AN: Trigger warns for sexual harassment and rape. Also for context Lyris is a golden dragon by the name of Qetsiyah (pronounced Kett-see-eh) locked away in the form of an elf because she was too proud and vain, hence all the stuff with Bahamut.

A bucket of ice-cold water washed over her. Lyris started awake, feeling the water sting her recent cuts. She noticed the cut front of her shift had been hastily stitched closed, and she felt bandages pinch at her skin. Brigfen stood over her, holding the now empty bucket with a smug grin on her face. She doubted he was the one responsible for tending her.

'Naptime is over. Ambassador wants a word.'

'What?' Lyris asked, sitting up. Water gathered on her front began to pool on the grass around her.

'A slave doesn't ask questions! I get that this is all new to you, but this is your life now, so get used to it! We say jump, you ask how high. Understood?'

She felt the familiar flush of rage, but then remembered the feeling of the whip hitting her skin. Her anger crumbled.

'Fine, fine, I'm going.'

The Ambassador stood on the outskirts of the camp with his back to her, watching the sunrise.

'I dislike being kept waiting,' he said without turning.

Lyris said nothing. Eventually he turned to face her with a weary sigh. 'Do you know the reason I only buy elf slaves?'

'Some sort of weird and disgusting fetish,' Lyris said.

He laughed. 'Not something quite so simple. Your people have a great deal of pride. And why not? You have rich culture, lengthy life-spans, your language is like music to all ears, and each individual in your species is gifted with natural beauty.' He stepped forward to her. 'But why? Why the elves? What makes you so special? Why do the Gods smile down on you?'

'I can assure you, the Gods sure as hell aren't smiling on me or Nerissa.'

Andro grabbed her chin and forced her gaze up to meet his. 'With all those great gifts comes an uptight attitude and vanity. You look down on disgust at other species. I want to show the elves they are not so special. You can be brought down beneath the lowest of the low.'

'You say your reason was not so simple. Yet you sound like a run-of-the-mill racist to me. I've met your kind before. Fancy I will again in the future. They all meet the same end-at my hands.' Lyris clenched her shaking fist so hard her nails bit painfully into her palm.

'I am merely trying to enlighten you. In time, you will learn. Now go. You have duties to attend to before we set out.'

The day was hot. The sun beat down mercilessly upon Lyris and Nerissa, the only two of the whole caravan deprived of shelter. Lyris envied Nerissa's thin, light-coloured locks. Her thick dark hair attracted and trapped the heat, quickly exhausting her through overheating.

Lyris's tongue darted out to disperse whatever little moisture it held onto her cracked lips. At this point, there was little she wouldn't do for a single sip of water.

Due to the heat the caravan paused several times to water the horses. Lyris herself gladly ran and collapsed next to the same body of water, dipping a hand in and greedily gulping it down. Her throat burned so furiously it was difficult to swallow at first, but the more she drank, the easier it became.

Lyris scooped up more in her hand when something shoved her into the glade. She fell face-first into the shallow water, resurfacing to look behind her. She turned to see Brigfen standing there and grinning. He and his men shared a laugh at before moving onwards, talking and chortling. Lyris stood and squeezed the moisture out of her hair. She would have been annoyed, but the water had done wonders to cool her heated skin. Unfortunately, white material when wet left little to the imagination. Several of the men leered at her as she passed, or even tried to grab at her. Lyris crossed her arms over her chest and hurried away. An arm grabbed her wrist as she passed. She was tugged with such force she lost her balance and landed in his lap. It was one of Brigfen's men, a dough-faced, bald human.

Lyris levelled a glare at him and tried to stand. As soon as she did he wound his arms around her waist, locking her in place. He was stronger than he looked 'Slave is a good look for you, you know?' One finger toyed with the chain links connected her manacles to her collar. 'If you're a good girl and do as I say, I could put in a good word with Brigfen. Get him to lay off.'

Lyris leaned in close, and gave him the sweetest smile she could muster. 'I'd rather push hot, burning coals into my eye sockets.

'If word of your disrespect gets out, that could be arranged.'

'Rolfor?' Nerissa appeared behind them, looking nervous.

'What is it slave? I'm busy here.'

'The ambassador wants a word with you.'

Rolfor sighed deeply. He shoved Lyris off his lap. 'I'll find you later.'

Nerissa buried her face in his hands. 'I am going to get 100 lashings for that!'

'You lied?' Lyris hissed. She looked about them, checking no one was listening on on their conversation.

'Yes.'

'And I thought I was the fool.'

'You are. You keep saying or doing the wrong thing. You need to start falling in line.'

'We shouldn't have to bow and scrape to the whims of these bastards.'

'No, we shouldn't. But we have to.'

Andro clapped his hands together. 'Alright, everybody, we're moving out!'

The camp sprung into action, returning horses to carriages. Guards took up their positions around it, and Nerissa and Lyris were anchored to Andro's carriage.

Four long, dreadful hours later they arrived. Straddling a cliff overlooking Black Raven River, named for its unfathomable black depths, was Blackford Hold. A giant castle constructed from dark stones towered above them. Four towers shot up to the sky, each flying a flag she didn't recognise. It had to be his own coat of arms.

As Lyris stared up at the monolithic structure, Brigfen smacked her across her back, nearly knocking her onto her face.

'Welcome to your new home, slave.'

They were put to work immediately, scrubbing the floors of the entire castle. There had to be several hundred miles-worth of floor spanning across the castle.

'You've got to be joking.'

Andro crossed his arms over his chest. 'Do I look as though I am jesting? The more you flap your gums the longer this will take.'

'There's too much for two people to-'

Andro snapped his fingers. Two of the guards stepped forward and took her arms. 'It seems as though you never learn. Strip her naked.'

Andro expected her maybe to beg or grovel. But she didn't. She forced herself to remain composed, even as the dress was ripped off her body, and he produced a whip she had grew a little too familiar with.

Andro unwound the bandages from her chest, and then circled her slowly, stopping when he was behind her.

Thirty lashes. He forced her to keep count. She lost count midway through twice. Lyris couldn't stand, or even sit once it was done. She lay on her side, her wounds weeping blood onto the ground. Nerissa let her be for a short while before urging her upright.

'Let me re-apply the bandages.'

Lyris lifted her arms. Even that felt like a monumental task. Nerissa wrapped up the wounded surface of her skin. She placed a hand on Lyris's shoulder. 'I told you to stop this behaviour. You don't want to know what they do to slaves whose owners grow weary of them.'

'Perhaps I do.'

Nerissa shook her head. You would beg for the Ambassador if you ever fell to that fate.'

'It can't get much worse.' Lyris back prickled with hot pain, punctuating her point.

'That's where you're wrong. It can always been worse.'

'How do you do it?'

'Do what?'

Lyris gestured to Nerissa. 'This. Living this life, day-in day-out with no qualms, no lapses of judgement. The perfect, obedient slave.'

'I have lived this life much longer than most do. At this point, it is the norm for me. I gave up any dreams that life could get any better, but I know it can get worse. So I keep my mouth shit and obey. As should you.'

Nerissa stood, grabbing both their buckets. 'We should get to work.'

Lyris waited for a good twenty minutes until she got worried. Eventually she stood and followed after where Nerissa had headed. Down the corridor, she saw an open door from which, she heard snatches of laughter and voices. In front of the door were two buckets. Lyris hurried over.

She peered through the gap in the door and saw Nerissa, naked, bent over a table. Her eyes were squeezed shut tight, but it didn't stop the tears falling down her face. The other men watched and laughed.

Nerissa suddenly opened her eyes as the man behind her stuttered to a stop. Their eyes met through the gap in the door. She wept harder, as different man came to take his place.

Lyris should have stormed in there. She should have ripped all of their throats out with her teeth. Instead, she reached down for the buckets and walked away. As Nerissa's screams filled the hallway, Lyris quickened her stride.

Lyris finished the entrance hallway, antechamber and the west and east-bound corridors herself. She served dinner along with the kitchen boy. The cook had to help her with the dishes. She didn't see Nerissa until she was bedding down in the slaves quarters. "Quarters" was a generous term. It was a room with two piles of hay and a single chamberpot.

Nerissa looked worse for wear. There was a limp in her step, her dress dotted with blood and dirt. Her wispy blonde hair looked even more bedraggled than before.

Lyris felt sick to her stomach.. She could have stopped it. She should have.

'Nerissa-'

'I know what you're about to say. And it's fine. You made the right choice. You're learning.'

Nerissa lay down on one of the haypiles. Not even a moment passed before she was asleep. Lyris lay down opposite, facing the wall, the exchange turning over in her head. "You're learning…"

Lyris double-checked Nerissa was asleep, then knelt in front of the north-facing wall. She never had been the praying-type, but she knew she had a God's ear at her disposal.

'Bahamut. I don't know if you're listening but…' Her voice shook with emotion. She cleared her throat. 'I don't know if you're listening, but I could sure as hell use you right now. I get that you wanted to punish me. But aren't you taking this too far? And this other girl.' Lyris glanced at Nerissa's sleeping form over her shoulder. 'She's done you no wrong. If not me, at least deliver her from this hell we're in.'

Lyris paused. Only silence answered. 'I...for the first time in a long time I'm scared and…' Tears spilled down her eyes. 'And I need your help. Please, please help.'

Again no one answered her call. Lyris collapsed against the wall, silently weeping.

When Lyris opened her eyes and saw nothing but an empty black void, she knew she was not truly awake. She walked forward for a few minutes until she saw Bahamut in his human form. He looked at her with pity in his eyes.

'Your here…'

'I heard your cries, Qetsiyah.'

'And?' She started forward. 'What are you going to do.'

'Nothing. You know the rules. Gods cannot intervene with the lives of mortals.'

'Bullshit. They can. They just choose not to. What I want to know is why. Are you lazy? Does it not suit your needs? Or do you not give a shit?'

'I care, Qetsiyah. I care deeply about all mortals.'

Lyris just shook her head. Each lie he fed her only served to make her grow more weary of their conversation. 'We'll be arguing for days. Just say what you came to say and fuck off then.'

'You're angry…'

'Can't possibly imagine why!'

'As a God I am a servant to Fate. This is your fate, Qetsiyah, but it is only temporary. But be warned, your freedom will not be free of charge. It will cost a life.'

'If you're not going to physically help, you could at least not be cryptic!'

'I cannot say anymore Qetsiyah. The only other thing I can offer you, is my sincerest apologies.'

'Keep them. I have no need of them.'

Bahamut sighed. He stepped forward, and placed a hand on either side of her head. 'You were always the more outspoken of my children. And I loved that about you. It was refreshing. You're too full of life for this to be your fate. Believe me when I say, you will escape, and you will find happiness. I know it for fact.' His form flickered. 'My time has run out, it seems. Do not give up hope, child.'