7th of Second Seed, 4E 203

"Everyone into the city square we're closing the gates!" A member of the Redoran guard shouts as he hurries civilians along, driving his sword into one of the shambling Ash Spawns.

Glover swings his forge hammer with all his might, the spawn stumbles, recovers for a moment then falls to the ground.

"Glover!" Selena runs up to him, panting.

"Sel, where's Kyra?"

"Kyra? I-I don't know, why?"

"Just-trust me find her, go! Now!" Glover brings the hammer down onto the spawns head twice more just to make sure it stays down. Selena turns around and runs up the path towards Severin Manor. She tries the handle then starts slapping her hand against the heavy door.

"Kyra! Kyra open the door!"

Kyra shuffles out of the kitchen and rubs one sleepy eye as she yawns and unlocks the door, opening it.

"Mm, good morning." She smiles at Selena until she sees her eyes wide with terror, pushing her way inside shutting the door behind her.

"Sel, what's wong?"

"I don't know there's these things, monsters or I don't- but they're all over town and Glover said to come get you and I-" Kyra whirls on her heel and goes down the stairs, Selena cocking her at her and following a few steps behind.

"Kyra? Where are you going?" Kyra takes a right at the base of the stairs down a hallway Selena had never been down before.

Kyra pushes open the double doors of the armory, Selena stopping in place. She gazes around at the massive collection of weaponry and all manner of armor.

"What th-what is all this?"

Kyra pulls a plain leather chestplate off a mannequin and buckles herself into it, tugging on a pair of boots. A crossbow in one hand, she pulls her Skyforged blade off a hook by the fireplace and brushes past Selena without a word.

Selena stares at the sole set of black armor on a lone mannequin in the center of the room before she turns, chasing after her girlfriend.

Kyra hits the top of the stairs and opens the door. Below her and down the path three people run past being chased by a single ash spawn. Selena stumbles to a stop behind her almost crashing into Kyra as she raises the crossbow in her left hand, leads the monster and then, almost casually, fires it.

The bolt sails through the air and digs itself into the monster's skull with enough force to knock it to the ground, Kyra shoves the crossbow into Selena's hand.

"Reload this." Kyra unsheaths her sword and drops the scabbard onto the ground as she dashes down the path and into the maelstrom in the city square.

Captain Veleth struggles with one of the Spawn monsters, both of its hands clamped on his sword as he struggles to free it. Kyra grips her sword in two hands as she skids in the dirt and swings, the ash spawn's head going tumbling to the ground as the rest of it crumbles into dust.

"It's about time you showed up." Kyra drives her sword into the nearest monster's spine as Captain Veleth backs up against her back. Kyra looks over her shoulder at him and smirks.

"I was making breakfast, duck." Veleth ducks as Kyra swings almost cutting the Spawn in half as it charges them, she pulls her blade back from its midsection and swings again cleanly lopping off its head.

"You need to close the gates."

"I gave the order five minutes ago, I don't know what's happened go hurry them along won't you?" Veleth thrusts out with his sword through a Spawn's chest and out its back, the monster crumbling to dust around his blade.

Kyra ducks under one Ash Spawn's swinging arm and turns on her heel driving her blade into its spine, yanking her blade out as she completes the full circle turn in one sweeping graceful motion kicking off her back foot and sprinting for the Wall.

She jumps one of the dead Redoran guard and bounds up the stairs, cutting a swath through the monsters as they shamble up them, a guard doing the same from the top and they almost slice into each other as they kill the last one. Both of their swords clanging off one another as they sever the head, meeting in the middle.

"Dragonborn!" The Dunmer says as she brushes past him.

"I prefer Kyra, why haven't you closed the gate?"

"Everyone's fighting or dead, I couldn't hold off the beasts long enough to close it myself."

"You should've died trying." Kyra sets her sword on the railing beside her as she grips the crank wheel in both hands, planting her feet and grunting with exertion as she begins turning the heavy wheel. The wheel screeches with each centimeter until it finally clangs to a stop nowhere near its terminus.

"To hell with it." Kyra says as her fist ignites with flames, she extends her arm her open palm facing the taut chain holding the gate up.

A stream of fire erupts from her hand as the guard turns, an Ash Spawn making its way over its fallen to the top of the stairs. The watchman raises his sword over his head and charges it. The chain begins to melt as Kyra extinguishes the flame and picks up her sword, bringing it down in a mighty chop.

The chain snaps and whips away, beneath her she can hear the pulleys spin and hears the gate slamming into the ground with a muffled thud.

Kyra throws herself over the high railing, her bangs flying away from her face as she sails towards the ground and lands half crouched just beyond the main Guardhouse. She turns in place and grabs the nearest monster swinging the Spawn in a full circle, throwing it against the wall and jamming her blade through it.

It was over almost as quickly as it had begun. Kyra wipes her arm across her forehead as she approaches Captain Veleth standing in the city square, the two warriors clasps hands.

"I know when you came here you said we were on our own but thank you Dragonborn." Kyra nods as she looks around, the villagers busy tending to wounded. She sees Glover and Selena near his forge and walks over, Selena had a look on her face. She folds her arms across her chest and looks at Kyra.

"You all right?" She asks, her sword coming to rest on her shoulder looking at them both.

"Just can't resist a good fight can you?" Glover smiles and goes back to cleaning up his tossed workspace.

"Sel?" Selena just shakes her head and storms into Glover's house, Kyra looks at him and he shrugs as she brushes past him chasing after her.

"Sel, wait up!" Kyra shuts the doors behind her.

"Selena what's wrong?" Selena turns on her making Kyra stop in mid step.

"What's wrong? Just a simple clothing merchant, that ring a bell?!"

"Selena.."

"No, don't "Selena.." me, you lied to me!"

"Yes, I lied to you."

"About a lot of things."

"No not about a lot of things just the one thing."

"Oh really?" Selena gestures at the mirror on the wall and Kyra looks at it, her eyes still glowing she blinks and looks at Sel.

"Selena, I'm not who I said I was that's all."

"Who are you then? You're not a merchant not the way you fight."

"I'm...well I'm- I was something else."

"Kyra, I swear you better tell me the truth right now or..." Tears well up in Selena's eyes at the very thought of leaving, she loved Kyra, almost as much as she loved her daughter she loved this woman. Kyra sighs and sits down at Glover's table dropping her sword onto it in a huff, it clatters onto the table.

"I'm Dragonborn." Selena rolls her eyes to the ceiling.

"Kyra I'm from Cyrodiil, I know better, the Dragonborn died out years ago with the rest of the Septims. Stop lying to me!"

"I'm not! I'm not that kind of Dragonborn, it's a long story."

"I've got time." Selena sits down across the table and looks at her.

"It's not easy to explain ok? I'm Dragonborn, the Last Dragonborn. Not Dragonblood or whatever anyone else has claimed to be."

"What does that mean?"

"It means..." Kyra sighs as she kicks her boots up onto the corner of the table, leaning back in her chair.

"I don't even know what it means anymore, it used to mean something. When the world needed saving from Alduin but now it-"

"That was you?" Kyra nods.

"That was me."

"Why didn't you tell me all this before?"

"Because I'm...retired."

"Retired?"

"You have to understand it's just not who I wanted to be anymore. A lot happened to me, to people I cared about, and I did a lot of terrible things I just wanted to put it behind me." Kyra gets up and circles the table climbing onto Selena's lap.

Selena reluctantly slides her arms around Kyra's waist and looks up at her. Kyra brushes some bangs from her cheek behind one ear as she leans down and kisses her girlfriend's soft lips. When they part she brushes the tears from her eyes her fingers, gently sweeping Selena's soft skin.

"I love you, Selena. I kept it from you because I just-I wanted this to be about you and me, not you and the Last Dragonborn. It's followed me everywhere I go and for once I just wanted to be a person. Forgive me?" Selena bites her lips for a moment before leaning up and kissing Kyra again, resting her forehead against hers.

"I forgive you."