Once again, it was the chickens that were the cause of Audrey's troubles. One day, one of them got loose, and Audrey had to chase after it. But she was so focused on the chicken that she didn't watch where she was going. And in a horrible case of déjà vu, she ran right into the Lady, out on one of her rare walks, causing her to stumble and fall over. Audrey groaned as she surveyed the damage. The Lady wasn't hurt, but her dress was dirty again. And she looked at Audrey with anger. She gulped. What had she done? What would the Lady do to her, for this mistake?
"It seems you still haven't learnt the lesson of watching where you are going," the Lady said with her ice-cold voice. "What can I do to make you learn that lesson?"
"I am so sorry my Lady, the chicken…" the Lady held up one hand, and Audrey stopped talking at once. She was still on the ground, with the Lady towering over her. Even in her frailer state, she was a terrifying sight, especially when she was angry, like she was now.
"The executioner is about to train a new set of churls today and needs someone to practice on. Normally, he uses a dummy, but I think it is more effective to use an actual person. Morcefres!" that last was shouted across the courtyard. The executioner was by her side in a moment.
"Yes, my Lady?"
"This theow has just earned herself the pleasure of being your dummy for the day," the Lady said. "You can get started when you are ready."
Morcefres grinned at this statement. Audrey slowly got to her feet but soon found herself surrounded by a group of freemen. And one woman. Was this the new group of churls the Lady mentioned? Audrey only recognized one of them, the man who had been so eager to join when he first arrived, only a few weeks after she had. It seemed he had found out how to advance after all. Just be willing enough to hurt others.
"It seems we have a person to practice this on after all," the executioner said. "That will make things easier. Let me start with a basic restraint." He took out a length of rope and tied Audrey's hands behind her back. As he did so, he explained in detail about the knots and the way the rope needed to be tightened if it is to be applied on an unwilling subject. Audrey was used to this specific bond, as it was the one they used when they moved from place to place, so she remained still. Once Morcefres was satisfied, he took another rope that he tied to her collar and started dragging her towards one of the rooms.
Audrey spent the rest of the day being tied up with various forms of restraints. The most uncomfortable was the hogtie, which was intended for the most stubborn victims. At least she didn't have to be gagged, most of the time. She hated the feeling of a gag in her mouth. Morcefres showed the others how to do that effectively, but removed it shortly afterwards, to Audrey's great relief.
For the most part she was tied with ropes, but she was also exposed to chains, leather restraints and metal. He even placed a yoke on her shoulder and made her walk with leg restraints so the new churls could "see the limitations of that position." Audrey suspected Morcefres just liked ordering her around like that. He had a very satisfied smile as she walked as best she could, with the yoke over her shoulders and her legs in chains. At least she had some practice moving with chained legs from her early days as a theow.
The new churls practiced on the dummy first, but at the end of the day a few of them were also allowed to try their technique on her. Morcefres told her to try to struggle for that part.
The strangest part was, Audrey didn't feel uncomfortable with this punishment. Sure, it was a little uncomfortable, to be tied up in so many various ways, but it was a lot better than having to be whipped or spend the day in the stretch-neck or any of the other contraptions the Lady had procured. Morcefres was strangely gentle with her, as he explained the various techniques. By the end of the day, Audrey was left tied up in a corner as Morcefres gave the new churls a basic rundown of other duties they would learn tomorrow. Then he sent them away. None of them spared her a glance as they left.
Morcefres now looks over at Audrey. She didn't recognize the look on his face. It wasn't anger or the look of sadistic pleasure he usually had. If anything, it looked like… lust. But why?
"Few people would endure that, without a peep of protest," Morcefres said. "Are you sore?"
A little, but she wasn't about to admit that. She just shook her head.
"Now, the Lady told me to take you out to the jougs when I was done with you. Technically, that is now. But she wouldn't mind if we tried something different, I think. Come on."
He undid a few of the ropes, then got her on her feet. He let her use the bathroom, but didn't untie her hands all the way. As she finished, he placed several ropes around her upper body, in a way she had never seen before. As he did so, she felt him getting aroused. What could she do, if he tried to assault her tonight? She was completely helpless, tied up like this! In the end, the ropes were tied in a web all over her upper body. She couldn't move anything but her legs. Morcefres smiled.
"I had forgotten how pleasurable that can be. The only thing that would make it better would be if you were naked. Well, too late for that now."
Morcefres dragged her by the rope on her collar out into the corridor, over to his own room. To her great relief, she wasn't placed in his bed. It seemed even he didn't dare to break that particular rule. Instead, he fastened the rope from the collar to the wall, then he tied her legs together so that her feet were near her thighs and then tied the knees together, leaving her in a kneeling position on the floor. It was a little uncomfortable, but it seemed he knew exactly where he could place ropes to avoid pinching a nerve. The kneeling position she was in wasn't the most comfortable though.
Morcefres stared at her for a long time, when he was finished. The lust had been replaced with what she thought was satisfaction. He was happy to see her tied up this way, kneeling at his feet, completely helpless. She didn't dare to look up at him for long. This feeling of complete helplessness was new and it made her feel angry as well. How long would he leave her like this? She couldn't move her arms or her legs now. She was reminded of how Kaneez had been tied up in a sack. That was exactly how helpless she was right now. Morcefres sat down on the bed, and she thought she heard him satisfy himself. At least he didn't do that in front of her, though the sound made her even more angry. He enjoyed making her feel helpless! She had already known that, but this was a sharp reminder. He was a psychopath and apparently a sexual sadist. She felt hate course through her body, and was glad that Morcefres didn't look at her.
Eventually he fell asleep. So, now she was trapped here until he woke up. After trying pointlessly to loosen some of the bonds, all she managed was to shift slightly so that her head could lean against the wall and her legs were out to the side. It wasn't the most comfortable position, but better than the kneeling position she had been placed in.