She is Prepared for Auction

She was awakened a little later to the sound of chains scraping on the floor.

Her eyes were still a little blurry, but there was a little vision in them now. She looked around the room, seeing only the dark stone of the walls and the oak door with three iron bars at head height. There was no escape from here; her fate was sealed. She'd sealed it the moment she ran away with Santiago's money. How stupid could she be? thinking that she'd get away with that?

A pretty young girl with fiery red hair and freckles entered her cell wearing nothing but a thin gold chain that was attached to gold rings around her neck, ankles and wrists. The chain didn’t seem to restrict her movements, it just seemed to be a reminder of her position as a ****. The girl approached Amelia.

She had heard about these preparations in the past, everyone in Octoton had, but seeing it first hand took her breath away. The girl daintily unlocked the chains binding Amelia to the bed, her movements were gentle and unhurried, as though she were handling a rare and delicate object. Her eyes were blue as a clear sky as she looked Amelia over, not saying a word. She smelled of strawberries and flowers.

Once Amelia was free of her chains, the girl left the room again and returned with a long-handled brush and a wooden bowl filled with warm water. She carefully wet the brush and began to softly stroke it through Amelia's hair, loosening the tangles and matting that had developed during her petrification, along with the matting the bounty hunters had left her with.

Still, there were no words shared between the two of them. There seemed little point in either of them making light of their situations.

Next, she moved to Amelia's face, wiping away the dried tears and the residue of the petrification spell using a soft cloth. Amelia could feel the sensation of the cloth against her skin, but her body still felt like stone, unable to move or react. When her face was dry, the girl used a woollen cloth to rub Amelia's cheeks. She suddenly felt the warmth in them again, like her face was coming back to life. She'd have smiled at the sensation if the circumstances were different.

Finally, the girl moved to Amelia's body and began to gently scrub her skin with a coarse cloth soaked in warm water. It wasn't long before Amelia could feel the sensation of the cloth against her skin, and the realization that her body was coming back to life. Her muscles began to work again, her skin tingled, like it was cold at first, but it didn't take long to warm up.

With each passing moment, her flesh felt more alive and less like stone. The girl continued to work, tenderly massaging Amelia's muscles and applying a soothing salve to her skin. She spoke softly, telling Amelia that she would soon be ready.

Amelia tried to speak, but her voice was still thick and unresponsive. She managed to whisper, "what happens now?"

The girl smiled, her eyes full of sympathy. "You'll be dressed in elegant clothing and paraded before the bidders. It's the tradition here in Octoton."

Amelia closed her eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks as she thought about everything she had been through.

The girl left, and as she headed onto the corridor, a huge orc appeared in Amelia’s room.

“You have a visitor,” he said in a dense, growly voice. “Get dressed, then come with me.” He handed her a white dress.

She slipped it on over her head, then almost laughed to herself at how see-through and revealing it was. It was long at the front and back, but left the entirety of her legs and sides of her hips on show, since the front and back weren't connected at all. She tied the gold belt just above her waist, hoping it would hold the dress together. At the top, the dress split down the middle, leaving a strip of silk to cover each breast while it plunged down her her waist. Worst of all, although her most intimate parts were covered, the dress was pretty much see-through, especially over her breasts. Her nipples poked against it, and due to their size, the whole shape of both could be made out entirely through the dress.

"Hurry up," the orc snapped.