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Compatibility patch ESL - Prison Overhaul Patched with JK's Skyrim View File This mod is an ESL-flagged ESP file that provides a conflict resolution and compatibility patch for the combination of Prison Overhaul Patched (POP) with JK's Skyrim. This mod makes changes to Solitude, Whiterun, Windhelm, and Morthal to improve compatibility between POP and JK's Skyrim. Requirements This mod requires the SE version of Prison Overhaul Patched (POP) by @Inte This mod requires JK's Skyrim by jkrojmal on Nexus Mods. Submitter Herowynne Submitted 11/03/2021 Category Adult Mods Requires Prison Overhaul Patched SE, JK's Skyrim Regular Edition Compatible No  

Hey, it's Runa. My mom is asking me about what I've been doing. We're in the hall of the Companions, feasting, and they all want to hear what I have to say too. So I'm going to talk as I write it down. I'm the Listener, and I did a lot before I went to Cyrodiil. Last time I told my story, I'd just recruited Vala Amatius after she murdered a couple guys with no escape plan. I appointed Babette and Nazir to be the new Speakers. I spoke with the Night Mother and she told me my next contract, just a random Corrupt Penitus Oculatus agent. I decided I could easily do it by myself and went and killed the Laborer he wanted dead (waiting until dark to do so). I came back to the Sanctuary and got another contract from NM, and decided it was time to help Averna out with her job. I took Cicero along because she looked pretty bored of cleaning the Night Mother's folds. We followed Averna's lead to an ice cave, where we killed a few randos and picked up a book in daedric. "I recognize the first few words. Seven souls, seven virgins. Guess that's what we need," she said, "Here, I have black soul gems." "You're pretty nonchalant about killing people who aren't contracted or don't deserve it," I said, "I'm a virgin, would you kill me?" "Well, no. You're the Listener. Just... take the soul gems," Averna said. "I'll take them, but, no promises. You might be following me for a while to get these," I said, "I don't think the kind of people that need killing are usually virgins. And I don't get what sets that apart as a different type of soul. But ok." We fought a band of goblins on the way out, which Cicero grabbed a goblin staff (giggling the whole time). Then I grabbed another mission from NM and took Undil. Averna and Cicero came too. "Where we going?" Undil asked, probably humoring me. "Windhelm." "We going to kill the Emperor?" He chuckled. When we got to Candlehearth Hall, we talked to an Argonian named Dreekius, "Took you long enough." "Not a perfect process," I replied. "I need you to save my brother, Dreynos." "Not our usual kind of job." "I realize it's a strange request for you people. But you're my last hope," Dreekius said, "He's been captured by the Thalmor. They have a secret prison west of here, near the border to Morrowind." And, just a break in my story, at this point in the Hall of the Companions, my mother was yelling, "FIVE THALMOR PRISONS! DO I HEAR SIX?!" "How long have the two of you been in the Skooma business?" Undil asked. I forgot, he has some kind of annoying mind-reading ability. But now it was proving useful. "How did you... Nearly 20 years. Since we were twelve," Dreekius replied. "Your brother... is a Dunmer?" Undil asked. "How do you know this? You're right. He's a dunmer. We were adopted by a kind Imperial woman after we lost our parents many years ago." "I have been known to be able to acquire information... whether I like it or not," Undil replied, "Speaking of which, I can see a secret entrance to the prison." "Alright, lets go," I said to the group. We made our way to the site, and Undil uncovered an ice cave, complete with trolls, that lead into a back entry to the prison. "I just realized I left my pet sabercat in Markarth," Undil muttered. "We're not alone, Listener," Cicero whispered. Averna went invisible as he approached. "Four guards, three prisoners," Undil said. I was starting to feel like I wasn't adding much to this crew. They were all deadly and skilled. When a guard patrolled this way, Averna jumped out and split his head open with her dagger, "There. We should be good for a little bit." I snagged a key off the guard. Then we strolled over to Dreynos' cell. Undil nodded to him, "Afternoon." "Thank the gods, you're not a Thalmor," Draynos said, "It's been a long time since I've seen a friendly mer." "Dreekius sent us," I said. "I can't leave just yet," Draynos said, "What my brother didn't tell you, probably because he didn't know, is the reason I got caught. The woman I love is here." Cicero was dancing at the moment, but I paid no attention. "I found out which prison she was in and got caught," Draynos continued. My mom was yelling, "BUT THERE ARE SO MANY, IT SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE TO FIGURE OUT!" Stop interrupting! "We cannot save her," Undil said, back in the story, "We cannot allow her to live. Your brother requested we leave no witnesses to your whereabouts." "You can't! Not if I kill you first!" He put up his fists. "Wait wait wait," I said, "Nobody needs to kill anybody. We don't need to kill your lady. I'm making an executive decision here." "I never would've expected such mercy from the Brotherhood," Dreynos said. "Yeah, we're full of surprises," I said. "Thank you, all of you." I opened the cell, then we walked over to her, and opened the other cell, letting the Dunmer woman out. We went out the way we came, and back to Dreekius. "There you are! My brother's saviors! What of the other matter?" "We killed the only guard we saw. But another prisoner, your brother requested we not kill her. I'm not in the business of killing for no reason," I explained. "I understand. I'm thankful you were able to get my brother out." I disbanded my little group and did another couple dead drops (the anonymous jobs that paid quite well). The last of which brought me into the Riften Sewers. I went a little bit deeper, not into the ghost part my mom had already cleared out, but a tunnel I'd never heard of, and I found myself face to face with Chaurus and Snow Elves! Not like the statue, not like the Falmer. Mutated, but beautiful. I backed out of there after killing only a couple of them. My next contact from the Night Mother: Isobel Richton. I took a group to see her, this time with the Khajit twins, Averna and Cicero. "What do you need?" I asked. "Oh, thank the gods. I'd almost lost hope that you would come." "The brotherhood will always answer a contract," I replied. "Anyway, it's my husband, Camos. He kidnapped my children. Please! They must be so scared. I need you to rescue them and kill Camos' guards and convince him to come home. If you don't, I'm afraid he will try again. Only kill him if you have to," she explained. "It will be done," I replied. We traveled to a camp at the very northern tip of Skyrim, west of Dawnstar. I strolled up, trying to avoid bloodshed, but the guards attacked me without so much as a warning. My retinue made short work of them without me even having to unsheathe my sword. "Who are you?" Camos asked. "Your wife is worried about your children." "She's not my wife. These aren't her kids. These are my kids. About six years ago she kidnapped them from me. I'm taking them back," he said, "Wait, are you with the Brotherhood?" "How did you-" "I've been praying for you for a while now," he said. I took a look at his shabby clothes and said, "I was told you were a noble." "I am a noble. I'm dressed like this as to not attract attention," he explained, "But if you are from the brotherhood I can pay you to fulfill my contract, and kill that crazy woman." About this time, Isobel showed up. "Please, honey. Come home," she said. "You're crazy. I don't know you," Camos said back. "Mommy!" One of the boys ran to her. M'jarra (one of the Khajit twins with me) said, "They call her mommy, why would they run to her if she wasn't their mom?" J'zakar said, "Weren't you listening? The only thing that matches up between them is these small children haven't seen the man for six years. They would know her as mom. J'zakar thinks something smells funny here." M'jarra said, "Camos, tell us the truth." Isobel said, "Yes, Camos. Tell us the truth about your injury." "What injury? I'm not lying! Lady, I have no idea who you are!" Camos said. "Camos, dear. The truth is my husband was injured during the Great War. His injury has gone deep, and it makes him forget. Sometimes he's back in the war, and sometimes he's here," Isobel said, "I got my children out of that house a long time ago, with your permission." "By Ruptga, you lie. I didn't fight in the war. My wife did, but she died giving birth to Kotaro here. You stole them. I spent my entire fortune tracking you down." "You know what? I don't think we should be getting mixed up in people's family business. I don't know who's telling the truth. So, nobody dies," I said, "C'mon guys. You two work it out amongst yourselves." Then I started walking away. When I got back to the Sanctuary, I slept for the night. I got up and Vala was milling about in the common bunkroom next to my master suite. "Everything alright?" I asked. "I was hoping to be gone before you got back last night," Vala replied. "Why would you want to leave? It's such a nice place to live. Plenty of nice old nordic stone. It's not much, but if you like dank..." "You're not funny," Vala said. "You could've been gone if you wanted to, easily. But you stayed." "I don't know why. There is something here. So am I prisoner here, because I can't show my face anywhere?" Again, I realized she didn't know how bounties worked in the holds. Then again, Solitude may send bounty hunters after her. "You're not a prisoner. A guest. A permanent guest," I said, "I'm willing to bet the guards weren't your first kill. Your eyes were cold after that kill, your face stone. You were alright with doing it. The NM says you have a killer instinct." "How did you...?" "I'm the Listener. I pay attention reeeeal good," I smirked. She sighed, "It was a long time ago. My dad died in the war. My mom's mental state was shattered. My uncle stepped in and took on my father's role, but his experiences in the war changed him. He drank. He... did things to my mother. I ran away, stupidly. When I came back, weeks later, my mom was dead. In that moment, something came over me. I snapped his neck." "Your family has a long history of violence. The Dark Brotherhood has been searching for you for a long time," I said. "What are you getting at?" "20 years before the Oblivion crisis, a man named Lucien Lachance was Listener for the Brotherhood in Solitude. He collapsed after a job. A women healed him, and he spent the night with her. Amatius was her family line. Your ancestor." "So my great-great and so on grandmother was-" "A legendary assassin," I finished, "You're capable of great things." "I don't buy it. You're a great organization. Feared throughout Tamriel. By the eight you killed the Emperor." "Nine." "What's a rich girl from Solitude going to do? Unless... there are so few of you in this Sanctuary. You're a dying organization, aren't you?" "We're as effective as we need to be. Didn't need an army to kill the Emperor," I said. "Maybe not. But maybe now you need more. Okay. I want to help. I want to learn," Vala said. We went to the Night Mother. She did some show with summoning Alisanna Dupre, an old Listener, to give the initiates a ghostly lecture on the Five Tenets. Nazir muttered to me as we were watching, "Listener, please, I can accept Cicero being back here, but could you do something about the dancing? God, I do hate jesters." I chuckled, "Nazir, take the twins on their second mission." We went back to the NM, and she sent Vala (now in DB armor) and I to contact a corrupt priest in Markarth. I gave Nazir and Babette instructions from the Night Mother on yet more contracts to distribute. To Markarth, I brought along Cicero (after she was done cleaning up the night mother) and Stabby this time. It was about time to continue going down his list of contracts. "There's so much stabbing potential!" He exclaimed. We went to the mine first, and I immediately knew it was a good idea to have this retinue. When I took down the guard (acting alone) a posse of bounty hunters charged in behind us. "We're here for Vala Amatius, for crimes against Solitude, and the Listener! Surrender and submit to trial!" The boss shouted. "Sorry, not going to happen," I said. It was a rather epic battle, as they used the same paralyze spells the Jail Master had. I'd only met the man once, but I knew it well. But we had enough that we took them out. When they fell, their armor unbound and they were naked. Curiously, all of them carried a lot of gold and a LOT of delicious cooked food. We took a break and ate a bit, then we worked our way in, killing bandits. I freed slaves as I went. When we reached the boss, I sneak attacked him with my greatsword, and the rest took care of him. Just like the last of Stabby's targets, his death summoned a Dragon Priest. We had another hard battle, but piling on an enemy just works. "This can't be a coincidence. Let me look at the contracts again," Stabby rubbed his chin, "By the nine! These are all from the came client! Name... eesbarn? Esbern? Do you know anybody by that name?" "Esbern, having us kill dragon priests? Yeah, that sounds like somebody I know," I replied. Obviously, the blade in the kimono. "We have three more. I know who they are, but I don't know where they are. I need to talk to Nazir. He knows a lot about these sorts of things," Stabby said. We traveled to Markarth again. It was, unsurprisingly, under attack again. It was at that time I was thinking the Forsworn (or at least the splinter group that is continuously attacking Markarth) has some kind of huge mammoth farm hidden in the mountains. A guard asked us if we wanted to join, and no, I do not. We went to the contract: Hroldar Farseer. "You must be the Dark Brother... Sister.... the assassins?" "You must be the priest. What do you need?" I asked. "Right... nearly every day for the past six months, along my walks out of the city, I come across Reachmen. Always beaten within an inch of their lives. I take time and heal them." "Odd, for a priest of Talos," I said. "Perhaps, but they are fellow men. Even if we do not share a religion and culture, it is my duty to help those in need. Anyway, the violence is escalating," Hroldar explained. "That must be why they keep throwing raid parties against the gates here. Hatreds that cover many generations," I mused. I may have contributed a little by doing that job and planting that forsworn axe a while back. But it was honestly embers on a raging inferno. It was still wrong, though. "First it was one or two men a week. Now, six. Last week, I found two dead. In one of their hands I found a piece of cloth from a Markarth guards' uniform. I believe the city guards are targeting Reachmen. And of course, no one is willing to do anything. So the job is this: take these guard uniforms. INfiltrate the guard and kill two of their number. Do it outside the city, and make it look like it was other guards." "Okay, more killing to try and stop the rivalry between the factions. I guess I'll play to what few skills I have and do this. Stabby and Cicero," I said. They looked at me. "Why don't you guys wait at the SIlver-Blood Inn," I said, "I'll take Vala. She needs the training." "SIlly Forsworn, think they're scary. I'll show them scary," Cicero muttered. "No prob, Listener," Stabby said, "So, Cicero, want to get a drink with me? I heard you like stabbin!" "Oh, yes yes! Cicero loves the stabbing! It's my favorite!" She giggled, and they took off. I'm sure my eyes had this broken, 'What have I started now?' look. Vala and I slipped in the uniforms and headed to the guard tower. It was just about muster time for a group of patrols, conveniently. As we walked in, they were lined up and we got in the back. The captain said, "All right. Security needs to be tight today. Keep your eyes peeled. Dismissed." Most of them were picking up their shields and whatnot, in no hurry to get to their posts and relieve the watches, when one of them said to the two of us, "Hey, you two still haven't upgraded your old guard uniforms?" I looked down, not having thought about the fact the guards now had a gold-and-green upgraded uniform. Though, here and there a guard would have a coat or helmet from the old style. The priest had given Vala and I an entire set of old guard armor. I growled. "Nostalgia, I guess," I said. "Hey, aren't you a little short to be a Markarth guard?" The man said as he strapped his shield to his arm. I thought fast, "I mean, I'm a new recruit. My dad was a guard back in the day. He wore this armor. Sentimental value." As the rest of the guards had already walked out, I smiled at him, "Hey, want to show me where the new armor issue is? I'm probably due for an upgrade." "It's all the way across the city," he smiled back, "C'mon newbie, I've got an extra set." He walked over to his bunk and tossed me a neatly kept set of armor and a helm that covered my face with a coif. I changed into it behind a divider. Before he could say anything else, I grabbed Vala and walked out of there. "Well, he was nice," she said. I was blushing under the helmet. He was nice. I decided I would not kill him. I would follow guards for a while and pick one out who was somewhere between disgusting and corrupt. The attack was over, and we walked past a few giant mammoth corpses. We slipped into an overhang and waited for a while. Two guards stopped by the river. I watched them for a while, but when one of them started talking about his kids, I decided I didn't have the heart for that one. "What are we waiting for?" Vala asked. "The right moment," I replied. We waited there for a while I think my bleeding heart was getting more apparent the longer we waited. She pursed her lips, "Out of curiosity, Listener, how old are you?" "How old are you?" I asked back. "I asked first. I'm 24." "Fifteen," I said flatly. "Really?" "Don't be so surprised. How old were you when you killed the first time?" "I think... eleven," Vala replied, "It's just, you're so young." "What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, "You think I'm not doing a good job? That I'm not capable because I'm still technically a child?" I paused, then I said, "Do you think that my mother shouldn't have let me be swallowed up by this organization in which I have no idea what I'm doing? I mean... honestly, if the Night Mother thinks I'm fit to be her Listener... I wonder if this organization deserves to die out." "Well, no. I was thinking you seem like you really know where you're going in life. If you've made it this far by fifteen, just think where you'll be when you're thirty." "I dunno," I smiled a little, "Probably dead." "Well that's not a very positive way to look at it," Vala said. "I used to be positive. But I realized when I got into this, I have an impossible standard to live up to - my mother is the Dragonborn. I'm just stumbling around in the dark," I sighed. "I'm sure it's not all that bad. I've heard a lot of stories about the Dragonborn, but you know what - she's not a member of the best organization in Skyrim. The Dark Brotherhood!" "Actually, she is," I said flatly, "She just has the whole 'saving the world' to take care of right now. Call it a sabbatical." "Well, she may have helped, but you're the one who rebuilt this organization." "Still rebuilding. Also, she was the one who killed the Emperor," I said, then I noted two guards across the river. "What are those two doing?" I asked. "Uhh... looks like they're dragging around a Forsworn woman. She looks like one of the captives from the raid earlier," Vala replied. "Okay. Our moment," I took out my greatsword and dove into the river, using stealth like my mom taught me. When I surfaced, the guards - one on each side - were wrestling with her. One held her body, the other her legs as she swung and kicked at them. "What's that?" The one holding her body asked, and I plunged my greatsword through the other's back, lifting him up off the ground. Damn, I am getting strong. About time to upgrade to a heavier sword. "What are you~" The guard continued, but Vala grabbed his face from behind and slit his throat, and the woman dropped to the ground. He sputtered, gurgling loudly. I pulled out my greatsword from the first guard and beheaded the second guard. Can't make noise if you're decapitated. They both collapsed, rolling into the river. The forsworn woman, covered in blood, terrified, ran off into the wilderness. "Okay!" I shouted, "You're welcome!" "Nobody saw us, did they?" Vala asked. "Nah. I was looking around. We're safe. Now back to the guard station," I said. We went back to the tower and I put on my best distraught face. "Sir! There was a fight between two guards by the river! They're killing each other!" "Fighting?" The captain asked, "Why?" "They mentioned something about a woman coming between them!" I said, acting distraught. "No! Unacceptable! You two!" He pointed to a couple men off duty, "Go check by the river!" "You two," he pointed at us, "Wash up, get out of that bloody armor." "Yes, sir," I replied. I walked back over to the bunk of the man who'd lent me the armor and wiped it off as best I could, then I switched back into the old guard armor and we went back to the temple. For some reason, I kept the helmet. Carved into the back of the noseguard were the letters, 'H.K.' Curious. Hroldar was tending to the Talos statue, "I've already heard the news. They're going to have a full investigation of guard activities of corruption. Here's your payment, plus a bonus. Expertly done. Maybe this will make a difference in stopping the feuding for a while." We collected Cicero and Stabby, and I didn't ask questions about what they'd been doing. When we got back to the Sanctuary it was night again, and about time to sleep. We came in through the secret entrance, and BAM! The sounds of summoning and teleportation. "We're under attack!" Nazir drew his scimitars. Babette, Averna and the twins rushed down the stairs to aid us, Undil shooting magic from the next chamber. We took them down, but not without some wounds. I imagine they were expecting a much smaller retinue, since there were only four and we had nearly a dozen including all the anonymous Initiates. "What the hell was that?" Stabby exclaimed. "It was the godsdamned Morag Tong!" Nazir stabbed a scimitar into one of their necks. "But we're not in Morrowind. The Morag Tong have no jurisdiction here," Averna said back. "One would need a lot of money to convince these assassins to come all the way out here," Stabby said. "I bet it's those damned Bruma contracts! You killed someone really wealthy and powerful, and now their friends are coming after us," Averna growled. "I thought these contracts were for various individuals. But it seems they're all part of the same cult," Stabby scratched his chin, finally sheathing his daggers, but then pulling them out. Probably his 'thinking stabbers.' "Stabby, you better get your shit together," Averna poked him in the chest, "Find out who these people are before there's another attack! I went over to Dawnstar today to get some food and the guards are interrogating everyone, trying to find Brotherhood members. They know who we are because of this. We need to teach these pompous skeevers not to mess with the Dark Brotherhood!" "You're absolutely right," Stabby said. "Don't you tell me I'm right!" Averna yelled, "Oh wait, you think I'm right?" "Listener, I'm going to stab some information out of people. Meet me under the arch of Solitude, tomorrow night," Stabby said, then he walked out the back entrance, daggers still out. Cicero may have looked a little dejected, but she walked upstairs and was working on the Night Mother as I approached. "Good work on all fronts, Listener," her voice boomed in my head, "The blood of Lachance has passion. Do you believe that passion can be controlled?" "Definitely," I said back. "I have another mission to help train her. Talk to the Lonely Shopkeeper in Whiterun. So begins another contract," she said. I immediately hit the hay. In the morning, Vala, Averna, Cicero and I headed to Whiterun. It was definitely dangerous to go alone now. And when we crossed the bridge going into Whiterun, a Bounty Hunter group called out to us. "Halt. Vala Amatius, Averna, Runa Fair-Shield - you are under arrest for crimes against Skyrim. Technically, also, crimes against the Empire. But we're not here for that." "So Cicero can go free?" She chuckled, dancing a little, "Perhaps Cicero will go to Jorrvaskr and dance for the Companions!" I ignored it and said, "So how much is the bounty now?" "Ten thousand septims, to be paid by Solitude," he replied. "I can pay that... but," I took out my greatsword. "That's my kind of leader!" Averna went invisible. She stabbed one of his men in the back, but he turned and fought back. These guys were for real. They tried to use the paralyze strategy on us again, but to no avail. Amusingly, the guards did not pitch in either way. I guess they figured this was a little above their paygrade. When we finished cleaning up, we again found a boatload of cash and food items, and this time a fair bit of equipment I figured I would sift through later. We cruised over to the shopkeeper's house, and found it was marked 'Olava the Feeble,' the fortune teller. When I knocked on the door, a Redguard man let us in that I'd never seen before. I knew Olava was getting old, I guess she died? And this man bought the house, Coyle Aldwyr. "Are you the contact?" I asked. "You must be the people I prayed for," he replied, "I'm not sure I can do this... I'm beginning to have second thoughts." "Please, it's okay," Vala said, "Tell us what we can do to help you." "Well," he blinked, sitting down, "There's a witch in Whiterun. She put a curse on my family. I know... she's been eyeing us since we moved here. I just wanted to make a new life for us after moving from Hammerfell. But over the past year, every member of my family has ended up dead. All... natural causes. No disease, no poison, no obvious murder. Just, dead." "How do you know it was her?" Vala asked. "The other night, I was visiting my son's grave. And I saw his spirit. She was doing something to it. I'm not a fighter. I can't do anything to her on my own, especially a powerful witch," he continued, "On occasion, she goes to a tomb outside Whiterun and keeps notes there. But I know she shows up to the Hall of the Dead here at around 2 am, every night." "Find the notes, kill her, and free your family? Easy enough," Vala said. "If it were easy, I wouldn't have contacted you people," Coyle said, angrily, then he said, "I'm sorry. I'm just frustrated. I have one more request after that, if that's okay." "Go on," I said. "After you've killed her and freed them. Kill me too. I can't go on," he said. "We will do this," I said. We traveled to the crypt he'd marked on my map, killed a few draugr, and snagged her notes. Easy. Then we returned to Whiterun and got a meal at the Bannered Mare, wasting time until nightfall. When it was almost time, we went over to the Hall of the Dead and lied in wait for a few hours. The witched showed, and didn't even try to act like a normal person just hanging out in a crypt in the middle of the night. She straight-up just started firing spells. So we slapped her down. The actual job wasn't too hard. When we got back to Coyle, he was sitting at that same table. He hadn't had any intention of sleeping tonight. "Is it done?" "Yes," I said, and laid the notes on the table, "She hadn't done any harm to them, yet. We can carry out your request, if you like." "Thank you, now I can go to Sovngarde, rather than be stuck here in perpetual limbo," Coyle said. I walked up behind him and stabbed him through the chest. We locked up the building, and went back to the Mare, sharing a midnight meal. "Listener," Vala said, "I have an idea for another recruit." "Who?" "A Bosmer that I've been friends with since childhood. She works at the Solitude docks." "That doesn't exactly sound like the best fit." "You'd have to meet her." "Alright, I'll humor you," I said. We slept at the Inn. She went and kidnapped her friend, and I got Nazir to line up one target in the Abandoned Shack (short notice). I wore the Markarth Guard's helmet and Vala wore her Shrouded Hood and we stepped inside. "What..? Where am I?" "Arine Mosshollow, we brought you here to test your killing skills," Vala said as she unhooded and unbound Arine, "The person behind you is a Dark Brotherhood contract. Kill him." "Vala, is that you?" Arine asked. Oh bollocks. "Dammit," Vala said, "I was trying to scare you. How'd you know it was me?" "Like I wouldn't recognize my best friend's eyes and voice," Arine replied. She stood, "What is going on? The Solitude guards say you're wanted for murder. That you killed three of them?" "Do you remember Dawnstar?" "That was ten years ago. That thief was trying to take more than just our money. That was just self defense," Arine replied. "Maybe. But what you did to his body certainly wasn't," Vala replied, "Remember the second thief who got away? And what else did we do?" Arine turned to me, "Who is this?" I pulled off the helm. "Don't worry. She's a close friend," Vala said, "What else did we do?" "We performed the Black Sacrament. Over and over. After a week, we stopped," Arine replied, "The Dark Brotherhood is a myth." "We're no myth," Vala said, "We heard your prayers. We found the second thief." About that time the man in the back started coming to, "What is going on here? What is this on my head? Where am I?" "I don't know if I can do what you asked," Arine said in a small voice. "Of course you can," Vala encouraged. Arine pulled off the hood. "You! You killed my partner all those years ago. I swear I'll kill you!" The man said. Even though his hands were tied, he lunged at her. Arine drew her dagger and stabbed him in the head. Gurgling, he fell backwards, dead. Arine dropped her dagger and ran. "I'll go after her," Vala sighed. I made my way over to the arch of Solitude alone. I set up a small camp and took a nap until later that night. Then, I found a small boat and rowed across the water, finding Stabby standing with a man, just like he said he would do. "Listener! How the hell are ya? I made a friend." "Friend?" The man said. He was definitely drunk. Stabby handed him another bottle of something, "Tell her what you told me." "Ahh, Argonian Black Rum. Good stuff, makes everyone happy," the man downed the bottle in only a couple gulps, "Well this guy was asking who put a bounty on the Dark Brotherhood. I told him what I tell everyone. If you want to know who's behind something, follow the money. Who was hurt by your lot killing the Emperor? The Metal Barons. The Silver-Bloods and the Gold-Loves. The Gold-Loves own the East Empire Company and the Cyrodiil Mage's Guild. The Silver-Bloods control the silver trade and Cidhna Mine. The Empire wasn't going to renew their deal with these families, so they paid to have him killed!" "I would buy the Gold-Loves having a member on the Elder Council, who is who really contracted for the death of the Emperor, but the SIlver-Bloods?" I shook my head. Stabby pulled out his daggers and immediately stabbed the guy, killing him. I blinked, "You didn't have to kill him! Tiber Septim's ghost! He was still giving us information." Stabby continued to wail on him as he talked, "Honestly, I think the Gold-Loves might have had something to do with it. I agree on your assessment of the SB clan." "Yeah, who would you have us kill me kill? Thongvar? Try again," I said. I went back to the Sanctuary. It was morning when I got there. I approached the NM again. "Our family grows, every day. Once this sanctaury is full, we will have to fill the others," she said, "Find the Wayward Alchemist in Winterhold. So begins a new contract." "Business is booming," Nazir said as I passed, "Will theer ever be a time when the people of Skyrim don't need our services? I think not." "Vala," I said at the bunk room, "We have more contracts." "So soon? I feel like this is nothing but go, go go!" She sighed, putting her shrouded uniform on, "I got Arine. She's here, and seems to be wanting to begin training." "No time for rest." "So, new family or contract first?" "I feel like new member of the family," I said, "Nazir, what do you have for me?" "An Orc. Time for kidnapping?" He asked. "Yep. Have him at the shack and we'll be there later," I said. "No problem," he chuckled, "We are resurging and I love it!" Later that day I brought Cicero, Averna and Vala to see the Orc. Can never have too much protection these days. Vala walked in without a cowl. "Guess we just don't care anymore," I said sarcastically. "Want a family? People who will accept you for who you are?" She asked him. "Sure," he said. His name was Azuk gro-Olpac. "I can give you that and more. You just have to do one thing for me. There are three people behind you. One of them has a contract out on their life. Find out who and kill them." She untied him, and he actually went through the trouble of questioning them. He killed the one on the right. "Which one was it?" Azuk asked. "It doesn't matter. You're in, if you want in," I said. "There is a black door in Dawnstar. When you get there you will be asked a question. Innocence, my brother is the answer," Vala explained. "How do you pick your targets?" Azuk asked. "We don't pick our targets. They're chosen for us," Vala replied. "How? The Black Sacrament?" "Well, yes." "How do you do it?" Azuk asked. "You need a skull, bones, flesh, and a heart," Vala explained. "Like this?" Azuk dropped all the things she'd mentioned. "I admire your spirit, but why?" Vala asked. "Like this?" He asked again, more insistant. "Yes, Encircle the effigy with candles. Rub Nightshade petals on a dagger and begin to stab the effigy," she explained. He set up the ritual there and said, "As I stab, what do I need to say?" "Sweet mother," Vala started, and Azuk started to repeat after her, stabbing, "Sweet mother, send your child unto me, for the sins of the unworthy must be baptized in blood and fear." "Now what?" Azuk asked. "Now you would wait. But I don't understand what you're trying to do-" And then, I heard her voice, "Listener..." She fed to me an image of a Khajiit of some kind, and the Silver-Blood Inn in Markarth. You know, the not-safest city in Skyrim, where people get murdered constantly and it keeps getting attacked. "I won't wait! What do I have to do to kill someone?" Azuk said angrily. "If you were a client, that would've alerted the Night Mother, who would've informed the Listener." "Ahem. She just did," I said. "What? There's no way," Vala said. "Yep. I'm as surprised as you are. Maybe she's curious where this leads," I said. "Okay, contact, who is the target?" Vala asked. "A Khajiit in Markarth," Azuk replied. "Does he have a name?" Vala asked. "Probably." "Are you serious?" Vala asked. "Meet me at the Silver-Blood Inn," Azuk said. "Can we go now?" One of the other prisoners said. "Oh, no, all of you that were picked are either scum, or murder targets. You're going to be cattle for the Volkihars if you're not killed here," I explained. I hopped in the little boat I'd taken from the arch of Solitude and rode with Vala to Markarth. We got there without incident. "Why are there so many people here?" Vala asked. "Party," Azuk said. "A party? This is not a good idea," Vala said. "Sit at the bar. Listen for Gortwog," Azuk said. He seemed to be thinking. I sat down at the bar, and a few seconds later (I'm not even sure if he said the word) Azuk stepped up and snapped a Khajiit's neck. Off duty guards swarmed him and carted him off. "Cidhna mine for you!" One of them shouted. "What the fuck just happened?" I asked. "I'm not entirely sure," Vala replied, "Should we break him out?" "Yeah, I guess." "How do you propose we do that? Brute force? Subterfuge? Waiting for him to serve his sentence?" Vala asked. "Hroldar owes us," I said. We went over to the temple and I fond him there, tending to the statue again. "What in Talos' divine undergarments are you going here?" He asked. "I need to break a... misguided Orc out of Cidhna Mine," I replied. Hroldar sighed, "Okay. I have a friend who is a high ranking guard. I can help you. Give him this note. But after this, don't take it the wrong way, but I never want to see your pretty face again." "Aww, you think I'm pretty?" I smiled jokingly. Then I headed over to the mine. A rough Orc woman guard rebuffed me at the entrance, but then I showed the note to Irbran. "The one who murdered a guy, right in the Inn? Usually I don't support letting murderers out. But Hroldar's note says you've done great service to the Forsworn. I have family that are Forsworn. Wait here." We got him and got the hell outta there. Azuk asked us to follow him, leading us to a small hidden cave. The floors were littered with pouches of gold, and there was a table with armor on it. "I don't get it," Vala said, "This is what we were doing this for? A full set of Orcish armor and ... remains?" "Ever heard of Gortwog?" "He was an Orc king, right?" I asked. "These are his remains, and his equipment. The Khajiit plundered them, and was going to sell them. You can have the armor, as payment." "No. You take the armor. It's very well made. You can use it to make the Brotherhood stronger," I said, "Besides, I'm more of a light armor girl myself." "Try out heavy armor sometime. You might like it," Azuk said, "I'm going to bury him, and go to the sanctuary." I sent Vala back to the sanctuary and did a quick side contract from the NM in Morthal, killing a Lumberjack. Luckily, the lumber mill was being attacked by Goblins and Durzog at just that moment. He joined in the fight, but, sadly, neither he nor the opponents made it. And I went back to the Sanctuary. Azuk was already there when I got back. "Hey, where you from?" I asked. "Skyrim," he replied. "You're a man of few words. This is like trying to get blood out of a stone," I sighed. "Why would anyone do that?" "It's just an expression." "I'm from the strongholds. The chief's wife made a pass at me. When I was honorable and said no, she lied and got me banished. Actually..." He started. "Yes?" "Would you be willing to help me with something?" "I know where this is going," I said. "I could do the sacrament again..." "It's fine. I'll do this one for free." "Alright, I would like the Chief's wife dead. Morzoga ga-Urgash. If you bring me her heart, there's something extra in it for you," he chuckled. I approached the Night Mother again. She gave me two missions: one from the Corrupt Penitus Oculatus Agent (again, man, this guy really knows how to hold a grudge) and a Frightened Salesman in Solitude. And she wanted me to bring Vala. New Mod:

Hey, it's me, Destana. This is going to be a little different today. I have a lot of ground to cover. Last time I was building Windstad Manor. And let me tell you - it took a while. After such a large job, and fixing people's problems for such a long time I decided I wanted a break from all this adventuring full-time. The Thieves' Guild runs itself. I kill a dragon every now and then, but whatever is making them return still hasn't revealed itself. I clear out a bandit camp, I still go to classes occasionally at the College of Winterhold, though I've kinda outgrown that level of skill. I'm seeking the master test in Illusion, which I latched on to to augment my stealth. My second baby was born (another boy) and I named him Fenrir. Fenrir Stormcloak or Fenrir Stormblade? I guess that's for him to decide. This baby with Nord-looking hair, but my skin and eyes. And I can confidently say he stayed brown, because not a lot happened for the next seven years. Damien is 8, Fenrir is 7. Runa is 15. She filled out pretty well, though she's a bit of a stick. The kids are all learning the basics of fighting. Damien wants to be a wizard and knows a couple basic spells I taught him. Fenrir is training to fence with a sword-and-shield, with a little archery like myself. I was mystified by Runa's choice - she learned how to handle a greatsword at a young age and never puts the thing down. At some point last year I took her to the UNP Clothing Store adjacent to Haafingar Hall and we both got new clothes/armor. Dunno what UNP stands for, maybe Ultra Negligent Protection, because it all barely covers the body like armor, but seems to have some kind of enchantment to give it higher defense than a lot of the armor on the market. Also, seriously, why is all the best stuff in Solitude? A little background - you remember the Jail Master I've been asking around about? I searched for him off-and-on over the past seven years, but nobody seems to know where he operates out of. Keep this in mind. So one day, I took Fenrir and Runa out on a small hunting trip to kill the Horkers that have been annoying us near Windstad. Damien refused to come. He didn't explain himself, but I wondered if he thought it was beneath him, being half-daedra, or an aspiring wizard. I shook my head and said to Sanguine, "You take care of him." Eventually we came to the big group and Fenrir and I aimed and started to fire. They charged, to which Runa and I drew our melee weapons and laid into them. She held her own for a while, but I did the bulk of the killing - I have a lot of experience in this. As I looked around, Fenrir was nowhere to be found. "Ma, he's over there," Runa pointed, panting. I walked over to Fenrir, who had been cowering behind a tree. "Sorry, ma. There were like thirty of them!" "More like ten," I smirked, "You don't have anything to worry about with me around. If they'd gotten even one tusk on you I'd shout them into next week." Fenrir sighed, "I'm no good at this." "It's alright. You can go back to the manor," I pointed to it, just barely visible. When he'd walked away, I said to Runa, "Been practicing shouting?" "No luck so far," she replied. "Maybe I should take you to see the Greybeards. It come so natural to me, I don't know how to teach it," I folded my arms, "Although... they probably don't want to talk to me now with how I talked to them last time I was there." "Mom, I don't think I can shout like you," she said. "Well, you're a Nord, so I assume you'll be able to figure out one or two," I smiled, "Don't worry. It'll come. So what do you want to do now?" "I was wondering if we could go to Windhelm." "Odd request. Why?" I asked. "I was wondering how Aventus was doing. He's old enough to move back into his family home. He sent me a letter I got a few weeks back," she explained. "I saw that in the mailbox," I said, "Alright. It has been a while since I saw Ulfric." We took Windstad's carriage to Windhelm - seeing as how I cannot keep a horse for any length of time. I approached the Palace of the Kings first, and Ulfric and Galmar were standing near the big brazier. "This is maddening!" Galmar shouted, "They've still not made you high king yet." Ulfric nodded, "And we've seen a lot of Thalmor activity around the borders. Ah! Stormblade! Its been ages!" I smiled at him. I would admit, I've always had an attraction to him. "Hey Ulfric," I said, "The Guards' new armor looks pretty amazing. And all the remodels." "We were able to take a lot of the money from the vanquished imperial forts and funnel them into the holds. Not just this one," he replied. "Are you... taller?" I asked, "You've definitely been working out. Even Galmar looks good in his new armor." He grinned at me, saying nothing else on the matter. "Who is this young lady?" Galmar asked. "That's the orphan Runa Fair-Shield," Ulfric said, "Destana adopted her right after our campaign. What brings you to Windhelm?" "Going to see her friend. And..." I started, looking at him, "And you, of course." He smirked. I wonder why he'd never married? Never seemed to even have women at all, for any length of time. At the time, Runa had been fiddling around with things. Just kinda walking around messing with things. She'd sat down on a wooden-covered hatch like a cellar door cleverly concealed next to the stairs to the Palace. "C'mon Runa, let's go see your friend," I said, approaching. Then I looked at the label on the hatch. Written in very tiny letters, the old words, 'Lower Dungeons' had been scratched out, replaced with a hand written, 'Jailer's Place.' I furrowed my brow. No... it couldn't be. "Get up a second," I said, then lifted the planks. There was a wooden ladder leading down into a deep dungeon. Looked like it was in a state of disrepair. "How long has that been there?" Ulfric asked Galmar. "Long as I've lived here," Galmar replied, "We don't use the old dungeons though." Curious, I climbed down the ladder. Runa followed. At the bottom was a dark hallway, but it led to lit torches. If the Jarl thinks this isn't being used, and it is... either some crimes are being committed, or they were about to be. I licked my lips, going to stealth like putting on an old glove. I turned a corner and peered into a room. Inside was a noble and several slaves playing out some kind of fantasy. He saw me, but he went back to what he was doing. I didn't actually care about him, though I was very confused about what was going on here. I looked at another door, which was locked. Hard, but not for me, I popped it open to reveal an empty room. "Mom, there's another locked one here," Runa whispered, and I popped this one easily. "You're so good at that," she smiled. "Guildmaster's gotta be able to impress," I said. Nothing in that room either. We came to another room that looked like it was under the Jarl's throne room (maybe thirty feet) and the same style as that room, but it was completely bare. We passed a female noble in the hallway who was sitting at a chair in a strangely placed alcove. We checked another room, to find a group of slaves just confined to the room. I didn't bother them either. Was keeping a low profile for now. Finally, we came to a common room with only a couple torture devices but also with a table and chairs. And.... "What is it, mom?" My nostrils flared as I looked at her, look of pure rage on my face. "Back out," I said. We walked around the corner and I said, "You should probably go visit your friend now. Do you know the way out?" "Why? Who is that man?" She asked. "Trust me. It would be safer if you left now," I said, not wanting her to see what I was about to do. I KNEW I was going to do some of the most unspeakable things imaginable because I was much, much stronger now than I had been when I saw him the first time. I'd finally found him. The Jailer. "I... want to help you mom," she said. "No. Get out of here," I said angrily. In this time he'd come out of the room and taken the immediate left (we took the further away right) and found the noble sitting at the chair. "No. I'm going to be a part of this. Obviously you're very passionate about something," Runa said insistently. I sighed, noting his movement. I knew it was now or never if I was going to get the drop on him, "Alright. But I am about to do a lot of things you're probably going to have nightmares about later." I turned the corner, and realized the Jailer was fucking the noblewoman. Of course, consensually. I got out a dagger. This was going to be personal. But then I sheathed it. This was going to be even more personal than that. I walked up on him fucking her doggystyle. I took the riding crop, two swords and his bow from his gear. Then I got right behind him. He was about to finish. At once I whispered, "Remember me?" And when he turned (and came), I clocked him in the mouth. He fell to his knees and I slammed my gloved fist on top of his head. He passed out cold. I looked up at the noblewoman, "This man has committed crimes against humanity. Do you want to join him, or forget you saw this?" She shook her head, "We all hate him. He's really strong. I'm not going to stop you." Then she walked away. Considering him, he actually did seem really strong. Stronger than me, even. How does one with so much power become like this? Why not just overthrow a Jarl and take his place? Who knows? I took out a kit from one of the bondage rooms. I pulled out some rope and bound his hands and feet. I looked over to Runa, "Sure you want to watch this?" "What did he do to you?" "He raped me. A hundred times. He paraded me around Solitude and let every random man who wanted to rape me. He whipped me," I said, "Who knows how many others he's done this to." I pulled the ropes extremely tight. I pulled my clothes off, piece by piece. Then I pulled a belt and a strap-on from the kit and strapped them around my waist. I grabbed the riding crop and whipped the Jailer a few times until the started awake. "I'll ask you again, do you remember me?" I asked. "N~no," he stammered. He started to yell, unaware of what was going on, and I stuffed a cloth into his mouth, tying another around his head so he couldn't talk but he could see. I tightened the links again. "You will," I replied, thrusting the strap-on into his ass. He screamed against the bonds, but almost so sound came out. I kept going like that for a while until I became bored. I put my clothes back on, wondering why I'd taken them off in the first place - I guess it was habit. I decided I would whip him for a while again, all the while he begged for mercy. Eventually I pulled out the gag so I could enjoy it. When he tried to scream again I started punching him in the head. I hadn't looked at Runa the whole time, but when I looked at her then I could tell she was terrified. He fell onto the floor again, out cold. "Sorry, I did warn you," I said. "Are you...done?" She asked. "Well I didn't exactly pay him back, but I think I did enough. Now to get creative," I said. I tied him up very tightly into a ball and threw him into a sack. I walked past Ulfric and Galmar, still arguing about the moot. I said hi, and they didn't suspect anything. I got a horse and we rode with great fervor back to the north. I knew just the spot. I ran across the ice fast enough that Runa could barely keep up, but eventually we reached the Serpent Stone. I set the sack down, feeling around for where his body parts were oriented. "Brace yourself," I said to Runa. Then I stabbed him in the lower belly. He screamed, but I did it with such precision that I knew the wound would take him hours to die. That is, if he didn't die from exposure out here. I cut open the sack. He rolled out, prone onto the cliff behind the Serpent Stone. And that was my mistake. As soon as he became aware, he readied a green spell and cast it in a great cloud. I fell to my knees, limp, as did Runa. We'd been standing on the cliff's edge to we both toppled onto a lower ice shelf. I struggled, paralyzed. "Fu~fu~fu," I screamed, but no intelligible noises came out of my mouth. The Jailer hobbled over to us, having casted a restoration spell to stop the bleeding, then he pulled the kit from my back and tied Runa up and blindfolded her. "I'll .... kill...." I started, but he blasted me with another paralyzing spell. "Such dirty women need to be punished," he said, haggardly. He pulled out a red leather... thing from the kit and casted some kind of very advanced spell, transposing my clothes with the suit. I was utterly restrained in every way imaginable. I was mittened, armbindered, pony shoe'd, legs bound together, suited in a binding dress, but not gagged or blindfolded. As the paralyzation wore off I hobbled toward Runa, who was frozen in fear. "I tell you what," he stammered. I'm sure he was still in an amazing amount of pain, and in his underwear in the freezing tundra. He said, "I'm going to punish her first." "You son of a bitch! I'm going to rip off your every limb and eat it!" I screamed. "What's.. happening?" Runa said, terrified. "Don't worry, honey," he caressed her cheek. Of course, he was fiddling with himself to get ready and it was freezing. And... he turned toward her. I took a sharp breath. I was a master thief. This was fucking nothing! But how to go about this... I was a mage too! I casted Unlock on the mittens. Talos praise Alteration. Then I used Telekinesis to grab a lockpick from my pack and toss it into my hands. I rolled and acrobatically picked the lock on the legbinder. Then I dropped the lockpick. FUCK! I turned to find he grabbing her by the face. By the will of some daedra, maybe Molag Balls, he was hard. "Hey, asshole," I said. He turned his head. I had to think of something fast. "What?" My eyes lit up with glee. "You should've gagged me!" I remembered a third thing. Something I never wanted to admit. I was Dragonborn. "TIID - KLO!" Time slowed to a crawl. "FUS -..." Runa's ears perked up and she knew what was coming. She fell back, flat on her back. "RO - DAH!" I shouted, and the Jailer flew backward, time still crawling along. In the intervening time, I'd gone back to the Greybeards and pleaded for them to teach me the last word of Unrelenting Force. They denied me, so I went and looked for their damned Horn. Turns out, It'd been stolen by the woman in Whiterun - Delphine. I hadn't bothered to go back to her after our initial meeting, just went back to the Greybois. I used the extra time to grab another lockpick and pop the lock on the armbinder. I freed my arms, readying Elemental Bolt on both hands. I took two steps forward, then as the time dilation stopped, I fired a bolt toward the Jailer. It wouldn't be enough, though, so I pulled out my bow. The tried-and-true method of killing a man with an arrow. I drew an arrow. I knew he'd have to surface soon or he would never surface. I spotted him on the far shore. He was barely holding on to life. I took a deep breath, still only wearing the red binding suit, and fired. The first arrow hit him between his shoulder blades. The second, in his lower back. He got to one knee, holding his wound. I shot a third one, now that he was stationary, and got him in the back of the neck. I quickly untied Runa, cut the red suit off me and threw the lot of it into the Sea of Ghosts. Then I put my normal clothes back on, building a fire with Destruction and wood I had in my pack. We warmed up over a couple minutes silently. Then I started to walk towards him. "He's dead, mom," she said. "I'm just making sure," I said back, hopping across the ice again. He was lying there, bleeding, freezing, "Please..." That was all he got out between his shivers. Runa put her hand on my shoulder. I raised an eyebrow. What...? She kicked into the water. "Good riddance," she said. I've heard drowning is one of the worst ways to die. I mean, hopefully. We traveled back to Windstad and found the boys sitting around the fire on this cold evening. The first thing I did was hug my husband. "Damn you're cold!" He said. He didn't ask what we'd been through until the kids went to bed. But he got pretty mad when I told him what happened. Not the murder, I mean, he's a Daedra. But the nearly getting myself killed again. And what almost happened to Runa. We laid down together and not much more was said. A few hours later, I heard a sound. I silently got up, walking through the house. The boys' room was across from ours. Safe there. I went downstairs and passed by Valdimar's room - he was snoring. I wondered if that's what it had been. Then I went over to Runa's room to see a dark figure standing over her bed. I crept over to it, stealthily drawing my dagger. No fool thief or whatever was going to get the best of me. I wrapped an arm around the target's waist, another putting my dagger to their throat. "This had better be one hell of an explanation. Or you're going to be sleeping tonight in the Sea of Ghosts," I whispered. "Destana," the woman said. "Who...?" I said, "Is that Astrid?" "Yes, sister. It's been awhile," she replied, "Could you take your dagger off my throat?" "Promise you're not here to kill Runa," I commanded. "No, no. That's not my intention. Quite the opposite, actually." "Opposite?" I sheathed my dagger, "You're going to make her double-alive?" Astrid giggled, "No, silly. And where have you been these past few years?" "I heard about a lot of murders, you guys seem to be doing pretty well on your own. Since the Night Mother came back," I said, leading her into the common room with the big table, "I had a lot going on." "I understood. You have," Astrid gestured, "All this now. You're a guildmaster. I figured I'd let it slide. We have an understanding with the Thieves' Guild. If we really needed you I would've called on you." "So, how are things?" "Not bad. Can't complain." "So why are you here, creepily hovering over my daughter?" I asked. "You really don't remember, do you?" She asked. "Remember?" "You performed the black sacrament to kill that Jailer," Astrid replied. I pursed my lips. Oh yeah. When I'd found no way of killing him myself, I figured the other assassins could do it. I'd even gossiped about it with Babette. "That girl told you, didn't she?" I asked. "Yup. I took on the job myself, since even you couldn't find him," she said. "So why are you here? I killed him. I'm still a member, right? No problem," I shrugged. "I was following you until the last. When I caught up with you, what I found was a sweet, innocent girl kicking a man into the ocean to freeze to death. Almost as inspired as your first kill," Astrid replied. I put my head down on the table, "And now she owes a kill to the brotherhood. Shor's bones." "Yup," she said. I sighed, "I'm not sure if she can handle this." "Killing none of the targets was always an option," Astrid explained, "Or even me, if you were skilled enough." "Am I allowed to... sit in or anything?" I asked. "No. That would taint her decision. I want this to be a real test," Astrid replied, "Your sweet, innocent girl will make whatever decision comes naturally to her. But don't be surprised if it's not the one you expect." "Fine!" I said, "But I don't want anything to happen to her." That night I figured out how Astrid does it. A sleeping poison. Makes them sleep so deeply the brotherhood initiates can carry the target to the shack. Conveniently not very far from here. I didn't get to see what happened in the shack, but I did wait up the rest of the night to see her emerge in the morning. Her blade had blood on it, which is not what I'd hoped for. "Did they at least deserve it?" I asked. She nodded silently, "How do you know about them?" "I'll tell you all about it on the way to the sanctuary," I replied, grasping her hand. New Mods for Time Skip:

Hey, it's me, Destana. After my second trip to Solitude, I felt like I could take on all of Nirn. I figured I could scope out Windhelm, do a smaller amount of crime, and go back to Riften and finally get somewhere with the Thieves' Guild. I cut straight through the wilderness, as is my way. You know, nature is beautiful. The peace. The solitude. Miles away from civilization. Nobody to tell you you're wrong. Nobody can find you. I remember being on a cliff in a forest somewhere outside of Windhelm when a hand appeared on my shoulder. "I've been looking for you," the man said. "Talos!" I shouted as an expletive, turning and putting my hands on my weapons, "Who are you? How did you find me?!" "Got something I'm supposed to deliver - your hands only," the man said. "How the..." I stood there puzzled, "Are you a bounty hunter?" "I just told you I'm a courier," he mumbled, "Let's see here..." "I've got a letter and a lot of gold. Something about it being your inheritance? Oh, and... sorry for your loss," he handed over the letter. I took it. While he walked away, I stared at him, at the letter, and back to him. "....What??" I said to myself. I ripped open the letter. It read, 'Destana, by order of Jarl Balgruuf the Greater it is with great regret we inform you of Octava San's death. The deceased bequeathed unto you a measure of inheritance in the amount of 250 gold pieces....' Blah blah blah, I trailed off as I read. "But how in the hell did this courier find me, and know who I was. And why would my former owner bequeath such a large amount of gold to me?" I said out loud. I was a nobody. Clearly the Courier was a master tracker and real hunters and guards could learn something from him. Also, it was nice that Octava gave me this money. I looked at it in my hand. Being an adventurer, it was logical she had a will. I felt myself wondering if she had a family, or a home, or someone to love. Why throw your life away in a life like this? I mean, I'm doing it, even now that I have a place to live. So, I can't really say much about it. I walked down the road a few more miles, nearly there now. Coming to the top of another hill, I found an Orc standing there. "You... you a bandit or something?" I asked. Damn, I probably should've snuck up on him or shot him with an arrow or something. "I am waiting for a good death." "I can respect that, I guess. What do you mean by a good death?" "If I just laid down and died, it wouldn't please Malacath." "Okay," I smiled a little. I immediately liked this guy, "I can understand the want to die honorably. Maybe I can help you. Give you your good death." "We shall see," he smiled. "Before that though, want to feel the touch of a woman one more time?" I smiled big now. His eyebrow raised a little, "Why not. You're pretty good looking." "Only pretty?" He chuckled. It was easy. Immediate alchemy between us. We smiled at each other, taking off our clothes quickly. He picked me up and held onto me as he thrusted. I felt like I needed rehabilitation from my experiences with prison and slavery. And that was it. Good sex. Good love. We redressed. "Now how do you want to do this?" I smiled as I drew my sword and dagger. "Help!" A woman screamed nearby, down the hill. We rushed toward the commotion. Two bears, baring down on a traveling wench and her bodyguard. The 'old' orc rushed in first, me switching to my bow. As he fought out in front I lodged arrow after arrow in the bears. I was amazed at how much punishment he could take. We finished off the bears. "Thank you. You saved our lives," the wench said, continuing on her journey. I squinted at the orc. Had he not let his life be taken because he wanted to protect us? Was he just too much of a badass to be taken down by a few measly bears? He was slowly walking up the hill now while the ladies walked down. I approached the Orc silently, stabbing him in the back. Sorry, I never said I was honorable. He fought bears and sabre cats recently, he was slashed up as hell. Seemed pretty good to me. He fell to the ground. I stabbed his sword in the dirt. I wonder if Orcs have any sort of rules for being buried to make it to the afterlife? I continued toward my goal, finally reaching the gates of Windhelm after a couple days of travel. I immediately found two nords accosting a dunmer as the sun set. Accusing her of being an imperial spy. Not really my problem. First thing, my job. I pulled the massive tome that was my rapidly filling quest log and book of maps from my backpack and slammed it down on a stone outcropping. I always wondered if carrying this thing was going to give me back pain later in life, but I assumed my big boobs just offset the difference, altogether giving me strong meaty legs. My target: Stands-In-Shallows. Steal a ring from him. Okay, sure. I looked at the map of Windhelm, and it made sense that he would be at the Argonian Assemblage, that name being distinctly Argonian. I walked down to the docks. Passing through the seedy part of town where all the non-Nords lived, I started to wonder if all Skyrim was just as cruel as Solitude. Maybe the Jailer made his rounds here too. I took out a big, thick quill and scribbled on the first page of my quest log "Kill the fucking Jailer." Then I closed it again. I went through the motions, as always. Go in the door. Sneak. Walk up behind target. Take thing out of pocket. Be tempted by other stuff in pockets. Today, decided not to press my luck. Now that job is done, look around for anything valuable. This time I didn't find anything. Nothing worth taking. These people must be really bad off. I decided to stroll around, even though it was getting late. Beside a locked shop I spied an interesting sign, 'Pit Fighters Guild.' Interested in more ways to make money, and finding it one of the few places not closed in these parts, I stepped in and down a set of stairs. A man rested against the doorway, one of his eyes white after having been slashed through or somehow destroyed from some old war or battle, "Come here to mock us or do you want to fight in the pits?" I shrugged, "Why not. Does it pay?" "Of course. Talk to Sirollus." Inside the few members of the pit fighting guild were training with dummies, shooting archery targets, some were sleeping or having a late evening meal. I turned the corner to find an imperial sitting at a desk, "Come to join the last vestiges of the paladins?" I nodded. "Very well. Talk to Gerich when you're ready to fight," he pointed to the man who'd greeted me at the door. I turned and there he was. "No fights scheduled at the moment. I'm going to sleep," Gerich said. When I turned I realized everybody had gotten in their beds and was now asleep. I squinted. These people make this so easy. Even Sirollus was now fast asleep after only a couple minutes. I looked at the full coin purse on the table where he'd addressed me originally. 'Hmmm...' I thought, 'the people here don't seem to be doing too well.' I decided against what I was thinking. I walked out. Maybe they'll be more lively next time I stop by. I turned to find a beggar (maybe a little older than me, not old or haggard) named Angrenor. "Here," I reached out my hand, "Have a septim." "Oh thank you," he responded. You know, there's a real problem in this province. On that cold night, I thought to myself one day I may be in a position to do something about it. But not that day. From there I wandered around for a bit. Happy to be out of the gray quarter with all the muck and sadness, I went about picking locks and stealing valuables. This time, without any kind of contract. I just like stealing. Not from the gray quarter people of course, from the other side of town. After not getting caught yet again for a couple hours, I found myself on a bridge. A child said, "Then it's true. Aventus Aretino is performing the Black Sacrament to summon the Dark Brotherhood?" Idesi, a dunmer woman responded, "Nonsense. He's doing no such thing." "Then I'll invite him out to play," the kid said. I didn't approach. I didn't even listen to their conversation further. Rather, I decided this was a good time to look into the nearby house. Again, barely locked. "Sweet mother, sweet mother..." A child's voice came from within. I remember some of the kids in my neighborhood playing such games, wishing death on some of the more nasty adults. I stepped inside to find... in shock, the child had actually drawn a huge symbol on the ground, had a human skeleton and ... was that meat human? Where does a child get - "Finally! I knew you'd come!" "Uhh..." I smiled weakly. "Now that you're here, you can fulfill the contract!" "Contract?" "My mother, she died. I was at the orphanage in Riften. I want you to kill that horrible matron. Grelod the Kind. She's cruel and evil." "Uhh... sure kid," I smiled again weakly, backing slowly out the door. As soon as I shut the door behind me I thought about it. Why would I kill the matron of an orphanage. Surely, this kid was exaggerating. Probably a spoiled child by the look of his house. The Dark Brotherhood is bad news. But are they real? I was never really sure about that. Best not tempt fate. And I only usually murder if I have a good reason. Having had enough of robbing for the day, I decided I would go to the Gnisis Cornerclub. Unfortunately, this didn't seem to actually be an Inn, so I went to Candlehearth Hall instead. Realizing I still had the Lute in my pack, I said to the bar wench, "I'd like to play here." "Sure," she said. I strummed a little bit on rhythm and people loved it. People got dancing. They gave me a few coins, and a free room. So, I guess I'm a bard now. I'll need to actually practice as I travel and get better at this. Not the worst sidejob I've had. And, because I was a little lonely, I made a friend in the Hall. 'Friend' is a little strong. Acquaintance who I let put his penis in me is more apt. In the morning, I went back to the Pit Fighter's Guild, who now had a fight for me in Windhelm. I signed up, practicing my stealth and fighting tactics until it was time. Later that morning, I stepped out onto a small, shabby arena with nary a soul watching me. It wasn't too hard. I had to kill a skeever; which I've been doing since I took that exterminator job back in Hammerfell, a wolf; who'd I'd killed a couple of in the wild. But then, a troll. I did my usual dance, crouching behind an object, waited for him to come out and I stabbed him with my sword and dagger combo. The Dragon's Oath burned him a little, but this one hit back! He slugged me in my side with his fists and I backed off. This would be harder than the basic animals. I took a swing and backed off when he swung back. This tactic worked a few times and I figured I'd have this in the bag before long. Then I noticed his wounds were closing - quickly. I sighed, taking out my bow as I strafed him around a couple things. When he finally closed the distance again I laid into him with sword and dagger, thinking I would overcome his regeneration with swift damage. Finally I got the upper hand and I sliced him across the belly, spilling his intestines on the ground. He dropped, and I sighed in relief, feeling pretty hurt at this point. I casted the basic healing spell I'd learned from perusing random books as we walked back to the Pit Fighter's HQ, then collected my winnings. "50 gold? Really?" I sighed. If this is how honest people make their living count me out. I almost died. I walked out of there right away. This would not entice me again until I was waaaay better at combat. Lastly, I walked up to the Hall of Kings. The guards didn't have any problem with me walking right in. Maybe 'adventurers like me' were often seen walking through these doors. Or maybe the stories that Ulfric shouted High King Torygg to death were true and he didn't need a big guard retinue. A long hall opened before me. Ulfric Stormcloak sat on a throne, flanked by his steward and a warrior in a wolf hood, Galmar. They stared at each other, like they'd just finished a heated discussion about tactics, or politics, or somesuch meaningful banter. As I approached, Ulfric said, "You're a brave one, approaching a Jarl uninvited. What do you want?" I cleared my throat. I wasn't always the confident person I am now about speaking with high ranking people. After all, I'd spent some time in dungeons because of people like him, "I came here to join your cause. I don't like the Empire. I hate the Thalmor." "Why would a Redguard want to fight with Nords?" Galmar asked. "See, that's what gives me pause. I'm not just a 'Redguard.' My name is Destana. I live in Skyrim, for the time being anyway. I like Nords. They're a proud warrior people. I think you have a huge untapped resource in your lands of the Dunmer, Bosmer, Redguards, and everybody else who'd want to live in a free Skyrim. Or, at the very least, hate the Thalmor and want to kill the lot of them. I'm one of Talos' biggest fans and I want to see him worshipped, so if you'll have me, I would fight for you." A smirk crept onto Ulfric's face, "Destana, eh? Galmar. Test her. I want this one in our ranks, but she's got to show us more than convincing words." Galmar muttered something about 'Imperial spies,' then he said, "Alright. Take these. Go to Serpentstone Isle. Kill an Ice Wraith." I squinted at him as I took the frost resist potions, "Do all your recruits have to do jobs like this?" "Just you," Galmar chuckled. "Right," I said, "I'll do it." And I stormed out of there. Of course, I definitely was in no shape to make that journey yet. I would go back to Riften and build up my skills for a while with more Thief work. "Oi, Vex, you know whatever happened to that cheeky new recruit we sent on all those crazy jobs?" Delvin asked. "Well, I've pretty much given up on the lass doing the beehive job. Need to find someone else willing to do it. Vex?" Brynjolf kicked his feet up on the table. "No way. Tried it once. Not going again," Vex shook her head, "You think maybe we were too hard on her?" Delvin blinked, "I don't think I've even seen you show any such compassion." And then I approached the table they were all sitting around next to the bar at the Ragged Flagon. I set down gold, jewels, precious objects on the table between them. "Wow," Brynjolf grinned. All the thieves guild in the flagon gathered around. "You owe me 200 gold," Tonilia said to Vex as she approached, "She came back." "I didn't do all the jobs. But I did most of them. Also, I need a fence," I said, pulling the Imperial Dragon Cuirass over my head and laying it in front of Tonilia, as well as the Gauntlets, Boots, and all the random things I'd stolen. I'd left myself naked above the waist, but I didn't care. "Talos! This is a king's ransom! Where did you steal it from?" Brynjolf asked. "All over," I replied. "Oi, are those scars new?" Delvin asked. "Yes," I said, "Also, could I get another set of Thieves' Guild armor?" Tonilia smirked, "It's going to take me a couple of days to fence all this. If you don't mind waiting, I can get you a new set of armor in the meantime." I nodded, sliding those clothes on that I'd stolen from the farmer, "I'm going to sleep for... a few days." I walked to the small bunkroom and immediately collapsed on the bed to the right. It was midday, but I slept all the way until the next morning. I went and got my armor from Tonilia and went back to bed for another day. The night of the third day, I was awoken by the sounds of conjuration magic. I flipped in the bed to look at him, a man standing over my bed in bound armor and greatsword. "You here for me?" I shouted, hands on weapons. I'd slept with them at my side, remembering the mentions of bounty hunters. "Pay your fine or come with me to jail," the bounty hunter said. "How did you find me?" "If you can't tell, I'm a spellcaster. A simple locate spell," he showed a toothy grin, "And I followed the smell." I would need to look into learning more about magic later. The first thing I did was leap from the bed, pulling my weapons with me and dart into the next room. I ran down the hall and into the flagon where, as it was midday, a half a dozen thieves were relaxing around the bar and tables. The quick ones could see my astonishment as I drew my bow and rounded. The hunter hadn't immediately gave chase. Instead, I heard more sounds of conjuration. Arius the bounty clearer, Vex, Delvin and Tonilia were on their feet at once, drawing weapons (the barmaid merely stood, perplexed). Three bounty hunters and entire guild of thieves met at the crossroads by the door to the Cistern. I could already hear their weapons clashing. I drew an arrow and shot into the fray, then a couple more, but it proved hard to hit my targets as they dodged and thrusted at their opponents. I decided to drop the bow and charge into the fray. Brynjolf and Ra'skaar (the new fence) emerged from the other bunkroom, flanking and then dividing the bounty hunter boss from his two companions. I crouched, bided my time and as soon as Delvin and Vex had hunter 2 occupied I came up behind him and jammed sword and dagger into his back, lifting him off the ground a little. His bound armor vanished and he fell to the ground. Soon Galathiel the face changer stepped in to support Tonilia and Vekel with magic as they continued their fight with hunter 3. This one wasn't going to let me get the drop on him, but at the point it was six on one. He got a staggering blow off on Vekel, knocking him down, but the group's continued onslaught brought him down. Vekel and Tonilia embraced as their opponent's armor vanished and he crumpled. Finally I joined the defenders (Brynjolf and Ra'skaar) in the big bunkroom along with Methridel, a woman I'd never seen before. Ra'skaar fell to the ground as we entered and Bryn looked pretty bad. (Seriously, who are these guys?) I took out my bow and shot the hunter a couple times while Methridel fought, and he seemed to be casting a quick restoration spell to heal himself, but soon the rest of the thieves poured into the room, dogpiling on the bounty hunter and eviscerating him. I sat on the floor against a wall as we all caught our breath. It took a dozen people to beat those guys. After a second I realized I'd been hyperventilating about the prospect of going back to prison. "I would be toast without you guys," I said finally. "Mess with a guild member, mess with us all," Delvin nodded, "Curse be damned." Brynjolf helped me up, "All eyes are on you, lass. Best get to that job." There was a great cheer and they all walked back towards the flagon to get hammered. I checked the packs of the now naked hunters. Blah, probably all conjured stuff. "Wow," I said, pulling Stalhrim and Ebony Arrows, hundreds of gold and for some reason, about thirty pounds of sweet treats out of their packs, as well as some decent spell tomes. I sighed in relief. For certain, this was the point when I decided it was Thieves' Guild for life. Next: Goldenglow Estate and Whiterun!

Hey, it's me Destana. I just wanted to have an aside for a minute. This is one of the worst parts of my journey. I was abused, I was downtrodden. Generally a bad time. Skyrim will chew you up and spit you out if you let it. I think this contributed to me being as hard as I am now. Probably contributed to me being an amoral asshole absolute killer too. To continue my story... Day 0: The Evening in Jail The guards all took turns beating me with whips and fucking me. What is it about Skyrim guards that makes them all devoid of human sympathy? Only a few scars this time. I collapsed on the pile of hay in the corner. Day 1: The Pillory The next morning the jailer dragged me to the city, naked. I had to stand all day in the square, butt hanging out in the stocks. Surprisingly, nobody took advantage of me, hanging out like that. I just had to be out in the sun. All day. At the end of the day the jailer took me back to my cell and had his way with me again and whipped me. I didn't have the will to fight back anymore. Day 2: X in the square The next day I was again brought into the square, chained to a big wooden X and made to wait all day. A few people came by and groped me. But that was it. That night the jailer had his way with me again and whipped me, but none of the guards joined in this time. Already old news, I guess. Day 3: The Blue Palace "The Jarl requests your presence," the jailer said, waking me up. He slapped me in my irons again. The next thing I knew, I was thrown in a cell in the Jarl's palace and the jailer went off to do some business in the palace. There was a mirror, a wash basin, plants... food and drink that hadn't been carelessly thrown on the floor. As I laid on the green bed I realized that for the first time I was comfortable. As I looked at myself in the mirror I realized just how out-of-body I'd been the last few days. I was covered in red stripes. I touched a few, still burning from all the whippings and realized I'd have a roadmap of scars that would never heal. I slept again, and nobody bothered me for at least a couple hours. My first visitor came by a couple hours into my sleep. Dressed in sleek-looking steel armor and no helm with a dirty face, it was the housecarl Bolgeir Bearclaw. The jailer didn't come with him but I imagine the conversation went something like this: "Hey Bolgeir, want to see the new treat I brought for the Jarl and her men?" The Jailer smirked. Bolgeir stoically grabbed the Jailer by the collar. He thought for a second, then said, "Give me the key and don't bother me, you freak. I'll lock up when I'm done." He wasn't rough like most the other men. He wasn't loving by any means. It was a facefuck. But when I started to choke he slowed down. Then when he was done, having said nothing, he left and locked the door. The second visitor was a no-name guard a few hours later. The Jailer watched him and when he was done, he said he'd had better and they left after dropping food and water on the floor. Third visitor was a woman named Una. It was super quick, her not even bothering to take her clothes off. She told me to lay down, hiked up her skirt and got on top of me and I realized.... this woman had a dick! Maybe that's why she'd been so secretive... a rare sight in Skyrim. Though... she wasn't really much of a looker. As I laid there and took another dick for the hundredth time against my will I robotically thought about my cycle. Thank the gods I wasn't near ovulation. IF I ever got out of here I thought might need to take a few Potions of Damage Fertility. And with that, the day was over. The Jailer left me in the Jarl's palace. I overheard him talking to someone. Apparently the Jarl had been very busy planning her husband's funeral and hadn't had time for her or her inner circle to take part in their new playtoy (me). Of course, he had to fuck me one more time before he left. I remember him choking me this time. Day 4: Jarl's Palace Part 2 Just when I was getting used to the comfort of sheets and an actual bed, I was dragged out of my slumber early in the morning. "Shh!" The dunmer shushed me. It was a thief, burgling the palace. I scanned the room, realizing he'd picked the lock to my cell and let himself in. So it must be unlocked now. For the first time in days I saw a glimmer of hope. "You with the guild?" I whispered. "You kiddin me, lass? I'm startin' me own outfit! Shut up while I get mine and I might just leave the door open for ye," the thief grinned. He pushed me on my back in the bed and started, but he only got about halfway through before the guards rushed in, having been alerted. They fought and killed him right there in the cell and relocked the door. Damn. Later that day, my fifth visitor was a housecarl named Erikur. I think he held his arms behind my back and took me from behind. Barely memorable. And then the sixth visitor: Another random guard. He didn't even bother to take his helmet off, which was probably good for him. I wonder if he could see the murder in my eyes. However, he did decide to do an anal jackhammer. With that, the day was over. The jailer threw food on me again, not even bothering to fuck me. Gods, I can't believe I just said it like that. Day 5: Jarl's Palace Again. Orgy Day. My seventh visitor came pretty early in the morning. And to this day I can't remember his name. Redguard with the traditional 'redguard garb,' which to me sounds like a racist statement by the Nords who labeled the clothing, but whatever. Perhaps sensing a kindred spirit in this harsh land he wasn't rough. He gently had me suck him and then he went doggystyle. "Thanks," he said when he was done. "You don't have to thank her you fool, she's basically meat," the jailer said to him. My eighth visitor was a little different. A little older, but still pretty good looking, I believe it was Olfina Grey-Mane the barmaid. That's not the interesting part though. Apparently she'd requested a threesome with me and the jailer. For once, this actually felt pretty good. Only five days and I was starting to sympathize with my captors. I had already taken an interest in the Jarl's problems. Speaking of which, it seemed the court had let up in busy-ness that night, because our threesome drew a crowd. When we changed positions from being fucked while Olfina sat on my face, I noticed the Jarl was sitting on the bed in the onlooking room. Erikur, Bolgeir and her steward Falk Firebeard were standing around her, cheering for us. I remember Falk calling me a whore (which... you try being a prisoner!!). The court wizard Sybille was there too. Watching us inspired them to start grouping up and fucking. First, Sybille with Erikur. The jailor and Olfina finished and left and I was stuck there, watching. I remember thinking Elisif must be lonely from her husband passing as she took got DP'ed by Falk and Bolgeir. (Dammit, I'm doing it again)! It's easy to look back on these times with nostalgia and not be despondent about it. As they say, there is a sickness in this land that needed to be cut out. A mission that I have still not yet accomplished. Day 6: Parade In the morning the jailer came and got me in the morning and took me outside. I wasn't sure if we were going back to the actual prison, or the pillory or whatever. But he just told me to walk. When I hesitated for a second, he whipped me mercilessly. Gritting my teeth, I took off. But he had some form of invisible leash, and he pulled me off my feet. At this point, a crowd had started to gather and they heckled me. Just what I needed. After a few hours of walking in circles and being beaten, I was put in an outside cell. It was a good 40 feet off the ground. I considered escaping, but I was worn out. I slept on the pile of hay on the iron grate under me, my naked burning skin exposed to the elements. I woke up shivering several times, thinking I was going to freeze to death. Day 7: The Wheel In the morning the Jailer yanked me down from my perch, a group of guards catching me. This, like the pillory, was ultimately more boring than anything. Nobody bothered me, but it was very uncomfortable. We sat there until midnight. (Seriously, does this guy not have any other prisoners to torment?) Day 8: The Inn At midnight, the jailer said, "The local drunks need entertainment, and you're going to provide it." He pulled my invisible leash until we were at the Winking Skeever. He locked me in a room by myself and threw some old bread and a ... mana potion on the ground while he went to find would-be rapists. I drank it. It was fluid. Fuck it. He came back in two minutes with two men. I don't even think I ever knew their names, but one fucked me from behind while the other facefucked me. When they were done the jailer force-fed me an 'Archmage,' a drug that worked kind of like a potion, but started the user spiraling down the road to addiction. Moments like these... I had to wonder if I was going to make it out of this experience alive. This was a dull fear. Not like the Thalmor attempted rape, which was me hanging off a cliff. This was a slippery slope to a pit of spikes that I was clawing at to stay alive. And losing. The men dumped me on the inn floor and I remember weeping as I lay there. A small child approached my naked and broken form and said something child-like, but my entire consciousness was getting hazy from lack of food and water. Tears staining my cheeks, I decided I was going to do whatever I could now. I was an animal backed into a corner. The jailer had walked off, making the error of leaving the child in the room with me. Obviously the kid of a barmaid or some such. "Call... for your mother," I whispered, "I'm a dangerous prisoner." The child seemed to immediately realize she was in a deadly situation because she called for her mother to unlock the inn room door. "I think she's in here. Oh thank goodness!" The mother shouted as she embraced her daughter. Perfect. There was a dagger on her hip. Thank Talos. Using all the strength I could muster, I stealthed and shut the door behind her. I checked the woman's goods and lifted the Steel Dagger from her person. Then I waited. The door slid open again. The Jailer stood there as the mother and child filed out. I'm a monster, but I'm not that much of a monster. Yet. I jumped forward onto the jailer's back and stabbed at his throat. He turned and laughed. (His health bar barely moved!) He knocked me to the ground, clapping me one more time and I fell unconscious. Day 9: As I woke up back in the original prison, the jailor smiled through the bars. He opened the door and pulled me out, like he had so many times. As I dragged my feet along, he led me outside. Another parade? Gods, I was so tired. Suddenly he turned to me and said, "Have you thought about how bad it is to break the law?" And of course, I had a gag in my mouth, as I often did while we were travelling. Realizing his mistake, he smirked, and said, "Don't answer that." "I was originally going to free you on day 10, which is coming up." "The reason the hold trusts me so much is because I can rehabilitate prisoners in two weeks or less. That is my guarantee. You know how I have a 100% track record?" He paused, but, again I couldn't answer. "Because the ones that I don't rehabilitate in that time I sell to the Riften Slave Auction," he smirked before he blasted me with a green-tinted spell. I dropped to the ground, paralyzed, "Can't be clubbing you over the head. Don't want to damage the merchandise. After that stunt you pulled yesterday you're lucky I didn't skewer you." And then everything faded to black.