"I promise you, if we ever get out of here I'll marry you. I swear it, Iskyla. This may be the worst damned place on Nirn but I'm glad I was thrown in here just for the fact that I got to meet you." A smile grew on my face at his words. His Morrowind accent was thick and always made him pronounce his words differently. I could sit and listen to it all day. Despite the darkness in the room I could see that his normally stoic face was tinged pink.
"And I can't wait for that day, Tedril. We'll get out of here someday. I don't care if we have to break out, I want a life with you." He smiled softly and pushed my grayish hair behind my ear. The normal white had been dulled by weeks' worth of dirt.
"You're so optimistic, my love."
"I have already been in here nine years. I have to find something to grasp at. If not I fear I may lose my mind. " He simply smiled in response and pulled me closer to him.
"You're so damned brave. The bravest woman I have ever met. You've been in here a big portion of your life with no sign of being free any time soon and yet you find reason to smile and have hope," he said softly. I just smiled in return. His lips pressed softly into mine and I was lost in the moment.
Sunlight began to shine through the cracks in the walls. We pulled apart knowing the guards would be storming into the hall at any given second.
"I love you," I whispered softly to him.
"I love you too," he replied seconds before the door burst open and guards came storming down the hall shouting orders as loud as they could. They seemed to do that a lot. There were never orders given in a normal tone of voice. Tedril glanced over at me after he saw the guard that would be attending us today. A knot built in my stomach but I held my head high and held out my wrists as was the normal routine.
"Good morning, prisoners," the Imperial guard snickered as he slipped the cuffs onto my wrists. He said nothing as he cuffed Tedril and dragged us both off to whatever physical labor they had planned for us today.
The dream violently jolted me awake. Tears streamed hotly and relentlessly down my face. I haven't dreamed of him in so long, I could not remember the last time. Sobs shook my body as control over my emotions slipped away. The image of his lifeless body was forever burned into my brain and nothing could ever shake that image from my head. The stress of the entire situation finally came to a peak and control over everything tore loose. Sobs tore relentlessly through my body and left me exhausted. Despite there being a barren bed in the cell, I haven't used it once since arriving here and my body ached from lying on the stone floor.
Once the sobbing finally receded, anger grew in the pit of my stomach, slowly consuming me. I am the fucking Dragonborn. I have fought and defeated dragons greater in power and strength than everyone in this damned cave combined and I let a single poisoned arrow take me down and place me in a helpless situation. There are just common bandits! Nothing more. It's not like they are Thalmor or Imperials! I growled deeply and punched the bars of the cage with all my strength.
"Aye, a little aggressive today aren't we, pet." The same bandit who fed me yesterday brought me more food today. He wore basic fur armor and had his head shaved close. My eyes raked him up and down determining how much of a threat he could pose. "Don't worry, you won't be sittin' in that cage all by your lonesome for long. Boss'll be back before the end of the day. Reckon he'll want a little fun with the new pet." A low growl moved its way from deep in my chest to my throat. The glare I sent him could have killed a wolf dead in its tracks.
"Ey, no need for that now." He reached through the bars and stroked my face. I hissed and twisted my face in disgust before turning away violently. "Well, better 'ope the boss is your cup o' tea or you're in for a hard time." He turned and walked towards the entrance of the room. He gave one last glance back at me before disappearing down the hallway. I looked at the food he left me and my stomach turned. I fought back a retch and stood facing the bed.
I stepped towards the bed and lightly pressed my weight against it. It creaked menacingly. My body ached all over and I longed deeply to be unconscious again. Maybe if I am asleep when the boss finally arrives he'll leave me. Not much of a chance, though. I sighed heavily.
A loud commotion came from down the hallway. I turned and faced the natural doorway. Voices yelled and objects were thrown around none too gently. The sound echoed through the entire cave system. What any of them were saying didn't reach me. Footsteps came violently pounding down the hallway. Another lighter set joined the heavy stomping. Shit. A tall Nordic bandit in much more expensive armor stormed into the room. The silver plated armor gleamed menacingly in the torchlight. He was nearly as big as Farkas. The same bandit that had been feeding me followed behind meagerly. Fear shone brightly in his eyes as he looked at the Nord. He was more than likely the bandit leader. I stared bad at him without wavering.
"So," the leader started, his Nordic accent coating his words thickly. "You are the little pet that got picked up." He strode closer to the cage and watched me with predatory eyes. I never broke eye contact. He moved more gracefully than the other bandits, but he lacked skill. He's still a bandit, leader or not. "What is a Companion whelp doing so far from Jorrvaskr? Hmm? Did those dogs send you to wipe us out? Did some scared little Breton hire you to destroy our little band?" I sat there expressionless glaring into his hardened eyes. His gaze reminded me way to much of the way the Imperials in the prison would look at me before they decided they wanted a little fun.
"Not talking, hmmm? Fine. Have it your way. It'll be more fun for me in the end," his voice dropped to a growl at the end. He motioned sharply for the cowering man next to him to give him the key. A shaking hand transferred the key to my freedom over to the hulking Nord. Every muscle in my body tensed as I prepared for a fight. The lock clicked and he swung the door open with full force slamming it against the side of the cage. The bars vibrated with the resounding force. The Nord stormed in and towered over me as I sat on the bed. There was nowhere for me to flee and I frantically glanced around for a way to escape. The looking distracted me from the Nord's hand until it was too late. His hand came down, smashing me in the temple. The force sent my body flying and my head smacked into one of the bed posts. My consciousness slipped away in a cry of pain.
