Chapter 8
Fredas, the 8th of Sun's Height, Year 202 of the 4th Era
Daenerys winced as she awoke. Her head was pounding like some small animal had crawled inside her skull and was banging with a hammer to get out. For a moment she thought she was back in the Temple of Dibella, but the hard rock floor she was laying upon was much less pleasant than the soft bed in the temple. Her jaw ached and she had a loose tooth. She couldn't see much, but she was in some kind of cell. There were bars in front of her. Heavy chains linked the cuffs on her writs to the manacles on her ankles. She reached out a hand to push herself up and encountered something sharp. When she looked down, she found Molag Bal's mace had followed her again. She pressed against the wall instead and leveraged herself up into a sitting position, swayed, and leaned against the wall. She remembered rushing to save Eltrys, and a fight, but what happened after? Where was she?
After a little while the spinning died down, but she still felt unsteady as if she was on a ship at sea. She took several slow breaths and looked around. She was in a tiny cell. Not deep enough to lie down in, not tall enough to stand up in. She had just enough room to crawl around and little more. She was tempted to heal herself, but there was a guard right outside her cell and he was watching her. That made her put aside any thoughts of healing herself. Healing magic let off a golden glow. It wasn't that bright, barely noticeable in daylight, but in this dark room the guard would certainly notice. She decided to watch, wait, and learn.
She was wearing prisoner's sackcloth. That meant someone had stripped her naked and dressed her, but at least she hadn't been beaten, tortured, or raped. At least not yet. Looking out she could see other cells like hers. They stood two rows tall, just large enough to stuff a person into. Judging by the angle, she was in the top cell because she was on eye level with the guard.
She couldn't see the guard's face due to his helmet, but it looked like he was staring at her. He was most likely a Nord based on his height and build. He did not wear the chainmail and circular shield with the ram's horns of the Markarth guards. Instead, he wore leather reinforced with steel plates. The armor was popular among Nords, lighter and cheaper than steel plate. His left hand was free, but a kite shield lay on the floor next to him leaning up against the wall. The shield depicted a crossed red hammer and pick dripping blood upon a field of silver - the emblem of the Silver-Blood family.
Between the Silver-Blood soldier and a rough-hewn cell, it was easy to guess where she was. Criminals in Markarth were sent to the silver mines for the slightest crimes. Senna had told her that mere vagrancy carried a six-month sentence. While that was better than being handed over to the Thalmor, she wondered what the sentence was for asking questions and resisting arrest.
"You, prisoner," said the guard with a voice that sounded familiar. "I've been warned that you are a daedra worshiper. There are two other guards right outside this cell, so don't get any funny ideas." He glanced around before walking up to her cell. He was as tall standing as she was sitting in the upper cell. He placed one finger in front of his mouth in a hushing gesture. He lifted his helmet and revealed his face.
No wonder his voice was familiar! She knew him. "Mathon?" she whispered.
"I can't free you, but I owe you, priestess, and I don't believe you're a daedra cultist. I can let you heal yourself, but you should do it quickly."
Daenerys didn't need any more prompting. She quickly channeled healing magic. The ache in her head and her jaw went away. Along with the headache went the feeling of being seasick. "Can you tell me how long I'm in for?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know. I'm just a guard. I don't make decisions around here. I can't let you go. There are other guards and... I'm sorry."
Daenerys wanted to yell at him for not doing more, but alienating a guard who was secretly her ally wasn't smart. If she was patient there might be a better chance to escape later. "What about Eltrys? What happened to him?"
"He's in the cell below you. He got beaten worse than you, but he's alive."
That was at least a little bit of good news. "Would you let me out to heal him? I'll give you my oath to Talos that I won't try to escape."
"That could get me thrown into the mines with you!" he hissed. "Gods. Fine. Make your oath, priestess."
"As Talos is my witness, I swear that I will do nothing more than heal Eltrys, and then will return to my cell without a fight."
"Gods, I must be a fool." He took a key and unlocked her cell door.
Daenerys climbed out and dropped to the floor. She landed on her feet and immediately stretched her hand through the bars. She touched Eltrys and channeled healing into him.
Eltrys woke up and starting stirring. "Danyen? Where am I?"
"Shh, the guard let me heal you. That's all. Don't make a fuss about it, or they may beat you up again. Stay quiet, be patient, and follow my lead."
"I don't understand," replied Eltrys.
He was healed enough. Daenerys stood and looked at Mathon. She could Shout at him or summon the mace, but two guards waited outside, and she'd given her word. "Could you give me a boost?"
Mathon didn't bother with a boost. He just picked her up so she could climb back in. He closed the door behind her with a clang. "There. I helped you. We're even now."
Daenerys wasn't letting him off so easily. She turned and looked at him. "Are we? You have taken the first steps to redeem your honor. Was this little bit of aid truly worth your life?"
Mathon shoved his helmet on. "I can't do anything else. There are other guards and gates. I might be able to slip you something later in a few days or so."
Daenerys nodded her head at him. "So, you say. It's not me you have to answer to, it's the gods."
"I'll try," replied Mathon. "No promises, but I'll try."
Daenerys curled up on her side. She knew that having a secret ally among the guards was a good thing, but she still felt bitter. She had refused to yield to the temptation and go down swinging Molag Bal's mace. It had been the right thing to do, but she might have escaped. If she had Shouted. If she used the mace. If she had set the werewolf inside her free. Five guards in front of her. More coming down the stairs. As a werewolf she could have killed them and then… what? Kill the whole city? Flee over the wall? Or more than likely been caught and immediately killed as a murderer or a werewolf. She hadn't had much time to think it over, but it had been the right choice. Hadn't it?
She had done nothing wrong that they could prove. She had defended herself when attacked. They didn't have the corpse of Vigilant Tyr. Her main crime had been to ask questions. If vagrancy was punishable by six months in the silver mines, how bad was asking questions? It wasn't like she had even found anything shocking. The Forsworn were killing Nords. Bretons were dying in return. None of that was really a secret. After wallowing in doubt and second-guessing herself she tried prayer. It wasn't like there was that much else she could do, but she couldn't recapture the peace of mind she'd found in the Temple of Talos. Eventually, she slept a little despite the discomfort of the stone floor.
Sometime later, she was awakened when several guards wearing the same armor as Mathon marched into the room. Most of them were Orsimer and the rest were Nords. The guards hauled Eltrys out of the cell below her, then they opened her gate, pulled her out by her chains, and dropped her on the floor.
"Get up!" yelled an angry-looking battleaxe of an orc female. She had more muscles than most male Nords even if she was shorter and green.
Daenerys pushed herself up. She had seen enough of soldiers in training to realize that these guards would probably want to make an example, so she complied quickly. Eltrys didn't move as fast as she did.
The female orc punched Eltrys in the stomach. "When I give an order, follow it!"
Eltrys folded and would have collapsed, but two of the guards grabbed him by his arms and held up upright.
"All right, prisoners!" called out the same orc female who seemed to be in charge. "Eyes front both of you. You're in Cidhna Mine, now. I don't care if you used to be some fancy-dancy rich man or a prissy priestess of Talos. We expect you to earn your keep. There's no resting your hide in a cell in this prison. Here, you work. You'll mine ore until you start throwing up silver bars. You got it?"
Daenerys nodded her understanding. "I've got it."
"When will we be released?" asked Eltrys.
All the orcs laughed at that. It was the same female who replied. "You're here for murder. You two will never see the light of day again."
"But, we didn't kill anyone," protested Eltrys. "We were trying to find out who was behind the murders."
"And we don't care. Now shut up about it. You keep it up, and I'll have your toes cut off."
Daenerys gave Eltrys a look and shook her head slightly. It was unfair, and they didn't murder anyone, but he needed to shut his mouth. Bound in chains and outnumbered like this was not a time to fight. However, she also remembered that being compliant and going along with guards had almost gotten her raped. She kept her eyes open hoping for an opportunity to escape.
The orc waited a bit and then she smiled. "Good. You might live a little while down here. Take them away."
They were forced marched down a corridor to an intersection with a tunnel that led down. The tunnel was poorly lit but some of the guards slung their shields on their backs and carried torches. Daenerys was thankful for the light because there were tracks on the floor for minecarts. Walking in manacles was hard enough without trying to avoid tripping over the wooden slats. Even being careful she still stumbled more than once. Eltrys didn't just stumble. He fell twice. After the second time, she kept a grip on his arm and helped him walk.
The downward tunnel took them past two raised portcullises. Each was solidly built of thick iron. They were widely spaced allowing for many men to be trapped in the tunnel between them when they were lowered. Shortly past the second portcullis was a third portcullis, but it was lowered blocking their path.
The orc captain came to a halt. "End of the line. You two wait here. We'll lower the middle portcullis and unlock you. Then we'll raise the bottom portcullis and you two go on down and get to work."
Daenerys quickly stepped away from beneath the second portcullis and gave Eltrys a tug to make sure he hurried as well. Once the middle portcullis had lowered completely into place, the guard captain came forward. She unlocked Eltrys first and then her.
"Raise the lower gate!" she called out. "As soon as it's raised, get moving. Remember, you don't work, you don't eat."
"Ma'am?" asked a guard. "Should we give them a torch? The switchback is dark." He looked the same as the other guards, but by his voice it was Mathon who asked.
"You want to give them a torch? Fine. Give them yours."
Daenerys grabbed the torch Mathon passed through the portcullis quickly least the orc captain change her mind. "Thank you."
Mathon gave her a nod through the portcullis and walked away.
She turned to Eltrys. "Let's go." She waited while the final portcullis was raised and ducked under and past as soon as it was raised high enough. Eltrys had to duck lower, but he followed her.
She was thankful for torch as she led them down. The tunnel was steeper here and without the torch they would be stumbling along. Hopefully, Mathon would continue to aid her. Eltrys followed as they continued down into the dark.
The portcullis dropped behind them with a loud crash of iron against stone.
"Be alert," warned Daenerys. "They no doubt heard that below. Stick close to me. I can't protect you if you wander off."
"You're still going to protect me?" asked Eltrys clearly confused. "We're not getting out of here, I'm never going to be able to pay you."
Daenerys shrugged. The money didn't matter. Not anymore. "Yes, I'm going to protect you, as best I can. I gave my word."
"Thank you," replied Eltrys. "For staying by me. I'm sorry that I got us into this."
Daenerys blamed herself more than Eltrys. "You can repay me by sticking to me like I'm your wife. I know you're married, but I doubt there are many women down here. Most men will force a woman if they think they can get away it… Come on, enough talking, let's go find out what's waiting for us."
The tunnel past the portcullis went through three switchbacks before it finally arrived in a large cavern. In addition to the mine tunnel they'd descended from there were three other exits to the chamber. Each exit was blocked by a set of iron bars. One barred exit lay directly in front of them, one to their left and one to their right.
Behind the bars in front of her was a large bare-chested orc male. His face was painted white to look like a skull which only made him look more intimidating in the dim light.
She glanced quickly to her left. Behind that set of bars, two Nord men regarded her. They were large and their beards were huge and unkempt. One of them took off running.
"Oi! Bretons!" shouted a voice from the third opening. "Over here! Hurry. You don't want to be with them! We take care of our own."
Daenerys glanced over and saw two men. The one waving at her was obviously a Breton even if he wore his hair in the mohawk style, but the man beside him was a Redguard by the color of his skin.
"I know how you want to take care of her, Odvan!" called the Nord from the left tunnel. "You'll all 'take care' of her. Don't listen to him, lass! We Nords still have honor! We won't make a whore out of you!"
"What do we do?" asked Eltrys.
The bare-chested orc started laughing.
The prisoners had obviously split up into gangs. The gang with the orc was obviously out. That meant the Breton/Redguard side or the Nords. Given the way Nords treated Bretons in Markarth, Daenerys didn't trust them. "We go with our own kind, Eltrys! Where else?" She said it loudly so that everyone would hear. She put her words into action and hurried over as fast as her manacles would allow dragging Eltrys with her.
"Odvan!" yelled the Nord. "You can't have her! You've already got two whores. We haven't had a woman on our side in too long! We will go to war over this!"
"Looks like you're unlucky again, Grisvar! You'll just have to keep buggering Skorjan," taunted Odvan. "Both of you hurry up, we need to get you through."
Daenerys and Eltrys reached the gate. From the cussing behind them, the Nord was still at his gate. She looked at the two men. Odvan seemed fairly young and fit although he was awfully skinny. The other Breton with him was old and bald and looked like skin and bones. The Redguard reminded her of one of her Unsullied, lean and muscled, but he looked at her like he was starving and she was a three-course meal. "What does he mean you already have two whores? Am I safe with you?"
"Yes!" assured Odvan. "We take care of our own. Gisele was a whore before she was thrown in the mines. Jeanylle decided she'd rather earn her keep screwing than swinging a pickaxe. We didn't make either of them do anything. It was their choice."
She noticed that the Redguard looked away. She didn't like what she was hearing, but she had three choices and all of them were bad. This one seemed to be the least bad. She held out her palm and called forth a small flow of flame and let fire dance in her hand. "Anyone tries to force me, and they'll regret it."
"We won't! I mean, we get it!" Odvan agreed. "Hurry, the Nords have enough to raise their gate."
Daenerys wondered what he was talking about for a moment. Then she realized that while the gate wasn't heavy enough to be true portcullis it opened like one lifting up into the rock above. She dropped the torch, bent down, and grabbed the bars. "Eltrys! Help us."
Together they all lifted. The gate was heavy, but they got it over her head, but no further. That was enough. Daenerys shifted so she was standing on the other side and when Eltrys was through she let go. The gate came slamming down with a loud crash. She made her choice, and she hoped it was the right one.
Although she was not comfortable with how close they were all standing. "Back up! Give me some space!"
They all did as she asked, even Eltrys.
A loud cheering came from behind and Daenerys turned to see a crowd of Nords rushing into the main chamber while two of them held up their gate.
"Give us the girl!" demanded Grisvar as he led the charge.
Daenerys stuck her hand through the gate. She didn't bother with intimidating him. She was going to make an example. She called upon Yol, Fire, and mixed it with Fus, Force, to cast a Firebolt spell. It didn't explode like the more powerful Fireball, but when it hit Grisvar he went flying backwards screaming and burning. "I am NOT anyone's whore or plaything."
In the silence of the room, the only sound was the bare-chested orc's deep booming laughter.
Grisvar was moving, so he was alive for now. Although he might still die from his burns. Daenerys didn't particularly care. She turned back and saw that they were all staring at her with fear. Even Eltrys looked scared. "Treat me with respect as a fellow prisoner, and we won't have problems. I'll even heal your sick and wounded."
"Yes ma'am!" agreed Odvan.
"Now, who is in charge down here?" asked Daenerys.