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PrologueThey had lived in peace and safety for twenty-two years…

Faster

Vashka knew it wouldn’t last…

Faster, have to run faster

She had hoped for just a little more time each day…

Come on, come on

Their time was up…

Run faster

She had been gathering herbs when she heard the wargs. The cries and horns of the Orcs, and she knew they had come for her…

And for him.

She only hoped, as she tore into her own home where he sat grinding the wheat, that she could give him enough time…

He’d looked so worried, so surprised…

“moth- “

“there’s no time, here. This should be enough food for a few days, you know where the watering holes near here are.”

She had always kept the bag of supplies ready, he’d never questioned why there was only one bag.

“mother, wait, what- “

“I said there is no time!”

She had snarled at him, and the look of shock on his face puled at her. Vashka took a deep breath, kneeling before her son. She cradled his face in her hands, and marveled again at how such a small child had come from her and Groxen. She stared, taking in his face one last time, the way her dark skin contrasted to his sandy tan, his expressive eyes and four small tusks, the largest pair barley over an inch long. Her little boy…

“listen to me, Dakkan. I used to tell you, remember? Of the bad Orcs, the ones who would hurt us, take you away, make you use your gifts to harm others?”

The countess beads in his long, dark hair rattled when he nodded.

“Mother…”

“they’re coming. They are after me, and you.”

The look of horrible comprehension in those normally so bright blue eyes made her want to scream in anguish.

“Listen to me, and listen very carefully. You have to run, Dakkan, as fast and as far as you can. Take your staff, go east. The city of Stag‘Aden is twelve days from here. It is the closes, largest city, you remember the way?”

“Y-Yes, we go there to sell, but Mother, what about you?”

“Ask for Rok’Namar, show him my medallion, he owes us a debt and will help you.”

She pulled the heavy weight over her head and placed it around his neck.

Her poor son…

He had been borne small, much too small in the opinion of many orcs but her mate was chief. Groxen said he was to stay, so he did; but it was not to last. Her mate was betrayed. Killed by one of their own while hunting for the clan, Broxxan, his brother, took leadership.

His first order had been to go after Dakkan,

‘I will not waste our supplies on a runt.’

'He is your brother’s son!’

'That weakling, shares no blood with me.’

That day, was the first time her little boy used his gift. He had only been a year old, but when Broxxan had grabbed her by the throat, the very earth took action, a large spear
jutting up between them. It had pierced Broxxan’s arm and stunned the others enough that Vashka was able to grab her son and flee.

Over the years, her son revealed himself to be strongly tied to the four elements. Dakkan moved the earth, plowing it for their farm in the fall. He called great winds to protect their home from the sandstorms, and summoned water from the depth of the earth when it had been too dry for too long. The last brought her pride, for when they were in danger from the great wolves, the Grex, he had called fire to chase them away.

Yes, Vashka knew her son would grow to be powerful, if only given the chance.

A warg’s howl tore thru the air and she shoved her son’s staff into his hands,

“Run, Dakkan, and don’t look back.”

“But- “

“I said RUN!”

Mother…

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Chapter 1

Dakkan moved as fast as his legs could take him, calling the shifting sands to still before him so he wouldn’t fall. His heart longed to turn back, to get his mother and bring her with him, but she had thrown him out the back of their hut and commanded him to run.

So he ran.

He clutched his staff tightly, the crystals crudely tied to its top clinking together and flashing in the light. Dakkan had never taken his mother’s tales of the Hunters, as she had called them, seriously. He had thought them just a warning, to stay out of trouble, stay close to home, and never leave her side. When he was younger they had been fodder for his worst nightmares, great monsters coming in the night and taking him away.

The largest, grabbing his mother, holding her by the throat, killing her…

Dakkan was pulled from his thoughts sharply as he stumbled, he’d lost concentration and the sands had turned lose under his feet. He growled at himself, he knew better than to lose focus, and he continued on, hardening the sand once more. Up ahead, he knew there was a ravine cut into the earth by a river, deep and wide. His breath was labored and his legs ached, but he could not rest until he was on the other side.

Use the land, my son, you do not need to take extra time to delay those who pursue you. Gaia has everything you need, if you have the mind to see it.

Finally, reaching the edge, he jumped, calling the wind to carry him across, it would take too long to move the earth and he didn’t want to cause the sides to cave at a sudden change. Dakkan practically flew across the ravine, a graceful arch thru the air. His landing, was not so graceful. Dakkan landed hard despite the wind’s aid, and tumbled head over heels for a good few feet, losing his grip on his staff and bag of supplies in the process. When he finally rolled to a stop, face first in the dirt, he laid there a moment, stunned by the tumble. He let the heat of the sun and sand burrow deep within his skin, chest still heaving and heart racing.

He could feel his heart finally returning to its proper pattern when he heard a sound, it was one he knew well by now. Nearby, was a Grex, snuffling and snarling at the ground. Dakkan froze, if he was lucky the beast would just steal some food from his bag, or-

‘wait…’

Dakkan heard the sound of the one Grex, but Grex never hunted alone. He risked becoming a meal by moving just enough to see his ‘attacker’, only to shout as the large wolf pounced on him with a growl, and promptly flopped its weight right on top of him.

“Red, you mangy thing, get off me! You scared me half to DEATH you retched beast!”

The large, sandy colored wolf seemed to laugh, ignoring Dakkan’s struggle to shake him off to sniff at the others cloths, no doubt in search of a treat.

“Red! Damn it, get off! I don’t have- oh for the love of, FINE, let me up and I’ll give you a piece of dried meat!”

Just like that, the weight was gone and Dakkan could breathe again. Pushing himself up to his knees, Dakkan glared at the wolf sitting, oh so innocently, next to him. Red had both his bag, and staff clutched carefully in is large teeth, and offered them when he saw his master’s attention was on him. Dakkan kept scowling, reaching for his things, but Red pulled back, just out of reach. The message was clear, treat first, then he could have his things back.

Dakkan cursed under his breath, digging into the folds of his sleeveless tunic and pulling out a piece of dried meat the size of his hand, it would only be a nibble to the Grex.

“alright, you want it, drop the bag and staff.”

They hit the sand with a dull thump, and Dakkan tossed the treat into the air. Red snapped it up happily and Dakkan grabbed his things. It took Red no time to finish the treat, and a moment later Dakkan found himself nearly bowled over as he bumped his head against the small orc.

“Knock it off you big lump of fur! I just got off the ground!”

Red, so named for the fact that the fur on his tail was a dusky read whereas the rest of his fur was various shades of sandy brown, gave him one more nudge before backing off.

Dakkan huffed, brushing off his cloths fussily, eyeing his large friend.

Red was actually small for a Grex, five foot at the shoulder, the usual mix of sandy tones on his fur, sans red tail, and the same light colored patches around his eyes. Dakkan had found him, left to die in a cave north of his home. Dakkan had been out too long and had to take shelter from a sudden sandstorm, when he found the cave and the pup. As he told his mother then, he couldn’t just leave him, he had enough fight to live for how long and then growl and snarl while trying to steal some of his food.

The thought of his mother had Dakkan turning back towards his home. Red, unused to the feelings he could sense on his pack brother, whined worriedly, nudging a small shoulder when Dakkan didn’t respond. Dakkan fisted one lightly tanned hand into Red’s fur, comforted by his friend’s presence.

“she made me leave her behind, Red…”

Images flashed thru his mind, his mother, broken, bloodied and dead, or worse, alive and in chains. Why hadn’t she come, why did she make him….

Red stiffened suddenly, his ears standing erect. Dakkan froze, a sharp stab of fear piecing his heart. He waited, silently, listening to the sounds of the shifting sand. In the silence, he heard it. Far in the distance, the howl of a Warg, just barely over the sound of the wind. Dakkan jerked, throwing himself onto Red and grabbing tight to his fur,

“run Red! As fast as you can, run!”

Red took off like a bolt from a crossbow, whirling around and running across the sand. Dakkan held fast, it was not the first time he had ridden Red but he’s never ridden him at such a speed. They needed to reach the Razor Maw Cliffs where a path thru them would take them to the Tangore jungle, from there, Stag’Aden, but the cliffs were three days away on foot.

He just hoped nothing went wrong before then.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Chapter 2

Dakkan was exhausted, in every sense of the word. Every muscle from his toes to his jaw throbbed, his eyes were dry and his heart seemed to be beating around a sharp wedge lodged inside.

He and Red hadn’t dared stop for the rest of the day, even when neither could run any farther they’d kept walking until nightfall came, dark, cold and swift. Now, he sat in a wide shallow whole dug by Red, huddled under his tunic and curled into Red’s scraggly fur. The large beast had curled around him, shielding him from the old and flopped his large head into Dakkan’s lap. He didn’t mind, digging his chilled fingers into the warmth.

Dakkan had managed to start a fire, it was simply a task of finding something to burn and a wave of his hand, but it wouldn’t last all night. To Dakkan, it was both a good thing and a risk, if it got too cold he could get sick, on the other hand if the fire lasted long enough, he had no doubt that the Hunters would spot it or the smoke in the morning sky. Weather that was even a possibility, he didn’t know truly, but he’d rather err on the side of caution this night.

‘blast and damn…’

Dakkan shifted again, the soreness making it incredibly difficult to get any rest. With a sigh, he settled more on his back, hoping that looking at the stars and remembering the stories his mother had taught him, would help get his mind off the pain. Though, thinking back, he did remember a similar night, when he was this sore and Red was a good deal smaller.

The sun had beat down on them for hours, but his mother wouldn’t relent. His task was a simple thing, when said. He’s been so frustrated, trying again and again to call and shift the sand, make it twist and turn, until it solidified into a tall pillar of granite hard smoothness. He’d only managed to get it half as tall as she wanted by sun down and it became too dark to see his work. His mother had built a great fire then, and he fell to the sand next to it in a graceless heap, only giving a vague grunt when his mother asked him something he could not now remember, and being chastised when he let out a curse as Red jumped on him.

Closing his eyes, he could hear her voice, speaking to him in low tones as she rubbed a warm salve into his skin. She spoke of Gor’Akkar, the great hunter in the sky, who forever chased his prey, Verix, the cunning and tricky fox.

As those memories filled his head, Dakkan slipped off into sleep, dreaming of the stars and his mother’s voice…

Only to wake hours later when Red suddenly bolted up, off the ground, leaving Dakkan sprawling in the sand. At first, Dakkan jumped up quickly, looking and listening for whatever had caused Red to react so quickly, only to swear in such a blistering streak he half suspected is mother would come out of thin air just to shove a piece of soap root into his mouth.

There, a few paces away, was Red, frisking after a small tumble weed.

Dakkan sighed heavily, setting his face in an angry scowl and, after climbing out of the whole, barked,

“Enough!”

Red nearly tripped over his own paws at the sound, trying to turn around and aborting the jump he had made for the tumble weed midair at the same time, landing in a heap in the sand. Seeing the look on Dakkan’s face, he began to whimper, crawling on his belly and groveling pitifully.

Dakkan was unmoved.

Opening his mouth to deliver a lecture worthy of his mother, Dakkan closed it again with such speed and force that they clicked loudly together, and he nearly pierced a whole in his upper lip with his own tusk. Red had frozen as well, their little game quickly forgotten as they heard the sound again. It was far off, Dakkan knew, the sound carrying over the sand with ease, it was one of the greatest assets after all.

It was the howl of a Warg.

Dakkan wasted no time, jumping back into the whole to gather his things while Red jumped up and shook himself, sending sand in all directions. Dakkan mounted, giving a firm pat to his furry friend’s neck, before urging him into a steady jog, if wolves could jog that is. Their hunters were a good deal behind, Warg howls could be heard from miles away on their own after all; it would do no good to waist their energy now, with the stretch of sand they still had to cross.

There was only one problem.

Over the next few duns, Dakkan knew there was the well packed, and well-traveled, trade road. It twisted and turned, skirting along ravines and cliffs, before reaching Stag’Aden. Taking it would ease his flight considerably, the road easier to travers than the loose sand, on the other hand, it would also allow his trackers to travel that must faster.
It was quite the dilemma, as taking the road would also tell his hunters exactly where he was going. Though, for Wargs, tracking his scent wouldn’t be that hard for beasts used to hunting in the desert. He wouldn’t be able to fully lose them until he reached Tangore and any of the small rivers that ran thru it. One in particular, he knew, would be perfect to hide his scent as the bottom of it was caked in a thick layer of silt and mud that would dry nearly immediately and cling to any surface until you got it wet again to wash it off.

He had to make his decision soon, he could see glimpses of the road now. No one was on it, which was normal, despite it’s use as a trade route. It was the middle of the season, and the farmers who usually used this road had yet to harvest. Unbidden, the image of his mother’s cart, pulled by Red of all beasts, with him walking behind on that very road darted across his mind.

He made his decision.

As Red stepped on the road, beginning to turn onto the familiar path, Dakkan shook his head.

“No Red, not this time.”

The Grex whimpered a bit in confusion, but listened, bounding across the road and over the bank on the other side. Dakkan tried to swallow past the lump in his throat, created by both the memory, and not a small bit of fear. It was dangerous to traverse the open sands, each step could end in disaster, but he would not me caught, not if he could help it. The uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach he put down as not having eaten anything before they took off. He cast one last look back at the road, before turning away and urging Red on a little faster.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Chapter 3

Dakkan glared at the buzzards above, sorely tempted to call a small gust of wind to chase them off. It was high noon, he and Red where both panting in the heat, sweat stinging Dakkan’s eyes every now and then, and he was not in the mood to be eyed like a piece of meat.

They were not lost, Dakkan knew that, but the choice to take the sand instead of the road was making the journey a grueling affair. Not for the first time he wondered if this was the route his mother meant, both the road and a straight path could take 12 days depending on what happened. Either way, the matter was mote. Going back now was not an option, as ahead of him were the towering pillars of Moraka Vally cresting the horizon, a halfway point between him, and Tangore. Just past the valley, loomed the Razor Maw cliffs, separated by a shear sided canyon, the Dragon’s Spine.

He wasn’t sure how he would cross the canyon without going across the bridge, but, as the bridge was some miles down the way and served as a part of the road, he would have to think of something.

The vally was named for the pillars, the Mora Akar or flat towers, that dominated the landscape. They created an interesting sight, to say the least. All the pillars varied in size, from the very tall to the small, and in the center, a large plateau stood, it’s sides swirling with tans, reds, and even a smudge of black if you looked closely.

Dakkan would have to be careful, the road would have veered sharply away from the valley, for good reason.

This was the land of the Frel’mor.

A tribe of vicious trolls, with a pungent for killing, and supposedly eating, trespassers.

No one knows when exactly the sand people moved into the valley, they had always been there during Dakkan’s life. They called the great plateau home, though if they made that home on the top or somehow within the structure, well, no one had lived to tell. Turning away now would be a waste of time, and he had accepted passing thru this valley when he bypassed the road. Taking a fortifying breath, Dakkan slid off Red, giving him a few pats. The next hour or two would be rough,

“Alright Red, I don’t like it, but we have no other choice. Unless you can think of anything?”

He received a snort, “yeah, didn’t think so.”

Reaching up, Dakkan wrapped and knotted the strands of crystals and beads that decorated the top of his staff. He may be willing to sneak thru their lands, but he’d not make it easier by causing a bunch of noise. Finally, he stepped forward, hardening the sand once more. He called the wind, wrapping it tightly around him and Red. The trick would not stop them from leaving a scent trail on the sand, but it would stop a stray breeze giving them away.

Carefully, they made their way into the valley. Dakkan kept his eyes moving, scanning what he could see between the pillars, and listening for any sound at all. A sand lizard skittered by, and Dakkan had to bit his tongue to prevent a curse from slipping out, his heart racing.

‘yes, perfect, given away and killed because you were scared by a lizard. You’re an amazing Orc, Dakkan, no doubt.’

A gust of wind danced thru the rock forest, turning from a soft whisper to a wailing scream farther in. at least, he hoped it was the wind. Red crept along beside him, Dakkan had no doubt he could feel the foul magick that tainted the air. Whatever the Trolls did here, the whispers of it made his skin crawl.

They made it a fair distance before Dakkan actually heard something that wasn’t the wind or falling sand. It was a steady shifting in the sand, and it was coming in their direction. Dakkan and Red duked into the shadow of one of the pillars, breath frozen in his chest. Slowly, from around a nearby pillar, came the tall, lumbering form of a troll. Its eyes were nearly hidden under its large brow, it’s nose was long, with a sharp angled bump somewhere near it’s middle. Dark tan leathery skin was stretched over long, gangly limbs, four fingered hands nearly brushing the ground from the hunched posture. The troll’s large ears wagged as it moved its head from side to side, thick, knotted hair making a swishing sound as it rubbed along the trolls back.

Its snuffling breath sounded loud to Dakkan’s ears as it drew closer, he had a fir hold of Red, barely daring to breath. Trolls were not known for their eyesight, but even they would notice movement where there normally is none. Their sense of smell, on the other had…

Dakkan could feel his hand shaking as it gripped his staff, the rough lined of the wood digging into his palm. Dark magick rolled off the cadaverous form of the troll, source, Dakkan could sense, was a large, odd shaped medallion that swung from the troll’s neck. He made a mental note to never touch the cured objects, should he have no other choice but to fight the trolls. The troll was getting closer, closer, it now stood nearly on top of them, all it had to do was turn to the right, and they were caught. Dakkan felt Red tense, he was about to pass out from lack of air, and suddenly, he felt like slapping himself.

He had to work fast, the troll was looking in the opposite direction for the moment but it wouldn’t be long. A twitch of his fingers, and suddenly the troll whirled as a shadowed form darted out of Dakkan’s hiding place, heading towards the center plateau. The troll gave a cry, before darting after the figure, Dakkan hoped it would it would run for a good distance before realizing the darting shape vanished right after it saw it.

He sagged in relief, sharing a look with Red. The look he received seem to ask why it had took him so long to do that, Dakkan shrugged.

“oh shut up,” he hissed in a whisper “I panicked!”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Chapter 4He was really starting to hate running.

Knocking another gnarled spear from the air with a wave of his hand, Dakkan sprinted across the sand, Red keeping pace. They had managed to clear the towering spires of rock, only to nearly be impaled the moment they were fully exposed.

Apparently, his trick hadn’t worked as well as he thought.

Now, he and Red were dashing towards the canyon, a hunting party, of all things, close behind. Dakkan considered it lucky, that these hunters had no mounts. They more than made up for them, however, with their control over whatever black magick they had. The sand beneath his feat buckled and Dakkan jumped with a curse, a large sand worm bursting out of the whole, throwing sand everywhere. One of the darkest magicks, the control over another being’s mind, gave the Trolls hunting him a very large advantage. To harden the sand to the point that the worms couldn’t get thru, Dakkan would have to work for hours. So, he ran, every time a foot hit the sand he felt for a shift, if even one of the worms caught him fully off guard, he wouldn’t stand a chance.

The trolls where showing they had more of an intelligence than Dakkan had ever thought. Every spear, arrow, and bolt of black magick had been focused on Dakkan’s right, constantly preventing him from mounting Red, despite he and the wolf’s best efforts. There was little Dakkan could do, every now and again he managed to shoot a wave of sand, or a sharp gust of air at the trolls, even the occasional blast of fire if one got too close. He was moving too fast to harden the sand, so much of his concentration was lost to not falling, the rest defending both himself and Red.

The sand buckled and bulged again, and Dakkan leapt to the right.

“Arrrgh!”

It was a trick! As he had jumped away, three of the trolls unleashed blasts of deadly black fire. One flew by his head, another brushed his shoulder, and the last, the last caught him full in the side. Burning thru his light leather tunic as if it where dry tender. He felt it sear his skin, a pain he felt right down to the bone.

He fell.

The fire, after striking his flesh, did not go out. He could feel the heat dancing across his skin, it was like nothing he had ever felt before, and the pain clouded his mind.

The trolls where not idle.

They let out a call of joy as they saw their prey fall, nasty daggers and lengths of thick rope at the ready as they advanced. Their leader, the very troll Dakkan had tricked away before, reached him first. In their joy, they ignored Red, paying no mind to the obvious runt, but Red would not let them take his pack brother easily. The leader, arm outstretched to grab the whimpering Dakkan and claim a trophy by right, was the first to learn of their mistake. He reeled back, a cry of pain and anger tearing from his throat, hand clutching the stump that used to be his arm. Red snarled, dropping the troll’s forearm, and lunging again, this time for the creature’s throat. Another troll saw this, and batted the Grex away, calling the others to attack the wolf.

With angry sounds, the trolls attacked, one lone Grex would be no match for a troupe of trolls. Their leader, now incapacitated by the loss of his limb, stayed near Dakkan. He watched as Red fought, snapping and snarling, poisonous fangs tearing into two more trolls, his bite killing them in moments, before one of the hunters managed to land a heavy blow to his side with a club. The leader smiled at the sound of pain from the beast, now leaning on Dakkan’s staff, urging his underlings on as one of their magi came away, and began tending his wound. The troll had seen the staff in the sand, a suitable trophy from such a small prey.

Red managed to get back up, despite the pain radiating from his side, and lunged once more. Another bite to a troll, and now there were only four left, two magi, one with a spear, the other with the club that had landed the previous blow. The sand shifted, and Red darted away, two large sandworms bursting from the ground, hunting for the wolf. It was a losing battle, even Red could understand this, but the Trolls made their own mistake.

So focused where they on, what they considered, an entertaining fight, they failed to see when the black fire on Dakkan went out. The magi had shifted focus to the wolf, no longer feeding magick in the fire. Thru the haze of pain, Dakkan managed to make out the sounds of Red and the trolls. every sound of pain the wolf made angered him. They seemed to be playing with him, sneering and calling the wolf and laughing when they dodged one of his attacks. It was making him angry, not an easy feat by any means.

Every passing moment, the anger increased, rolling and churning in his belly, until his anger eclipsed his pain. When he heard a deep laugh, and words he couldn’t understand but conveyed a great sense of amusement, the anger erupted. With a roar, Dakkan forced himself from the ground, and lunged at the troll leader, a spear of hardened sand within his fist. The troll, not used to prey fighting back after being hit by the black fire, was caught by surprise, and died with that look on his face. The magi who had been tending him had sprung away, watching in shock as the leader toppled over. The small orc stood above him, sand spear red with blood, snarling at the magi before turning his attention to the other trolls.

They too, stared in shock. It was not every troll who could lead a hunt, the position had to be fought over, the strongest taking commander of the weaker. To see their leader, toppled by a being smaller than even their smallest offspring, struck them with fear. They forgot about the wolf, leading to the death of the one wielding the club, before they began to flee themselves. They would tell their chieftain about the sand wielding orc and his beast. Tales of how the small ones had killed one of their strongest and a handful of others would be used as a warning for years to come.

Dakkan fell to his knees in the sand when he as sure they were gone, his spear falling apart and slipping from his hands. Red, favoring his front right leg and panting in exertion, limped over to his pack brother. Dakkan didn’t look up, he was focused on the red staining the sand, hid hands and his pants. He had never killed someone before, even if it had been a troll. Yes, he and has mother had bought a few livestock and butchered them, but that wasn’t the same. This time, the life he had taken belonged to a person, not a beast.

Dakkan lurched over, the resulting pain increasing as his body convulsed and he emptied his stomach onto the sand. Again and again, the process repeated itself as every convulsion sent dizzying amounts of pain thru him. Red whimpered in worry, nudging and licking at Dakkan’s flushed face, ignoring his own pain for his brother’s distress. Minutes or hours, Dakkan didn’t know how much time had passed before he returned to himself.

Eyes clearing of their haze, Dakkan realizes he’s somehow moved away from the dead trolls, and is leaning against Red, who lifts his head when Dakkan moves. With a grunt of pain as is side twinges, Dakkan manages to get too his knees, Red placing his muzzle near Dakkan’s face, his cold nose a comfort to Dakkan. Raising his eyes to meet Red’s brown, he hopes his friend can read his gratefulness, before digging one hand into his fur and burying his face in the wolf’s scruffy mane. They were scuffed up, bruised, cut and burnt, but they were not defeated.

Dakkan pulled away, seeing the faint red on the sand, and remembered the yelps and howls of pain he’d heard.

“Here Red, let me see.”

Red huffed, before rolling over and letting Dakkan examine the cut high on his shoulder. A faint motion had all the sand pulled away, and Dakkan used some of the precious water from his water skin to flush the rest of the wound. Seeing nothing obviously wrong, Dakkan shed his ruined tunic, holding back a grunt of pain as his side flexed. He was sad, as he began to cut the cloth lined leather into strips, again using the hardened sand to make a sharp blade. The tunic had been a gift from his mother, some months ago, but the black fire had consumed much of its top half, and had rendered the cover useless in the sun. Instead of clinging to it like he wanted too, Dakkan knew it would be much more useful as bandages, and his mother would have given him a cuff over the head had he risked his and Red’s life over a piece of clothing.

Despite all this, Dakkan couldn’t stop a few tears from escaping as the tunic was made smaller and smaller. By the time he was finished with Red’s shoulder and his own wound, very little of the garment remained. Packing the remaining scraps into his bag, he made to stand, only to fall back to his knees as a sharp pain shot from his side. Breathing thru the pain, he didn’t see Red return to the troll’s corpse, carrying his staff in his jaws carefully. The sudden appearance of his staff thru Dakkan off for a moment, before he thankfully took the staff. Red had gathered something else as well, dropping it in front of Dakkan as he examined his staff for any damage. Dakkan stared at it, confused at first, before he recognized the strand of odd threat and beads to be a lock of troll’s hair. It was knotted and twisted, and ended in a ring of red stone.

It was a trophy; taken from the troll he had killed.

Dakkan looked at his friend, at first angry. He didn’t want a trophy from this, this wasn’t from some hunt that went well, or a particularly large beast. He had killed a person, a living being capable of thought and feeling similar to his own.

Red nudged the lock of hair closer when Dakkan didn’t make a move to pick it up. He knew his brother didn’t understand, but it was hard to communicate properly with those of two legs, be they his brother or not. When Dakkan angrily brushed the item away, Red grabbed it again. He nudged the piece of hair until Dakkan finally looked straight at him. Again, Red nudged the hair, before brushing his nose against Dakkan’s injured side.

He repeated this gesture until Dakkan understood.

This item wasn’t a trophy from a kill, but a sign. A sign that he had faced his first real trail. Someone had hunted him, tried to kill him, but he had fought. Not only had he managed to survive, but had overpowered and killed his attacker. Dakkan picked up the hair, staring at it, digesting the information, again marveling at his companion’s obvious intelligence.

He met Red’s eyes again.

In that moment, Orc and Wolf shared a level of understanding that most could only hope to achieve.

Dakkan pulled the red stone ring from the tangled hair, and using a bit of string already decorated by the tooth of a Grex, he tied the hoop to the top.

Red seemed to bark in approval.

Using his staff as a crutch, Dakkan managed to stand, Red close to his side should he need him. He gave the large wolf a firm scratch on the head, before turning towards Dragon’s Spine canyon. His wound ached with the movement, but being able to lean on his staff took away the sharp edge.

He cast a glance back, taking in the sight of buzzards coming to begin disposing of the troll’s bodies, before limping on. He cast a fleeting thought to the orcs he was fleeing, wondering if they would dare pass thru the valley as he did, and how the trolls would react to a second trespassing.

A small, dark part of him, tucked away deep, hoped the trolls would be better prepared by then…

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Chapter 5
The wind raced and howled, screeching in Dakkan’s ears.

He and Red stood upon the edge of the Dragon’s Spine, looking down the sheer cliff with similar concerns. Every tie it had come to crossing the canyon before, they had used the bridge far to the south. The closes thing to a bridge in sight for this spot, was the ruins of an arch that had once spanned the gap. It had long been weathered away, leaving nothing but two jetting stubs that didn’t even reach a fourth of the distance.

Dakkan examined the walls carefully, looking for any kind of natural path. He knew the Tribuck frequented the canyon, their hooves and uncanny balance making them to perilous heights, but surely not all of them could make such journeys to and from the bottom. He thought he could vaguely make out such a trail on the other side, but that could have been a trick of the sun and shadow. He sighed, it wouldn’t do any good to fret over it just yet, the sun going to set soon and they needed to find shelter. Perhaps they would find a path in the morning light.

“come on Red, let’s find a place to camp.”

Red followed as Dakkan limped from the edge, watching his brother closely. Red could still sense something bad emanating from the wound on his side, he wasn’t sure what it was, only that it was very bad.

Along the flat expanse, Dakkan couldn’t see a single bit of shelter. There were no dips, no ditches, not even a stray sand dune to huddle behind from the nightly winds. That really left him with no choice. He knelt, wincing, before placing his palm to the flat red rock that stretched from the canyon’s edge. He could feel himself slip from his physical body and into the land itself, tracing every crack and crevice, feeling ever pebble and grain of sand as if it was on his own flesh.

That wouldn’t do, some feet below him a large crack in the rock created a weakness, too great a weakness for Dakkan to manipulate as much as he would need. He cast himself further, looking for anyplace that would remain stable. It took some time, but he found it.
With a push of his will, the rock shifted and rumbled. It twisted and curved like water, shaping itself into a small, smooth bottomed burrow. The roof curved until only an opening big enough for him and red was all that was left. Another shift, and a series of little wholes appeared, they would be enough to channel any smoke out and help it dissipate before it got too high. Before he returned to his body, he realized that they had no firewood. No problem, not far away from where he knelt he felt the presence of a long buried log. A hiss and rumble, and the buried log was now unearthed and broken into pieces small enough for them to carry.

Dakkan groaned as he returned to his body, his side felt as if it was on fire, again. He had so much trouble standing that Red had to lend his bulk in aid. Dakkan silently apologized as he pulled on the wolf’s fur to leverage himself up. Standing, he realized why he had such a problem. His right leg was completely numb.

He prodded at it, moved it a little, wincing in anticipation of the creepy crawling feeling that usually followed restring blood flow to a limb, but none came. He stared at the limb in bewilderment, could the wound on the same side be affecting his leg in some way?

He didn’t know, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to help gather the firewood like this. He sighed, grumbling angrily to hide his worry, before addressing Red,

“hey boy, I’ve made us a place to rest but we’re going to need something to burn.”

Red tilted his head, he’d noticed his brother’s trouble,

“you know what to do, there’s some wood right over there, see? Gather some, if you can, I… I can’t help you.”

Dakkan scowled down at his leg, holding onto his staff with both hands.
Red gave his brother a lick, before hurrying over to the pile of splintered wood. Dakkan began to make his way to their den, feeling ashamed as he watched Red limp over with a mouthful of firewood. The wolf dropped them by the entrance, going back for another mouthful as Dakkan crawled inside the den, pulling the wood in with him.

Red gathered two more piles before Dakkan could get him to stop and come into the den with him. The sun was beginning to set, and the darkness would close in soon. As soon as Red cleared the entrance, Dakkan sealed it off. He opened a few wholes around the edge of the dome, each about four inches from the ground, they would feed the fire and let them breath.

Dakkan started a fire as easily as he had the first night, simply snapping his fingers and causing the logs to burst into flames. He leaned back against Red, stretching his numb leg in front of him. It unnerved him, to see himself moving and touching them limb but feeling nothing. His side was still flaring with pain, zapping what little energy he had left.

Red, who seemed to be faring well, wiggled his head under Dakkan’s arm, settling his large head into his lap again. Dakkan found comfort in stroking the course fur, focusing on the feeling instead of the pain. It wasn’t long before Dakkan found himself drifting off, laying his head on top of Red’s, he slipped into a restless sleep.

Air ripped and tore at his skin, making his eyes bleed and ears go deaf.

Fire snarled and bit at his flesh, flaring form the rips and tears, new ones added every moment as the earth thru its self at him in daggers of rock.

Water filled his mouth, his throat, his lungs. It filled him and filled him until he felt as if he would burst.

He couldn’t move

He couldn’t see, couldn’t hear.

He couldn’t breathe…

He couldn’t breathe!

A searing pain exploded from his side and he opened his eyes…
It was Red who was rudely awakened this time, by the jerking movements of his brother. Dakkan thrashed in his sleep, whimpering and crying out in pain. Red yelped, nudging and licking Dakkan in an effort to wake him. It wasn’t working, in fact, it almost seemed to make him flail more. As Dakkan’s flailing came dangerously close to the fire, Red caught a whiff of something truly awful. It was the smell of sickness, horribly sweet and tangy in the air.

It was coming from his brother’s side.

Red snarled, wrestling his brother to the ground, ignoring the whimpers and cries as they tore into his heart. Red bit at the leather wrapped around Dakkan’s wait, and nearly gagged as the same sick small hit his nose a hundred times worse. The wound was black, as it had been before, but now odd colored sores dotted the flesh. He did not know how the two legs treated such wounds, but Red knew of only one way. Shifting so Dakkan was pinned more firmly beneath him, Red nipped one of the pustules. It burst, a trail of orange tinted puss seeping out.

It was at that moment that Dakkan’s eyes opened and he screamed, by the elements it hurt! He tried to pull away from whatever was holding him down, but he couldn’t. All he could do was cry out in pain again as another flare of pain ripped thru him. He began to cough, a wet, rattling sound deep within his chest. He vaguely thought to spit out whatever was filling his mouth as he coughed, whimpering as yet another wave of pain rolled over him.

Red held his struggling brother firmly. He hated having to do this, but whatever was wrong with this wound was making him ill. He finished the last blister, nudging at the wound to encourage whatever the foul substance was to drain. He kept Dakkan pinned, whimpering and licking at his face as he continued to cough, spitting something onto the floor. When it appeared most of the substance had drained away, Red let Dakkan go. Instantly, Dakkan curled away, one hand clutching at the wound, the other at his raw throat.

Red whimpered, licking Dakkan’s face once, twice, then golden eyes opened, glazed with pain a tears. Dakkan looked at Red, though his eyes seemed to have trouble focusing. He spits another mouthful of whatever it was onto the sand before trying to speak,

“R-Red…I don’t’… I don’t feel so… well…”

Dakkan tried to take a deeper breath, but it was like someone was squeezing his throat tight and setting his lungs on fire. He knew something was wrong, but he was having trouble figuring out what. He saw Red sniff at the hand he had closed over the burns,

‘the black fire… it did something…’

“Red- “

He was overcome by another, bone rattling coughing fit, the thick substance filling his mouth again. The lack of air was making him dizzy, but he had no idea what to do. He had no herbs in his bag, there had not been any reason to worry about some foul troll magick before. As his sight blackened at the edges, he could see Red digging at the wall and, only understanding his friend was trying to get out of their shelter, he let the sand fall away to create a small whole.

Then everything went black.

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Chapter 6Red scurried out of the den thru the small whole as fast as he could manage. He winced at the howling winds as they nearly blinded him, but he didn’t have time to wait for them to settle. Quickly he filled the whole he crawled thru before putting his nose to the wind. It bit and stung at the sensitive flesh, but it was the best way to find what he was looking for. His brother needed help, he needed the help of another two legged, but he would need to find one first.He turned his nose in every direction, there had to be something, his brother and den mother weren’t the only ones who traveled to the place with too many two legged and noise. He did catch the faint sent of wolf brothers, but they were mingled with the scent of the bad two legged ones. They would be of no help.He whimpered in both pain and frustration, he couldn’t smell- wait! There, there was the smell of a two legged, it was faint, but he smelt no foulness from it, it would have to do. Casting one last look at the shelter, and memorizing where exactly it was, Red turned towards the smell and took off.He had to close his eyes against the wind, but that was alright. He could find the two legged with his nose and he could listen to the wind like his brother, Little Fang, could. Red heaved, pushing himself as hard as he could, hurt leg and side forgotten. Little Fang did not have time for him to slow.He narrowly avoided a large rock, growling in frustration as he lost the scent for a moment. Luckily, he found it again easily, but another smell was getting stronger.Nightwalkers.Red snarled, the large beasts prayed on those caught helpless in the night winds of the desert but they would not get him. He had run into their kind many times before, most of them he had left them be as they were far away from his home and would not bother with him unless he met them directly. He would not be able to avoid them, this time. This time, the black furred creatures where right in his way, and he wouldn’t risk losing the scent by trying to avoid them. The beasts themselves posed little threat, they were slow in movement, despite their lethal frames. No, it was their long, barbed tongues one had to watch for, they could shoot out quick as lightning and one scratch would send you to the ground, frozen mid step. After they had you, they would not eat you immediately. No, the Nightwalkers would drag their meals back to their den where they would sit till morning. When the sun came up, all Nightwalkers would return to the main den, and split the spoils based on rank.Red ran on, closer and closer to the threat, and his brother’s only hope.Red knew exactly when he found them for their scent suddenly came from every direction. Snarls and hisses trailed him, but he did not falter. A tongue brushed his fur, another he had to leap over to dodge. The farther he went, the more there where.Red had no choice but to force his eyes open, ducking as he found one of the eyeless beasts in his path. He felt a barb come dangerously close to his flank, but it missed as he leapt over another one of the beasts. He heard the barb hit the flesh of the other Nightwalker, and a fight break out behind him as they scent of fresh blood sent them into a frenzy. Red kept running, he was not too far away from the two legged, he just had to get thru the rest of the Nightwalkers.He was in luck, for at the back of every herd, where the oldest, the frail and the youngest of the group. He dodged the old and sick easily, but as he ducked under the legs of one of the elders, a young pup caught him by surprise, barb digging deep into his already wounded shoulder. Red lost his balance, and tumbled, but he did not stay down. As soon as he stopped rolling, he jumped back on his feet and raced off toward the scent. He only had a few minutes, the young Nightwalker pup’s venom wasn’t as potent as the adults, but it would still render him unable to walk given enough time.Red barreled up the side of what he though was another dune, only to careen down the other side, nose over tail.He came to a stop on the hard ground at the bottom of the sunken expanse. He lay there, stunned, feeling the Nightwalker’s venom slowly freezing his limbs. World spinning, he tried to stand, only to collapse again. He let out a mournful sound, he had failed. Should Little Fang awaken, he would find Red gone, and no doubt think he had abandoned him. He could not let that happen! He couldn’t! As he struggled up again, a voice, rough and airy with age, took him by surprise.“Hello, what have we here? A Grex, a rather small one at that.”Red watched the two legged approached, this was it, this was the one who could help Little Fang, he was sure of it! He tried to take a step forward, only to fall again, but this time he landed on something soft.“what’s that, Gosha? You want me to help him?”Red felt himself being picked up into strong arms,“well, if you’re sure. Come on, little one, let’s get you patched up and you can tell me what you’re doing all alone out here.”Red awoke to the feeling of someone licking his injured shoulder while a nasty something was being poured down his throat. He tried to get away from the revolting taste, only freeze as a firm growl sounded in his ear. It was only a moment, but it was all the moment that was needed, as whatever it was, was pulled away and he was offered a drink of cold water. He drank eagerly, he sensed no foulness from this place and so, saw no reason to be suspicious.“That’s it, little one, drink. You’ll need more water in you after how much we had to bleed you to remove the poison.”Red paused in his drinking, looking to where the voice came from. There, sitting next to him was another a wolf, this one large and a deep brown. He tilted his head curiously, he had never seen her like before.“Questions can wait, drink, eat, you need your strength, little one. Do not fear, for Soft Paw is a very kind two legged one.”“My name is Red, not little one.”He lightly growled, returning to the water and was happily surprised by a bowl of raw meat settled beside it. The brown wolf gave a wolf’s laugh which was, oddly, echoed by the large two legged one. Red finished his meat before he bothered asking anything,“Why did he laugh?”“My two legged is gifted with tongues, he can understand both you and me as well as he can his own people.”Red looked back at Soft Paw, as the brown one had called him,“you can? Perhaps you can teach my brother to do that. It would solve a lot of… LITTLE FANG!”Red jumped up, causing both the two legged and the brown wolf to jerk in surprise,“Calm, Red, calm. You don’t want to re-open your wounds. As for teaching your brother, is there a reason he can’t understand the language of his kin?”Red shook his head,“No, you don’t understand, he’s sick! I left him, in the sand den, please, you must come with me, help him!”Red whined in distress, turning pleading eyes to Soft Paw. The brown wolf stepped forward, drawing his attention,“You have only just awakened, little Red, you could not possibly- ““I am Grex, the scourge of the sands! My brother needs help, and if you will not help I will find another!”He snapped and snarled, whirling on Soft Paw when he heard him move,“Hush, Red, no one said anything about not helping. Tell me, how far away is this den?”Red eyed him warily,“I ran as fast as I could all night, I took no side paths, I flew as straight as I could to your scent.” Soft Paw nodded, standing and moving towards a pack hung on the supporting beam of the tent,“If I were to tie you to a sled, could you take us to him?”“Soft Paw! With his injuries, the harness will cause more harm than good!”Soft Paw looked at Gosha fondly, kneeling before her and running a massive hand over her head,“And of it was me, Gosha, that you were looking for help for?”Red looked between Soft Paw and Gosha impatiently, his shoulder was throbbing and his paws where feeling odd, but he would not let his brother stop breathing. They had already lost Den Mother; he couldn’t lose Little Fang.Finally, Gosha nodded,“very well, lead the way, Red.”No sooner had Soft Paw stepped onto the sled, Red took off. It was strange, carrying such weight behind him and not on him like he was used to, but Soft Paw had said they would need the many bags he had brought sense he didn’t know what was wrong with Little fang.Gosha had made him eat and drink some more water before they took off, he had listened to her only because it would be faster than arguing. She was running behind him, pulling some of the weight and speeding up their progress. Red was able to catch his own scent on the wind; it was much easier going past where the Nightwalker’s had been since it was daylight. Gosha had told him he had been incredibly lucky to be alive after running thru the den grounds of the Nightwalker’s in the middle of the night. He had to hold back a snarl at the way she said that, it hadn’t been his fault that he was running thru the night.They ran long and hard, Red ignoring the constant pain of his shoulder in favor of getting closer and closer to his brother.‘Hang on, Little Fang, I’m coming…’

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Chapter 7When Dakkan woke, it was early morning, he could tell by the sunlight that filtered thru the ceiling holes. His mind was fuzzy, and his limbs felt as if they were made of wood. Blurrily, he searched the burrow for the familiar fuzzy form, but Red is not there. Strangely, the fire had also gone out, he knew that was wrong, he just couldn’t think of why.Unable to find Red, and feeling an odd bubble of something in his chest, Dakkan searched for his staff. The heavy ironwood would bring him some comfort, but when he found it, it was out of reach. He didn’t know Red had knocked it there when he pinned Dakkan, he only knew that he couldn’t reach it from his current spot. Dakkan pondered this for a moment, before his breath was stolen as his body spasms and he begins to cough. A dark, red tinted substance sputtered from his lips, but he found himself unable to roll to his side to spit it out proper.The fit caused a fire to begin on his side, or so it felt like. Thru the dizziness and numbness, he could feel the pain clearly.It frightened him.He realized, as he tried to spit more liquid out of his mouth, that he was alone. Alone and in pain, with no knowledge of where his companion was or if he was even coming back. The fear, distorted by the same things making him dizzy and numb, soon turned to panic.Dakkan tried to move, his limbs jerking sporadically in response. He was having trouble breathing, and he was in no state of mind to use the elements to help.In his thrashing and panic, Dakkan missed the sounds of scratching and digging. He didn’t see Red crawl back into the den, and rush to him. Using his large head, Red managed to turn Dakkan, and he spit out the fluid though he didn’t seem to realize it was gone.Gosha dug at the entrance, enlarging it until Soft Paw could crawl inside. He was surprised to see the structure Red had lead them too, it hadn’t occurred to him that Little Fang was actually a little orc. He pushed those thoughts aside, pushing past red to examine Little Fang. He recognized the black burns and the sores, though he’d only seen them on those either dead or too far gone to aid. He examined the burst blisters, “did you do this Red?”“Yes, I don’t know what it is but I know you must empty them.”Soft Paw nodded, before turning back to the entrance,“you may have saved his life, little Grex.”As he goes for some supplies, Gosha managed to squeeze into the little space. Red was too busy whimpering and licking Dakkan to notice,“It’s alright, Little Fang, I’m here, I got help, they’ll make you better. I know it hurts, just hang on.”Gosha approached, silently, sniffing at the one Red called Little Fang.“you call this two legged your brother?”It was an odd thing to her. Even she only considered Soft Paw to be a companion, a part of her pack, but to claim a family tie among wolves was a different matter.“Yes, and he is my brother.”For all his efforts, Dakkan seemed to finally be calming slightly, subconsciously recognizing Red’s sounds and smell. When Soft Paw returned, his thrashing had decreased to uncomfortable shifting. At his word, Red got off Dakkan, allowing the old orc to begin his work.The process of cleaning, cleansing and tending such a wound was long. The first step was to run water over it till it ran clean, this took most of the supply Soft Paw had with him. After words, using an old ritual, he cleansed the wound of it’s dark magick. The process was painful for the cleansed, and draining for the cleanser. The process lasted well into the night before the flesh was a natural, for a burn, pinkish color.“Alright,”Soft Paw sighed tiredly, he’d only taken enough of a break to eat something, Gosha had returned outside to stand watch while Red was close by.“Now I just have to stitch up these sours. They are too deep to leave on their own.”
Red perked up, “and then he’ll be okay?”Soft Paw let out a hoarse laugh as he prepared the thread and needle,“He will be, after we get this fever down. I must praise you, Red. Had you not burst those sores, the infection would have been much worse.”“It would? I just did what Den Mother taught us.”Soft Paw began suturing the flesh, “yes, if the fluid had stayed in those blisters it would have ultimately been re absorbed by his body, increasing the infection greatly.”He stilled as Dakkan coughed again, reaching out to wipe the bit of phlegm away from his mouth,“you see this? Had the infection stayed, his lungs would be full of fluids by now, similar in color to the puss you drained.”“but I can smell blood on his breath.”“yes, but that is most likely caused by an irritation of the throat form the excessive coughing.”Tying off the last stitch, Soft Paw leaned back and examined his work. It wasn’t pretty, and would no doubt leave a scar, but the child would live. Seeing him move away, Red wasted no time in lying beside Dakkan and laying his head on his belly. The sight brought a smile to Soft Paws face,“Tell me, Grex, just how you and he ended up out here, and why did you dare cross the troll’s territory?”“I would like to know that as well, but Soft Paw, the hour grows dark. We must set up some sort of shelter, your sled would not fit in here, and I doubt all of us could find any comfort trying to squeeze inside.”Gosha herself could only fit half of her body in before it became too tight. Soft Paw nodded in agreement,“I’ll be right there, Gosha.”Before he made it out of the den, Red asked one last question,“Two legged are not normally called by the names of wolves, what will my brother call you?”Another laugh, this one amused,“my people call me Akko, now rest. Your Little fang will be much improved ere the sun rises.”Then he was gone, and as Red decided to follow his advice he mused that Little fang and Soft Paw seemed awfully similar.

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Chapter 8He didn’t want to wake up.He really, really did not.He did not want to face the pain, fear, and cough that had stolen his breath.Faced with those prospects, Dakkan thought it completely reasonable to remain asleep for as long as possible.That’s when he smells it.It’s simple and thick, it fills his lungs and it makes his mouth water.He couldn’t remember how long it’d been since he had Darkhorn meat.As Dakkan slowly made his way to the waking world, he shifts and twitches, head turning towards the smell.Akko shares a look with Gosha, a smile playing on his face,“It seems you were right, Gosha. Offer a pup food, and they will awaken even from the deepest sleep.”He did not know that voice.Forcing his eyes open, Dakkan was met with the lined, crack tusked face of an unfamiliar orc. His first instinct was to panic, he jerked up suddenly, only to clutch his head and groan.Akko caught him before he fell over, the orcs large arms easily handling Dakkan’s small size.“easy there Nem’Or’Tar, you’ve been thru quite the few days according to your brother.”“Brother?”Red, impatient, shoved his head over Akko’s arm, giving Dakkan a good long lick from chin to forehead.“Reeeeeeed! UGH, wolf slobber! It got in my MOUTH, yuck yuck yuck!”Akko laughed fondly, Gosha joining in a moment later as Red just buried his head in Dakkan’s chest in response,“oh, come on, you’re acting like I was dead. Get off, you overgrown rug.”Despite his words, Dakkan buried his hands in Red’s fur, pressing his forehead to Red’s, Red gave another yip, tail wagging with enough force to stir up a small gale.Akko let them have this moment, before nudging Red away,“Come on now, Red, he’s going to have to eat. Then I’ll check his wounds again, if their alright, then you can slobber on him some more.”Dakkan, who perked up at the mention of food, shoot the old orc a dirty look.Akko just smiled as he propped Dakkan up against Red before moving to cut up a bit of meat for the little one.Dakkan watched him warily, giving Red a scratch behind the ears,“how’d you know his name?”“He told me.”Dakkan blinked slowly,“he… told you?”Akko chuckled, settling beside the young orc, he did not offer Dakkan the food just yet. Instead, he takes hold of a small earthen cup Dakkan had overlooked. This, he offers to Dakkan.“Yes, just a Gosha told be her though she prefers Gosha.”Dakkan looked from the orc to the cup, and Akko smiled,“I will give you the meat, but first you must drink this. It’ll help.”Warily, Dakkan took the cup, and gave if a small sniff. He grimaced, holding the cup as far away from himself as he could, before he could speak, Akko grabbed his hand and the cup and brought it back to his lips.“I know it smells vile, but it doesn’t taste as bad.”Dakkan growled, glaring heatedly at the other orc’s hand. Akko did not let go, he’d had to give such medicine to many being, young and old. He would get the little orc to take to take it. An innocent shift of his hand sent the smell of the fresh meat towards Dakkan once again. This earned him another glare, some grumbling but, finally, Dakkan quickly gulped down the contents of the cup.He promptly gaged,“By the stars! That was foul, are you trying to kill me all over again!?”While Dakkan ranted and attempted to spit the taste from his mouth, Akko heard bother Gosha and Red chuckle. He held his back, it’d only angry the little one. Removing the cup from Dakkan’s hand, Akko held out the plate of meat.Dakkan hesitantly accepted the plate, Red hadn’t seemed worried about the old orc, it was the only reason he accepted the medicine, but he was nothing if not wary, and he wasn’t making it any better by talking about the wolves talking.

The orc could be versed and talented with herbs, but still be mad in other places.“you lied to me.”It was a petty thing, but the silence was starting to unnerve Dakkan,“you do not believe me.”Dakkan flushed, but raised a brow as if asking, ‘would you?’Akko just laughed, it was hoarse, but Dakkan could hear the kindness in it. Red seemed to take some sort of offense as he pulled his head from Dakkan’s lap and gave him a reproving nip at one pointed ear.“Hey! What was that for!?”“Calm Red, he didn’t mean anything by it. I am not lying when I say I understand your brother there, Little Fang, it is a skill I learned in ages past from my old teacher. Red has showed an interest in me teaching you in turn.”Dakkan tilted his head, he wasn’t sure he believed this old orc, but then again…He risked a bite of the Darkhorn meat, and was immediately rewarded by an explosion of flavor, he moaned in appreciation. He loved living the farm, but it had not been suited for livestock and there was only so many ways to cook vegetables.“Dakkan.”“hmm?”Dakkan grabbed another lump of meat,“My name, it’s Dakkan. Not Little Fang.”Akko nodded with a smirk,“Your brother calls you Little Fang, Gosha calls me Soft Paw, you, Nem’Or’Tar, can call me Akko if you like.’Dakkan glared, stuffing another piece of meat into his mouth,“don’t call me that.”“Little Fang?”He glared harder,“Nem’Or’Tar.” He spits the name with such distaste that it could have curdled milk,“Don’t call me that.”“Calm, I meant no offence. I will not call you that again.”Dakkan only gave a grunt and focused on his food. Red and Gosha shared a look, they were right.Little Fang and Soft Paw would get along perfectly.

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Chapter 9The noon sun blazed above them. Dakkan, still weak, leant against the wall of the shelter, the heat chasing any lingering chills from his bones. It was gladly welcome; he hadn’t spoken of the chill to Akko when he had checked his wound earlier, he would not appear any weaker than he already had. Akko hadn’t seemed to know, but he had insisted Dakkan come out into the sun with him.Speaking of the old orc, Dakkan cast a glance to his left. There, folded into a familiar meditation position, was Akko. Dakkan still found him odd, but he’d not found anything to really dislike about him either. Besides, Red seems to like him.He still had his staff in hand though, just in case.Said Grex was, currently, not too far off, seeming to be conversing with the timber wolf Gosha. Now she, Dakkan had studied curiously. He’d always heard of the wolves of the wood, but to see a timber wolf so far away from any sort of forest was nearly unheard of, unless they were part of a traveling show. It was fascinating to him just to note their size difference, Red was a runt, and she still only stood at half his height.“they are getting along well.”Dakkan nearly jumped out of his skin, both his body and his staff jerking harshly causing the crystals and other decorations to rattle violently. Gosha and Red glance over, but seeing no trouble, they went back to their conversation.Dakkan could see Akko was amused and gave him a glare, not that he could do much else,“I apologize; I did not mean to startle you so.”Dakkan huffed, fiddling with his staff, embarrassed at being caught off guard so easily. Akko makes no note of this, he’s learned that this little orc could be fierce if prodded the wrong way. Instead, he joined Dakkan, sighing as the heat from the solid sand structure penetrated deep, soothing old joints.They stayed like that for some time, it was when Dakkan was slowly dozing off in the heat that Akko finally voiced his own curiosity.“you never did say why you were out here, or why you trespassed in the troll territory.”Dakkan rubbed at his eyes, bringing himself too full wakefulness as fast as he could manage. He turned to the old orc, and found himself conflicted. He wished to tell someone of the nightmare he lived not a few days before, but he didn’t know if he should. Would Akko even believe him? Would he leave? Or, perhaps, would he restrain both of them and give them to their hunters for reward?Sensing his unease, Akko waited calmly. He did not know why Dakkan was so fearful of his own, but he had his suspicions, and they all centered around his size, or lack thereof. If he had to wait, he would, an orc who was chosen as family to a wolf would be worth befriending, in Akko’s opinion. They were the best in judging character, after all.
It is Red, who finally made Dakkan’s choice. He came away from Gosha, sniffing at both Akko and Dakkan before giving Akko a lick to the cheek. This was followed by a nudge to Dakkan, so forceful he almost ended up in the old orc’s lap. Dakkan shoved the large head away with a glare and a grumble, re situating himself against the dome.Akko chuckled, giving Red a pat on his head, it was strange for Dakkan to see that his hand nearly covered Red's head. He’d stayed as far away from his own kind for this vary reason, the sheer size of his own kind was daunting in itself.“Now Red, do not push him so. It hall be his choice weather or not I learn your reasons.”Akko gave Red a shrewd look,“and no, you shall not tell me in his place.”Dakkan gave the sheepish looking Red a hard look of his own and he returned to Gosha, but his actions helped Dakkan. He took a deep breath, before stubbornly turning to look the old orc in the eyes,“how much water is left?”The question struck Akko as odd but he accepted that, perhaps, Dakkan would not tell him after all,“we have enough for another few days. Plenty of time to take you to my home, so you may rest properly.”Dakkan shook his head, letting out a brief sigh,“Watch.”Dakkan buried one hand pointedly into the sand and focused, to Akko his eyes glazed over and it startled him at first. Red reassured him that nothing was wrong, to just do as Little Fang said and watch. Dakkan had to go deep for this, he supposed it would shock and amaze anyone if they really knew what lay beneath the sands. He knew, that deep bellow, were vast caverns filled to the brim with fresh, clean, water. It was too deep for anyone to dig for without some sort of machine, and Dakkan did not plan on telling anyone the pools existed, lest said machines pepper the landscape horribly.No, the secret beneath the sands was one he’d keep to himself.As like before, he flowed thru the earth as part of it, he frightened off a sand worm by having it ram into a suddenly hard wall. He skirted by the long buried ruins he finds, mapping their shape but not examining them. Finally, he hit water.This art was slightly difficult, as he has to transfer part of himself into the water while maintain his connection with the land and lacking any physical contact with the liquid. The nature of the water is what makes it truly difficult, it is slippery, dancing thru and around his grip with ease. It takes a few tries, but he managed and, securing his hold, pulled.Akko, having only seen Dakkan sitting motionlessly before him, was not prepared when Dakkan’s eyes finally cleared and he began to lift his hand from the sand.“One of our water containers, bring it here. Quickly.” Akko did not question; he knew he’d have time for that in a moment. He, as quickly as he could manage, hurried over to their supplies and chose the emptiest to bring over.“Wait, bring them all.”Again, Akko holds back his questions, grabbing the other skins without a word, and hurried back.“Open them.”Akko did so, then watched in amazement as Dakkan lifted his hand further and a veritable stream started forming from the sand. It didn’t move the way water should, holding its shape and weaving in the air like some sort of snake before Dakkan directs it into the mouth of one of the skins. Akko watched in amazement as he repeats this process again and again before slowly lowering his hand to the sands again, eyes glazing over once more.
As his eyes glaze over once more, Akko took one of the newly filled skins, and took a sniff of the contents. It held no smell, as water should, and he hadn’t seen anything odd about its coloring. It’s then, as he took a small sip of the fresh water, that he realized what he has just seen.When Dakkan’s eyes focused again, Akko was staring at him in wonder and amazement. It was unusual to see, since he’d never received such a look, and made him fidget uneasily. Akko broke the tension,“You called the water.”Dakkan nodded, fiddling with the sand,“you’re a water elementalist.”Dakkan shrugged,“not exactly…”Taking a handful of sand, Dakkan tossed it into the air. Instinctively Akko went to shield his eyes but the sand just hovered, before twisting and turning like a mini vortex. Then, it’s back in Dakkan’s hand. Before Akko can speak he slowly lets the sand run out of his hand in a stream, only for it to be picked up by a small tornado, that goes from twisting wind to twisting fire in an instant and when Dakkan banishes it, a small, twirled, piece of glass is in its place.Akko was rendered speechless and Gosha, who had jumped up when she saw Dakkan throw the sand into the air, was standing stock still. Dakkan felt his cheeks flush darkly, closely followed by his ears and he didn’t wait for Akko to find his voice before he scurried back into their shelter. Red followed, though he sent back a hopeful look. He doesn’t want to fight his new friends if they dislike what they have seen, but he will if he must. After some time, Akko entered the dome of sand. He hadn’t considered, before, just how or where said dome had come from. Knowing now, he viewed it in a new light. He finds Red first, curled protectively around Dakkan, who burrowed so well into his furry friend that the only reason Akko knew he was there was the top of dark beaded hair poking out. It is only now that he realizes some of those beads are probably made of glass created the same way he had made the small spiral he held in his hand.
Cautiously, he approached Red, not surprised when the Grex snarled a warning,“I mean him no harm, Red Tail, but I do have many questions.”His words, and voice, coaxed Dakkan from his hiding place. As much as he tried and claimed to be as brave and proud as his people, he did not have the confidence he boasted. He knew, that he could defeat Akko if he wished, his powers were a large advantage, but he lacked the experience and that left him feeling afraid.Golden eyes, now a dark amber, meat Akko’s deep green and he could see fear in them. Despite that fear, he could also see a determination, and it made him proud of this little orc. He may not win, should they fight, but he would put up one good fight first. Akko was glad he had no intention of raising his hand in violence.Instead, he kneelt a distance from Dakkan and Red,“Tell me, Dakkan, why are you out here alone and not training with a Shaman within your tribe?”There is a moment of silence before Dakkan responds,“I have no tribe, my mother and I have lived in the desert, alone, all my life.”Akko was surprised by this,“Why?”Dakkan’s only response is a shrug,“mother used to tell me stories, of hunters that where after her and me. I… I had thought they were stories…”At this moment, Akko could see Dakkan’s true age easily. It is known that orcs can live for many more years than some other races, what is not known is that an Orc may appear to be of age to another race, but they are not considered a full adult until twenty-eight years of age. Even then, the orc would be considered young until well into their thirties, when their tusks would grow in proper.With that in mind, when Akko sees the sheen in Dakkan’s eyes, he does not hesitate to move close, and pull the little orc to him. He did not yet have the full story, but he was willing to wait. Some things, even to orcs, are more important.

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Chapter 10Morning found Dakkan and Akko preparing their previsions for the journey thru the canyon.They had spent most of the night talking, Dakkan about his harrowing flight, and Akko about some of his own. It was decided that Akko would accompany them from here on out, going as far as he deemed possible. Knowing time was not on their side, Akko had insisted they wait to do the ritual that would allow Dakkan to fully understand his brother, despite both Red and Dakkan’s protests.“once we have crossed the canyon, there shall be enough time to prepare and perform the ritual, but not now. Be patient, young orc, little Grex, the time will come.”Luckily, Akko knew a way into and out of the canyon near them. The pseudo path Dakkan had seen was misleading, partway up the cliff, hidden by a bolder, was a four-foot-wide gap. The sheer drop would, if you were lucky, kill you in an instant. If not, well, Akko would rather not talk about that.The Cliffside was too steep and narrow for Akko’s sled, and was prepared to hack it to bits for firewood when Dakkan stopped him,“I can hide it beneath the dunes, there’s no need to destroy it.”“That would be welcome, Dakkan. It may look worn, but it is all I truly have left of my old teacher, it would be a shame to destroy it.”Dakkan nodded, and after finding a suitable place, tucked the sled under the sand. He called a portion of the red rock from the canon, shaping it into a ragged pillar with an odd, almost natural looking circle near it’s middle.“there, now you shall know where to search for it, it’s incased in hardened sand so no worms get to it.”That finished, and packs on all their backs, they began to make their way to the path, Akko in the lead.“you will have to be careful, young ones, I have traveled this path many times but you have not. You will listen to me exactly, understand?”“Yes.”“Yes, Soft Paw.”It did not take them long to reach the path, if you could call it that. To Dakkan it looked like series of cliffs that where just wide enough to walk on. It wouldn’t take to much more to erode them enough to be impassible. He gave Akko a disgruntled look and only received a chuckle in reply. He only held back from strengthening or widening the cliff by reminding himself that one wrong move would lead to the whole thing to the canyon floor in record time. He couldn’t strengthen it for similar reasons, though more towards not meddling in the state of nature’s course.They took the path in single file, Akko in front, then Red, Dakkan and Gosha bringing up the back. The trek was slow, and the gale that was created from the smallest gust of wind was battering at Dakkan, more often than not forcing him near the rock face so he wouldn’t fall off. He winced at the feeling of sand pelting at the bare skin of his arms, though he counted himself lucky that Akko was able to fashion a replacement tunic. Just the thought of the sand cutting into the bare skin of his back makes him shudder.The journey to the bottom of the canyon was uneventful, not that Dakkan was complaining, sprinkled with Akko’s instructions on where and where not to walk. He had been given the time to study this part of the ravine, a section he’d never been too, and found the mixture red-hued colors on the canyon’s walls were pleasing. A good distance away, Dakkan could make out a small herd of Tribuck, a loud clattering crash echoing form two bucks obviously sheltered from view. He envied them, their tough skin prevented the sand from doing any harm, and they perched on the cliff face as if it were normal.They spent most of the day in this fashion, there was very little talking as opening one’s mouth lead to swallowing sand, and that was as unpleasant as it sounded. Dakkan couldn’t even bend the wind, Akko had given him a look when he had wordlessly offered, a look that equaled a resounding no. Not that Dakkan knew why, in this instance, it wouldn’t cause harm to shift the wind but he didn’t have the will to fight Akko over it. Instead he contented himself with huddling as much into himself as he could manage, and marveling at the spires and rock formations that where reviled the deeper they went.It was nearly dark when they reached the bottom, but the sun’s last rays revealed a pleasant surprise. Akko had known wait waited at the bottom of the canyon, and he turned from the spectacle before him to see Dakkan’s reaction.Dakkan was speechless, Red was too. There, where he had though lay nothing but a simple riverbed, was a dancing array of light. Golds, reds, and oranges danced from crystal to crystal. Each beam of light reflected from one, split into hundreds by another and reflected thru another again. It was as if the light was a river in and of itself, the clear water shinning just as much as the crystals that lined it.Dakkan moved closer, seeing that the bottom of the river was lined with similar gems, the collective sight took his breath away. Akko watched, a soft smile on his face at Dakkan’s obvious wonder, he even knew what the young orc was going to do before he did. Not that Akko could blame him, he doubted that anyone so connected with the very elements could resist this particular magick. He could feel the pull himself, but only as a whisper in the back of his mind.Dakkan felt the pull as if someone had latched a rope about his middle and drug him forward. He moved within an arm’s reach, Red not far behind, and reached forward.
As his fingers touched the flowing light it broke apart, swirling and ebbing against his hand like it was water. He could only watch in awe as it shifted and swirled, a cascading effect turning a portion of the light into a shifting flow of whirls and waves.Then, he felt it.He had been so distracted by the sight before him, that he hadn’t felt the subtle whisper of magcik tingling across his skin. Now that he felt it, he couldn’t ignore it. It danced its way up his arm, tickling the soft flesh of his under arm, before crawling up his bicep, shoulder, and now it was trickling its way across his back. The light was now following it, a soft contrast to his skin, as it swirled its way up his arm.Akko watched with new interest, but no worry. He had seen the light to this before, to his own teacher in fact, he wondered what exactly the light would do in response to Dakkan. When Red sent him a questioning glance, he shut nodded slightly, smile still in place, this light would do no harm to those it chose to respond too. This, unknown to many others, was a very special place. The crystals seemed to focus the sunlight, it would mix with the water and gems bellow, infusing the light with natural, latent, magical energy, until it created the current.Though it was not truly alive, Akko had no doubt it had some sort of awareness.He was brought from his thought as Dakkan let out a gasp. The light now ebbed and flowed around him, only now had it started to, in a word, caress his injured side. Though tender, the healing wound did not pain him as the light slipped over the new ridges and crevasses that now adorned his skin. The gasp had come when Dakkan felt it enter the flesh, probing gently as if to see if there was any more haling that needed to be done. He felt a pang of loss as it removed itself, though it still blanketed him in a warm cocoon. Distantly, he thought he could hear voices, whispers, in tongues he did not know. They were accompanied by blurry images, nowhere and nothing he knew the name of, yet he knew they were real.He did not know how long he stayed within the cocoon, floating between aware and dreamlike, when he finally felt the magick pulling way. He opened his eyes, not remembering when he closed them, and watched the light fall away. He did not stop it, did not try to keep hold of such strong powers though he was already longing for its embrace. As the last traces of light slipped from his hand, and away down the riverbed, he was suddenly aware of the biting cold and darkness of night.He felt Red come up beside him, nudging and no doubt asking questions, but all Dakkan could do was look at the now dark crystals before him.It was Akko’s heavy hand on his shoulder that finally pulled him back fully, and he followed the old orc to a nearby indent in the canyon wall. It wasn’t quite a cave, but it would do. Another fire, started before he had come from his trance like state thus started the hard way by Akko this time, but Dakkan made up for it by pulling the sand around them and blocking the wind.“What was that?”He asked Akko,“Magick, as pure as it comes. My teacher showed it to me, though I’ve never felt the well enough to reach out to it.”Gosha and Red, settled together in a furry heap, perked up to listen,“but why did I?”Akko let out a soft chuckle,“after what you showed me, you have to ask?”“but what I do isn’t magick.”Akko brushed a bit of sand from his shoulder as he answers,“you are mistaken. What I speak of isn’t the arcane magic you are thinking over, nor is it black. It is our world’s natural magick, the magick that flows thru every living thing, every blade of grass. It is in the very air we breathe, and the rock that surrounds us.”Dakkan felt hesitant to believe that, how could he possibly have any connection to something that great?Akko laughed again, it wasn’t too hard to figure what Dakkan was thinking,“It is that, which allowed you to touch the light. Where I to do it, my minimal ability would only let me feel it but I get no reaction. Tell me, what did you feel as the magick flowed around you?”Dakkan had to think, he had felt so much, but he had no doubt Akko was asking about something specific. He watched the fire as he searched his mind, going over every feeling he had felt, and could recognize. It had been a humbling, and aweing experience. So much power, nearly overwhelming with its weight and-Was that what Akko was asking for?Dakkan looked from the fire, straight into Akko’s eyes,“Power.”Akko nodded heavily,“yes, and a good deal of it as well. Tell me, what where your thoughts when you felt it?”“it was… it was amazing, incredible, there are so many words I could use but none of them could do is justice.”“mmm yes, now tell me, did you, at any point, want to use that power?”Dakkan stared at I’m as if he had suddenly sprouted a second head,“use it? Power like that is not meant to be used, not like that. It’s too strong, too dangerous, it would be a disaster.”He was not sure how to interpret the look he received then, though h guessed it could be some sort of… approval?“exactly, what do you have in your hand, Little Fang?”It was only then that Dakkan realized he had something smooth and hard clutched in his right hand. He felt the edged digging into his palm, and wondered how her could have missed it. Cautiously, he opened his hand, and was surprised to see a small, softly glowing, crystal settled in his palm. The more he stared at it the less he believed it was what it appeared to be.As if sensing his confusion and disbelief, the crystal began to glow brighter, warming until it was on the verge of burning his hand and filling their space with a rich, honey colored light. It pulsed, faintly, small ripples breaking over his fingertips.“you have great power, Dakkan.”Dakkan snapped his attention to Akko,“and, despite what you may think, great power does not go to those who are unworthy. Valinden has great plans for you.”Dakkan shook his head,“Valinden is just the name we gave our world, that doesn’t mean it’s- “"what? Sentient? Aware? With the magick you just saw, and the power you wield, you would deny that the very land we tread upon, the very tress, are as aware as you or I?”Dakkan shifted, feeling an uncomfortable heat spread across his cheeks and a bubble of shame nestle in his chest. He again looked at the little crystal in his hand.Just what was he supposed to do? What could any orc runt do besides keeps his head down and find someone bigger to vouge for him and offer safety? Oh yes, he had seen a few runts in the city, with heavy callers and chains as thick as their arms nearly dragging them to the ground. Knowing how easy his fate could turn to theirs, he had made sure to stay close to his mother and out of the way of anyone else.The world saw him as useless and weakling.What could he possibly do?A warm calm settled over his rushing thoughts, it both soothed and drove his mind to another thought.Would he try to find out?The crystal thrummed in his hand, and he knew the answer.Just like he had done for the Troll’s ring, he did for the crystal, tying it to the end of a strand of smaller, decorative stone beads. It outsized many of the other decorations he already had, and continued to glow steadily.Red gave a yip, Gosha and Akko shared a knowing look.Dakkan didn’t know what he could do, or what the world apparently wanted him to do, but he was willing to find out.

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Chapter 11 Den MotherAkko stepped out of their shelter early the next morning, to be greeted by an interesting, if not endearing, sight.Settled next to the clear, crystal lined river was Dakkan, but he wasn’t alone. Somehow, the little orc had managed to coax almost half of a herd of Tribuck, that had no doubt wandered down to get a drink, into a gathering around him. Off to the side, a good deal away, where Red and Gosha, obviously not wanting to spoke the herd. As Akko got closer, he smiled, as he heard the words of an old fairy tale. Dakkan was petting and gesturing, copying voices and weaving a clear and vibrant story. Akko almost didn’t interrupt, but they would need to get moving again shortly.Akko stepped closer, and meet the eyes of one of the older bucks. Within moments, they were gone and Dakkan was watching them go with a look of fondness, and not a small amount of longing.Red and Gosha quickly bounded over as Dakkan turned to look at Akko,“I’ve gotten the supplies ready, we were just waiting for you to awaken.”“You could have woken me at any time, Dakkan,”“Oh let him be, Soft Paw, he wanted to see the Tribuck.”Akko gave a chuckle, Dakkan watching them with thinly veiled interest, only for Red to nuzzle up to him. Dakkan gave Red a good hard scratch in return, he didn’t want to admit it but every time he saw Akko and Red speaking to one another, he had started to feel as if he was left out.“Come, Dakkan, time waits for no one.”Akko shouldered one of their packs, and began to head down the river. Dakkan followed after him quickly, though he walked so close to the bank that Akko had no doubt that one little step would send Dakkan into the water, not that he would mind of course.Red minded though, and continuously nipped and pulled Dakkan away from the edge, going so far as to place himself between the water and his brother. A heated bought of glaring ensued, complete with pushing and shoving, with Red as the eventual victor as Dakkan sighed heavily and grumbled. He got his revenge though by clambering up onto Red’s back, easily settling in front of the supplies he already carried. This time, it was Gosha laughing as Red grumbled about annoying brothers and their not knowing what was better for them if it bit them.It wasn’t much later that Akko glanced back and found Dakkan slumped over, fast asleep.At the long suffering look he received from Red, he understood that there was no need for worry.“he falls asleep on you often?”Red sent Gosha a look,“yes, it does not bother me. Only, when he slumps forward, he has a habit of drooling.”Gosha gave a snort of laughter,“He is a very strange pup, but he loves you as you do him.”Red looked insulted,“of course he does! I wouldn’t have called him my pack brother if he didn’t, even if he doesn’t know what it means.”“peace, Red, I meant no insult. Tell me, though, if you were raised with him, where did you learn of the significance?”“I met an old male, he was traveling to the Death place.”Gosha’s ears perked up in interest, as did Akko’s,“Was he injured?”“No, he was old. His fur was nearly white, and he said he had seen a great many summers. He was angry at first, that I had dared trespass on such a place.”“He didn’t hurt you?”Red gave his version of a shrug,“He was too old, I suppose. I told him I knew very little, that I hadn’t meant to make him angry I was just curious. He seemed even more angry that I didn’t know anything. So, before he past, he taught me.”This time, Akko spoke up,“The ones who go to the Dead Place have very little time left, I doubt he could teach you everything in such a short time.”Red gave him a snort,“I know that, knew that then too, but he didn’t die quickly. He followed me back to the den and Little Fang and Den Mother cared for him as he taught me. Then, he was just gone.”Red gave another shrug, this time bringing their attention to a leather necklace adorned with a few fangs and feathers.“The one in the middle, that’s his. He left it for me and Den Mother made the necklace.”“Red, tell me, who was Den Mother? You say you were alone, but you speak of a mother wolf.”Red chuckled, shifting a bit as the motion jostled Dakkan slightly who in turn grumbled a bit before going quite again.“Den Mother was Den mother. I worry for her, she sent Little Fang away, and did not follow. I do not know why.”Again, Gosha was caught off guard,“are you saying that you consider the orc’s mother to be your Den Mother?”Red’s answer caused Akko to chuckle,“of course I do, who else would I call Den Mother but Den Mother?”The only thing that stopped Gosha from arguing or anything close to it was the look Akko gave her. It was not her place, really, to say what was right or wrong when it came too Red and his pack. Their situation was unique, and not something she could judge properly having not been in it herself.They continued for a time in silence, Akko glancing back to check on Dakkan who continued to sleep. He must not have hidden his worry well because Red finally commented,“Do not worry, Soft Paw, my brother is simply tired. He spent most of the night awake, though he had hidden it well.”Akko frowned, but Gosha stepped in,“He had much to think on, Soft Paw. There is no need to worry, would we not tell you if he was distressed?”Akko answered warily,“Yes, you would. Forgive me, Gosha, I know better than to question a wolf’s sense.”“yes, yes you do.”

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Chapter 12 the Cavern“wake up, Little fang. Come on.”Dakkan grumbled, opening one blurry eye.Akko chuckled nudged him again, being care full not to knock him off Red.“come now, you will want to see this.”Dakkan shook his head while attempting to rub the sleep from his eyes. Red, secure in the knowledge that his brother was awake, promptly gave himself a shake, sending Dakkan to the ground with a yell. Red quickly hoped out of reach as Dakkan came up yelling and glaring, making a rude gesture that his mother would have wacked him for.“ow!”Apparently, his mother didn’t need to be there, as Akko did the honors. Dakkan shot him a half-hearted glare while rubbing the back of his head. Akko chuckled, while a sharp yip and a glance showed that Gosha had reprimanded Red for dumping Dakkan in the first place.“It was just a joke!”Another yip, and Red huffed and grumbled before making his way over and giving Dakkan’s face a lick in apology.Dakkan snorted, giving the Grex a playful shove, before Akko drew his attention again,“come, this is the best path out of the canyon.”Dakkan turned, looking at the crack in the canyon wall Akko was pointing to. He stared a moment, not sure if Akko was joking or not. The crack was only just wide enough for Akko to squeeze thru sideways, though Dakkan would have no trouble. Not only was it narrow, it was short as well, how Akko had ever fit into this crack before, Dakkan didn’t know. He was reasonably sure that Red could make it, if he shimmied a little, but a full grown orc like Akko?“Come, Little Fang.”Dakkan gave Akko’s back a dubious look, before staring in surprise as he disappeared into the crack. Gosha followed after swiftly, while Red and Dakkan shared a look. Dakkan didn’t need to speak wolf to know they were thinking the same thing.Red nudged Dakkan forward, receiving a glare,“why do you want me to go first!?”His only answer was a harder shove, almost sending him face first into the wall,“fine, fine! Stop pushing!”Grumbling, Dakkan ducked into the crack surprised to find it was much larger than he though. The shadows had tricked him, and most likely many others before him. There is a short moment where he is surrounded by the rock, then it opens suddenly, revealing a bright cavern that leaves him stunned and blinking. Dakkan looks around the cave in awe, the walls seem almost mirror like, despite their blueish color, reflecting the scant amount of light that sneaks in until the whole space is as bright as outside. The swirling shades of blue throw Dakkan off at first, seeing as the dessert rock is mostly red, until he feels the whisper of magick beneath his feet. The whirls of blue make more sense, as he watches them shift and change, now that he recognizes them as magick energy.He’s brought out of his daze by Red shivering him from behind, this time his feet slip on the smooth surfaces and he does meet the ground with a thud and a yell. Akko and Gosha turn to look in surprise, while Red ducks his head with a whimper. Dakkan grumbles, rubbing a spot on his forehead that painfully connected with the ground before, before pushing himself up.He’s confused by the looks Akko and Gosha are giving him, and he doesn’t understand until he looks at Red’s apologetic face,“what? Why are you apologizing? It was an accident, unless you meant to make me clock the ground?”Red whimpers, and Dakkan sighs, giving him a friendly shove and shooting a half-hearted glare at Akko and Gosha,“see what you did? Now he’s apologizing for things that aren’t his fault.”He only receives two shaking heads in response, before they continue forward. Red and Dakkan hurry after them, still looking around, Akko watches them in amusement. Now he understands the look his teacher had gave him the first time he had shown him this tunnel.“Can you feel the energy, Dakkan?”Dakkan nods absently, tapping his staff on the ground as he walks and watching the sparks and swirls it creates with fascination.Akko just watches fondly, carful to nudge the little orc out of the way of any obstacles,“This cavern was created by a stream caused by rain water run-off from the cliffs.”This catches Dakkan’s attention and he turns his blue eyes to Akko,“what about the magick?”Akko shrugged,“I’m not certain, I can only assume the rain water river would connect with the one at the bottom of the canyon and the magick would spread thru it. Of course, the water would stop flowing quickly, seeping into the rock.”Here, he taped a stalactite, sending ripples all over the place,“The magick fades with the ending of night, but if its connection is severed, it would make sense that it would stay in the rock instead.”Dakkan nods, running the tips of his fingers over the rock, and watching the magick swirl. Dakkan would happily spend years just watching the walls, Red was dancing around, chasing and creating swirls of his own, but he knew they didn’t have the time. Akko and Gosha are farther ahead and Dakkan can smell the open air. The relatively level section of the cavern has begun to slant sharply, and more than once Dakkan has too dig his staff into the rock to prevent himself from falling. He can hear every time Red’s claws scrape against the smooth surface, accompanied by sharp snarls. Dakkan’s pretty sure they are curse directed towards their guides, and that thought makes Dakkan chuckle under his breath every time, even if he feels the same way.As they both slip once more, they share mutual looks of disgruntlement before a mischievous smile slips onto Dakkan’s face. Red gives him a curious look but all he does is shake his staff and gesture to Akko and Gosha up ahead. It doesn’t take long for Red to realize what his brother is planning and he has to cover his muzzle to stop a chuckle.Dakkan gives him another smirk, before taking a deep breath. He makes a faint gesture, that is fallowed almost immediately by the sound of wind whistling into the cave. Akko and Gosha have no time to react before they both lose their balance, and find themselves sliding back across the floor, too Red and Dakkan’s feet. Their looks of complete surprise send runt and Grex into peals of laughter that eco thru out the air. They only have a moment of mirth, however, before Akko regains his senses and angrily regains his feet. Gosha is growling beside him, and without thought he barks out a sharp,“Enough!”Now it is Akko’s voice, that echoes in the sudden silence. His voice is hard and angry, images of Gosha sliding across the floor bringing forth fear that immediately turns to anger.“What do you two think you were doing!? Do you realize how dangerous that was!?”Gosha snarls, taking an angry step towards the pair,“someone could have been hurt! One wrong move could have left Soft Paw or I with a broken limb! Does that seem funny to you!?”Her jaws snap loudly, and the noise is reverberating thru Dakkan’s head like a hammer on an anvil. He’s staring up at Akko from his place on the floor, and all he can hear is his anger filled roars and Gosha’s growls. He has no idea what either of them are saying and he doesn’t much care at the moment. On instinct, Dakkan curls into himself, away from the sudden danger looing before him with angry eyes and glinting tusks.Where Gosha and Akko fail to notice this sudden change, Red does not. Though he wants to do the very same as his brother and curl up to hide, he would never leave Little Fang unprotected. As Akko takes a step forward, to do what Red didn’t know, but he lunged forwards anyway, snapping at Gosha, and crouching protectively before his brother.It is this action that breaks Akko’s haze and he stares, surprised, at the snarling beast that looks an awful deal like Red, but it can’t be…The fearsome beast before him couldn’t be that kind, young Grex, not after going for Gosha.Akko isn’t the only one stunned, Gosha is frozen beside him, still trying to figure out why there was drool on her muzzle when it wasn’t there before and had she really just seen Red try to bite her?Both orc and wolf stand in place in puzzlement, before Dakkan’s voice gives Akko the missing puzzle piece in it’s fragility,“R-Red, hush. They didn’t do anything…”Though still cringing, Dakkan moves forward, digging a hand into Red’s fur,“it’s okay, I’m fine. It was just the noise, that’s all.”Red doesn’t stop growling though, he can still smell the fear rolling off his brother, and he will not relent until it is gone.Akko, now realizing just how badly he had just acted, shakes his head in grief. It has been a long time since he had lost himself to the rage all orcs bear deep inside, but he can see it has done horrible damage to the fragile relationship he had created between himself and Dakkan. He has no doubt that if he so much as moves, even to offer apologies, Red would lunge. Gosha’s silence and motionlessness tells him she has realized the same.As Dakkan continues to try and calm Red, while simultaneously hide behind him, Akko is at a loss, but he knows he cannot leave this situation as it is for much longer. He feels his heart twist when Dakkan flinches as he speaks, but he does not focus on it,“Dakkan… Little Fang…”Akko sighs heavily, raising one hand to whip at his eyes tiredly,“I am sorry, Nem’Or’Tar. I did not mean to…”Dakkan interrupts him, which Akko assumes is a good thing,“I said not to call me that.”Akko nods,“Yes, you did. I apologize, for both that and frightening you, Little Fang.”Dakkan is still watching Akko warily, but inwardly he is struggling. He knows Akko won’t hurt him, he’s had plenty of chances as is, but the instinctual fear of something much larger than him being angry, especially if that anger is towards him, is trying to get him to hide. He won’t, of course, if only because Red might do something they would regret should he leave him alone. Akko sighs again, assuming Dakkan’s silence means he does not believe him and he’s about to offer another apology when Dakkan speaks,“I know you won’t hurt me. I know… I know you didn’t mean to... to frighten... me…”Gosha snorts, growing impatient, though she regrets it immediately as Red tries to ling her way, only being held back by Dakkan’s hands knotted into his fur,“RED, that’s enough!”Dakkan tries, but Red doesn’t seem to hear him,“Red, damn it! Neak’More!”That word alone brings Red back, knowing his brother would never use it sparingly,“that’s it, Neak’More, calm down. Everything… everything is going to be fine.”Red snarls once more, glaring hard at Akko,“Calm, Red tale, I know I have done wrong- ““Yes you have, and if you ever do it again I will wrap my jaws around your throat in an instant! Got it, Old one?”Akko grabs Gosha’s scruff before she can retort and he bows his head,“Yes, I understand.”It takes a moment, but finally Red backs down, turning to lick and nip Dakkan affectionately,“ack! Red, stop that, stop, you’re slobbering on me again!”When Red decides that enough, he pulls away and Dakkan climbs back to his feet, timid eyes meeting Akko’s“Little Fang…”Dakkan waves him off,“I know, I know just… give me some time, it wasn’t you alone that… well you know.”At Akko’s curious look Dakkan sighs,“It was the noise. You got very loud very quick and it shocked me, then I realized you were angry…”Dakkan gives a slight shrug,“I didn’t mean any harm either, me and Red just wanted to get you both for managing to get so far ahead of us with little to no slipping.”There is a strained silence then, as Akko takes in Dakkan’s new withdrawn posture and Red’s deliberate distance between him and Gosha. It will take time, to mend this wrong, however slight it is, but Dakkan’s willingness to continue to speak to him shows him it won’t take so very long.“Perhaps, I should show you, how to cross the cave floor. I had thought you would have figured it out or stopped from falling with your abilities, but I should have known better.”Dakkan gives him another wary look and Akko sighs,“I meant no insult, I am not used to teaching young ones. I fear I am making quite a mess, but I shall show you now, how to walk along the rock. Come, you have to be closer than that, I am afraid.”As Dakkan steps towards him, as wary as he is, Akko can feel the knot of dread in his belly loosen.Yes, he will get the chance to fix his error, it may just take some time

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Chapter 13 Kor-mie*my (precious/dear) child*Dakkan has to shield his eyes as they finally stepped out of the cave at the base of the razor edge cliffs. He’d managed to stay closer to Akko than Akko had expected, though Red had stubbornly remained by Dakkan’s side, as far away from Gosha he could manage without leaving Dakkan.Dakkan took a moment to take a closer look at the white stone that made up the majority of the Razor Edge mountains. They towered above him, their jetting cliffs casting harsh shadows in the high sun.Suddenly, Akko let out a grunt as Red barreled into him, sending them both to the ground in a heap. Moments later, as Gosha made to snap at Red, she was stopped a strange blunt sound as something struck the white rock. A piece of wood clattered to the ground, the glinting tip and bright red feathers reviled the object’s identity quickly. Dakkan whirled around, staff half raised to attack whatever thought to shoot an arrow at them, and froze mid motion.He stared in shock, a horrifying fear beginning to swirl in his belly.There, matching him gaze for gaze, was a massive orc. He was bulging with muscle, bald save for a single top knot. The orc’s darker skin stood out amongst the sands, setting him apart from the others that surrounded him. One, Dakkan saw out of the corner of his eye, held a bow, there was no doubt where the arrow had come from.Akko and Gosha stood, staring at the cluster of orcs across the canyon. They were hunters, there was no questions there, if the paint covering their bodies didn’t give them away then the large, savage looking Wargs did.Red stood by his brother, head down and tail erect, snarling viciously.Akko did not have to ask who these orcs where, it would take a blind man t not put the pieces together.The large, dark skinned orc, obviously the leader, was calm, unlike his fellows. He watched Dakkan closely, before giving a motion with one hand. One of the other orcs began to drag something forward, the leader grabbing it from the dirt and holding it up high before him.It took them all a long moment to recognize what they saw.Dakkan felt sick, he could feel the bile rises up into his throat and he hard to swallow hard to keep it down. In twin voices of horror, Red and Dakkan spoke,“Den Mother!”“Mother!”Akko stared at the limp form hanging from the large orc’s hand, hearing his companion’s words filled him with dread. He could see, just barely, the crooked form of one of the woman’s arms, and from how she hung limply, he had no doubt either the she orc was unconscious, or dead.A scream of terror and pain ripped thru the air,“MOTHER!”The dark orc smiled, giving Vashka a hard shake, earning a cry and a whimper. He motioned to her broken body, then towards Dakkan. Akko could tell he was speaking, but he couldn’t hear the words, but Dakkan. Dakkan, with the aid of the wind, could hear them clear as day.Dakkan could come to them and free his mother, or they would kill her on the spot.“Dakkan?”Akko asked cautiously, sensing a change in the air around Dakkan,“they want me. HE wants me, he’ll let my mother free if I come back across the canyon to them.”Dakkan was staring to see red, the longer he stared at the broke body that was his mother. He could hear Red’s growl go deeper and knew the same was happening to him.They stood like that for what felt like an eternity, before Dakkan bowed his head in resignation.“No, Little Fang!”Akko cried, grabbing at the small orc’s shoulder,“you mustn’t think they would let her go, weather you went to them or not!”“What choice do I have!”Dakkan cried,“It’s my mother!”Tear filled eyes met Akko’s, and his heart throbbed for the amount of fear and pain that where in those eyes.“She would never want this.”Dakkan opened his mouth to answer, when the choice was taken from him.Using wha strength she had left, Vashka lashed out at her captor. Caught by surprise, Broxxan let out ac ry of rage, dropping Vashka to the sand. She forced herself to stand, squaring off with the larger orc.Dakkan watched in horror, a freezing chill sweeping thru his blood.“m-mother…”Vashka cast a look over her shoulder, the distance between the sides of the canyon was large, but she could still see his beads, could see Red’s eyes, and the new addition to her boy’s staff. She wanted to call to them, but know she could not, instead she meet the eyes of the old orc beside them. She needed no words, it seemed, as the elder merely meet her gaze for a moment then nodded resolutely. Vashka turned back to Broxxan as he let out a roar.Akko quickly took hold of Dakkan,“Come little fang, we must flee while we can.”Predictable, Dakkan resisted, trying to shrug and shove Akko’s hands away,“but mother! I can’t, we can’t just leave her!”Akko took a fortifying breath, he had already injured their friendship before, what he planned could kill it utterly.But the other choice was unthinkable.As the large orc lunged at Dakkan’s mother, Akko lifted Dakkan right off the ground and flung him over his shoulder. At his shouts, Red turned on Akko, the fierce snarl now aimed at him. Akko did not wait to see what Red would do, he began to run. Red followed immediately while Gosha made sure to stay just behind him to prevent him from stopping.The last Akko saw of Dakkan’s mother was the large hunter landing a fierce blow into her midsection. Dakkan, however, facing the back as he was saw what happened next.His scream echoed throughout the air, as the force of the blow sent Vashka over the cliff side“MOTHER!”

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Chapter 14 Escape Their escape wasn’t as smooth as Akko would have liked, trying to keep hold of a young, squirming, angry little orc was difficult in the first place, doing so while running on shifting sand. Well, it’s a mistake Akko swears not to make again as Dakkan’s knees dig into his belly. Dakkan’s iron wood staff slammed against his back a few times, the wood just as hard as the name implied. Blows that could have been lethal if done with forethought merely stung. When Dakkan lurches to one side and Akko nearly drops him, grunting as he re-adjusts his hold.There is no way he’ll be able to keep hold of the little orc much longer, but he can’t risk putting him on his ow feet for far he’d run back.‘oh, the gods will curse me for this.’Tightening his hold, Akko maneuvers Dakkan into a better position before giving him a sound crack on the skull with his own. Dakkan doesn’t have a chance to make a sound before going limp, Akko just prays he didn’t misjudge and do more harm than good.
Red follows them close behind, his unwillingness to overtake Akko showing his confusion better than any words could. Gosha is keeping pace at the back, still growling at the hunting party across the canyon as the archer continues to fire. His aim is good, but he is too far behind to get a hit.Akko lets out another curse as Gosha calls from behind, the archer has mounted one of the wargs. It would take no time at all for him to overtake them and strike a lethal blow. He felt a ray of hope, however, as a distinctly jagged, black rock glinted into view.“Red! Come here!”Still uncertain, the grex pulled up beside Akko,“that rock there, the path is just behind! Take Dakkan, and get to the first landing!”“the hunters-!”Akko struggled to keep pace and speak at the same time,“Are after you and him, now go! Me and Gosha will be fine!”Red let out a whine as Dakkan was slung limply onto his back> Never the less, he takes off, aiming for the shiny black rock.Akko can’t stop a smug grin from spreading across his panting face as he hears the hunters start cursing and yelling once more. Approaching the black rock, Akko skids to a stop, turning towards the hunting party. All, save the large dark orc, are sneering and jeering at him, while the dark one simply stares. Akko can feel the anger and malice rolling from the large orc, even from across the canyon.He wastes no time and speaks a quick prayer, calling for aid from the spirits of the ancestors, before dashing up the path himself.He takes a dark pleasure from hearing the hunting party begin to yell in fear, instead of threats.It’s a bit of a climb to reach the first ridge on the path, and when Akko does, he falls to the sand heavily, face flushed and gasping for breath. Gosha approaches worriedly, but he waves her off,“I am well, Gosha, just winded. Tell me, how are our little ones?”Gosha doesn’t answer, merely turning to look at the mound of fur made up of Orc and Grex. At the baleful look Red is giving him, Akko knows he won’t be able to approach until Dakkan is awake.“Why did you grab the cub, Soft Paw?”Akko sighs, wiping the sweat from his brow,“I had no choice.”Akko says quietly,“Little Fang was ready to give himself over too death for his mother, something I completely understand, but could not allow.”Akko gives the timber wolf a few pats, more for himself than her,“She gave her son a chance to run, a chance for us all to run. I could not let such a sacrifice be in vain.”Gosha gave him a nudge with her nose and a quick lick,“you did the right thing, Soft Paw, but it will take time before they forgive you.”“I know Gosha.”Akko sighs heavily,“I know.”He watches Red a moment more, before settling down more comfortably,“We won’t be moving for a while. I’m no young orc anymore. I bought us some time, I do not know what the ancestors think of the hunter’s actions but they came to my aid when I called.”Gosha settled down beside him,“If the ancestors disapprove, why are they still hunting Little Fang?”“I don’t know, something seems wrong. Runt or not, Dakkan should have been taken by the tribe shaman to raise once they realized his potential. Why wasn’t he? Why did his mother flee and where is his father?”As Akko tried to puzzle out the answers to his questions, he slowly dozed off. Seeing Soft Paw fall asleep, Gosha moved to the edge of the cliff, hoping the damage done could be mended, in the end.

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Chapter 15Akko panted harshly, dodging another spear of rock sent his way.At least he had no worries about Dakkan suffering any significant damage from the blow to the head.Standing within a roiling vortex of power, Dakkan looked fierce, growling and baring his tusks in an obvious challenge. His eyes are wild and filled with anger. Akko could hardly blame him, he’d no doubt be in a similar state in this situation.Off to the side, Gosha and Red were in a standoff. Red has yet to attack, and Gosha had done the same, knowing Red would only go after her should she go after Dakkan. Such loyalty was not lost on her or Akko.He turned his focus back on Dakkan as the earth beneath him heaved and split. He barely managed to get out of the way, his chest heaving, and he knew he won’t last much longer. He was much too old to be playing games like this with a youngster.He’d tried speaking to Little Fang, but it had garnered no response.Two more attacks came his way and he’d tryed to move closer, praying physical contact will aid him.Akko didn’t get that chance.Another volley of rock surged towards him before all went still.Looking over his arm, raised to protect his head and face, Akko saw Dakkan leaning heavily on his staff, panting almost as hard as him.In his fury, Dakkan had used most of his strength in large bursts, instead of rationing it as his mother had taught him.Now he could barely stand, and didn’t react as Akko came close.The old orc did not snarl or yell at him though. No, Akko reached forward, and took the small orc into his arms.Dakkan did not have the strength to pull or push Akko away, within his arms or his mind.Instead, he cried.He clung to the elder Orc’s tunic, sobbing out the pain and horror of his loss. He felt grateful and spiteful of the elder, but there was no other that could truly speak to him, for all of Red’s attempts.The Grex broke away from Gosha, offering what peace his presence could offer, leaning his weight against the back of Dakkan’s legs.Dakkan didn’t fully register the calm words being spoken in his ear, though he heard them. His mind was numb, his belly in knots and where his heart should be lay a chunk of painfully cold ice.As Dakkan’s cries came to an end, Akko slowly released him. He didn’t wait for the little orc to acknowledge his presence.“Come, let us get you on top of Red.” Without Dakkan’s resistance, Red had no reason to speak against Akko. Instead, he moved himself so Akko could lift his brother into position easier.Once he knew Dakkan would not fall off, Akko met Red’s eyes,“you know I had no choice, Red.”Red did not answer, though in is heart, the grex understood, but his mind was still angry and hurting all the same. Instead he stepped away, patiently waiting for Akko to lead the way.Akko accepted his silence, turning to Gosha,“Come, we have a hard trek before us. I need your ears at our backs, I shall lead.”Gosha, still eyeing Dakkan warily, replied in a soft huff,“I do not like the idea of being away from you, Soft Paw.”“You do not have to like it, I need you there. Our pursuers may follow given the chance and I refuse to allow them to catch us unaware.”Reluctantly, Gosha nodded her agreement, staying back as he began down the path and Red follows.Akko directed them down the safest path he knew of, eyes scanning the rocks for any sign of the unfriendly beasts that made their homes among the cliffs. Normally, had they taken the road, the beasts would be no worry as they had learned that attacks on the road travelers resulted in too many deaths and pain.Their trek was a quite one, disturbed only by the sounds of their footsteps and the occasional disruptions of loose rocks.The silence was both appreciated, and unnerving.‘humph,’ Akko thought in grudging amusement, ‘a lifetime in isolation, and barely a few days with them, and a few hours of silence has me missing their voices.’Periodically, Akko looked back, making sure the young ones were still behind him. Each time, his heart gave a squeeze at Dakkan’s blank eyes. He would almost prefer the rage he had seen hours before, to the emptiness now.Dakkan himself barely registered their traveling. After his tears had dried, he had felt nothing but emptiness. There was no more sadness, or anger, nothing but a void that had been harshly rent twice. The first, the loss of his mother, for good. The second, the feeling of harsh betrayal towards the old orc. He didn’t want to blame Akko, but he did all the same. Dakkan blamed Akko for his mother’s loss and despite his own mind voicing all the reasons not to, he couldn’t stop himself.Every heartbeat felt like a stab in the chest and his head felt fuzzy, the rattling of lose rocks skittering down the cliffside a distant and distorted noise.He had the vague notion that he should offer comfort to Red, he would no doubt be feel just as horrid as him, but the most he could muster was an absentminded scratch to the Grex’s shoulder. It seemed to help though, despite his fingers lacking any real strength, Dakkan could feel Red’s stride lose its stiffness.It was in this stupor that Dakkan observed the edge of Tangore, Tangle Wood in the common speech. For now, the forest rose as nothing more than a band of green in the distance, made wide by their angle of approach. It cut between the red of the rock and the bright blue of the sky as if in defiance, determined to keep the land and sky separate.With this view and the rhythmic sound of Akko’s steps blending with Red’s gentle rocking Dakkan felt a tiredness dragging at his eyelids. He held no will to resist, and allowed himself to fall into the realm of dreams. It was Red’s small huff of surprise that had Akko glancing back at them to discover Dakkan slumped over the Grex’s shoulders and neck. Akko gave a slow nod to himself, before reassuring Red,“Calm, Red. I would be more had he not fallen asleep. I find many underestimate the drain one suffers when under such strain. Let him rest, it can only help now.”Gosha gave Dakkan and Red a wary look,“what shall you do when he wakes, Soft Paw?”The question shouldn’t have surprised him as much as it did,“Do? Hopefully he will not awake until we make camp. When he wakes again, I shall give him food and make sure he continues to rest.”Gosha’s lip lifted into a silent snarl,“and if he attacks you once more? What then, Soft Paw?”Akko knew what she wanted and sighed,“I shall do as I have and pray he does not come to or cause any permanent harm.”“you will just-““What would you have me do, Gosha!? Shall I strike him down, over his lashing out in pain?
Shall I cut short the life of one so young his tusks have yet to reach their full size? How quickly you forget, Gosha, that he is a child, a child forced to flee his home, leaving his mother to whatever horrors he could imagine. A child who has only taken the life of another for the first time merely a few days before, and was poisoned in the act. He has been hounded for days, his only comrades a single Grex and two complete strangers. After all this, he discovered his mother yet lived only to watch her fall to her death, no doubt, I suspect in his mind, because one of those complete strangers refused to allow him to save her.”Gosha had the good grace to look guilty and ashamed, as much as a wolf could anyway. Akko let out a long, deep, sorrowful sigh.“I will not leave him to his death, if I can help it.”Red looked between them in uncomfortable silence as they fell silent. No more was said between them for some time.

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Chapter 16 He was dreaming, Dakkan had no doubt of that. He was nestled in the roots of a large tree, lush and green, being orbited by a ring of stones and cradling bright flames in woven branches. Rivers of sparkling water fell gently from the higher reaches and a soft wind kept the leaves rustling like whispers. He felt comfortable, pressing his cheek to the miss covered wood, a feeling of protection and care surrounded him. He knew the sorrow was there, a shadow on the edge of his mind, but the warm cocoon of feel around him kept it at bay. He was floating on these feelings of peace when a shadow fell over him. Dakkan blinked his eyes open, can came face to face with a large wolf with fur the colors of an extinguished campfire. It was the eyes that caught the most of his attention, they were familiar, even though they were a common golden brown. The wolf moved its muzzle closer to him, until it’s forehead was against his. His eyes closed at the wash of love that come from the wolf, it surged through him and centered within his chest. The feeling of moss and the sound of leaves started to fade, just before he opened his eyes, he heard the voice of his mother, “I will always love you, Kor-mie.” Dakkan opened his eyes to a stone ceiling and the feeling of being surrounded by fur. He could see the faint smoldering ashes of the fire not far away, but there was another light calling for his attention. He shifted stiffly muscles objecting to the previous day’s events, Red immediately perking up and turned his head to look at him. Dakkan let him lick his face, but forcibly nudged his head away and reached for his staff. The crystal he had settled on the top was glowing with a distinct green-blue light. Cautiously, he ran the tip of a finger over the crystal’s surface. The effect was immediate, the glow brightened and tendrils of energy curled over his hand and sunk into his skin. The rush left him dizzy for a moment, a hum beginning in the back of his mind.There were no words, but Dakkan got a sense of them, of protection and care, of promise. Dakkan tentatively returned the sensation with thoughts of thankfulness, and returned promises of protection and care, receiving a surge of joy in return. The hum faded as quickly as it had arrived, and Dakkan looked around their resting place once more. He could see the seam of the slanted ceiling meeting with the supporting spire; it didn’t require an elemental connection to see time had sent one of the large spires of the Razor Cliffs toppling over only to catch on another shorter, fatter rock, creating a convenient little cave just big enough to fit them all comfortably. Dakkan could make out Akko against the stars near the entrance, though he couldn’t see Gosha.He felt a rush of anger, but it was tempered, Akko was not the cause of his mother’s passing. If he was to be angry with anyone, he would direct that anger to the orc that had been hunting him. Red was till nosing him worriedly, and he dug his fingers into the course fur, “Hush, Red, I’ll be all right.” He knew his speaking alerted Akko to his being awake, but the old orc didn’t move save turning his head for a moment. Dakkan was unsure what to do, the old orc had done much for them and the thought that the old orc could think Dakkan hated him left him uneasy. Red woofed in his ear, making Dakkan jerk his head back,  “ugh, come on, wolf breath!” He heard Akko chuckle as he continued petting and scratching his worried brother to try and sooth him. By the time Red was appeased Akko had moved from his place and was there to offer Dakkan a few pieces of dried meat and some water.  “you used a lot of energy, you should eat.” Dakkan took both without question, watching as Akko moved to sit a short distance away, close enough to himself and the entrance. Akko watched Dakkan with one eye and the cave entrance with another. He hadn’t expected Dakkan to awaken until morning, Gosha was outside the cave, too uneasy to sleep so close to one who had fought Soft Paw. The silence seemed to stretch for a lifetime, before Akko spoke, “I am sorry, Little Fang. Your mother was very brave…” Dakkan looked at his shadowed reflection in the cup of water, thinking about the many things is mother had for done that he hadn’t liked, before giving it a swirl. Akko gasped as something cold wormed its way under his tunic before sighing as bruised skin was soothed. He turned to Dakkan who’s cup was now empty,  “she would be scolding me right now. In that, infuriatingly kind way only mothers can do, that stops you from being angry.” “Dakkan…” Akko was interrupted by the rattle of Dakkan’s beads as he shook his head, “I don’t like it. I don’t know if anyone would have liked it, but I understand.” He snuggled down into Red’s fur some, “I knew they would not have given her back and, even though I hoped they would, they would not have simply killed me too.” Akko studied Dakkan, curled as he was into Red’s fur, “tell me, why do they hunt you?” Dakkan shrugged one shoulder, “mother said they wanted to use my control over the elements as a weapon, other than that I do not know.” Akko nodded, looking back at the fire, and getting lost in his own thoughts. Dakkan stared up at the dark ceiling, mind going over the events of the past few days. He still felt separated from the memories, and the image of his mother falling had him forcing back another wave of sobbing, though a few tears still managed to fall onto Red’s fur. He hated it, hated that his mother had died because of him, hated that she had had to run from the clan in the first place because of him- no. Not because of him. The dark orc’s face stood out clearly in his mind, him, that orc was the reason his mother was dead, not his. Dakkan fondled his mother’s heavy sigil, clutching it close as his blood ran hot, given the chance, he would make that orc pay. Just this once, he tossed aside his mother’s teachings of calm before rashness, and let the hatred fester until it blotted out most of the hurt and made him long for the chance to repay the dark orc’s dept. He’s was brought out of his musings by a shout from Akko, and quickly jerked up to look. He stared for a moment at the pillar of flame uncomprehending, before the sight of Akko trying to toss sand on it jerked him back into reality. Dakkan held up a hand, and reached out to the writhing flame, urging it to calm and go down. It took some coaxing but it finally returned to the size of a normal campfire. Akko was staring at the now small fire in astonishment, before turning his bewildered gaze to Dakkan. Seeing the sheepish look on the small orcs face Akko raised an eyebrow in question,“um, I was… I got angry…” Akko’s expression didn’t change, “at him.” Akko continued to stare before nodding in understanding, “Well, at least I will always know when you are angry.” Dakkan let out an embarrassed chuckle, “sorry, Soft Paw.”

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Chapter 17“It seems, I may have overestimated you, Broxxan.” Broxxan, chief of the of the Dune Stalker clan, scowled at the shade before him, “you are wrong. Until that runt reaches Stag’Aden, we have plenty of opportunities.” The shade hissed, Broxxan could feel the dark energy skittering across his skin, “overconfidence will be your downfall. Kill the runt, or our deal is void, I’m sure another of your clan could be similarly… tempted.” Broxxan snarled, “If you would use that magick your so proud of-Arrrgh!” Broxxan cried out in pain, dark magick settled deep in his bones crackling through his veins, bringing him to his knees, “you forget yourself, Broxxan.” The tone was not chiding, rather it was smooth, as the shade moved to stand directly before him. Broxxan felt a deathlike chill on his face and managed to look up, seeing that the cold was the shade’s phantom hand, “You have proven use full, in the past. Do not make me regret this bargain, Broxxan, it would not end well for you.” The shade seemed to be studying him,  “I shall give you this, who do you think chased your ancestors away mere hours ago? Who has kept them away, kept them from claiming their retribution for your actions?”Broxxan kept the scowl on his face, but turned his eyes down, a clear sign of submission to the shade, “I will serve.” “Much better. Find the runt, kill it, return to me when it is done and you shall have your reward. Do not fail me.” With a twist of smoke, Broxxan was left alone. With a roar, he pounded his fists into the sand, taking out his frustrations on the shifting grains. The sound of footsteps in the sand caused him wo whirl, looming over the approaching orc panting with anger,  “What!?” The orc glared right back, Broxxan recognized the look immediately. It was his second, Ku’Dar, a great warrior in his own right, he’d even earned Broxxan’s grudging respect. “The others are talking, chief.” Broxxan’s glare hardened, “talking?” Ku’Dar nodded, carefully approaching his chief. “The spirits themselves opposed us, Broxxan. The others know they do not agree with this hunt, they question if the hunt should continue.” “And what do you think, Ku’Dar?” Ku’Dar was no fool, the threat in that question was obvious, “I think you are my chief, and I will follow you. You will bring this clan to power.” Broxxan looked close into Ku’Dar’s face, searching for any signs of deception, and only found blind loyalty. Good, that was why he had chosen Ku’Dar in the first place. He pushed past Ku’Dar, quickly entering the small camp before stopping at the fire. He looked over those around him, hunters, warriors, ones who were once healers now killers, men and women. They either looked away or returned his look with ones swearing loyalty, “Speak.” None of them acted as if they did not know what he meant, there was shifting and muttering before one of his more experienced huntsmen stood. He entered the circle of light, standing tall and meeting Broxxan’s gaze boldly, “I have been on many hunts, have seen many years, and never have I had the ancestors attack me as they did today. You told us they wanted the child dead, that he was a danger, then why did they step in?” Broxxan let out a low growl, “for years, we have chased our quarry. For years we have followed every track and trail leading to thus hunt, and never have they interfered. They only did so, because of that old fool our prey is now clinging to, had he not compelled them they would not have.” Broxxan could hear the grumbling in the camp, they were still unsure, “you told us our prey was a danger, Chief, but what we saw today was still a child. He did no attack us when you threatened the mother, did nothing against us as we shot at him, how is he a danger, chieftain. Tell us why we should continue to follow you on this hunt.” The feel of the other orc’s skin under his fingers was gratifying, despite the warmth of the fire on the underside of him arm. The other grabbed at his wrist as Broxxan lifted him from the ground, “Why? You dare question my right to lead, Zevmak?” Broxxan pulled the orc across the fire, unmoved as Zevmak began to grunt in pain from the flames, “Perhaps, it if not a question of my worthiness, rather, it is a question of your own. Let me remind you, why I lead the World Walkers.” Broxxan kept his hold even as Zevmak began to scream, writhing as the flames of the fire turned dark and crept up his body. The purple-black flame danced around and over Broxxan’s arm, but did no damage. When he was satisfied, he tossed Zevmak aside, where he landed in a moaning lump, he would not die but the scaring would be substantial. Broxxan looked around his camp once more, “Are there any others?” The camp was silent.