He sighed, “I had a feelin’ ye might be. Bring me the left ear tips. Not the whole ear mind you, just enough to tell its the left. Not like I’m goin’ ta keep the blasted things.” The dwarf grimaced at the thought. With that said, the dwarf promptly ignored me and began wiping his counter with the stained cloth that he had used before. I thanked Braddick, only receiving a grunt of acknowledgement in return. As I left, I could feel a number of eyes on my back.
Chapter 10
Once I was back on the streets, I raised my hood once again, not wanting the attention my hair might bring. According to the posting, the orcs were spotted more heavily southeast of town. I departed from Greypoint using the same eastern gate that I had entered, but after only a half hour of walking I abandoned the road. It seemed that orcs were being spotted quite close to the southern farmlands. Perhaps the mages had supplied the coin for the bounties. After all, they had to eat like anyone else. It would be devastating if the nearby farmlands were razed. Food would become scarce, only available through the merchant caravans. Prices would rise and those less fortunate would starve.
Three hours of walking later, I saw smoke billowing upwards to the sky. That was not a good sign. I picked up my pace, being careful to maintain enough stamina for a fight. The few trees around me blocked my sight of what lay ahead. Finally I crested a hill and looked down to see a field before me. The smoke was coming from the farmhouse, which was nothing but a smoldering pile of timbers. I couldn’t see any orcs from where I stood, so I descended the hill and moved forward for a closer look.
Once I reached the field, I noticed that much of it was trampled over. I crouched low as I passed through the half-destroyed field. I connected to my magic, ready to summon a windblade at a moment's notice. Finally, I reached the end of the field and stepped on the small path in front of the house. An awful sight greeted me as I approached the farmhouse. Three bodies lay spread on the ground, broken and beaten. They had put up a fight to defend their home. Clearly they hadn’t been fighters. Likely a husband and wife with their son. From the looks of it the son couldn’t have been older than me.
I had seen worse, far worse, but nonetheless it ignited a rage within me that I hadn’t felt in some time. Not since my days in the arena. Looking around, I noticed large, humanoid tracks much heavier than my own light steps. I was no expert tracker, but my keen sight along with their brutish stomping allowed me to easily follow their trail. The tracks lead west across gently rolling hills with a few trees dotting the landscape. By the time I found them the sun was beginning its descent, ceding its place to the moon for the advancing night.
I heard their laughter and jeers before I saw them. The orcs had made camp in a small grove of trees, celebrating their razing of the farmland. I took cover from them, hiding in the foliage just out of range of the camp. The firelight threw shadows about as they ate their evening meal, reminding me that I also hadn’t eaten since noon. What I had seen of the orcs’ devastation had curbed my appetite. There were quite a few of them. I counted eight in all. I wanted to rush in and begin slaughtering them, but I knew that would be folly. I was poorly armed and armored, wearing only rags aside from my unmarred cape. Offhandedly, I wondered if it could even be cut.
I waited until nightfall and was surprised to see that only one of their number stayed awake as a lookout. Patience, I told myself. For another hour I held my position, until I was sure the orcs were in a deep enough sleep. The orc sentry sat on a log near the fire, staring out into the darkness. As my luck would have it, my hiding spot was within the orc’s vision. If I moved, the orc would surely see me. I had an idea though.
Connecting to my magic, I summoned wind to rustle a few leaves behind the sentry. The orc stood when he heard the sound and began advancing towards the light foliage. His back now to me, I crept forward in a crouch while stepping over sleeping orcs. The sentry began to turn around just as I reached him. I instantly made a windblade in my hand the size of a dagger and jabbed it into his windpipe as he saw me. Shock lined his face, as he began to fall, grasping at the wound in his throat. I grabbed him, and helped lessen his impact as he hit the ground. Orcs were quite heavy. The sentry died silently, choking on his own blood.
I paused afterwards to stare at the windblade in my hand. It wasn’t the usual windblade that I was familiar with. This one was akin to living darkness, with wispy and black tendrils that almost looked like smoke. I had no doubt that this was due to the taint. I had to be careful from now on when using my magic. I guessed that anything I conjured would appear in the same blackened state.
Without wasting any more time, I went to work. Each and every orc died in their sleep with a dagger in their throats. Only a few choking sounds were made but it wasn’t enough to wake the others. Soon enough, I stood near the dying fire looking around at the eight dead orcs. Grimacing slightly, I made sure to remove the left ear tips of each, using the cloak from one of them as a makeshift bag.
I also checked their gear to see if any of it could be of use. Most of the weapons were too large for me, though I did find a rather crude orcish dagger that I decided to keep and use as a shortsword. The orc’s belt had to be cut shorter in order to fit comfortably. It wasn’t a prized weapon of any sort, but I didn’t want to rely on my magic when I didn’t have to. It wasn’t limitless after all. I continued west, for a ways before I felt far enough away from the orcs’ camp to rest for the night. I curled up in my fine, magical cloak as best I could against a lone tree and slept.
The next day I woke to the sound of my stomach growling. I could almost sense its anger at not being fed. With nothing to eat on me or in sight, I continued west in the hopes of finding food and water. The sun beat down on me as I travelled, although the scattered trees offered a brief respite now and then. An hour later another farmhouse and field came into my path. I approached with my hood down so they could see my face.
Someone must have spotted my arrival as the farmer met me between the field and his house. He had a pitchfork, though he hadn’t aimed it towards me yet. I was suddenly reminded of my first meeting with Amara. Focusing on the farmer, I raised my hands to show that I meant no harm and came closer. The farmer studied my ragged clothes, fine cloak, and white hair. A puzzled look came over his face, as though he couldn’t quite place me.
I smiled, “I mean no harm. I’m only looking for some food and water. And perhaps news of orc whereabouts.”
The farmer frowned, “Orcs, you say? You with the Keepers?”
I nodded, lifting the Keepers medallion by the chain. “Hunting orc bounties. As you can see,” I gestured at my ragged clothes, “I could use the coin. If you could point me to the closest water source I would be grateful.”
The man seemed more at ease once he had seen my Keepers medallion. A useful item to have. The farmer glanced at my clothing once again before bidding me stay. “Wait here.”
I waited a few moments as the man went inside, leaving his pitchfork leaning against a fence. He soon returned carrying a small bundle in his arms.
“Take these,” he said as he offered the bundle to me. It was a set of old, plain clothing though they looked much better than my rags. Atop the clothing lay a half a loaf of bread and an half-empty waterskin. My eyebrows rose as I took in the goods the farmer had brought me. The man continued, “They were my brother’s, he's been gone for years now. He used to be a Keeper as well.”
I gave a slight bow to the man, “I thank you, kind sir. This is more than I expected.”
The weathered man waved so as to remove any concerns. “It’s nothing, they’ve been sitting there without a use for a while now. And any enemy of the orcs is a friend of mine. He offered his hand to me and I shook it, careful not to drop the bundle in my other hand. The farmer then pointed to the south, “There’s a river not far thataways. Good hunting, Keeper.”
I nodded and the man went back into his farmhouse. I was truly grateful of the farmer’s help. I would make sure no orcs were near his place. Following
the farmer’s directions, I headed south. Once I was far enough from the farmhouse, I changed clothes behind a couple of trees. Eating and drinking helped me to recover my stamina and along with my new clothes, I felt whole and refreshed.
Soon I came upon the river, where I refilled my waterskin. Continuing on, I skirted the river while constantly checking for signs of wild game and orcs. I found a blackberry bush a couple miles west. I filled up on them, regretting that I had nothing to store them in and take with me. Around noon I found myself heading back north and temporarily away from the river. I wanted to make sure nothing approached the farmstead from the west.
Moving away from the river brought me back into the rolling hills. There were stretches of flat land here and there, but they were always broken up by more hills. Late afternoon, I began my journey back east. I was travelling in a giant square around the farmer’s property, though after so long without seeing a hint of orcs, I began to think that further east was where the orcs were coming from.
I slept under the stars or beneath trees whenever possible as I trekked eastward. When I reached the place where the eight dead orcs still lay, I didn’t approach as I could smell them from a distance. From there I kept fanning out in all directions, trying to sweep the area on both sides of the river. I caught what smaller game I could and harvested what food naturally grew. It wasn’t a feast by any means, but at least I didn’t starve. As I travelled I also made sure to keep up with my morning routine. I felt amiss if I didn’t run my body through my morning exercises.
Four days later, I found another group of orcs. This time there were only five of them. Still cautious, I waited until nightfall and repeated the slaughter of the orcs. Once again they all died unawares. I also made sure to gather their ear tips before moving on. Luckily, one of the orcs I killed carried a rough, makeshift pack. I was able to store the food that I found while tying my bag of ear tips to the side.
~
I passed the main road half a week later, it was the same road that I had so long ago travelled with Amara. It was another couple of days when I stumbled upon my third band of orcs. This time, though, they spotted me instantly. It was inevitable as both parties were travelling in open plains. I had just crested a hill when I looked down to see ten of them. Almost immediately an orc roared in my direction. He and the rest of his companions charged me, eager for bloodshed.
Reacting quickly, I threw my pack aside and connected to my magic while pulling my orcish dagger. I retreated a short way, enough so that the orcs had to gain the hill before they could see me. So eager were they for a fight, the first few orcs didn’t bother waiting for the rest. The first orc crested the hill only to feel the sting of my dagger in his eye. He died instantly and I shoved his body to the side. The next one died in a similar fashion, though the third paused as he was close enough to see what happened. He roared and tried to swing at me but I pushed off the second orc just in time, causing the dead orc to roll down the hill and hopefully into some of the living ones.
I heard a few curses and grunts while I smirked at the orc in front of me. The green-skinned creature snarled at me and charged, hefting a greataxe in both hands. He swung it horizontally and I ducked under it, creating a long, dark windblade as I did so. As the orc followed through with the swing, I plunged my swordlike windblade into the creature’s belly with my left hand, my right still holding the orcish dagger. The orc dropped to its knees, weapon forgotten as he tried desperately to stop the bleeding. I spun on my heel and twisted, bringing my dark windblade in a full arc to behead the creature just as the next one crested the hill.
This one had a crossbow, grinning evilly as he leveled it. He shot with near perfect aim but I used my wind magic to cause the bolt to veer off and barely miss my left leg. I sprinted at the creature. He dropped his crossbow and attempted to draw his own dagger but I reached him before he could. My blade took his right arm off at the shoulder. He fell over clutching at its wound, still alive but not for much longer.
Four down, I thought to myself. I barely had time to catch my breath when two more of the creatures came barreling up the hillside. Seeing their companions dead and dying, these two were more cautious. Their eyes wandered to my left hand, where I held the tainted windblade. They separated and began to circle me. Once again, I took the offensive. I charged at the orc on my left only to pause midway and spin about, throwing the orcish dagger at the now wide open orc. The crude dagger sank into his chest but I didn’t see any more before I dove into a roll. Sure enough, a greatsword sank into the ground where I had been standing mere seconds ago.
I came to my feet, long white hair swaying in the breeze, and found the rest of the orcs finally making the hilltop. Five orcs stood before me, all ready to fight. Thankfully, none had ranged weaponry. One of the orcs was a darker shade of green and had red paint or blood smeared across his cheeks. He spoke to the others, which caused them all to fan out in a slow, wide circle. I was being surrounded. An orc made a move for the crossbow on the ground, but I threw my black windblade at him using a bit of magic to propel it the full distance. The blade struck the orc in his side, going completely through the creature before the wind dissipated. He fell, dying. Four remained.
Another of the orcs howled and charged, seeing an unarmed foe. The leader attempted to bark a command at the eager orc, but it was too late. Once he was in range, he took a hefty swing with his axe. I only just was able to sidestep the blow meant to cleave me in half. In the same motion, I grabbed the orc’s own dagger out of its sheath, spinning around him and slamming the crude weapon into his back. Three remaining. I crouched, breathing heavily as I glanced about for another attack.
I found the three orcs’ backs to me as they ran down the hill, returning the way they had come. A predatory smile flashed across my face and I chased. I knew that I was being reckless but I didn’t care. I wanted to fight and, finally, I was free to actually do what I wanted.
The orcs were fast, particularly the leader who was outdistancing the others. Sadly for them, I was a half-elf, and my speed was greater. It didn’t take me long to catch the nearest orc. I daringly hopped onto his back, creating a pair of small, black windblades in midair. As I landed on the creatures back, I plunged the daggers into his neck. I held on as the orc skidded face first into the dirt and I rode on his back until we stopped. I stumbled to my feet, breathing quite heavily now. Looking up, I saw the other two orcs becoming mere specks in the distance. I didn’t have the stamina to chase after them.
I moved away from the dead orc, letting the windblades dissipate in my hands as I did so. I staggered up the hill, and collapsed next to my pack. I fished the waterskin out of my pack and drank greedily. I laid out on the grassy hill, reeling in the victory. As I rested, I checked to see how much magic I had left. I was delighted to find that only a fourth of my magic had been used up during the fight. I didn’t want to solely rely on my magic, but it was damn useful.
Once I had rested enough, I gathered the ear tips of the fallen orcs. I sorely wanted to track the rest of the orcs but my makeshift bag of ear tips was getting quite full. I would return to the city and use my reward money to prepare properly for another trip. From what I had seen in the last week, there were plenty more orcs that needed hunting. I doubted I would be out of work anytime soon.
Chapter 11
I sat in a corner of the Keeper’s tavern. I quietly sipped my ale, simply enjoying myself. It had been a month since I had brought my first haul back to Braddick. His face had been one of surprise when I handed him my first sack of orc ears. With the reward money I had purchased some nice, blackened leather armor. I didn’t want to wear anything heavier to reduce my movement. Being nimble had kept me alive this long and I saw no reason in attempting a new strategy. The black color was to help with concealing the bloodstains.
I also acquired a decent shortsword, a long knife, and four throwing daggers. Using my magic to create my own blades was always an option but if I ran out of magic or couldn't us
e magic, I wanted to be prepared. It also felt right to have physical weapons within reach. There were a few other things I now carried such as a better pack, waterskin, and rations.
Since my first successful bounty run, I had returned two more times. All for the sake of hunting more orcs and earning more coin. I followed the destruction they caused, though occasionally I was lucky enough to arrive just in time to help the victims. The months flew by as I slaughtered countless orc raiding parties. With my dexterity, I only received a few glancing blows which my new leather armor protected me from. By now, they knew me when they spotted the blackened armor and white hair. Unless they had far superior numbers or a shaman among them, they had begun to simply avoid me. Some of the inhabitants of Greypoint had even begun to whisper when I passed.
I returned my thoughts to the present, as I took another drink of my ale. As comfortable as I was in this place, I wasn’t bothering to hide my presence. Glancing at the letter on the table in front of me, I folded it up and tucked it into a pocket. Word had finally gotten back from the capital. I had written to them a while back, though I did leave out a few details. Riken and his wife were heartened to hear of my survival and mentioned how distraught Amara had been at the time. They said she would be happy to hear the news. The former general also mentioned that he thought joining the Keepers was perfect for me, although he also advised caution. Not everyone in the Keepers could be trusted.
There was still quite some time before Amara and the other mage students were dismissed from their seclusion. Even after meeting with her, I doubted I would be able to join The Towers’ Annex now that I would be considered a wilder. There was also the taint to consider. Though I wasn’t in any hurry, I wondered what I should do.
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