happened to all your things? And who's this?'

The girl's shout had attracted the attention of many of the other residents of the village. Derkeethus felt as if he had never been happier as he watched their faces light up as they saw him. He saw Tormir running over from where she had been hanging dead salmon onto a pole, the fish quickly forgotten, Sondas, Verner and Annekke emerging from the mine at a run, even the handful of guards stationed in the Crossing approaching with welcoming calls.

Derkeethus waited until everyone had gathered before answering Hrefna's questions. 'I was captured by creautrs… Falmer, I believe. I didn't exactly find anything interesting, no, and they took my things. And this is J'shana. She set me free. She saved my life.'

That night, the entire village and J'shana sat around the fire together, feasting on the fish that Tormir and Hrefna had caught earlier. Derkeethus had told his friends the full story what had happened to him. Every time he was told how much he had been missed, or how much everyone had hoped to see him return, and how glad they were to have him back, his heart leaped a little more. He had never felt so appreciated, so wanted, so loved.

As they sat there talking, Sondas turned to J'shana. 'So, what's your story?' he asked. Derkeethus wasn't surprised when the Khajiit had ducked her head and replied that it was long and complicated and not something to be shared on such a happy occasion.

The Khajiit stayed with them overnight, sleeping one of the tents that the handful of guards stationed in the Crossing slept in. Annekke and Verner offered to let her stay in their house, but J'shana politely refused, saying that she was quite used to sleeping outside. Derkeethus also opted to sleep in the open air – he usually slept inside the mine, but he didn't want to spend another night underground until he'd put his experience in the cavern behind him.

He stayed awake long after everyone else was asleep, wondering. Who was she, this quiet, serious Khajiit girl who had appeared out of nowhere and saved his life? What was the story behind those dragon scales on her armour, the tiny scar that cut through one eyebrow, and the nick in her ear? Where had she come from? Where was she going? For some reason, he wanted to know about her. He wished he had the courage to ask, but he knew that she wouldn't tell him.

Sleep took a long time to claim him, but finally it did. His dreams were vivid, but he could not remember them once he woke. Mostly because something happened to wake him that put everything else out of his mind.

It seemed to him that he had been asleep for only minutes when he was awakened without warning by a sound like nothing he had ever heard before. It was a roar, a roar that made the air tremble and the ground shake. A roar that echoed in his ears long after the sound had faded away. A roar that filled his nightmares for days afterwards.

He jolted awake in time to see Eiran, one of the Crossing's guards, snatched up in a set of talons the size of knives, thrown up into the air, and left to fall to his death, screaming as he fell. Derkeethus leaped to his feet and grabbed the nearest weapon to hand –a pickaxe. But only seconds later he realised just how useless it would be, because Eiran's killer was a creature that did not belong on Nirn. It belonged in children's stories, in ancient tales, in wild rumours.

But here it was. And even though it had just killed a man in front of his eyes, Derkeethus felt a thrill run through him. All those stories, all those legends… they'd been true.

As he stood there, frozen to the spot by awe and terror, he saw the dragon turn in the air, its snakelike neck twisting around until the creature was facing him. He staggered as a burst of wind from the dragon's wings hit him as it began to hover. He saw it open its mouth, and its eyes narrow with what could only be described as glee - cruel glee.

And even as Derkeethus realised that he was going to die, a voice cut through the air. Sharp, strong, and furious. Two words in a language the Argonian had never heard before.
'Dovah! Helt!'

The dragon's head snapped around, as did Derkeethus's. J'shana was standing there, her bow drawn and readied, her tail lashing, her amber eyes burning. Derkeethus wanted to run to her, to pull her out of the way, to stop that monster from going anywhere near her, but something held him back.

The dragon stared in what looked like disbelief. 'Dovahkiin?'

'Leave these joorre in drem!' J'shana lifted her bow and aimed it at the dragon's chest.

The dragon bared its teeth, a savage snarl issuing from its mouth. 'Joor mey. Hi los sahlo. Hi fen dir. Pah joor fen dir!'

'Why fight?' J'shana's tail lashed furiously. 'Do you not think these people will not krif to defend their home and kiirre? Go and seek some easier prey – prey that is not joorre!'

The dragon made a sound that was unmistakably laughter – low, rasping laughter. 'Dreh hi ni fraan ziidol wah ald tuum hi, Dovahkiin?' It thumped its tail on the ground and added, this time in the common tongue, 'That will to dominate is all we are.'

'You can be more,' J'shana pleaded.

'Aalkos. But I do not want to be.'

Without warning, a torrent of flame burst from its maw. Derkeethus let out a cry and leaped forwards, but there was no need; J'shana had leaped aside at the last moment. The dragon swooped low over the pair of them, its barbed tail narrowly missing Derkeethus's head, before shooting upwards into the sky.

'Is it leaving?' Derkeethus gasped.

'No, it's preparing itself to attack again,' J'shana said grimly. 'All those who cannot fight must find shelter.'

Glancing over his shoulder, Derkeethus saw that Tormir was already shepherding Hrefna into the mine. Annekke, Verner, Sondas and the remaining guards were all standing with their weapons drawn, but they all had identical expressions of fear. Only J'shana seemed to be, if not calm, at least not panicking.

With a single bound, the Khajiit leaped onto the nearest rock and raised her voice. 'Dragons are most vulnerable on the ground. Try to cripple its wings in any way you can. Its weakest points are its eyes, mouth and throat. And try to stay near something you can hide behind.'

Derkeethus saw the guards glance at each other, but to his surprise no one questioned her. It seemed that everyone shared his opinion: if she knew how to fight dragons, she was in charge.

The dragon was circling them now, completely ignoring the volley of arrows the guards launched at it. Derkeethus dropped the pickaxe, realising that it was useless unless the dragon came in range. He looked around desperately for a long-range weapon, and his eyes fell on Eiran's crumpled body. His bow lay some distance away – he must have dropped it when the dragon seized him. Derkeethus raced over, snatched it up, and carefully lifted Eiran's quiver from his back, muttering an apology to the young man as he did so.

As the dragon dropped down and landed on the roof of Anekke and Verner's house, scattering thatch in every direction, Derkeethus loaded Eiran's bow and took careful aim. He breathed in deeply and let the arrow fly. It arched through the air, striking the dragon at the base of its neck. The beast let out a howl of pain.

J'shana gave Derkeethus a small smile. 'Good shot.'

It didn't do much good, though, the Argonian thought, as the dragon took off again, sending a burst of flame towards the ground that incinerated Annekke's vegetable patch within a heartbeat.

'This is useless!' The shout came from Verner, who was gripping his pickaxe so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. 'It's too strong for us. We need to get out of here, or else hide in the mine.'

'Dragons fly faster than mortals can run,' J'shana called back. 'If we hide, it will stay outside, waiting for us to starve. Even if it leaves, it will go on to another settlement. Do you want to condemn others to death?'

Verner looked taken aback, but there was no time for argument; the dragon was dropping down to earth. The ground trembled as it landed, and a shower of dust and dirt sprayed in every direction. Derkeethus recalled J'shana's words - dragons are most vulnerable on the ground – and loosed arrow after arrow at it at the same time that J'shana and the guards did the same. Most bounced off the thick brown scales, but a few struck home, making the monster snarl with pain.

It was Annekke who struck the first proper blow. As the dragon snapped at Selldi, a battle-hardened Nord woman who was the self-appointed but undisputed leader of the Crossing guards, Verner's wife was slowly creeping up on it from behind. Derkeethus's breath caught in his throat as he saw her lift her pickaxe above her head and, with a furious cry, bring it down with all her strength on the dragon's right wing joint.

The dragon's screech of agony somehow managed to make Derkeethus wince and grin in triumph at the same time. 'Pahlok joorre! Hi fen dir fah daar!'

It spread its wings and made a leap upwards as if to take flight, but it only managed to rise a short distance before plummeting back to the ground in an ungainly, ungraceful tangle of wings and clawed feet. Derkeethus felt a burst of hope. Annekke's blow had injured the dragon so badly that it could no longer fly. Now their victory was almost certain - at least, he hoped it was.

The dragon didn't allow itself to remain vulnerable for long. It lashed out with its tail in Annekke's direction, a vicious swipe that would have snapped the woman's spine had Verner not thrown himself forwards and knocked her out of the way just in time. Selldi was not so lucky – as she rushed towards the beast with her sword raised, it lunged with the speed of a striking snake, closing its jaws around Selldi's waist and lifting her off the ground. The defenders of the Crossing watched in horror as the dragon shook the Nord woman back and forth before hurling her to one side. Derkeethus didn't know if the dragon's teeth had already killed her, but if they hadn't, her collision with the rocky wall of the mine definitely did.

That serves as a reminder to me never to engage in any Nord recklessness, Derkeethus thought.

'A downed dragon is a vulnerable dragon, but also a dangerous one.' J'shana selected another arrow from her quiver. 'He will try not to let anyone else get that close to him.'

'So how do we kill it?' Derkeethus asked, feeling somewhat surprised that she was referring to the beast as a him. It was clearly capable of thought, but such a ruthless killer did not deserve to be called anything other than it.

J'shana pulled back her bowstring. 'With difficulty,' she replied, and loosed the arrow. This one embedded itself in the dragon's mouth just as it prepared to sink its teeth into Sondas's flesh.

The beast whirled around to face her with an ear-splitting roar. 'You cannot win, Dovahkiin!'

It reared up on its hind legs, terrible to look at despite the fact that one wing hung crippled and useless. The other, though, was still strong, and now the dragon lifted it and brought it down with all its strength. Derkeethus staggered back as the rush of wind cannoned into him. He managed to right himself, but J'shana was not so lucky – the gust was strong enough to knock the lightweight Khajiit clean off her feet.

She rolled with the fall with the agility that only a Khajiit could ever boast and pushed herself up onto her knees. Her bow had been knocked from her grasp, and she reached out for it. But the dragon's mouth was open and Derkeethus heard it sucking in a deep breath. A moment later, a raging inferno would pour from its jaws and burn J'shana to a crisp.

But just for a moment, as it lifted its head, its throat was exposed. Unprotected flesh where life bubbled close to the surface. Vulnerable. Defenceless. Easy to tear away. And the pickaxe Derkeethus had cast aside earlier in favour of Eiran's bow was lying at his feet.

Afterwards, he was never quite sure how he did it. But suddenly, in that single moment, he knew that he would not let J'shana come to harm. And so, in one movement, the Argonian reached down, snatched up the pickaxe, and hurled it through the air.

The spiked head of the axe sank into the flesh of the dragon's throat, burying itself right up to the handle.

The dragon reeled backwards, its eyes wide. A horrible gagging noise filled the air as it tried to breathe. A trickle of blood started to flow down the dull scales, quickly thickening to a flow.

A spasm ran through its body as it slumped to the ground. Its talons gouged deep lines in the earth as it writhed, but little by little its struggles grew weaker. It lifted its head, and for a moment it stared at Derkeethus with a look of pure disbelief on its face.
J'shana pushed herself up off the ground and onto her feet. Drawing a single arrow from her quiver, she slowly approached the fallen dragon. It could do nothing to stop her as she drew back her bowstring and aimed it at the dragon's head.

'Zu los krod, zeymah,' she whispered, and even though he didn't understand the words, there was so much sorrow in them that Derkeethus suddenly felt as if fatally wounding the dragon had been a terrible crime.

J'shana let the arrow fly. It struck the dragon's left eye, and cut right through, into the brain. The dragon went limp instantly, as if there had been props holding it up which had suddenly been snatched away. And a third body lay on the ground, its blood steadily dripping down off its scales and soaking into the torn earth.

Silence descended upon the village for the first time since the dragon's arrival. Glancing around, Derkeethus saw Annekke, Verner, Sondas and the two remaining guards staring at the creature's unmoving form with apprehensive expressions, as if they expected it to leap up and attack again at any second. But it didn't.

It was dead. They had killed it. They had fought a dragon together, and they had won.

Derkeethus felt like letting out the loudest and longest cheer of his life, but just then, something happened that the sound die just as it was forming in his mouth.

In front of his eyes, the dragon's body started to burn.

Flames were licking at the brown scales, flames so bright and vivid in colour that it was very nearly painful to look at them. Every part of the dragon's body that they touched seemed to be absorbed into them – not only the scales, but the skin, the flesh. And then the fire started to float, swathes of flame simply lifted up off what was left of the dragon's body, until nothing was left but the bare skeleton.

As it rose, the fire changed, transforming itself into a swirling ball of pure white light. A ball that suddenly unravelled and became a river, a river that snaked forwards through the air, glowing brighter than the sun –

And flowed into J'shana.

The Khajiit stood still as a mountain, her head tipped back, her bow held limply in one hand, her arms slightly outstretched. She neither move nor spoke as the light surrounded her. With a whispering sound, like wind through trees, it gradually soaked into her body, briefly making her shimmer as if there were stars trapped in her fur. For a moment, she tensed, her pelt bristling.

Then the last of the light was gone. The dragon's bones lay stretched out in the sunlight, white and clean. J'shana stood over them, breathing hard, her fur rustling as if a breeze was stirring it. But there was no wind.

Derkeethus stared and stared, desperately trying to understand what he had just seen. It was no easy task, because he wasn't sure what he had seen.

The dragon had died. Its body had crumpled and the light had died from its remaining eye. And then something from it, its essence, perhaps, had left that body and been absorbed by J'shana.

And then the Septim dropped.

There were stories of a warrior, a hero, a legend. A mortal with a dragon's soul, a mysterious and ancient blessing bestowed upon them by Akatosh himself. One who could Shout in the dragon tongue, using the power of the Voice. The only person on Nirn who could truly kill a dragon, by absorbing its soul when it died.

The one they called Dragonborn.

No sooner had the realisation hit him than he heard the word whispered by one of the guards, a young Nord whose name Derkeethus didn't know. The look on his face was one of pure awe.

'She's Dragonborn,' Annekke breathed in Verner's ear, and her husband nodded dumbly. Hrefna and Tormir, who had emerged from their hiding place in the mine, stared at J'shana with wide eyes. And not only the Nords seemed amazed; Sondas's mouth was hanging half open.

Derkeethus felt like he should say something, or do something, but what was there to do or say? J'shana looked between them, her eyes travelling over each of them in turn. The guards, Annekke and Verner all bowed their heads as the Khajiit looked at them, and Tormir, Hrefna and Sondas all turned their gazes to the ground.

Finally, J'shana's head turned to face Derkeethus. The expression on her face… Derkeethus could only describe it as despair. Her eyes seemed to be pleading.

Derkeethus did not look away, but only because his entire body felt frozen.

J'shana let out a soft sigh. 'I should go,' she murmured, and turned away.

Derkeethus watched her, walking away from them down the road, her head and tail drooping. And he knew that somehow he and the other residents of the Crossing had upset her, badly.
That realisation was quickly followed by another. He didn't want J'shana to leave. Not like this. She was the Dragonborn, but what did that matter? She had saved his life. She was his friend. Why was she leaving?

He didn't realise that he had started running after her until he had reached her. 'Where are you going?' he heard himself call.

She kept walking. 'Away,' she said heavily.

'But why?'

She stopped, but still didn't face him. 'This one cannot stand it,' she whispered.

'Stand what?'

She turned her head towards him without moving the rest of her body.

'The staring. People treating me like I'm different.'

Derkeethus shook his head slightly, taken aback. She was different. She was a living legend. 'But you are Dragonborn. What's wrong with that?'

Finally she turned around, and took a step backwards, away from him. She extended her hands, indicating the space between the two of them. 'This,' she said.

His frown deepened.

'The separation!' J'shana burst out. 'Feeling like there is a distance of a million miles between me and everyone else on Nirn. Last night, when we were all talking together, I was your equal. And it felt so good, being a normal person. Being accepted. Like I was the same as everyone else. I hadn't felt like that in a long time.' She let out a desperate sigh. 'And now that has been lost. No one from this village will ever see me as J'shana again. All they will ever see is the Dragonborn. That's why I can't stay.'

Derkeethus still didn't understand. 'Most people would be proud of it.'

'I am proud!' J'shana's eyes widened. 'Of course I am proud to have been chosen. But I wish it came without the price it does.' She shook her head sadly. 'It makes me feel so lonely. It seems I am destined to defeat Alduin, and I have a long path to walk before I can face him. And it is one I have to walk alone.'

Derkeethus felt his heart go out to her. That was so unfair, so wrong. J'shana had shown herself to be incredibly brave, facing the dragon and the Falmer as she had. There was no doubt in his mind that she deserved her power. It wasn't fair that it should be a burden to her, make her feel so separate.

He looked at the Khajiit, and he realised something. He still saw J'shana. He saw the Dragonborn too, but he also saw the woman who had saved his life. If someone had asked him is she was his friend, he would have said yes. If they had asked him the same question five minutes ago, his answer would have been the same. Nothing had changed.

'You don't have to be alone,' he said quietly.

She sighed again. 'J'shana wishes that were true. But I don't wish for the company of a…' She gestured vaguely with her hands. 'This one doesn't know if there is a word for it in your tongue. One who follows blindly and takes orders. Not after what happened to Lydia.' Her voice became slightly choked on the final words.

Derkeethus had no idea who Lydia was, but it was safe to presume that she had been J'shana's friend, or at least a travelling companion, and that some terrible fate had befallen her. Was this why the Khajiit was so lonely? Because she was afraid of becoming close to anyone, in case something happened to them?

'What about a friend?' he ventured. 'Would you care for the company of a friend?'

She opened her mouth as if to reply, but no words came out.

'You said yourself, you have trouble reading maps.' Derkeethus shrugged. 'Let me go with you. I don't go outside the Crossing much, but I do know the way to Riften.'

She shook her head. 'It's too dangerous.'

'I still owe you my life,' Derkeethus told her. 'Let me repay my debt to you.'

'You owe J'shana nothing. She would be dead had you not killed that dragon when you did.'

'But if I can kill a dragon, surely it's not too dangerous for me?'

He knew he was taking a chance there. They both knew that it had been luck more than judgement, that had enabled him to strike that final blow. But he was determined to do this. He hated the thought of J'shana taking such a task upon herself with no one to help her.

The Khajiit and the Argonian stood there, facing each other, each seemingly trying to work out the other. For perhaps ten seconds they stayed there, neither of them speaking or even blinking.

Derkeethus did not learn for a long time what made J'shana make the decision she did. It was not until months later that he asked her, and her reply made it clear that even she was uncertain.

But at the time, he did not question it when she answered, 'All right.'

She breathed in deeply. 'Just as far as Riften. Until I've found the man I'm meant to meet there. I will be glad of the company.' She hesitated, and then added, 'That of a friend.'

She extended her hand to him, and he shook it. Once again, he found himself marvelling at the smoothness of that silky ash-grey fur.

Two days later, after they had travelled to Riften, met the man named Brynjolf, fought their way through the Ratway, battled the Thalmor, found Esbern, escorted him to Riverwood, defeated an entire camp of Forsworn, and found Sky Haven Temple, both of them had completely forgotten that Derkeethus had been going to return to Darkwater Crossing once J'shana's business with Brynjolf was complete.

Or perhaps, Derkeethus thought with a smile, they had remembered it. It was simply that neither of them had wanted to say it.


I've a feeling I enjoy writing dragon battles too much...

Draconic translations:

Dovah! Helt! - Dragon! Stop!

Joor mey. Hi los sahlo. Hi fen dir. Pah joor fen dir! - Mortal fool. You are weak. You will die. All mortals will die!

Dreh hi ni fraan ziidol wah ald tuum hi, Dovahkiin? - Do you not feel the urge to destroy within you, Dragonborn?

Pahlok joorre! Hi fen dir fah daar! - Arrogant mortals! You will die for this!

Zu los krod, zeymah - I am sorry, brother.

If you're wondering what happened to Lydia, sadly she was killed at Kynesgrove by Sahloknir. If you have any more questions (and I think I might have caused there to be a few) feel free to ask!

Chapter three should be up shortly! Thanks for reading. :D