The Tail of Two Khajiit Brothers

Disclaimer: The Elder Scrolls Series and its associated lore belong to Bethesda Softworks, a Zenimax Media Company. I make no revenues from this work.

inspired by Ja-Kha'jay's Shout of the World-Eater

The Tail of Two Khajiit Brothers

The Unexpected Ride

I stood the pale pass gate on the border between Cyrodiil and skyrim; I had traveled with my brother alongside me. We have been together since our mother disappeared and left us in the imperial city, we know little of our past or where we were born our only ties are the pendants we wear hidden around our necks.

My brother turned his head to look at me, “and I thought Burma was cold brother, this one is all ready freezing, my tail feels stiff as a rock”.

I looked my brother over, he was wearing the worn and faded green robe I had bought him, and try as he might his armor he wore under it was clearly showing… not that he was trying to hide it; he carried his steel sword on his belt and a knapsack on his back. I looked myself over I wore a light blue robe that came with a hood both were old and well worn, the large number of satchel packs I carried all we had brought with us.

“Wrap your tail around your waist brother” I paused shivering as a gust of cold wind from the pass hit me “it’s only going to get colder.”

A guard walked over to us a scroll in hand “you think this is cold? I feel bad for the guards at the collage it rarely stops snowing there”. The guard handed me the scroll which held our passage request and document papers.

“Your clear to pass cats, but don’t cause skyrim trouble … there is more than enough all ready”
“Oh?” I tilted my head confused by the statement “what’s going on in skyrim?”

“A civil war cat that’s what is going on… dammed empire!” the guard stormed off clearly mad over something.

“The empire?” my brother nudged my side “didn’t the empire outlaw slavery?” I paused thinking … “yes brother … why are you asking?” I turned to face him.

“Do you think that caused the war?” I shrugged “no idea brother, didn’t the nords in Burma says something about a Talos person, and complain about the thalmor?”

“Brother you’re the one who does the talking and studying, this one just guards your back.”
I lightly punched my brothers shoulder and a guard shouted at us, “you two cats frozen over there or are you going to cross the border!”

I quickly stuffed the scroll into my satchel pack and we rushed to the gate, the guard slowly open the gate and slammed it shut as we passed almost catching my bothers tail in it.

One of the guards stopped us, “hey cat what is that thing on your back?” the guard pointed. “This” I said pulling the object from my back strap, “is a dwemer crossbow” the guard tilted its head “a crossbow?”

“Yes a crossbow … haven’t you ever seen one? They were real popular in Morrowind.”

The guard stared at the crossbow likely trying to understand how it worked. “Never heard of such a thing cat looks mighty expensive I’ll give you that.” My brother grabbed my arm and tugged me down the path, “let’s move brother that guard looks greedy.”

We hurried down the old stone and snow covered road. “Brother just where in this frozen land are we headed? … I do hope it some were warm.” I spotted my brothers chattering teeth, “I admit I’m not sure the letter from my contact reads Helgen and the note says pale pass is the closest road to get there…”

I stopped and pulled the letter from my robe pocket and looked over it. “From pale pass follow the road and keep an eye out for sign-" a gust of wind blasted the letter from my shivering paw.

“Dam it! Catch that letter!” and dashed after the thin parchment as it blew in the wind, I dove and caught it and suddenly found my sliding off the road my brother somehow doing the same. We landed with a crash a few feet down the small ledge.

We picked ourselves up “ouch, brother you sure know how to get hurt quickly” I looked at the letter and frowned my claws had ripped the lower half when I grabbed it.

“Hey brother look!” I spun around and froze two armies were engaged in a fierce battle, guards in blue armor and the imperial troops the battle quickly turned In the troops favor and a man yelled to surrender.

We stood there transfixed on what had just happened when two imperial troops bruised and angry rushed at us blades drawn.
“HALT CATS!” a man called. We snapped out of our daze and raised our paws to show we were unarmed.

“well what do we have here … two cats spying on our battle with the storm cloaks, bet you two plan to rush and report this to your storm cloak contacts don’t you!”

We stood there not sure just what was going on. “Storm cloaks? Spying? Wait this one is confused what’s going on here? We are trying to get to Helgen.”

The man laughed. “A likely story cats now are you going to surrender peacefully or are we going to have to ruff you two up a bit?”

My brothers paw shot to his sword and I grabbed his arm, ”hold brother we don’t have anything agents the empire and this one is sure this is a miss understanding … here imperial our letter of passage” I pulled the scroll from my satchel and handed it to the imperial soldier.

The soldier scanned the letter over and paused. “Well you … I’m sorry but we are going to have to arrest you both till we get this sorted out.”

“What You Can’t Just-!” my brother shouted. I quickly punched his side reminding him to keep quite.

“Forgive brother he is not much for … military orders, but I do hope this gets sorted we really need to get to Helgen.”

“We will just see about that cats” the two guards pulled long leather strips and quickly bound our paws my brother growing every second, my brother was a likeable person not much for books or learning … unless it involved swords, brawling, or fighting in general.

“And we will have to confiscate your items as well… for safety of course” I heard the soldier snicker as he pulled the crossbow and from my back and bolt bag from my belt.

“This one would like to tell you there is a dagger inside my robe next to the inner pocket. “ The guard gave me a funny look and slowly pulled my robe open and took the steel dagger from within my robe. “Umm thanks for the warning cat.”

They took my satchels packs which held food, potions, a few notes, my journal, a map of skyrim I got off a very drunk nord in Burma, and the few coins I had saved to buy a room at Helgen.

And they did the same to my brother taking his steel sword and knapsack from him and as the guard reached to open his robe my brother snarled loudly and the guard quickly stepped back.

“Ok you two come on into the cart, we don’t have all day!” the guard quickly led us to the carriages filled with the captured fighters in the blue armor.

We sat down in the cart across from each other the people looked at us with mixed looks of confusion and anger.

The cart we were in had three men sitting in it, a dirty blond haired man in blue armor, a man clothed in rags with dark hair, and a man dressed in a fine Nordic outfit complete with a bear skin cloak he had dark blond hair and he was gagged, clearly someone of importance.

The dirty blond turned and spoke “you two you were trying to cross the border right? Walked right into the imperial ambush like us and that thief over there.” The man nodded at the rag wearing man next to him.

“Damn you Stormcloaks! Skyrim was fine until you came along. Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn't been looking for you, I could have stolen that horse and been halfway to Hammerfell."

“Be quite!” the driver of the cart shouted. The thief turned to the finely dressed nord “what’s wrong with him?”

“Watch your mouth! That’s Ulfric Stormcloack! The true High King!" the blond haired nord spat quickly.

"Ulfric? The Jarl of Windhelm? You're the leader of the stormcloacks. But if they captured you … oh gods were are they taking us! The thief’s eyes when wide with fear.

The blond haired man looked down at his feet "I don't know where we're going, but Sovngarde awaits."

"No, this isn't happening! This can't be happening!" The horse-thief started to struggle agents his binds in pure panic.

I looked to my brother small wisps of steam rose from his mouth he was clearly deep in thought or prayer.

I took a moment to reflect on my life and what I had dragged my brother through, we grew up alone on the streets of the imperial city I had only been a Ja’Khajiit same has my brother we were only one year apart and were luckily born under the same moon phase, as soon as we were of age we did everything to scrap by, hunting, fishing, farming, even dungeon diving which was where my love of dwemer started, my brother had been with me every step and now I had dragged him to his death but not at the hands of a dwemer machine but the empire we grew up around.

I looked at my brother and taped his shoe with mine, he looked up fear was filling his eyes it was the first time I had ever seen him afraid.

“Brother … can you … forgive your older brother for this?” I pleaded.

My younger brother stood up and set his bound arms behind my neck dragging me into a tight chest hug. “Elder brother … I would never think badly of you after all this time” he raised his bound arms and sat down again.

“So you two are brothers hmm guessed so you to look almost alike” the blond haired man looked us over slowly.

The man was right, apart from the large number of scars we both had the only real way to tell us apart was our eyes or our tails, I had been born with my mother’s icy cobalt blue eyes and my tail was striped like the rest of my body.

My younger brother was born with what I assume was his father’s deep green eyes and patched fur tail.

We never knew our father, our mother had told us the pendant my brother wore was a parting gift to our mother before he set sail from the port of Senchal he wanted to see the world for his own eyes and she never saw him again.

My pendant was a simple silver necklace with a blue sapphire carved in the shape of the crescent moon said to come from Orcrest.
My brother’s pendant was also silver with an emerald carved into the shape of a star the symbol of Senchal.

A voice sounded as the gate opened nearby "General Tullius, Sir! The Headsman is waiting!" the man at the lead of the carts spoke but was muffled out by the thief’s cries "Shor, Mara, Dibella, Kynareth, Akatosh! Divines, please help me!"

“Brother … are we going to … be beheaded?” my younger brother looked up grim faced and fearful.

“Brother this one can only pray the misunderstanding gets to the guards first” I looked around and turned to the blond man as he spoke.

"Look at him. General Tullius the military governor and it looks like the Thalmor are with him. Damned Elves, I bet they had something to do with this."

I looked at my feet and toned the world out not wanting to hear anymore, but shot my ears open when the man said Helgen.

“We are in Helgen?” I butted into the man’s sentence.

“Aye the walls here used to make me feel so safe” I turned to me brother who was looking at me. “Well brother we made it to Helgen.” I flashed a grim smile and he smirked at me.

“True brother, but I would have preferred to walk here then ride here to get my head removed from my neck.”

“Brother! Don’t lose hope this is really a misunderstanding and besides we did not harm or support either side, who is to say we will be killed?”

The cart came to a stop and the people hoped off the cart and we did the same stepping aside as the thief started pleading.

"No wait! We're not rebels!” the blond man shouted at him "Face your death with some courage thief!" the jarl and the blond man were last hop off.

"Step up to the block when we say your name! One at a time!" A woman barked. The female officer stood beside a brown haired man with a book in one hand and a quill in the other. He'd been riding with the rearguard.

I stood alongside my brother the bitter cold wind was gone but the air still seems to freeze our body’s through our fur.

"Ulfric Stormcloak, Jarl of Windhelm." The finely dressed man walked towards the others near the block.

"Ralof of Riverwood." The man called, and the blonde man walked after his jarl.

"Lokir of Rorikstead." The man looked at the ragged nord who dashed up towards him, "No! I'm not a rebel! You can't do this!" The horse-thief yelled and shoved the officer next to the book holding nord to the ground and dashed up the road.

"Halt!" The female officer shouted. "You're not gonna kill me!" The thief yelled as he ran up the stone path.

"Archers! Kill him!” the lady officer yelled as she picked herself up from the ground.

I watched an arrow pierce Lokir’s neck; he staggered a few more steps and stood still then quickly crumpled to the stone path.
"Anyone else feel like running?" the officer shouted dusting herself off.

“Wait you two come here, who are you two?” the nord with the book looked us over and I stepped up to him.

“Jo’Macacash of” I paused and looked to the sky we never knew where we were born “the imperial city.”

I turned to my brother who was looking at the ground “this one is Dar’Macanesh my brother also of the imperial city.”

“You two part of a trade caravan, Khajiits? Your kind always seems to find trouble here."

“No we are here to study the dwemer ruins of this land; I believe one of the guards has our papers.”

As if to prove my point a soldier walked over and handed the book holder a note. The nord scanned the paper over.

The nord turned to the officer "Captain, what should we do with them, they’re not on the list? And it seems they just crossed the border."

The female officer grabbed the note and looked if over and paused.

"Forget the list. They both go to the block." The woman barked back, and the book-man stepped back.

“Captain I” he paused and sighed “by your orders captain.” he turned to us "I'm sorry, we'll make sure your remains are returned to Elsweyr." He said sadly.

My brother marched up to the officer and shouted “You can’t just cut our heads off, we have not done anything and we have proven we just crossed the border!”

The officer drew her sword and pointed it at my brother “take one more step towards me I will take your head off where you stand!”

I grabbed my brother’s tail that was thrashing madly behind him and tugged it sharply. He yelped and stepped back.

I looked at the nord with the book he had closed it and was looking at the captain.

“It won’t matter if you sent our body’s back to Elsweyr no one will know who we are” I paused and step up to him.

“But I beg you if you do make sure the pendants we wear make it safely back there, they are the only ties we have to our family line.”

The nord looked grim “ok I understand” “Hurry up you two and get over here!” the officer shouted.

As we walked side by side a man was standing beside the captured jarl talking about a war and declaring the empire would restore peace.

A deep roar echoed, I looked to the sky for the cause but saw only clouds I turned and saw my brother doing the same.

"What was that?" a man asked. It’s nothing carry on the female officer barked.

"Give them their last rites." She ordered the hooded priestess beside her.

The priestess bowed and raised her hands "As we commend your souls to Aetherius, blessings of the Eight Divines on you"

A nord marched up to the block “for the love of Talos! Let’s get this over with!"

“As you wish” the priestess quickly walked off clearly insulted for being interrupted during a prayer.

The female officer shoved the man to the block and planted her boot sharply into his back, the heads man raised his ax and the man shouted.

"My ancestors are smiling at me, Imperials. Can you say the same?" and I spun around quickly as the defining sound of the ax cutting flesh and stone rang out behind me.

I dared not turn around but my brother tugged my tail and I sighed and turned to look at the dead.

The man’s head sat in a wooden box his body was roughly kicked aside as the onlooker both cheered and shouted.

I gagged killing animals and the monsters within the ruins and even bandits if it was self defenses were ok, but to unceremoniously cut a person’s head off was sickening.

Another roar sounded closer this time we both looked around still not sure of the cause.

"There it is again. Did you hear that?" the man standing before the block looked around now fearful and confused.

“Next the jarl” the female officer pointed to a jarl beside my brother.

A roar sounded as the jarl reached the block the officer quickly shoved the jarl down but spun as a large black object appeared from behind a mountain.

The beast landed atop the tower the gust of wind knocking the heads man off balance.

“Dragon!” a person shouted as the beasts roar split the air, the sky became a swirling mass of fire.

“Guards get the people to safety!” the general shouted as he rushed away with a small group of troops, likely his personal guards.
We stood there fear holding us to the ground till the beast roared and a blast of sound knocked us the ground, snapping out of my fear I grabbed my younger brother as flaming rocks crashed around us and the tower behind us crumbled.

“We have to get moving brother!” I dragged him to his paws and dashed towards a wooden building we dove inside as a flaming stone smashed the porch to pieces blocking the exit in a wall of fire.

We looked around the room it was falling apart as the roof caught fire, suddenly a stone smashed a hole in the far wall and we dashed for it.

Stumbling out of the hole we spotted an elder man and a soldier calling to a small boy in the street, the boy dashed to the soldier as the mighty beast landed atop an archer.

The soldier grabbed the boy and dove towards the old man “Get back” the soldier yelled as the beast sent a blast of fire from its maw further setting the building we just escaped from on fire.

The soldier looked at us and waved us over, we ran over as he passed the boy to the old man. “Still alive you two good stick with me if you want to stay alive!”

“Gods guide you Hadvar” the old man said as he dashed away with the boy in his arms. Hadvar dashed down the road and turned between a wall and a wrecked house.

“Stay close to the wall!” Hadvar shouted and slammed his back agents the stone wall as the dragon landed atop it.

It let loose another jet of fire and took off again. I felt a burning feeling on my side and quickly jumped back to see my robe had caught fire on the shouldering wood next to me.

“Ouch brother help!” I cried as I fumbled to put my blue robe out.

My brother quickly grabbed my robe and tore the burning segment off tossing it aside.

“Come on! Hurry!” Hadvar yelled as he rushed into the destroyed house.

We chased after him as the town guards fought the dragon a mix of shouts and cries rang around us.

“Hadvar to the keep! We are getting out of here!” I voice rang over the battle cries.

“Come on this way” Hadvar dashed down the road and we followed, as we pass under an arch a man in blue jumped from the wall headed for the nearby building.

Hadvar yelled at the man "Ralof! You damned traitor! Out of my way!"

Ralof looked and shouted back "We're escaping Hadvar! You're not stopping us this time!"

Fine! I hope this dragon kill al us you! Hadvar yelled as he dashed past Ralof.

Ralof dashed towards the building waving us to follow him “you two, come on! Into the Keep!"

Hadvar yelled to us as well "With me, Khajiits! Let's go!"

We stood there as the dragon swooped down and grabbed an archer ripping him nearly in half and sending him crashing into the ground nearby.

I looked at my brother “Let’s go with Hadvar brother I trust the imperial troops over these storm cloaks!”

We dashed after Hadvar who had pried the wooden door open and we all ducked inside.

We stood there panting and tired, "Looks like we're the only ones who made it. Was that really a dragon? The bringers of the End-Times?" Hadvar sounded fearful.

I looked at my brother who was fitfully biting his bindings attempting to remove them.

“Here let me help” Hadvar pulled a dagger from his belt and cut my brothers binds and then mine.

“Thanks Hadvar” I looked around we were a makeshift barracks, I walked over to a table and spotted a book and a few coins I picked up the book and slid the coin into my pocket, I heard my brother laugh.

“Brother is not the same without a book in his paw” I grinned my brother loved to poke fun at my reading habits.

“So ... you’re a mage then?” Hadvar asked as he sat in a chair and put a salve on his arm.

“Mage … no this one is a scholar… but this one known’s magic” I quickly replied.

“Brother your hurt.” My younger brother pointed where my robe had caught fire the fur had been burned away and my skin was red and burned black.

I groaned, my brother walked over and I watched him send his magic out to me, I had taught him how to use healing magic which proved to be life saving many times we found our potion bottles broken.

“Thank you Dar, I needed that.” I winced I had not used his stub name in ages.

“Well Jo are you going to just sit there or return the favor?” he smirked as me.

I stood up and quickly readied my healing magic I was much better it then my brother and even he admitted to it.

I let my energy flow and watched the cuts, burns, and bruised skin heal and quickly changed it to wash over myself finding the spots my brother missed and felt refreshed after wards.

“Brother why does it feel like I just woke up from a good long rest after you heal me, but if I do it I just feel even more tired?”

“If you practiced more and studied like I do you would be better at it” I flashed a smile at my brother as he stepped back.

“You and your studies, all ways studies” Dar threw his paws up and walked over to Hadvar.

I picked the book back up and walked over to Dar’Macanesh who was pulling a sword from the weapon rack. “You two ready we need to get moving, and you should take a sword with you.”

“I’m” … I looked at my feet ashamed “I’m not good with a sword; I’m a bow and crossbow user.”

Hadvar shook his head “never heard of a crossbow but a bow is just as good I bet.”

Hadvar stood up and looked himself and us over, I watched as my brother removed his robe and handed it to me exposing his leather and bear skin armor he had crafted wile at Burma.

The building shook sending down a light mist of dust reminding us the danger we were in.

“I think it high time we look for a way out of this keep.” Hadvar opened a wooden door and stepped into a corridor and we followed behind him.