Hey, it's me, Destana.  Over the last few weeks I've been beaten down a lot.  That's not about to end, but it is about to get better.

 

So there I was, suspended in the slave auction, people bidding over me like a piece of meat.  After quite a few rounds I was purchased by a person named "Owner."  Later I would find out her name was Octava.  As soon as I was unchained, there was a flash and I awoke in a dungeon.  Not a keeping people captive dungeon, but the adventuring kind.  Still naked, I opened my eyes to moss-covered stone.  I was laying on the floor and my master sat at a wooden table next to a bookcase that seemed out of place.  She wore imperial armor, with dark hair pulled in a ponytail.  I remember her looking rough but still attractive, like a retired soldier.

"Where am I?" I muttered.

"Fellglow Keep.  C'mon.  We're delving," she got up from her seat.  What kind of person takes an unequipped slave adventuring?  Maybe she just needed friends?  I looked down at my naked form and noticed my backpack with my gear was on the table.  At least... some of it.  Most the odds and ends I'd picked up in my few adventures up to this point were gone.  But atleast it held armor and weapons.

Now, being the rash young woman I was, I immediately threw the pack on and took off running.  I imagine she rolled her eyes and walked after me.  It seemed we were right in the middle of the structure and I had no idea which way to go to get out, so I picked a hall and booked it.  

"Who's that?  You will die!" A man in the next open room shouted and I stopped in my tracks.  He summoned a fire atronach and they both pivoted - aiming spells at me.  I whipped around and sprinted the opposite direction.  There was Octava, throwing shards of ice at the pair.  I blinked.  She did well, drawing her sword as they grew close and finishing them off.

She stood over me, offered me a hand.  I raised an eyebrow.

"I told you to come on.  Stay low.  Stay behind me.  Take out your weapons.  Back me up.  We'll soon be out of here," she said.  I took her hand.  I wasn't sure what she was expecting here, but I did as she said.  I put on the Elven Boots and Gloves, Elven Sword, Steel Dagger and a Hunting Bow. 

When I went to put on my body armor she stopped me, "It's a rule.  Don't wear body armor.  Get in the habit because you won't be wearing it in town."

I shrugged.  Probably not the worst way she could've reacted.

"Now let's go!" She shouted as she ran off.  I considered getting the drop on her and slitting her throat, but I realized I probably needed her to get out of here.  My non-skill having ass was going to build up while she was out in front taking the hits.

 

I was in stealth as we entered the next room and she whispered, "I'm just going to save up the punishments for later."  

She dealt with another room of rogue spellcasters handily.  I got behind one and stabbed him in the back.  

A few rooms later, there was a chest in the corner.  As she fought the bandits here she shouted at me, "Pick that lock.  I know you're a thief."

I went to work and the lock popped open easily.  Of course, all proceeds going to my owner.  It was a lot of rinse and repeat over the course of the dungeon.  Her tanking and doing the lion's share of the damage, me stealing and backstabbing, occasionally shooting them with my bow.

 

It's really sad, this system that indoctrinates people such as these into its dreadful tendrils.  Octava seemed like a not-terrible person, unlike a lot of the people who used their dominion over me to satisfy their own hungers.  She was merely a person who'd lived her whole life with slavery adjacent to her and thought nothing was wrong with it.  We're a society of a certain level, with a long way to go.  I might've even thought the same some times in my life.  But not now.  Two weeks was all I needed to know the prison system and slavery system in Skyrim wasn't good to its people.  Especially people like me - they call us murder hobos in some instances.  But that wasn't going to be me forever.  Someday I was going to be something.

 

Anyway, when we were at the end of the ruin, looting the treasure room, Octava said, "I wonder if we should camp under the stars or just at the end of this dungeon tonight."

I muttered, "I don't know why you're asking me.  You have all the power here."

"Oh, I know," she reached over from the chest she was ransacking and patted me on my white-haired head, "I was talking to myself, love.  I was just thinking.  This dungeon is completely cleared out.  Outside there are bears and crabs and... more bandits.  And dragons."

I raised an eyebrow again, "Dragons?  Really?"

"Well, I've heard stories they started appearing.  I haven't actually seen one.  There are some spell tomes here.  I already know all these, you take them.  Take anything of value.  I'm running out of space in my pack," Octava said.

So now I was her companion.  Still, not the worst this could've gone.  It could be as bad as Solitude Prison.

We slept in the wood beds the bandits had been using.  

 

The next day, we travelled overland, fighting a pack of wolves and a small group of bandits.  Octava could not be stopped.  We approached an unguarded crypt.

"Keep your distance, use stealth.  I hear something going on inside," Octava said.  She snuck ahead, and I wondered to myself what this woman's story was.  Raiding tombs and bandit camps one after another.  We were already weighed down with loot and she wanted more.  Greed, or a death wish?

Covenstead Crypt was normally occupied by draugr.  Or rather, normally only occupied by draugr.  As we entered, it was apparent somebody else was trying to do the same thing as us.  Bandits with wizards were fighting a small group of draugr.  Maybe, trying to carve out a hideout for themselves.  I cringed as we crept closer.  I'd never seen the creatures before, but they were gross bags of bones.  The bandits were prepared though, mopping up the creatures in this room without much trouble.

 

"You'll die!" A man shouted from behind us, and an invisible assailant layed into Octava.  I remember nearly jumping out of my boots at that and generally being useless.  She blew him back with magic and slashed him through the chest, finishing the job.  The other bandits turned to us.  Five of them in all.

 

"What ye doin here, lass?" One of them threatened, "You killed our man.  Granted, he was late wakin' up and not the most professional.  Got any valuables on ye?  Mayhaps we'll consider letting you go."

"If you pay the toll!" One of the other men smirked.

The two women among them were already walking into the hallway behind, giving this exchange no mind.  The wizard amongst them had already drew his hands, "We don't have time for this."

Octava gritted her teeth, putting her sword away and double-handing her Ice Spikes spell while she had some distance on them.

The two male bandits all drew their weapons, women already fighting draugr in the next room down the hall.  

The bandit wizard shot a kind-of fireball at Octava, catching her by surprise and by then the other bandits were double-teaming her with their rough swords.  I drew two daggers and slashed at the wizard.  He turned and blasted me with Frostbite, finding it easy to bottom out my stamina.  Then he turned to burn Octava with Flames.  She went down completely.  The bandits turned to me, and being staggered they immediately triggered Defeat.  I remember one of them reaching behind me and relocking my restraints that'd been hanging from my wrists after I put the elven gloves on.  But they just latched them, where were the keys?

 

So I was free from one form of bondage.  But now these bandits would have me.  We were at the entrance to the hallway... and they had me boxed in from going for the exit.  But I knew more draugr awaited me inside.  Which was worse, getting killed and eaten, or getting raped (and possibly killed?)

 

"Guess we get to take our toll after all," he grabbed me, pulled out his dick and started to facefuck me, needing little encouragement.  Men like to do that to me, I guess.

When he was done, I immediately got up and started to run.  I went inward, which was a mistake.  Just a few steps in there was a crosspath.  The two women turned the corner with their leader in tow, which I'd not seen yet.  He immediately thwacked me in the chin, sending me to my knees. 

"Think I'll take my cut as leader now," he said as he got on top of me.  Maybe that's why the other ones didn't immediately get on me... they had a leader who wouldn't want sloppy seconds.

I struggled, but I was still weak from all the abuse and fighting, and he did what he wanted.

Behind me, the dunmer woman, aroused by the display, stripped and invited the two men to take her at the same time, while the other woman and the wizard (who seemed bored, like he wanted no part in all this) watched.  Through this exchange I was weighing my options.  As soon as the bandit leader got off me, I got to my feet. 

And a booming voice blew me off my feet again.

 

"FUS..RO...DAHHHhhhh!"  A draugr shouted, though it was less a 'dah' and more a snake-like moan of the undead.  A huge party of them rounded the corner from deeper within the dungeon. Five or six!  Apparently they'd been distracted long enough to draw a crowd.  I sprinted for the doorway.  I turned to look at Octava's burnt corpse as I passed.  They'd stripped the clothes off her, probably to sell.  I grabbed the keys to my restraints laying on the ground, not even unlocking them.  Then I got the hell out of there.  

 

I remember running.  Not even bothering to try and remove my chains yet.  Getting out of there.  Running in the rain.  Refusing to respond to anyone doing anything around me.  I knew the second I engaged that I would be under somebody else's yoke again.  Eventually, maybe after nearly a whole day of walking and running, I came to a farm house.  By this time it must've been midnight, still raining.  I sat against the outer wall of the house, finally unlocking my chains and throwing them into a nearby ditch.  My body was drenched, and I was starving and freezing.  I took out one of my few lockpicks and picked the lock to the farm house.  Whatever I would do, I needed to get dry.

 

Inside, I was met by a small, quaint dwelling.  Man and wife were asleep in a bed next to each other, no doubt exhausted by a day of hard work.  I stared at them for a minute, considering all the bad things people had done to me.  I could do the same things to these people.  But, no.  That wasn't my way.  I laid out my clothes and my pack by the fire, trying to get everything dry.  I grabbed heaps of cheese and bread and water and hungrily ate and drank.  Then I sat.  So there I was, sitting naked in these people's living room, in the next room from the couple's sleep. 

In the meantime, I decided I was going to cut my hair.  I sawed it off roughly with the Steel Dagger.  Hopefully no more hair-pulling for me.

"What's this?" The man smiled.  Oh no.  I drew my daggers from the sheaths on the floor, not having the sword close at hand.  The firelight licked against my naked body as I stared daggers at him, ready to kill.

"Don't worry.  I don't intend to hurt you," the farmer said, "Just thought I was gettin' robbed.  I'm not, am I?"

"No," I said finally, relaxing my guard.

He looked my body up and down, "You look like you've been through a lot."

"I have," I replied.

"You an escaped slave?" He asked.

"I am."

"You know they'll be sending bounty hunters after you," the farmer said, "They're pretty good at finding people."

"Thanks," I replied.

"You're free to warm yourself by the fire, or..."

"Or..?" I asked, folding my arms.

"The bed in the next room is comfortable.  Room enough for three.  The wife and I don't get much company," he looked at my body that'd been wrecked by the last few weeks, "I don't suppose you've had any tenderness recently."

"I..." I started, ready to tell him I would never touch a human being again.

"I..." I tried again, feeling my voice choke off.  I could feel desire building within me for actual human contact that wasn't me getting abused, beaten and being helpless.

I could feel tears welling up in my eyes.

"C'mon, lass," the farmer said. 

His wife looked on as we entered the room.

"My love..." The farmer started.

"I know," she replied, "It's a small house.  I was listening."

So I laid between them.  The wife took off her simple dress and just touched me, stroked my aching body for a while.  She went down on me while the farmer held me from behind.  Not in a constrictive way.  It was very loving, like they'd done this before.  I had my release, and I laid there while the two of them had passionate sex.  We all went to sleep.  Later that night, the farmer woke me up and gently pushed himself inside me from behind.  He was tender and made sure I enjoyed it.

 

As I drifted back to sleep, I remembered that there were good things in this world.  Sex could be good, and healthy.  And I wanted it again.  It was then that I decided that I was going back to Solitude.  I knew it might kill me, but I wanted revenge.