JoS/Henriette/28th Journal - Bandits and Thieves
First Seed, 21st, 4E 203
It's been two weeks of peace and quiet. I was looking forward to it, but now that I think of it, I also had time off before setting off on my quest to defeat Alduin. As much as I enjoy this carefree life every now and then, it does get boring after a while. Boring isn't too exciting, but it's good for you every now and then. Excitement may not be so good for you all the time, but that hasn't stopped me in the past, and danger can be fun.
I've been waiting for an excuse to get my ass out of these mountains though, and today I got it. A courier gave me two letters: the first one is from Madanach, and it stated that he knows about what I did in Deepwood Redoubt, about how I have messed with his plans for the last time, and about how he swears to hunt me down. I requested the courier to send him a letter back, to which I included an insult, a small taunt if you will. It took me a while, but inside the envelope, I slid in a crude drawing of a stick figure eating a sack full of dicks, with an arrow pointing at the figure accompanied with the word "you". It's probably not the most graceful of responses I could've given him, but I like the idea of him foaming at his mouth being mad at me.
Ah, this could be part of that reading which Olava gave me, I think…? Well, I'm sure nothing too horrible is going to come out of it. Just need to be careful and stay on top of my toes whenever I visit areas where Forsworn are active.
The second letter was from none other than Delvin Mallory, the sly old fox with the Thieves Guild. I'm not going to say everything it had written on it, but the gist of it is that there have been some interesting developments within the guild, and they're looking to expand. He said that while he and the rest understand that I haven't been that involved with them in a long time, they're looking to rekindle their relationship with me. There are a lot of jobs to be done and a lot of money to be made. He even has a job ready for me.
In case you're wondering, why contact someone who's more suited to assassination and murder instead of some active member of the guild who would maybe even appreciate a job offer like this? Well, that's because this isn't really a job for your conventional "thief". There will be "killing involved", and when it comes to that, there's no one better in Thieves Guild than me. Besides, he said it wouldn't hurt for us to visit them every now and then to "rejoin" the Thieves Guild. Sure, I've never been gone on paper, but my absence has been very noticeable.
Anyway, the guild has a bit of a problem with rivals in Eastmarch. There's some new guild of wanna-be thieves who are also involved in crimes considered unacceptable behavior in Riften; things like rape, murder, stealing from the dead… Why does this concern us? Well, the rumors are spreading around pretty quickly, and it's also affecting the business in Riften. Their base of operations, which is somewhere near Windhelm, isn't too far from ours after all. There's also an excellent opportunity for the Thieves Guild to expand north, which they haven't been able to do in decades, not while Mercer was in charge and running the guild to the ground.
The contract is someone named Torsten Cruel-Sea. I've heard that name before. He's kind of a big deal, I think? He's the head of one of the wealthier families in Windhelm, owns some profitable farm or something, I don't know. Almost every famous landowner in Skyrim amasses wealth through their farms, don't they? Especially in Whiterun. Maybe I should establish my own farm somewhere, or perhaps invest in the Fellstar farm to get a cut of their profits? Either way, Torsten might know something about this guild of rivals and where they're hiding. Delvin suggests that I should go meet up with him immediately. No need for me to visit Riften first, as Torsten will fill me in with details. Delvin promises me that the pay is good, so I'll leave for my job tomorrow after getting some good day's sleep.
Serana is coming too. She plans on visiting the College, so we'll be traveling in the same direction. Sofia is already out on some personal business, so she can't come. Aliya won't be coming either and probably won't join me on any adventure in a long, long while. Well, I don't expect her to… I'll honor her wish of trying to focus on studying magic. She seems to have a reason beyond just power for why she continues to study, but she hasn't specified anything. Well, it doesn't matter to me, as it's beyond my grasp anyway.
First Seed, 22nd, 4E 203
I learned that Torsten had his daughter Fjolti kidnapped by these savages that call themselves thieves. Sounds more like banditry to me than thievery. Torsten personally just wants to get his daughter back, which I'm more than happy to help him with. He couldn't offer too much help to me regarding how to contact these bandits or where they could be hiding, but fortunately, he could point me towards a woman who knew.
Her name is Niranye. She's an Altmer street vendor here in Windhelm and sells assorted goods and wares. Local Nords seem to treat her well in comparison to how they treat the Argonians and Dunmer, but that's not really my business, so I'll leave that commentary at that.
I asked her about Fjolti, and she pretended not to know anything at first. However, after realizing that I'm only here to help, I learned that they actually used to be friends before she was pressured into betraying her or something. I wasn't told all the details, but Niranye is really sad about it, thinks about it daily, regretting it, also fearing for her own safety. She basically has to do whatever she's told, act as their fence unwillingly to buy their stolen goods and even sell it forward on her stall, all that stuff. Niranye seems really scared for her own safety and feels that in due time she will either find herself serving a similar fate to Fjolti as a captive slave, or locked in Windhelm prison for the crimes she has been forced to commit.
All the members of this rival guild are apparently her fellow High Elves and call themselves the Summerset Shadows, and Niranye blew the whistle on the location of their hideout. Since I now know where they reside, I might as well pay them a visit, and since Delvin already has given me the permission to kill, well… It won't be a friendly visit. Niranye suggested waiting until morning to strike to hit them when they're most vulnerable, a tip I'll gladly follow…
As I'm sure I'll be fine alone, Serana will be continuing north towards Winterhold for work there.
First Seed, 23rd, 4E 203
Alright, so I had been to that cave before. It used to be used by some bandits to smuggle Skooma. I got raped pretty hard the last time around by that one Nord when I was just a newbie. Ahh, memories…
Just as Niranye said, these bandits were all Altmer. Like seriously, I've never seen that many yellow-skinned elves in one place. And yes, I will call them bandits instead of proper thieves because they don't have a shred of originality or business sense. They took this old lair from other bandits, and they even wore a copy of Riften's Thieves Guild's armor, which was made from grey leather instead of brown. What a bunch of losers!
The tip of assaulting them early in the morning proved out to be a good one too, as I managed to take many of them out before they even noticed that they had an intruder. How exactly was I discovered? Well, I'm not sure how he saw me or how he managed to catch me off guard, but he was stupid enough not to go for a kill and instead opted to grope my chest and groin. I would be lying if I didn't say he wasn't good with his hands, but ultimately, he was an idiot. All he got from me was a moan, an angry squeal, and a dagger through his neck. Serves him right for underestimating me. You really have to be a lot rougher if you want to subdue me and a whole lot smoother if you wish to bed me.
At that point though, due to the noise I had made, the whole place was alert. Their leader was someone called Linwe, and he was so graciously urging me to surrender quietly, and they'd go easy on me. Honestly, I thought I was screwed because I was in the middle of their camp, and who knew how many enemies I had. Lucky for me, they were really weak! Like, killing them in their sleep was barely harder than killing them on their feet! Linwe proved himself to be a little bit of a challenge and probably would've had a good chance of beating me if it wasn't for the fact he was the only man left in the whole stinking cave…
He actually tried to run away, but I wasn't going to let him. I pinned him down and put my dagger to his neck, asking him about the prisoners. He was screaming, literally screaming like an old hag about how they're kept in the backroom, all three of them. He begged me to let him live, said that he'd promise to leave Skyrim for good and turn a new leaf elsewhere if I'd just let him live.
Oh, but this is the path you chose, honey… Live by the sword, die by the sword… I sunk my teeth to his flesh and felt him flop like a pathetic fish as warmth drained away from his skin and flesh.
All of his captives were Nords, but sadly, when I asked about their names, I realized that Fjolti wasn't with them anymore. Apparently, she tried to escape one night and was subsequentially killed as an example for the other girls. After freeing the prisoners, I searched around for any possible proof I could bring back to Torsten about his daughter. In the end, I found this clue from a jail cell with a horrible scene inside of it.
Her body was left to be eaten by dogs they've kept as pets. Wild huskies, to be specific. All that was left of her was bone and decomposed flesh and other organs. The smell was putrid, but I approached the harrowing sight anyway. I only found a silver pendant in her cell, hidden under a pillow. Luckily, this was enough proof for Torsten.
When he saw me return, he asked about his daughter, and when I handed him the pendant, he understood that he would never see her again. It was actually a family heirloom passed down to her, a one-of-a-kind amulet that she would've never under any circumstances parted with, but not otherwise special in any way. Clearly, he was holding back his tears, and I wouldn't have blamed him for crying. Regardless, he thanked me for my service. He had a small reward for me, which was a little underwhelming, to be honest. I was expecting more. At the very least, the Thieves Guild will have his support here in Windhelm, which is probably the more significant reward here, considering his vast influence.
As for Niranye, she was thankful too, although also distraught after hearing the news of her precious friend's passing. The only consolation here is that she doesn't have to worry about her own life anymore. She also revealed that she's been working with the Thieves Guild as a fence in the past but left the guild some years ago when it seemed like it was going down the gutter. Now, she's more than happy to offer her services to us again. I'm sure she'll be welcomed back into the guild with open arms too.
Now, all that's really left for me is to visit Riften to bring some good news to them. It's been such a long time since I've visited that place… I hope they're all doing well.
First Seed, 24th, 4E 203
So much for reaching Riften. I found a lair of bandits so intriguing I had to check it out, and ended up making a terrible mistake in doing so.
It started with me approaching the bouncer outside along with some cages with wolves. Poachers, I thought. There was a skinning rack too, so maybe they also skin and butcher them. I recognized the bouncer as none other than Azzy. You know, the Dunmer I met some weeks back in Windhelm. I thought he was supposed to join the Thieves Guild, and so I asked him about it.
"I met an old friend on the road", he explained. "I was lured in by Skooma. The good stuff, imported from Morrowind, comes both cheap and easy." He was eventually hired here, so he got the work he was looking for in Windhelm, except instead, he got it here in backwater woods in the middle of nowhere. The pay sucks, but it's just about the best job he could hope for as a bandit. Guards don't care about this place, although the activities are far from legal here.
They organize illegal pit fights here, usually between wolves, but getting adventurers and slaves to the pit is also common. There's usually a lot of gambling and mead involved in addition to the harder drugs, and the business is highly profitable. They even have those pipes that are used for smoking Moon Sugar, popular in Morrowind and Elsweyr. There's apparently this whole organization here in the borderlands of Rift and Eastmarch, and this is just one of three locations people like to gather in. Admittedly, this is the least important of the locations. Bigger events are being held in a castle called Faldar's Tooth north of lake Honrich and Lost Knife Cave in the southwestern areas of Eastmarch. That's actually close to where I live. I've hunted there a couple of times… Huh, I never knew those guys near the entrance were actually bouncers. They must be pretty confused about how their men get killed every now and then without the attacker ever leaving a trace.
Anyway, he said that since this is actually a bar, or a Skooma den, I would be free to visit this place, as long as I wouldn't do so alone. "I will have to accompany you", he said.
Now, you might be wondering, where oh where did I make the mistake I alluded to earlier? Did I get a little crazy, a little wild, and ended up drinking Skooma? Nope! Azzy, that son of a bitch stabbed me in the back and led me to be assaulted by his friends. They raised their swords to my neck and tied me up subsequently because I couldn't defend myself against a surprise attack. They tapped their bouncer on his back, telling him "good job" and such, saying "it's been a while since we've had one this young". They then complimented me on my size and how cute I am.
Now they have me chained inside a cage like some animal, and just as luck would have it, I'm all alone on this journey, and my friends probably don't have the slightest clue about my whereabouts… So as far as escaping goes, I may be on my own. They haven't decided what to do with me yet, but I can't imagine it being anything pleasant.
First Seed, 25th, 4E 203
"Nothing pleasant" doesn't quite cut the experience I was put through. They had a show for a night, and I was set to be part of an exhibition event. It was meant to be purely for fun, not really any kind of fair fight meant for anyone to gamble on.
As my opponent I had a forest troll. It was clearly juvenile, smaller than most of the trolls you come across in the wilds, but trolls are stronger than adult humans, even as babies. Since they threw me into the ring with a troll unarmed and naked, do I even have to say how I fared? It wasn't even a fight. I tried to dodge its attacks, succeeded with first, but got knocked down on second. Less than ten seconds was all it took, but I wasn't about to become troll food. The beasts here are trained for other purposes.
The troll mounted me and raped me, played me like a fiddle in the middle of two dozen patrons watching and laughing at my helpless state. I had no way of defending myself or escaping. I could just be there are take his massive girth deep into me over and over again.
What about troll's regenerative abilities? Well, let's just say they're never done with their mates after just one round. They had probably drugged it too to make sure it would just focus on fucking me instead of mauling me to death. It took over thirty minutes of continuous bestial rape before the bandits had to physically remove the beast from me. After that, they dragged my limp body to be washed. My day of labor wasn't done.
While the rest of the show was going on, the bandits proceeded to whore me out. I was one of three captives there but the only child. The event of having troll fuck me was mainly meant to rile patrons up to make them interested in parting their money to do me. Based on the number of men who paid to rape me, I guess their plan was a success.
The rent for my pussy was dirt cheap. Twenty drakes for vaginal ejaculation? That's cheaper than mead in some places! Prostitution is very cheap, but that's just an insult to sex workers all over Tamriel. I think I served about fifteen customers over the span of the following four hours. I was just so done, still am… Having bandits and other lowlifes use me like that didn't even feel that satisfying to me. Most of them couldn't make me cum at all. The worst was some poor farmhand who probably couldn't hurt a rabbit. He kept banging me while simultaneously talking about how he's been dreaming about doing a girl as young as me… He came in less than two minutes, which I suppose made things a little easier for me, but I could barely feel him.
Now I'm in my cage again with some food and water.
The odds are quite stacked against me, but there aren't too many of them, and they aren't that strong or experienced either. I'm confident I can escape somehow, but how? That's the big question. I know for sure I won't be able to escape this cage. The lock is too sturdy to be picked and out of my reach anyway. Damn it, I might have to go through a few more days like this before I figure a way out.
First Seed, 26th, 4E 203
Since there was no event scheduled for today, the bandits had me all for themselves. There was some talk amongst them about the possibility of transporting me to the castle where I would without a doubt make more money for them… I believe there's a chance for me to escape, but that's only if my current plan fails.
Azzy came to also take advantage of me. The bandits were all taking turns with me for some private time, and he was next. He undressed and came on top of me, with his erect cock pushing against my pussy already. All I could do was lay still and wait for him to be done with me, and I did ask him, "why?".
"Shut up and listen to me, okay?" he whispered as he leaned in towards me. "I didn't mean for this to happen. It's a huge misunderstanding. I will help you get free, okay? But I won't do anything that will risk my own neck."
I could tell there was sincerity in his voice. I mean, he's a bandit, but he doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would betray his friends. I'm not sure if I was ever truly his friend or an ally, but he does at least respect and value me. Plus, I'm pretty sure he knows about me more than the other bandits do, about how I'm actually more than just your average adventurer. I told him that if he helped me, I would reward him handsomely and monetarily. Besides, I'm still sure that becoming a member of the guild would net him more profits, so there's that motivation as well.
"I trust you", he said as he continued pushing forward. He wasn't going to let an opportunity to shag me go to waste. Besides, his friends would get suspicious if he only came for a talk, so for us to have sex… It was kind of a necessity.
He was a lot gentler than the other men had been, and that was partially due to him not needing to restrain or constantly push me down. I decided to have him do whatever he wanted with my body. After ejaculating into me one in missionary position, he whispered in my ear, asking if I was truly okay with this and if he could go on? I nodded and told him to take his time. I was fine with anything. I ended up revitalizing his cock with my mouth, a sight that I initially thought would make some of the other bandits suspicious, but honestly, all it did was make them jealous. It didn't end up being the only cock I tasted today because of it… I also let him do my ass after that. He seems to like anal.
After spending his hour with me, after he was finally done, he confirmed that my gear is still safe. I don't have anything super valuable on me besides my weapons, which are more or less irreplaceable… He said that he was tasked with fencing them. It's probably better for me to shut up about their true value because if he went ahead and fenced them, he could forget about helping me, about me rewarding him, and just take that money as a reward… By Sithis, am I thankful that these guys aren't that bright, and sorry Azzy, that includes you as well.
He said that he'll wait for an opportunity to bring my stuff to me at night and unlock the cage. So, that's good news… I'm not gonna be whored out tomorrow for hours like I did yesterday and today… Yay… I hope we don't screw this up…
First Seed, 27th, 4E 203
So, I made my escape with Azzy as planned. Easy. That was yesterday, and it ended up being a rather busy day. I didn't have time to write, so I'll talk both about yesterday and today now, and boy oh boy, does it take an unexpected turn.
I laid down the last bandit holding up the bar while he was begging for forgiveness. With no worries of getting stabbed in the back anymore, I told him that I would make him suffer… And suffer he did. I made his death slow and painful, sucked his blood, and enjoyed a good meal indeed… Azzy was watching, and from the looks on his face, he was so, so fucking glad he helped me. After all, had I made it out without his help, I likely wouldn't have believed his words about him having nothing to do with me getting my ass captured. I would've killed his sorry mortal ass and took no word as an excuse or an apology. I'm glad he had the balls to betray his clan to help me.
"Keep the money I was traveling with, keep the jewels too", I told him. "They're easy for me to replace and should fetch a reasonable price." I wasn't done rewarding him though, as I then walked up to him and wrapped my arms around his neck, I pulled him in for a smooch, even stuck my tongue in for a wet, steamy kiss, and said I'm forever in his debt. I think there might've been some blood still in my mouth? At least that's by judging how he wiped his mouth after our little kiss. What, doesn't he like the taste of blood? He's such a cute boy.
Since we were both heading towards Riften, we decided to travel together. He's going to ask to join the Thieves Guild, and I will conduct my own personal business there as well. Before we left, we decided to do a little bit of charity and return the animals to the wild. Well, most of them anyway. Azzy killed the troll that had raped me, while the wolves mostly just ran away to the wild, grateful for being saved.
Then, I got to the last cage. Inside of it wasn't a wolf but a dog. He was a large specimen, as large as the wolves, and had magnificent grey fur and friendly, loveable marble eyes. He opened his mouth and let out a clear, verbal "Thank you" to me while complimenting me greatly.
A freaking dog was talking to me in human tongue. I was obviously surprised. How could I not be? It's a talking fucking dog. His name is Barbas, by the way.
He made some jokes about how he has gotten himself into this predicament because he got into a disagreement with his master, after which he was punished by being made a prisoner and a plaything for these lowly bandits. They had a little bit of a falling out, and he needs to get back to his master somehow. Can you guess who his master is? Clavicus Vile, the Daedric Prince of wishes. I said this takes an unexpected turn, didn't I, my dearest diary?
Clavicus Vile is a funny little guy, I bet. They even call him the child-god, and he is depicted as such in some of his shrines and statues. I've never seen one in person though. In a sense, these two beings - him and Barbas - are one and the same. They are separate entities but complement each other, sharing lots of their power. Without Barbas, for example, Clavicus Vile cannot materialize himself in this world, at least not very far away from his shrine, not according to Barbas anyway. Such is the case for most Daedric princes, probably.
Anyway, the reason he can't do this alone is because some vampires have taken over his shrine, so he needs some help.
"So help me out, will you?" he said to me. "I'm sure my Master already misses me and regrets what he did. I'm also sure he'll reward you handsomely for bringing me to him."
Well, sounds easy enough, I think. Apparently, the shrine is located in the mountains west of Ivarstead, south of the Throat of the World. It's literally next door to where I live, so why not pay it a visit? I'm heading home tomorrow anyway, so he can accompany me on my trip.
On the topic of what I did in Eastmarch, I spent the morning discussing business within the guild. We arrived a little after sunrise. Delvin said he was glad to see me again and thanked me for the job well done. He said that unfortunately he doesn't have anything more for me right away, but since the guild's business is booming and jobs are pouring in daily, he'll soon have something special for me for sure. I said I'd gladly do more work for them as long as the pay continues to be good.
There were some others I also wanted to talk about, and one of them was Brynjolf. He actually was the one who came to me, and… Oh, I had forgotten about just how handsome he is. He just keeps getting more rugged and manly with age too. He asked me if there were still any hard feelings between me and the guild because of what happened, especially regarding me and Karliah. Ah, I had almost forgotten about that, hadn't I? She was so adamant about me joining the Nightingales and even got offended when I refused… Ah, no hard feelings, but I feel like I should talk to Karliah about it personally. She's rarely in the cistern, and today was such a day. "She's been working on some personal project of hers", Brynjolf said. "I'm not sure what it is, but she seems focused."
I hope I'll come across Karliah the next time I visit here, or maybe I'll meet her later in the evening. After all, I will spend a day here and rest, waiting for the night when it's much easier for me to travel back home.
Oh, and I completely forgot to write about Azzy! He did end up joining the Guild after I recommended him to Brynjolf. I have a feeling he'll fit right in. I still feel like I owe him a little more than just those jewels and a kiss… I kind of want to show him more of my appreciation, but since it's daytime and he's new, he's busy with business… That'll have to wait… I'm not that horny anymore anyway…