Splitting up

After some deliberation the party decided the best course of action was to split up, with you and Lae-zel scouting to the east while the rest of the party continued north. The plan was to meet up in a few days time, hopefully with a better knowledge of the surrounding lands and with some luck, more provisions, better equipment and possibly even additional allies.

In truth, the others were more than happy to take the option that meant they were far from Lae-zel, even if only temporarily. Your overnight descent into the role of **** had rattled them and the prospect of distancing themselves from the pair of you had been an enticing one. You watched the bulk of the party leave until you felt the invisible tug of Lae-zel, your mistress having started to stalk her way towards the woodlands to the east. Quickly you scurried to catch up, breathing a sigh of relief as you felt the comforting surge of the collar as you returned to Lae-zel's side.

You walked for some time, oblivious to anything more than keeping pace with Lae-zel until suddenly she stopped, halting you with a gesture. The pair of you crept silently to the crest of a ridge, peering down into the valley below where a small pack of goblins were resting. It appeared they were a patrol of some sort consisting of male and female warriors, all armed with rudimentary weapons and clad in mismatched pieces of armor.

Lae-zel led you back out of sight before relaying her plan to you. While the pair of you could probably take the patrol easily enough, to make it a sure thing Lae-zel planned to set a trap with you as the bait. Taking your sword from you, your mistress sent you ahead on the trail, ordering you to enter the valley about a mile upwind. There you were to wait, the goblins sure to pick up your human scent on the breeze and come running. From there it would be as easy as Lae-zel catching them by surprise and cleaving through them like a hot knife through butter. Then all you would have to do was help plunder their loot.

Without question you hurried to enact Lae-zel's plan, as eager to gain her approval as you were to be done with the task and be back by her side. Finding a suitable area in the valley that was open enough for the goblins to find you while providing enough cover for Lae-zel's sneak attack, you sat and waited, pretending to be occupied with the elaborate laces of your sandals.

It did not take long for the tell-tale signs of the goblins' approach to appear. Birds rose from nearby trees in a panic before an unnatural silence descended upon the clearing, the hairs on your bare arms prickling as the sense of being watched overwhelmed you. You couldn't help but smile proudly - Lae-zel, your Lae-zel, as cunning as she was beautiful. The stupid goblins didn't stand a chance in the face of her smarts, her wisdom.

You did your best to play your part, feigning surprise as the goblins pounced, jabbing their rusty weapons towards you threateningly as they quickly surrounded you. While they were small, only standing about as tall as your hip, their limbs were corded with muscle and they were clearly quite dexterous, hopping and rolling about in glee as they spat curses at you. Their speech was mostly gibberish to you aside from the occasional word in the common tongue, their understanding of the language clearly lacking as they called you things like 'meat', 'slut' and that increasingly familiar term, 'pet'.

When the goblin pack closed in, several small yet strong hands latching onto each limb you put up no resistance. You quickly found yourself bound at the wrists and ankles and dumped unceremoniously onto the grassy earth. Now restrained, the goblins celebrated their success, poking and prodding at you, sitting upon your back and posing and even, in the case of some of the female goblins, venturing beneath your loincloth to grope and fondle your privates. Your amusement with the small creatures soon began to fade as you wondered where Lae-zel was - surely she would appear at any moment and take out the patrol. Surely she wouldn't let you come to any harm?

In fact, unbeknownst to you, Lae-zel was already there, just out of sight watching on as the goblins toyed with you. She bore a strong distaste for the foul little creatures, however she had found a greater use for them than simply looting their low quality armour and weapons. The Githyanki warrior knew that they would not harm you, not in any permanent, physical way at least. She had seen their camps and had witnessed the treatment of their captives. Foul they might be, but Lae-zel admired their unique form of training, the unrelenting physical and mental conditioning they subjected their slaves to. The reprogramming they enacted upon the poor souls unfortunate enough to end up in their clutches. She had realised that her own pet might benefit from such treatment and she knew that once rescued from such a fate, her new **** would be forever hers, utterly and unquestioningly devoted for the rest of his days.

Panic began to set in when a rope was lashed to your bindings and the goblins began to drag you along behind them. You strained to look for a sign of Lae-zel, but as far as you could tell you were alone. As concerned as you were about your own fate, you couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible may have happened to your mistress. Only when the sounds (and scent) of the goblin camp assaulted your senses did your concerns return to the immediate danger.

The goblins became increasingly excited as they approached their bustling camp, their gibbering rising to fever pitch as you were hoisted aloft and carried above their heads through the main gate. The smell of cooking meat wafted in the air, merficully masking the hint of the less pleasant odours that permeated the ramshackle fortress. Suddenly the reality of your situation hit you - you were at the mercy of these foul beings with no means of escape! You began to struggle against your bonds and shout in protest but this only heightened the goblins' fervour as they watched on, clapping and cackling with glee. Your mind raced - would they cook and eat you, chewing on your bones until they cracked and splintered, or perhaps sacrifice you to some ancient deity? Watching them zealously clap and chant it wasn't hard to imagine them tearing you limb from limb just for the fun of it.

In truth, what awaited you was far worse than anything you could imagine and the experience would alter you irrevocably. Unfortunately for you now, it was only a matter of time...