Oblivion: freedom

You begin Oblivion incarcerated in a tiny cell in the Imperial City prison. What exactly were you guilty of? Pickpocketing? Bewitching merchants to get a discount? Disturbing public order by obsessively casting Bound Dagger in town in order to raise your Conjuration stat? No one seems to know and, oddly, no one seems to care.

The taunts of a fellow prisoner still ringing in your ears, you take stock of your situation. A thin mat on a hard stone bed. A jug and a cup, neither of which contains any Lipton Yellow Label. A battered stool and a small table. Some bones to remind you of your bleak future.

Ah, but what’s this? Three guards and an old man enter the cell. Wait, these are no mere prison guards; they’re Blades, members of that ancient and secretive order of knights sworn to protect … that old man … by the divines, is that the Emperor himself?

Your unexpected visitors are in turn surprised to find the cell occupied. The Emperor, his face drained and haggard, looks at you with a curious expression. You step forward, prepared to complain about the appalling lack of tea but the Blades’ grim looks make you think the better of it.

One of the Blades steps to a wall, presses something and your bed sinks to the ground, the stone wall shudders and moves, revealing a tunnel. The Emperor and his bodyguards step into it and the darkness swallows them. No doubt the Blades were hoping to slip away with the Emperor without anyone noticing but it’s too late, you’ve seen everything. You hesitate then follow, little realising your life will soon be forever altered.

Twenty minutes after disobeying the Blades Captain’s express order to stay by your cell window and another Blades’ command to stay put in the prison dungeons below, you’re tasked with saving the Empire. No one else was capable of doing this apparently. Not the Blades. Not powerful Elder Council of the Empire. No, of course not. Clearly, this critical mission must be handed to the level 1 escaped convict. Thankfully, you’re completely prepared for this. After all, you’ve killed, what, a dozen rats now? Yeah, bring on Mehrunes Dagon, the Daedric Prince of Destruction. You will smite him down with your Rusty Iron Dagger.

You make your way through the dark prison dungeons and eventually find yourself outside. Ah, sunlight and the sweet, sweet taste of freedom.

You are no longer restrained. Do what you want, go where you will. The whole world is yours. The choices are dizzying, the possibilities endless. No longer will anyone tell you what to do, no boundaries, no shackl-…

Godsdammit.