Katariah woke to the smell of smoke. She opened her eyes blearily, making out a faint red glow and shafts of daylight coming from the ceiling. "Fire!" She leaped out of bed, tugged on her boots, snatched up her horse's tack and rushed out of her room. "Ainethatch!" she screamed. The heat was sweltering, and parts of the thatch roof were falling through into the hall still ablaze. Smoke was everywhere, burning her eyes and clouding her vision. She stumbled through the hall and burst out the front door to find the rest of the buildings in the small settlement in a similar state, and a large group of Forsworn circling Ainethatch in the road.

"You will have no more dealings with the Nords, Ainethatch!" one of them demanded. He was wearing the standard fur and bone armor his people were known for, but was also wearing a headdress with deer antlers affixed to it and in a gaping wound carved into his chest sat a beating Briarheart. Katariah gasped. She had heard of Briarhearts of course, but had never seen one in real life. She also wouldn't see it for long because as she gasped something grabbed her by the boot and dragged her off the porch into the bushes alongside it.

Katariah struggled, jabbing elbows and knees wherever she could land a blow. Finally, her captor hissed, "Damn it Elf, I'm trying to save your life!"

Katariah quit struggling in shock. She'd known that voice for only a day, but it had been irritating enough to brand itself in her mind. "Torygg? How in Oblivion did you get here? Where are the men I left you with?"

Torygg drew himself up as best he could while still crouched in a bush and threw her a haughty look. "Well, after you left me with those thugs they took turns beating me until my cries brought the Forsworn down upon us. The Forsworn knew who I was immediately, so I told them if they rescued me I would cede the Reach to them once I was returned to my throne."

Katariah snorted, "How noble of you."

Torygg ground his teeth. "Well they didn't very well keep their end if the bargain, did they? I suppose they thought I couldn't speak their language and agreed to tell me they were taking me back to Solitude but actually take me to their Matriarch."

"Then why are you in Karthwasten, there are no Hagravens here."

"If you would let me finish! Before they wanted to go to their Matriarch they wanted to finish their primary objective of teaching Ainethatch a lesson. I presume that, "Torygg pointed at Ainethatch and the Forsworn, "is Ainethatch."

Ainethatch was still facing off against the Forsworn. "Look, I've done told you, I deal with anyone who wants to buy ore from my mines. If you have the coin I deal with you and if anyone else has the coin I deal with them." Beside them, some burning thatch fell from the roof of Karthwasten Hall and lit on their bush. They scurried back along the side of the building. Katariah looked to the porch and noticed with dismay that her horse was nowhere to be seen, though part of his broken halter was. He must have broken free when the fire started. She turned back to Torygg.

"Okay, so, the horse is gone."

"The horse is gone!"

"Yep, the horse is gone, so we'll have to make a run for it."

Torygg looked at Katariah incredulously. "Are you serious? We'll never make it across the bridge!"

"Nope, that's why we're going to jump in the river." Katariah licked her lips and turned back to watch the Forsworn, trying to judge the distance between them and the river.

"You're crazy! That will kill us!" Torygg hissed furiously. Besides, the river would wash them farther south and he desperately needed to be farther north. He might have saved the Elf's life on the porch just then, but only because he needed her to help him escape the Forsworn for now.

Katariah turned back to Torygg one last time. "No, it might kill us. The Forsworn will kill us. Especially you once they realize you've sneaked off. You can come with me or stay here. I don't really care; my job is done." And with that Katariah stood up and started running with all her might toward the river. Torygg had only a split second to consider before dashing after her.

Behind them the Forsworn shouted. "The King! Don't let him escape!" An arrow whizzed by Torygg's ear, slamming into Katariah's shoulder. Already at the edge of the river, the impact of the arrow shoved her forward into the water. Torygg dove after her, another arrow missing him by a hairsbreadth.

In the space of a moment his world went from the noise of fire and shouting to the eerie silence underwater. He struggled to the surface, the rapids churning swiftly around him. He tried to look around for Katariah but was swiftly pulled under. He clawed his way to the surface again and this time, up ahead he spotted the Dunmer bobbing unconscious just barely afloat. He tried to swim to her, but the current kept dragging him under and slamming him into outcroppings of rock. Just as he reached her and hooked his hand into her armor, the current slammed them both into a huge boulder and knocked the High King unconscious.

"Hey Mister, you ok?"

Torygg groaned and looked around groggily. Standing above him was a small Nord boy no older than maybe eleven. Torygg let his head sink back down and closed his eyes. His body felt like one huge bruise and if there was a child about he couldn't be anywhere too dangerous. The river had also washed them much farther down the river than the Forsworn could follow. The High King felt he deserved a little rest.

"Hey, Mister! Your friend is badly hurt!"

The elf! Torygg tried to leap up, but his body hurt too badly, so he simply scrambled to his hands and knees. The elf was lying face down on the river bank, half of her body submerged underwater, and the now broken arrow still jutting out of her shoulder. Torygg crawled over to her and rolled her partially over, careful not to roll her over onto the arrow shaft. "Kat?" He didn't know if that was even really her name, but it was what that brute she'd sold him to had called her, so it would have to do.

The elf groaned as he had. "Where are we?" she asked faintly.

Torygg frowned. He hadn't thought to ask. He looked to the child. "You're in the river behind Old Hroldan Inn." The boy supplied helpfully. "We can sell you a room, but we don't have much for a wound like that."

Katariah pushed herself to her knees with her good arm. "Do you have someone who can remove the arrow?" The wound burned and throbbed with what she knew was probably the beginning of an infection. She could heal the wound with her magic and a good potion, but not while the arrow was still lodged in her shoulder. That is, unless she wanted to sport a broken arrow out of her back for the rest of her life.

"Why do you assume I can't remove it?" Torygg demanded.

Katariah cast him a baleful glare. "Can you then?" When Torygg didn't respond, she snorted. "Then shut up and help me stand."

Torygg awkwardly slung Katariah's good arm over his shoulders and helped her to stand while the boy strode ahead. The little one called over his shoulder, "My name's Skuli by the way. I don't know how to remove an arrow from a person, but Leontias probably does." Noticing Torygg struggling to help Katariah, he added, "I'll go ahead and fetch him," before running up the path and out of sight.

"Nocturnal's grace, have you never helped carry a comrade in arms?" Katariah snapped when Torygg almost dropped her for the third time.

Torygg flushed red and opened his mouth to argue, but something stopped him. "Er… no. I don't have a lot of… martial experience, per se."

Katariah laughed out loud, "And you were going to duel Ulfric Stormcloak, war veteran and renowned general? I'd say I saved your life, my liege."

That was the first time the Elf had ever referred to him as anything close to his proper title, and of course, she was mocking him. "Well, I'm saving yours now, so I'd say we're even!" he fumed, disgusted that he'd thought to be sincere with her.

"Actually, Skuli is saving both of us, and you're functioning as a fairly useless walking stick." Katariah quipped right back, enjoying the peculiar shade of tomato red the young king was turning. In retort Torygg stepped out from under her arm completely, but they had arrived at the porch of Old Hroldan Inn and Leontias caught Katariah by her good arm before she fell.

"That arrow is Forsworn made." Leontias said matter of factly as he helped Katariah inside and sat her down on one of the benches at the long table in the middle of the common room.

"Yes, the Forsworn seem to have taken the Reach." Torygg replied, "I can't believe it! How did they even breach Markarth? Were there insurgents in the city? You'd think I'd… I mean the King would have known of such a thing!"

Leontias gave Torygg a measured look, "Maybe the King did know, not that it matters now."

Katariah laughed as Torygg made a face like he'd been punched in the gut. Right. He was supposed to be dead.