Chapter 1: Unbound

Laryn crouched behind a tree, taking in the scene unfolding before her. Men in soldier uniforms screaming, swords and shields clashing. It was far too dark to see much more than shadows, the faint moonlight glinting off the weapons and armor in the distance. Soon, only one group of men were left standing, pulling a few of the downed men up to their knees and lashing their wrists with rope behind their backs. She eased her dagger out of its sheath and waited.

The trip from Cyrodiil had been hard, but necessary. Laryn was not used to the harsh cold of Skyrim. Her horse was not either, lacking the short fur and dense muscles of the local breeds. Swift had died nearly two weeks ago, succumbing to the cold and malnutrition from the lack of edible roughage. Laryn had been suffering the nights thereafter shivering in front of a meager fire in the many caves that dotted the sparse terrain. The meat she had taken from her horse was long gone and the few salmon she had been able to catch in streams she had crossed made her nauseous. Despite being skilled with the bow, the deer bounding through the hills and rocks were extremely wary of hunters and always evaded her. Her eyes narrowed as she waited for the men to take their prisoners and leave so she could scavenge what little they left on the slain men on the battle field.

She knew she shouldn't linger, but the sharp pain in her gut stayed her feet. I'd rather eat stale cheese from a dead man's pockets than try to stomach that disgusting fish again, she thought. She tried to make herself smaller, one with the tree but heard the creaks of footsteps in the snow behind her and tensed.

"Well, would you look at this?" a gruff voice said, yanking her up by a handful of her hair. She turned her head painfully to see the unshaven Nord holding her. His breath stank of garlic and bad mead. "Of course this Stormcloak traitor is hiding. Coward!"

Her body snapped into motion. She threw herself backward into the smelly Nord, hoping to loosen his hold on her hair and remove the sword from her throat. It worked. She had knocked the Nord back a few paces but he kept his footing. She somersaulted backward and plunged her dagger into his thigh, then took off running.

Shouts of the fallen Nord and his comrades followed her through the dark woods. She pulled her sword from its sheath on her back and threw random fireballs behind her, trying to escape. An arrow punched through her shoulder blade and she faltered but kept running. They were closing in.

She ran straight into two more soldiers and sliced across the chest of one as she ran past with her sword. Flames engulfed his open wound and he fell, screaming. Another arrow hit her in the chest, then another in the back of her knee and she went down hard.

The soldiers surrounded her as she lay in pain on the ground. She tried to stand up but one of the soldiers held her down easily with his foot.

"Just take her with the other two. Pity we couldn't have taken them all to atone for their crimes against Skyrim. They don't deserve to die in battle."

There was a sharp pain at the base of her skull from the pommel of a sword and everything went black.

She awoke to swaying. Am I on a boat? Well, that doesn't make any sense. Open your eyes, stupid.

Laryn opened her eyes and groaned. Her head hurt immensely, and the bright sun did nothing to help. There were scuffed leather boots directly in front of her.

"Hey, are you awake? I'll help you up, but our hands are bound and you're hurt." Hands appeared under her good shoulder and pushed her up to a seated position. The Nord belonging to the boots smiled slightly. He had shoulder length, dirty blond hair and his face was smeared with blood and grime, along with his blue uniform.

She looked around and realized they weren't alone. Two other men were in the wagon with them, glaring at her silently. She held her bound hands in front of her, her left palm up and tried a minor healing spell to alleviate her painful head and arrow wounds. Nothing happened. They must have slipped her something while she was out. She shook her head and looked down to the broken off arrow sticking out of her chest. They must have granted her a minor healing potion as well or she would be dead. She turned her gaze back to the blond man in front of her.

"Where are you from, elf?"

Laryn stared at him, debating whether to tell the truth or not. She didn't know this man, but maybe he could give her a clue as to where they were taking her and why…and maybe, it was a trap. She had come too far for her past to catch her now. "Where are they taking us?" she asked, ignoring his question.

"Aye, Cyrodiil then. Your tongue betrays you," he replied, smirking. "I'll not ask why, it's not my business. They're taking us to Helgen, more than likely for execution." He glanced at the man next to him. "I'm Ralof, by the way."

"Laryn." This she could say with ease, as it was a name she assumed when fleeing Cyrodiil. It was an old name, perhaps not the best choice as it betrayed her profession but it was a family name as well.

The meaning of it was not lost on the Nord. "That must be why you're here with us!" he guffawed. "That's why he's here," he said, gesturing his bound hands to another prisoner.

"It's a family name," she mumbled. "Besides, I'm here because apparently I'm a Stormcloak." Most of her journey was through wilderness but the closer she came to the heart of Skyrim, the more small villages, farms and mines she passed. Occasionally she had found coin on the corpses of the many things that attacked her along with their pelts or picked herbs to trade, so she had heard some of the troubles currently plaguing the land while making small talk at the general stores.

Ralof snorted. "Idiots. Let me guess, they knocked you out without letting you speak. If they had…you know…your accent. One from the Empire wouldn't care about the plight of the Nords...but then, you fought them too. I hear you killed two of them and maimed another. A girl after my own heart!"

The man next to Ralof snorted. Ralof looked chastened for a moment, then directed his gaze back to her.

Laryn had had plenty of time to think about the current political situation while trekking across the land. "I hold no ties to Cyrodiil, that's why I'm no longer there. I actually agree with you. Besides, I suppose Skyrim is my home now as well."

Ralof regarded her thoughtfully. "Maybe you should talk with our fellow prisoners," he replied quietly, eyeing the man next to him. The man had dark hair for a Nord, and was dressed a tad better than the others. She herself had been stripped of her leather armor and was now dressed in rags. She cursed herself silently for not being more vigilant earlier. If she had been, she wouldn't be in this predicament, more than likely on her way to be beheaded, and would still have her enchanted dagger, sword and bow.

"No need to make friends now if they're going to lop our heads off." Laryn had known for a long time that something like this would happen, if not the exact how or why. Leading a life of crime, while very profitable, tended to end shortly and abruptly. Her last job had ended with her contact turning on her after she had finished her part and wanted payment. She had been wary from the beginning, though had worked for nobility many times over. She also knew the repercussions of taking such a job. Ever since the Guild disbanded, there was no protection from someone just taking advantage of her services and handing her over to the guards.

Laryn sighed and pushed her bright red hair out of her eyes to look at the man next to Ralof. "Okay, who are you?"

The man glared at her for a few moments. "Ulfric Stormcloak." Ulfric looked down his nose at her. "Best you learn some respect, knife-ear."

Laryn cursed herself silently. Great. Now if we DO get out of this mess, he'll hang me anyway. "I apologize for my rudeness," she said quickly, disregarding his slur. "If I may be so bold, how did they capture you?"

His reply was cut off by one of the guards riding next to the wagon, his sword going to Ulfric's throat. "Keep the gag in your mouth, Stormcloak. We don't need any more a that yellin' ya like to do," the guard said before shoving the rag that was hanging around Ulfric's neck back into his mouth. "You'll be gettin' yours here quick, traitor."

Laryn turned her head just in time to see Helgen's gates opening to receive them. The wagon wound through the crowd lined up along the street to witness the executions. It came to a halt near a group of guards, the guards accompanying the wagon dismounting.

Ralof smiled sadly at her. "For what it's worth, it was nice to meet you, Laryn. May Talos have mercy on you." He turned to look at Ulfric. "I regret nothing."

A guard lowered the back of the wagon and yelled at the prisoners to come down one at a time. Ulfric descended first, then the thief, and then Ralof hopped down leaving her alone, contemplating her injuries and how much hopping down would hurt. She could bare it but then he extended his bound hands to her, attempting to help her down. She gave him a faint half-smile and whispered, "Thank you." They stood in a silent line as a guard read off their names and crimes. One prisoner ran for his life and was quickly taken down by archers, screaming he wouldn't let them take him with his last breath.

There was a moment of confusion with the guards, not knowing who Laryn was or exactly why she was there but having been brought with the "traitors", they quickly had her back in line with the others. She made herself watch the axe fall over the neck of the man in front of her, steeling herself for what was to come.

The guards kicked her forward and shoved her to her knees in front of the wooden block, the last prisoner's body shoved aside. His mouth howled a silent plea to her, dead eyes staring directly into hers from the other side of the block. She looked to the bright blue sky, saying a silent prayer before closing her eyes and laying her head on the block, resigned to her fate.

A/N: Serious spoilers ahead! If you haven't played through the guild missions at all, turn back now! Also, a big thanks to my friend Lisa for being my beta, even though she has no idea what's going on and also to fellow writer alyssacousland since this would literally not be possible without her help!(If you want some good DA fanfics, look her up!)