6th of Sun's Height, 4E 197
Thank the Gods. We did it. We left that damned bastard and all the baggage he kept. Ever since 188, it's been nothing but trouble for us.
Illedia has already forsaken the name she took from him. The family name Xodius holds no more significance to her, nor to I. I owe my life to her. It's the least I could have done to help her and Arlian out of that daedra of a man's house.
It was his fault I got hooked on the skooma in the first place. I never should have taken anything from that racist, abusive, good-for-nothing snake. He and his friend, M'Ajo, liked to beat Illedia whenever they came together for a drink and a few skoomas. Whenever I tried to stop them, they would beat me, too. Until one night, M'Ajo offered me a bottle of skooma. At the price of 10 septims, how could I resist?
I couldn't restrain myself. Every Middas and Loredas, I would ingest enough skooma to make my tail shake, my head pound, and my whiskers titillate. The way it flowed through my veins, coursing through me like a beam of pure sunlight, it was incredible. Soon enough, I needed two bottles per day. Whenever I was too out of it, I would drop a bottle, usually wine. And every damn time, Illedia took the fall for me. I watched them beat her. Bloody her lip, bruise her face, blacken her eyes.
When Arlian was born, he also became victim to their cruel games. 'Bring the mead up,' his father would say. The poor boy didn't dare refuse. After the first and only time he dropped a bottle of mead, his father swung at him with a broom. I'll never forget the bloody scrapes left by its rough bristles and the rage I felt, aching to sink my claws into the bastard's face.
Illedia knew she couldn't stay. It took the birth of her son to realize that. I couldn't help her; not while I was still hooked on the skooma. M'Ajo had me wrapped around his clawed fingers. He knew that even if he kept raising the prices of his skooma, I couldn't stay away. Illedia slipped me tonics and potions whenever she could. She knew I was sick, and I wouldn't get better if I couldn't go even a day without a skooma or two.
Eventually, the skooma had stopped showing mercy. I began to cough up blood and suffered the most dreadful aches in my sides. Illedia tried to help as best she could, but the skooma had taken its toll on me. I paid the ultimate price. My left eye lost all functionality in just a single night.
"Please help, Saraji," Illedia had begged me a few nights ago. Four months of carrying another child of her worthless husband had taken a toll on her and made her anxious. I told her we needed to pack as much food and gold as we could, get a boat, and flee Cyrodiil. I didn't think we'd manage, but we did. While Illedia got Arlian and gathered comestibles, I snuck over to M'Ajo's place. The door was unlocked, but his safe wasn't. It took me a few tries, but I managed to pick it open, and I swiped every single septim. M'Ajo is the heaviest sleeper in all of Bravil, but I still thanked the Gods I was able to sneak out undetected.
I had one of my distant contacts arrange a small boat for the three of us as a favor he owed me. Arlian, Illedia, and I boated away from Bravil, and away from our old lives. Through the Nibenay Basin, the Corbolo and Reed River, we boated for one very long day. Traversing the Jerall Mountains was the hardest part of our journey, no doubt. But finally, finally, we made it. We had crossed the border into Skyrim.
Not far from a little town called Falkreath, we found a small cabin in the forest. It took us all day, but we fixed it right up. The bed I'm laying on as I write this entry is surprisingly comfortable for its condition, but a trip to Falkreath to fly in an architect and some carpenters also would not hurt.
I can hear Illedia softly crying as she sleeps. A nightmare of her useless husband, no doubt. Illedia has been my friend all my life. Getting her away from that wretched man was the very least I could do after all she's done for me. I'm proud to call Illedia my friend, and building a new life with her and Arlian is the fresh start all of us need.