Egwene, Perrin, and Nynaeve in The Wheel of Time season 3

The Wheel of Time TV adaptation has killed off a character, changing the events of the novels. Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time book series includes a multitude of characters, including dozens who play an integral role in the unfolding events. When adapting a text of that magnitude to the screen, it becomes a more distinct challenge to manage everyone, and changes are often made to thin the cast when possible.

The Wheel of Time’s season 3, episode 5 ending showed the continuation of this season’s Two Rivers plotline, as Perrin Aybara has returned to his home village with new allies, leading his people against the White Cloaks. After season 2’s ending, where Perrin’s bloodlust caused him to kill Geofram Bornhald, the White Cloak Dain Bornhald has led his forces in search of revenge. Episode 3 showed that he’d captured and imprisoned Natti Cauthon, Mat’s mother, and her two young daughters.

Perrin Saved Natti Cauthon In The Shadow Rising

The Wheel Of Time Season 3 Has Unexpectedly Killed Off A Book Character

Perrin Aybara (Marcus Rutherford) focused, looking at something in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Natti Cauthon (Juliet Howland) bleeding, lying on the grass in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Natti Cauthon (Juliet Howland), Bode Cauthon (Litiana Biutanaseva), and Eldrin Cauthon (Lilibet Biutanaseva) locked in a cell in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Faile Bashere (Isabella Bucceri) riding a horse in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Dain Bornhald (Jay Duffy) looking thoughtful in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Perrin Aybara (Marcus Rutherford) focused, looking at something in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Natti Cauthon (Juliet Howland) bleeding, lying on the grass in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Natti Cauthon (Juliet Howland), Bode Cauthon (Litiana Biutanaseva), and Eldrin Cauthon (Lilibet Biutanaseva) locked in a cell in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Faile Bashere (Isabella Bucceri) riding a horse in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5 Dain Bornhald (Jay Duffy) looking thoughtful in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 5

In season 3, episode 5, we saw Natti Cauthon attempting to escape from her cage by stealing the cell keys from Dain Bornhald. When he caught her in the act and tried to attack her, he was pushed away by a blast of the One Power, which came from Mat’s younger sister, Bode Cauthon. Knowing how much the White Cloaks despise the Aes Sedai and those who can channel, Natti claimed that she was the one who had used the One Power, causing Dain to take her away to be tortured and questioned by Eamon Valda.

The Wheel of Time season 3 is based on the book series’ fourth book, The Shadow Rising, but there are some changes to the Two Rivers plotline as it’s depicted in the TV series. In the novels, Perrin rescues Natti Cauthon from the White Cloaks, while the show version shows him finding her dead, evidently killed by Eamon Valda off-screen, leaving Mat and his two sisters now without a mother.

What Natti Cauthon’s Death Means For Perrin’s Two Rivers Story

Dain Bornhald Seems Like A More Clear-Cut Villain Than In The Books

Lord Luc (Michael Lindall) speaking to his ally in The Wheel of Time Season 3 Ep 3

Image via Prime Video

Changing Natti Cauthon’s death has notable implications for Perrin’s story in the Two Rivers, particularly changing the dynamic between him and Dain Bornhald. In The Shadow Rising, there’s a constant tension between Perrin and the White Cloaks, but there are times when they’re forced to work together to fight against Trollocs, showing other shades of the Children of the Light. With Natti being killed, the Wheel of Time show seems to be changing the dynamic to make the White Cloaks and Dain more direct villains.