“I need to see her. Immediately.”

 

Nora woke to that loud and strident voice, the memory of the night before making her smile despite the rude awaken. Then the thought of R4, dying as she tried to protect her president, soured her expression and tears started rolling down her face.

 

“She's indisposed,” said Delphine, her voice firm. “You can wait until she's presentable.”

 

“She's the Dragonborn, and I have orders to take her before the Jarl, at once.”

 

“The Dragonborn,” gasped the innkeep. “I had no idea.”

 

“And she's in there?” asked the harsh voiced woman, rapping on the door. “Get up, on order of the Jarl.”

 

The door banged open, and one of the dark faced elves in full armor stood there, men in guard uniform behind her.

 

“What the hell?” mumbled Mikael, fighting his way out of a deep sleep.

 

Nora didn't like the sound of that. These people were here to take her before the Jarl, at once. That sounded ominous. Like she was under arrest, and she wondered if killing the bandits might not have been the best idea after all.

 

“My Lady. You must get up and come with us.”

 

The My Lady sounded better, but she still had reservations about going with people she didn't know to face the authorities.

 

“What?” said Mikael.

 

“Stay in bed, honey. This doesn't concern you,” said Nora.

 

While she thought Mikael a marvelous lover, she doubted he was a warrior. No, she would deal with this, one way or another. She looked over at her clothes, and her weapons. She swung her way out of bed and stood naked in front of the intruders.

 

“Avert your eyes,” said the Dunmer, glaring at her men. She looked back at Nora with a shocked expression.

 

“What you get for barging into a woman's room,” said Nora with a smirk, enjoying the discomfort she was causing. “I would like to get a bath before if go, to cleanse the, fluids, from myself.”

 

That brought an even greater look of discomfort from the elf. She took a moment to actually shake herself, then regain her composure.

 

“No time. Get dressed and we will go.”

 

“Then close the damn door,” Nora said in her most authoritative voice.

 

The elf jumped to obey, and the door closed, hard. Nora moved to her clothing and dressed, making sure all of her weapons were attached and ready.

 

Now, let's see what this is about.

*      *      *

Iraleth flushed as she slammed the door shut, mortified. Not that she hadn't seen naked humans before, men and women. But this was supposed to be the hero sent here to save them all. And that tone. This one was definitely nobility, with that commanding voice, used to giving orders and having them carried out.

 

Maybe this one will be better than the last, she thought while she waited. The last Dragonborn had been a lout, no noble that one. Though the title of Dragonborn had gone straight to his heads, big and little. He had actually tried to molest the women of the hold, forcing himself on them. Iraleth had wished he would have tried that with her, but he had enough perception to realized that way led to pain. This one wouldn't have to force herself on anyone. She was a beauty, and seemed very assured of her sexuality. Iraleth, who preferred women herself, could imagine herself in bed with this one. And she was obviously comfortable having a man in her bed.

 

“I'm ready,” said the hero, walking out of the bedroom.

 

Iraleth stared at her for a moment, almost in a panic. She couldn't bring an armed stranger before the Jarl. And...

 

“My Lady. What are you called?”

 

“Nora,” said the woman with a suspicious frown on her face. “Nora Jane Adams is my full name.”

 

“And your title, my Lady?”

 

“Title. President of the Commonwealth.”

 

That sounded impressive, though Iraleth had no idea what a Commonwealth was.

 

“We have a problem, my lady. Are those strange looking objects weapons?”

 

“Yes, they are.”

 

“Then I would ask you to surrender them. I cannot allow you in the presence of the Jarl so armed.”

Iraleth had already heard the townsfolk talking about the weapons this woman bore, how deadly they were. And until she knew if Nora could be trusted she would not be allowed in the presence of the Jarl. And since the Jarl, whose word was law in this hold, wanted to see her, the weapons had to be secured.

 

“Over my dead body,” shouted the woman, taking a step back, hands going to her weapons.

 

Iraleth nodded, and the men who had positioned themselves to the Dragonborn's sides moved in to grasp her arms. And the woman moved, faster than the seasoned Housecarl believed possible. Hands moving to shoulder, feet moving out, and suddenly the two guards were on the floor, and the weapons were out, the knife held in a blocking position, the strange looking weapon that had to be the distance killer pointing at Iraleth's face.

 

“Here is how it's going to be,” said Nora in a low voice, the disconcerting visor over her face obscuring her expressions. “I will meet with your Jarl, but I will keep my equipment. All of it. If you think I'm going to let a bunch of primitives hold onto my gear, you're out of your minds. You can take whatever precautions you see fit to observe when I meet your Jarl. Understood.”

 

“Understood,” said the Housecarl, not knowing what else to do. This was obviously a more than competent warrior, and she was supposed to be brought before the Jarl unharmed.

 

“She's a woman of her word,” said Delphine, looking at Nora with a new respect. “And you and I will be speaking, later.”

 

“Very well. You may keep your things,” said Iraleth, nodding. “You are not a prisoner, but an honored guest. Someone we have been waiting for. Come. We have a horse for you, outside.”

 

“A horse,” said Nora, an expression of panic on her face. “I don't know how to ride a damned horse.”

 

Iraleth was taken aback. What kind of noble woman didn't know how to ride a horse? Someone who only rode in carriages, which made no sense if she was truly a warrior queen.

 

“Uh, is there a wagon we can procure?” Iraleth asked Delphine.

 

“I have my own transport,” said the warrior queen, a knowing smile on her face. “We just need to stop a mile up the road. And how far do we have to travel?”

 

“A seven hour ride,” answered Iraleth. “About sixty miles.”

 

“That's fine,” said the woman, her brow furrowed in thought. “Let's get going.”

*     *     *

Iraleth had been from one side of Tamriel to the other in her over one hundred years of life, and she had never seen anything as wondrous, and frightening, as the stranger's suit of armor seeming to materialize out of thin air. She had fought Dwemer machines in the depths of their ruins, and this huge machine reminded her of them. And not. It wasn't producing steam, it had a much more streamlined appearance, and it didn't clank when it walked. Just a slight whining sound. She was sure there was a second suit as well, since one of her people fell down after colliding with something that couldn't be seen.

 

The Dragonborn had demonstrated the capabilities of her machine. It had outrun their horses over a couple of miles, then flown high up into the sky. Iraleth had worried that the woman would simply leave, and then what would she tell the Jarl.

 

“I can't do too much of that,” said the Dragonborn, her amplified voice sounding like the speech of a god. “It runs down my power something fierce.”

 

“It's run by magic? Perhaps one of our mages can power it for you.”

 

“We, don't have magic where I come from,” said Nora, a reply that surprised Iraleth. “We use technology instead.”

 

How can that be, thought the Dunmer warrior. Even the Dwemer had used magic, powering their machines with soul gems. But the Dragonborn's people seemed to have found another way around that problem.

 

“That must be a wonderful place,” said the Dunmer, as she thought of a land where souls couldn't be ripped from bodies and valiant warriors doomed to the Soul Cairn.

 

“It was,” said the woman in a sad voice which soon changed to anger. “Until we fucked it up.”

 

“What, happened?”

 

“I'll explain some other time. Just let me enjoy the sights and sounds of a world not ruined by radiation.”

 

That last word had not been in the common tongue, and Iraleth thought it must be a term that didn't translate. Well, there would be plenty of time to find out about this other world, if the events on this one didn't interfere.

*     *     *

Nora decided that she liked this Dunmer warrior. She was gruff to the point of abrasive, speaking her mind without fear. And she was obviously a competent warrior and leader. But the revelation that this world ran by magic was a shock. Nora had never believed in magic or the supernatural, and had seen no evidence of it on Earth. Here it was taken for granted, and she was resolved to find out as much as she could about it. It was a boon to be used, and a threat to be counteracted, and the tactically minded fighter didn't intend to be caught off guard by it again.

 

The world around her was beautiful. Greenery at every turn, colorful birds singing from those trees, vibrant shrubs, gorgeous flowers. And the wildlife. They had seen numerous deer and elk, calmly grazing or bounding off depending on how close the party got. There were brown bears, the party giving them a wide berth. And then there were the wolves. Savage beasts that attacked without warning. The party left a legion of dead canines in their wake.

 

When she wasn't observing the wildlife Nora thought of the night before. She had lost count of her orgasms, and thought it was the best sex she had ever had. Nora was a killer. She had resolved herself to that fact. In her early years in the Commonwealth she had taken life on a daily basis. Having become inured to that fact, but never really comfortable with it, the once crusading lawyer had fought the nightmares as best she could. Drugs and alcohol had been a part of that treatment, but sex had done the job without the threat of addiction or aftereffects that came with substance abuse. Of course, one could also become addicted to pleasure, but she had been willing to put up with that.

 

Most of the people she had killed had needed killing, for the good of society. They were murderous parasites, preying on the weak, and no one missed them. Still, they were human, at least in form if not in spirit, and ending life had not been easy. She would have hated herself if it had. Sex was an affirmation of life, of the good things, and she had embraced it. Fortunately the Commonwealth was a place where many embraced that philosophy, and the religious fanatics were few and far between. Unless one counted the Children of Atom, and they really didn't care much about the morality of others.

 

Mikael had been like no other lover. She had asked him where he got his skills, and was surprised at the answer.

 

“It's taught in the bard's college,” he had said with a smile on his face. “Students are encouraged to learn how to pleasure others, and to practice with each other on every available occasion. And then there are the patrons, the wealthy who support us, in return for our favors.”

 

“Sounds like prostitution to me,” said Nora, frowning.

 

“I guess it is, but it serves the purpose. Bard's are supposed to be masters at all forms of entertainment, and if we receive pleasure in return, so much the better.”

 

I wonder if I can become his patron, she thought with a smile. She didn't think she would ever love anyone but Nate, the husband who had been murdered before her eyes. Which didn't mean she couldn't enjoy some time with a skilled boy toy.

 

They came out of the mountains after four hours of travel. Nora looked at her fusion core levels. She still had sixty percent on her current core, with three more in her storage compartment. Enough that she didn't have to worry for the moment. It would become a concern later, just as it would for her ammo. So she would need to learn how to fight like the natives, with their weapons.

Ahead of them, down the last slope, was a great plain that stretched for miles. There were tall mountains on the horizon, covered in snow. Farms and villages dotted the plain, but there was something wrong with the picture. Columns of smoke rose into the sky from some of the villages, fields were on fire as well.

 

“What happened?” she asked the elf.

 

“The dragons happened,” answered the woman in a sad voice.

 

“You can kill them right?” asked Nora, the image of an almost indestructible Supermutant Behemoth coming to mind.

 

“Oh yes, we can kill them. And chop them into little bits. Burn them. Whatever we want to make sure they don't come back. Only they keep coming back, with vengeance on their minds.”

 

“You can't kill them,” she said in shock. That could be a problem.

 

“Only the Dragonborn can kill them for good,” said one of the guards. “By eating their souls.”

 

Nora didn't like the sound of that. God, eating a soul. She wasn't even sure that souls existed, but to consume one just seemed wrong. And they thought she was that soul eater. Would they be disappointed in her when it didn't happen? And would their disappointment turn to anger, directed at her?

 

Her eyes were caught up in the city on the hill on the plains, probable twenty miles distant if she was any judge of distance. Her HUD confirmed her guess, and she used the zoom function to get a closer look. Probably a couple of thousand buildings in the same style as Riverwood, unpainted. There was a huge wooden palace on the top of the hill, undoubtedly the Jarl's home. And movement everywhere.

 

“How many people?” she asked.

 

“Normally about fifteen thousand,” answered the elf. “Permanent residents and visitors. Now, with all the refugees, we have estimated double.”

 

“And you have food and shelter for all of them?”

 

“Shelter, yes, though they're crowded into homes and inns. Food? So far enough, but if we can't get the remaining crops in, and soon, starvation will rear its ugly head.”

 

Nora felt herself get angry. The same kind of anger that had driven her to root out the injustices of the Commonwealth and organize a civilization. Ordinary people who wanted nothing more than to live their lives in peace. And the dragons were about to cause starvation and death.

 

“Dragon,” shouted one of the guards, pointing to the sky.