Alexandria

The chill of a cold, dry breeze passed over my bare body, sending a shiver throughout that woke me from my deep sleep. My eyes shot open; I was lying naked on a wooden floor, curled up like a baby with my knees tucked into my chest. My mind was completely blank. I tried to remember when I had fallen asleep, and maybe where I was, but I could think of nothing. I sat up quickly and felt my head hit something hard, followed by a crash of metal hitting the ground next to me. I let my head fall back down as a throbbing pain began to pulse near the impact point. I reached my hand to my forehead and closed my eyes as the pain began to recede. Tears were forming on the corners of my eyes, but I took a deep breath and tried my best to hold them back.

Footsteps came from somewhere below me. It sounded like they were climbing some kind of stairs. I opened my eyes just as a pair of boots stopped right next to my face, right on top of the piece of metal that had fallen next to me. I felt a pair of large, rough hands on my back and under my knees, and the feel of the wooden floor went away and was replaced by a chill of cold air. I was put into a seated position on a wooden chair, and I wiped the tears from my eyes to see who it was that had pulled me out from the pathetic position I was in.

He was a large, muscular man with a kind of golden, matted hair. He had a friendly look in his eyes, despite his striking figure. He was wearing some kind of strange blue cloth and metal clothing, as well as a kind of leather arm-piece that went almost up to his elbows. He had deep brown eyes and stubble on his chin. He was a handsome man, and didn't look to be much older than I.

"Hello," he said, getting on his knees in front of me. "My name is Bormir. That was quite some fall you had." Fall? What fall? I tried to remember falling, but nothing came to mind. I screwed up my face trying to remember falling, but again my mind was blank. The strangest part was that it wasn't like I was disoriented—it was like my mind had been reset, or erased. My face fell, and the "You probably don't remember that, now, do you?"

I shook my head in response. Another breeze blew by, sending a shiver through my whole body, making me truly recognize my nakedness. I gasped and put my arms around my breasts and crossed my legs, trying to hide myself from the man. He laughed, stood up and walked out of sight for a moment. I heard a creak and the sound of metal clinking. The clinking stopped and there was a soft sound like a door shutting. The man returned, holding something that looked kind of like whatever it was that he was wearing.

"Here," he said, handing me the strange clothing. I didn't move, but instead gave him a look that clearly said "Hell no, I am not exposing myself to a stranger". The man seemed to understand, and so he set the clothing on a table to the right of me that I had not noticed before. "Put this on. I'll give you privacy. Knock on this table when you are dressed, and we may talk." With that, he smiled, and walked away once more. I locked my eyes on him until he disappeared down a staircase behind me. This kind of gave me a good look at the place that I'd woken up in. I was sitting on a wooden chair, right next to a table that was against a wall. The chair was facing a kind of side area in the room with what looked like fur blankets and straw on the ground, as well as a couple of unlit lanterns. Above this was a brightly burning torch. On the table there was another cold lantern, as well as what looked like a kind of leather journal, a feather, some bottles and a couple of flowers. To my left was the rest of the open, slightly curved room with old wooden stairs leading to a narrow landing above. I stood up shakily and walked out into the center of the room and looked up at the landing, and saw that there was yet another set of wooden stairs that led to a little lookout post. There was no ceiling here, so I had an amazing view of a shockingly beautiful sky, filled with stars and blue-green auroras. I made my eyes level once more to see that there were openings in the wall that must have been windows; outside, in the pale moonlight, I saw nothing but tall green trees . I got the feeling that I was in some kind of tower, or perhaps a castle.

I finished examining the room and turned my attention to the strange clothing that the man had left on the table. It looked like some sort of quirky costume, but I figured it would be better than sitting naked in front of a big man that I'd never met before. I slowly dropped my hands from my chest and stepped towards the table. I lifted my left foot first, and almost lost my balance, before catching myself on the table. My foot landed on something cold, and I looked down to see that I had stepped on the metal thing that had fallen of the table. It was a shiny, silver sword, which seemed very odd to me. I moved my foot off of it, bent over and picked it up; it was quite a bit heavier than I'd expected, but I managed to get it onto the table without much of a hassle. My eyes landed on the piece of clothing that the man had given to me. I let go of the table, finally regaining my balance, and reached for the clothes. I was ready, this time, for it to be a bit heavier than I was used to, so of course I was surprised when I was able to pick it up off the table with less effort than lifting the sword. How very strange, I thought to myself. I let it unfurl, and realized that it was way too large, but I really didn't have much of a choice in the matter. The arms had some sort of chainmail on them, and looked like they would fit like a short-sleeved short on someone who properly fit in it. I felt the inside and found that it was padded in some kind of soft leather. The clothing looked like it was modeled after a tunic, but the metal on the outside and between the cloth and the inside leather told me that this was no casual wear. I bent over slightly and put my head through the bottom, and pulled it over me without any difficulty. Once I stuck my head through the neck-hole and my arms through the chainmail sleeves, I straightened up and let it fall down. The arm pieces went almost to my elbows, and the bottom of the tunic was a few inches past my knee-caps.

I stood there in the way-too-large clothing trying to figure out how to make it a bit tighter on me. I felt around the waist and found a strap that seemed to act as a kind of belt. It was a thick, leather piece that wrapped around the waist and one of my shoulders. There was a loop underneath part of the cloth, and an end of the leather hanging close by. I grabbed the loose end and set it through the loop, where it fit quite snugly. I pulled lightly, hoping it would work to tighten the clothing a bit, and the strangest thing began to happen, making me drop the loose end of the strap and gasp slightly. All around me, the clothes began to tighten and shrink, as if by magic. The hole that my neck went through started to close in slowly, and the mail sleeves started to recede. The bottom part rose up until it was a few inches above my knee caps. The chest, stomach and waist area started to reshape itself until it perfectly matched my figure, almost like it was custom made for me. I moved around a bit, and the thing seemed to move with me, almost as if it was a part of me. My heart rose into my chest in a strange excitement. It's like magic! What kind of place is this? I suddenly remembered the man from before, and what he had told me to do. I made a few quick, loud, raps on the table and sat down in the chair, waiting

The man came up the steps as I reached behind my head to pull my hair out of the neck hole and let it fall down my back. He looked at me and smiled. "Good to see it fits," he said with a chuckle.

"How?" I asked.

"What do you mean?" He asked politely.

"I mean," I replied, "how did this big… tunic… thing… how did it shrink to fit me so perfectly?"

Bormir looked a bit confused himself. "First, that thing is a fine piece of armor, and the blue cloth means it belongs to either the Windhelm Guard or the Stormcloaks."

"What's a Stormcloak?" I asked, even more confused.

"You know," he said, "The Stormcloaks, as in the followers of Ulfric Stormcloack?" I shook my head. He sighed. "Never mind. What is your name?"

"My name?" I asked, and was shocked when I couldn't remember it. It's my damned name, how could I forget that! I know how to speak for crying out loud, and how to think, so why the hell can't I remember my name?! "I—I'm afraid I don't remember! What's yours?"

Bormir laughed. "That must have been some fall, if you can't even remember your name. And my name is Bormir."

Bormir. Easy enough. "What fall?" I asked, trying once more to remember any kind of fall. Once more I drew a blank, and it started to frustrate me. How can I not remember falling, or anything before waking up here for that matter? I closed my eyes, trying to remember something, anything, but once again it was as if my mind had just been erased.

Bormir pulled a chair from around a corner and sat it next to mine. He sat down and spoke. "You fell. There was a flash of light in the sky and you fell, right into the middle of Lake Geir. You don't remember this?"

"Nothing comes to mind," I said, looking to the side. Suddenly, however, something did come to mind. It was the memory of a golden necklace with a small, gold tree attached to it. My eyes widened. "Wait," I began, holding onto the picture of the necklace, "Was I wearing anything around my neck when I fell? Or perhaps after?"

Bormir nodded slightly and reached into a small knapsack hanging from one of the leather straps of his armor. My heart skipped a beat as he pulled out a fine gold chain with a small gold tree dangling from the end. "Is this what you are talking about?"

"Yes," I said, putting my hand out to take it. He hesitated.

"What is this?" he asked, examining it.

"It's…" I tried to think about what it was, but again my mind drew a blank. "I don't know. But I think it's important. It's all I can remember."

Bormir shrugged and handed me the necklace. I reached out my left hand and took it from him by the chain. I held it up against the light of the torch and stared at the golden tree-shaped emblem. I was amazed how beautiful it was, and I reached out a finger to touch the tree hanging on the necklace.

The moment that the skin of my finger stroked the shiny metal, visions began to fill my head, making me close my eyes. A long, loud fall into warm water. Swimming in a clear ocean to a white, sandy shore. Waking up in the arms of a strange and beautiful young man. The shelter we found under the hill on the strange island. The lake of lava and the black archway on a stone island in the center. Sailing across a motionless sea. The villagers and the great castle with the same black archway. The first and last kiss that the young man and I shared. The little villager showing us the storage under the stone in the lave lake. The secret book and the note. The jars of earth and water and the symbols on the shelves. The young man's farewell to me in front of the arch and stepping through the arch. My eyes shot open and understanding replaced the confusion. The emblem worked.

A smile spread across my face, and I pulled the necklace over my head and tucked it under the armor and out of sight. Bormir spoke. "What is this thing?"

"It's called and emblem," I said with a smile. "And it explained everything to me."

"What do you mean?" He asked, concerned.

"My memories. It holds my memories."

"Your—your memories?" He asked.

"It's hard to explain." I remembered what the note had said about travelling and the rule about revealing who I was or where I came from. It made sense, of course, that someone from an entirely different universe would not want to reveal it to the people of the foreign universe. When people find that kind of thing out, it really changes the way they look at things.

Bormir got off the ground and sat into the chair. He looked deep into my eyes and spoke. "Try."

"I—" I didn't know what to do. My gut told me that I should tell this man the truth and trust that he won't tell anyone, even though this was a secret that would be quite difficult to keep. I had always been proud of my ability to read through a lie, so I figured that I would see if I could trust this man. "I can't explain unless you swear to me that you'll never speak of it. Not to anyone, for any reason. This kind of thing can change the world, and more than likely for the worse."

"I swear upon the eight divines," He said, "that not a soul shall hear what you have to say but my own."

Good start. "No matter what I say? Even if you feel that it is your duty to reveal me, do you promise me that you will keep silent?"

"I do." He said. I knew he was telling the truth. I thought for a second, and decided that it was still way too risky to tell him exactly who I was and how I'd gotten here. But I could tell him enough for him to get a general idea.

"Alright," I said, "Then let's begin. First off, my name is Alexandria, and I come from a place far from here."

"Where is far from here?" He asked, politely.

"I can't tell you that. But I can tell you that I need to get home, and quickly, but I don't exactly know how. I can say that I was trying to get home, and I ended up here. You said I fell, correct?"

"That is right," he said, "Just above the lake."

"Well," I said, recalling my fall into the ocean near the island and my disastrous attempt to return home the way I came. I knew that there would be no going back through the sky, no matter how hard I tried, and I knew that this wasn't home either. "Can you tell me where I am right now?"

Bormir nodded. "You are in the ruins of Nilheim, on the northeastern shore of Lake Geir. I am stationed here with my companion, Joldi, who left as soon as I went to retrieve you from the lake."

"I don't know any Lake Geir," I said, "What is it near?"

"Well," said Bormir, looking up and to the side, as if trying to picture a map or something, "Ivarstead is on its north shore, and Riften lies to the southeast. Does that help?" I shook my head, and Bormir frowned. "Surely you've heard of Skyrim, haven't you?" I shook my head once more and Bormir's jaw dropped in disbelief. "Where in Nirn could you possibly be from then?"

"I don't remember," I said honestly. I locked eyes with Bormir, deciding to go back on my previous decision. I began to tell him my story. "Let me tell you a little something about a… a situation of sorts that I—literally—fell into a while back." I told him about my arrival on the island and the lake of lava with the island in the middle and the archway. I told him that there was a jar of water with the strange symbol on a slip of paper attached to the shelf that it was on. I told him that I splashed the water into the archway, and a cold, dry breeze seeped through it. I told him that when I went through the arch, it was like entering the warmest, most comfortable bed you could imagine, and then I fell into a kind of deep sleep. Then I woke up and I was here in the tower.

Bormir told me that he knew nothing of a magical island with a lava lake beneath it, but that I should probably ask one of the mages of Winterhold. He told me that they did all sorts of strange experiments and research with magic and that they knew a lot more than the average citizen about those sorts of things. I thanked him for the advice and asked him more about the world I'd fallen into. He started by telling me that the lake I'd landed in was called Lake Geir. He said that we were in a region of Skyrim known as The Rift, whose capital is located in a city called Riften. He told me of the seven regions, known as holds, across the land, which city was the capital and where their allegiances lied—to the Empire or to the Ulfric Stormcloak. I asked about the Stormcloaks and began by telling me the story of Ulfric's rise to power. Some time back, Ulfric had been given command of imperial forces in The Reach, which was the westernmost hold, in order to drive out the Forsworn Rebels, who were a kind of tribal group in that area that believed that The Reach was their homeland and that the Nords (Skyrim's native folk) and Empire as a whole were threatening their way of life. Ulfric ended up defeating their leader, Madanach, and regaining control of Markarth. Bormir then told me that Ulfric held the city as a ransom of sorts; he demanded that he would only cede the city back to the Imperial Legion if the worship of the Nordic god, Talos, was permitted in the city. The terms were met by the empire at first, but they ended up going back on their promise due to the pressure of the Thalmor.

"What are the Thalmor?" I asked Bormir. His story was very interesting to me, and I wanted to make sure that I didn't miss anything.

A look of disgust seemed to cross his face. "The Thalmor are a group of elves, rather, the governing body of the elves."

I gasped. "Did you say elves?"

"Yes, Alexandria," said Bormir, "Did you not have elves on your island?"

"No," I said, "They were always thought to be mythical creatures."

He paused. "If only they were. The elves have brought very little good to the world, besides maybe population control."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, noticing that Bormir clearly had some sort of fantastic dislike for elves.

"Years ago, there was a war. It is known now as The Great War, fought between the Empire and the Aldmeri Dominion. The war lasted four very long years. Tensions between the Aldmeri Dominion and the Empire were growing, and the elves of the Dominion launched a surprise attack against the Empire. The Empire was caught off-guard, the Imperial City was sacked, and it the Dominion had the upper hand and it seemed that the war was going to end in their favor. Then, our Emperor led the Imperial forces to the capital and surrounded the Dominion in what was known as Battle of the Red Ring in one last desperate attempt to finish the war. He was victorious, and the Aldmeri forces in Cyrodiil were destroyed."

"So Cyrodiil is the capital of the Empire?"

"In a way. The Imperial City is the seat of the Empire, and it happens to be in Cyrodiil."

"I see. So was that the end of the war?"

"Not exactly," said Bormir, "The war was ended by a treaty signed shortly after the Aldmeri defeat in the Imperial City. The White-Gold Concordat ended the war and put the Empire in a shaky truce with the Dominion. It disbanded the Blades, which were protectors of the Emperor, banned the worship of Talos and ceded most of Hammerfell to the dominion."

There was a brief silence. "So, are the Thalmor the leaders of the Dominion?"

"In a way. They are more like representatives of the governing body, but with the power to act on their own will. They are not the government in name, but in effect they are."

"I see," I said, "So what truly caused the rebellion of the Stormcloaks?"

"Well," he said, "Stormcloaks believe that their way of life is being threatened by the Thalmor. Until the events in Markarth, the worship of Talos wasn't regulated the way that the Empire had promised. It was, on paper, illegal, but it wasn't strictly enforced. Once the Empire said they would allow Talos' worship, the Thalmor stepped in and forced the Empire to go back on that promise, threatening war if they didn't comply. The Empire fell to the mercy of the Thalmor, and the Thalmor began acting as watchdogs across Tamriel, arresting those who they believed to be worshiping Talos.

"Soon after the events in Markarth, the High King of Skyrim passed and a moot was held to name the next king, which was mostly a formality as the late king had a living heir. Ulfric Stormcloak, now the Jarl of Windhelm, attended the moot and used it to strongly voice his distaste for the Empire and his want for independence. Torygg, The son of the former High King, was named the next High King of Skyrim. Ulfric came back to Solitude sometime after and challenged King Torygg for possession of the throne. Torygg was killed, Ulfric evaded capture, and the rebellion began."

"I have a question," I said, noticing again the armor that Bormir was wearing. "You speak of these Stormcloaks as if you are not one, and yet you wear the armor they wear, or at least the armor that you told me that they wear."

He was quite for a moment, and looked like he was thinking about something. "Are you a Stormcloak?" He asked me, and I shook my head. "Yet you wear the armor of one."

"But you gave it to me so I could have something to wear."

"Does it make you a Stormcloak?" He asked with a smile.

"No," I said, looking down.

"Never judge a man by his armor. The richest man in Skyrim may walk the streets in the simplest of leather, while the simplest of thieves dons mail of the purest ebony metal." This went over my head, but I knew it had some kind of meaning to it. Perhaps he was just trying to say not to judge a man by his armor.

There was a long silence following in which I tried to gather my thoughts and get my head around everything that Bormir had told me. A civil war was occurring as we spoke, and elves were a real race, walking alongside men. The world seemed medieval and cruel, ruled by kings and emperors. I felt a sudden sadness and fear creep over me, and Bormir seemed to notice.

"What's wrong, Alexandria?"

"It's just…" I didn't know what to say. I couldn't say that this land sucked and that I wanted to go home. The girl inside me felt that way. The girl inside me wished I could just jump through the sky, and land back in the warm ocean and swim to the island where my love would be waiting for me. Life on the island was so much simpler, but we knew that we had to get home. We knew that we didn't belong on that island. The boy and I had tried the first jar we saw, and had hoped it would bring us home. Instead, it brought me to this place. And for the first time, I was alone. I was the only one in the situation I was in. The only other person was a universe away, on an island trying to find his own way back to our real home on Earth. I looked at Bormir, and took in his friendly face, and knew he was someone I could trust. "I'm scared."

A new look came over Bormir that I hadn't seen on him before. It was fatherly, and when I looked into his eyes I felt something strange in me. I felt loved by this man, even though I knew he didn't—he couldn't—love me. Maybe it was the way he looked at me, but it just felt right. And I knew in that instant that even though he didn't—he couldn't—truly know what I was going through, I wasn't alone in this world. At least I had him. I felt a tear fill my eye, a tear that I didn't understand. I wiped it away and sniffed.

"Don't cry, Alexandria," he said, and he stood up. "Come on, I want to show you something. If you truly aren't from here, then what you're about to see is very likely going to take your breath away."

I stood up, and properly noticed that this man was quite a bit taller than me. Sitting down, it had seemed like he and I were about the same height, but he must have been a good five or six inches taller than me, which is saying something since I'm five foot ten myself. I followed him across the wooden floor to the old wooden stairs that led to the balcony above. I looked up and for the first time got a glimpse of the sky. It was night time, and there was not a cloud in the sky. We walked up the stairs, and I kept my eyes down. I kind of wanted the view to take my breath away, like he said, and I knew the best way would be to take it in all at once. We reached the balcony, and a cold breeze caught my face, sending a chill through it. The rest of me seemed untouched by the wind, which I assumed had to do with the strange armor. We stopped walking, and in one quick move, I looked up to see what Bormir wanted me to see. And it was, truly, breathtaking.

The tower I was on stood on top of a hill that sloped gradually down to a glassy lake. There was a small island in the lake to my right, and the lake turned into a river to the left. Across the lake and to the right, past the island, there was a town with lights and smoke rising from the chimneys. It was small, with maybe four or five buildings if I had to guess, situated along a road. But what was truly spectacular was the mountains beyond it. Their jagged peaks capped with snow jutted into the night sky like teeth in the mouth of the world. But there was one, one that towered above them all. The mountain was bigger than anything I'd ever seen, sticking into the starry night sky like a sword in the belly of the heavens. There was a huge moon to the left above the mountains, casting light all over the land. The water of the lake was so smooth that it looked like part of the night sky had fallen to the land and become a part of the landscape. The beautiful auroras were the frosting on the cake, making the whole thing look like I'd just stepped into a beautiful, heavenly dream.

"Isn't it beautiful?" asked Bormir, leaning over the edge of the stone tower. "It hurts me, seeing the war ravage the natural beauty of this country. In the time that I've been a soldier, I've been sent all over Skyrim, and each view is more breathtaking than the next. The canyons of The Reach, the arch of Solitude—even the very little of Winterhold that wasn't claimed by the sea is absolutely breathtaking. Standing on the back porch of Dragonsreach and looking up at the mountains to the north is one of the most surreal experiences in the world. And then, climbing the Seven-Thousand Steps to High Hrothgar—that's got to be something."

"Which side are you on?" I asked Bormir suddenly, when it registered that I still didn't know who he fought for.

"What do you mean? Stormcloak or Empire?"

"Yeah," I said, "Which side did you choose?"

"Will it make a difference which side I am on?" he asked. This frustrated me.

"What do you mean?" I asked, a little annoyed.

"I mean," he said, taking a deep breath, "Does it matter who I am loyal to?"

"I guess not…" I said, "But I want to—"

"Shh!" he hissed suddenly. He reached his right hand across his body and drew out a gleaming sword that had been on the table. He must have grabbed it when I wasn't looking. Panic struck me.

"What's going—"

"Alexandria!" he whispered, "You need to go! Get out of here!"

There was worry in his voice, but I knew I had to do what he said. "Where?" I whispered.

"Go to Riverwood! There's a man that owns a shop, he and his sister. Ask him for direction to Rorikstead. Tell him I sent you. You got it?"

"Uh," I breathed, but then a noise came from below us that made my heart stop. Whispers and footsteps. "Uh… Riverwood, shop, Rorikstead, got it!" I started down the stairs, stopped dead. I turned around and asked him, "Aren't you coming with me?"

"GO!" he shouted. I took one last look at him and nodded. He smiled and shooed me away with his hands.

I sprinted down the rest of the steps to the floor I had woken up on. I ran across to the second staircase and went down two steps at a time until I reached the landing. The room was dark here, but there was an opening across the room that led to a kind of ramp outside of the tower. I made for the opening, but as I stepped off from the wall, I heard the footsteps from outside the opening, and I jumped to the side of the room and pressed myself against the wall. A large man in blue fur and metal armor, much like what I was wearing but a little more elegant, emerged from the door. He walked across the room and to the stairs, drawing his sword. A woman came through the door, wearing the same armor as I was, and another man followed her. The woman drew a bow from her back and the first man signaled for her to go up before him. He followed her quickly and the other man followed him.

"Who are you?" shouted the woman from the floor above a few seconds later. "What are you doing here?"

"Relax, Emfre," came a man's voice. This one seemed closer to me, so I assumed it was the other soldier. "He's wearing our armor. He's one of us."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Ralof," came another man's voice, this one deeper and somewhat frightening. I stepped out of the shadow and looked up into the opening to see what was happening. It wasn't the best view, but what I could see was the first man standing and looking up towards where Bormir was, while the other two stood out of sight. "Simply wielding a sword does not make a man a soldier."

"My Jarl," said the woman, Emfre, "The woman we captured, she said there would be an Imperial here in this tower!"

The man, Ralof, spoke, this time sounding a little annoyed. "Yes Emfre, she did. And had you not killed her right after, she may have been able to help us."

"She never would have spoken," hissed Emfre.

"And she never will!" shouted Ralof.

"ENOUGH!" bellowed the first man. His voice was filled with rage, and the mere sound of sent fear through me like electricity. He spoke again. "What is your name, soldier?"

Bormir spoke calmly. "I am Bormir, of Rorikstead."

"Bormir of Rorikstead," repeated the first man, "Do you know who I am?"

"You are Ulfric Stormcloak, Jarl of Windhelm."

Ulfric Stormcloak? What is he doing here?! He has to be the most wanted man in this country!

"I am," said Ulfric, "and I am going to present you with a choice. Tell me where your allegiances lie, and I will let you live. Lie to me, and your fate will not be so pleasant."

"My allegiance," said Bormir, calmly, "Lies with the Empire."

"Very good," said Ulfric calmly, "Now, as promised, you may leave this fort untouched, if that is your wish."

"It is not my wish," said Bormir, "Not when your life is within my grasp."

Ulfric laughed. "Do you wish to challenge me?"

"No, sir," said Bormir, "I wish to kill you."

"Well," said Ulfric, clearly impressed, "I admire your bravery. Unfortunately I don't plan on dying today."

"No," replied Bormir, "And I don't expect that you'd planned on being killed by such a low ranking officer either."

Ulfric laughed, seeming amused, "No, I can't say that I have."

"How about by a headsman?" asked Bormir.

There was a pause. Ulfric spoke, but this time he wasn't amused. "I hadn't planned on that either."

"Huh," said Bormir, "Well, I hate to disappoint you, but—" he stopped speaking and all at once a loud, deep booming sounded from atop the tower. It was a beautiful sound, deep and resonant. I knew at once that it was a horn, and that Bormir must have used it to send out an alarm. "It looks like you don't have a choice."

"Shoot him!" shouted Ulfric in anger, and I heard a sharp twang and a thud. I moved to the side and caught a glimpse of Bormir, with the wooden shaft of an arrow piercing the center of his throat. My heart stopped as he fell backwards over the edge of the balcony and out of sight. Time stood still. My whole body felt numb. Bormir… Why… I fell to my knees and tears began streaming out of my eyes uncontrollably. The only friend I had in this dark world was taken from me in the flash of an arrow. I felt a pair of strong arms lift me up, but I didn't struggle. The man began to run, and I started to hear shouting around me. I wanted to scream. I opened my eyes through the stinging tears to see the man who was carrying me. It was Ulfric, the very man who had ordered the death of my only friend. I wanted to scream, but my muscles wouldn't work. I wanted to rip the blonde beard off his face, but I had no strength to lift my arms. The shouting around me got louder, and suddenly Ulfric stopped, and I fell to the ground. The impact brought me back to my senses and I scrambled to get up. I tried to run, but someone stopped me, grabbed me and pushed me to my knees.

I looked around to try and see what had happened. I was on my knees, being held back by a man in some kind of brown leather armor. Ulfric was on my right, and the other man, Ralof, was on his right. Emfre was nowhere to be seen. A rat faced man in silver and brown armor squatted in front of us.

"Well, well, well," he said with a sly voice. "What have we here? Ulfric Stormcloack the true king of Skyrim!" Laughter echoed around us. "And his two—well, living—bodyguards!" More laughter. "How convenient. Three dogs in one night, and one of them is the mother. Tulius will be pleased."

They think I'm a Stormcloak! If I just explain, if I just reason with them, they'll let me go! "Excuse me!" I said, as politely as I could.

The man jerked his head towards me. "What do you want, traitor?"

"I'm not one of them!" I shouted, tears streaming through my eyes.

"Hear that boys?" The man said loudly, "This bitch says she isn't one of them!" The men around laughed. He stood up and walked over to me, and then squatted right in front of, putting his face mere inches from mine. "Then prove it!" he spat, and backed away slightly

"I—Bormir—" I stammered, "He gave me this to wear—"

"She's lying," interrupted Ulfric. The man turned his head to the right and looked at him. "Her name is Emfre, and she's one of my most trusted bodyguards."

I turned looked at him in disbelief. How could he do this? HOW COULD HE?!

"Is this true?" asked the man angrily, "Is it true that you are not only a traitor, but a liar to boot?"

"NO!" I shouted, "I fell from the sky! In that flash! Bormir saved me and gave me clothes!"

Laughter echoed throughout. "Did you hear that boys? The princess says fell from the sky!" He leaned in next to me and whispered into my ear, "You know, a girl with as pretty a mouth as yours shouldn't be spewing out nasty lies. I thinking I'm going to have to punish you for that!" He backed away once more and a wicked, frightening grin spread across his ratty face, and I watched with horror as he forced his hand down the neck of my armor and groped at my chest. I screamed and slapped him as hard as I could across the face, and he pulled his hand out of the armor. His face glowed with pure hatred. He stood up straight, and nodded at the guy behind me.

I felt a pound against the back of my head and everything went black.