Twisted Fate (Orc Destiny Volume I) (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) (15 page)

Thrusting and slicing, Gnak continued in his relentless
rage. He managed to draw blood first, but the cut upon his opponent’s shoulder
was minor. Good. He wanted him to die slow, like the giant king. He wanted him
to suffer.

Around and around they went, neither gaining the advantage
for a long time. Neither seemed to slow, neither tired. Gnak still did not
relent, his mind full of rage, hatred, and disgust. But eventually the emotion
faded, and only action remained and he realized something. His anger and rage
were Orc anger and rage. Feel emotion, react. That was the way of his clan, not
the way of Jen. No, she would want him to think ahead, plan, and focus. Fighting
the urges that came with a life among his people, he put that version of Gnak
aside and did as she had told him. He remembered her. And in doing so he found
his advantage.

Watching Korx, and thinking instead of reacting, he could
see the Orc’s weaknesses. Parrying a slicing blow, he struck out, stabbing his
opponent in the thigh before kicking out with his foot, sending Korx sprawling
backwards in a struggle to remain upright. Filled with Orcish anger and rage,
when he recovered Gnak’s rival blindly charged again but Gnak sidestepped at
the last moment, lashing out as his rival passed, slicing across the side of
his ribs. Again Korx came.

Launching himself into the air, the Orc tried to spring upon
Gnak, driving him bodily to the ground, and would have succeeded had Gnak not
seen the move for what it was. Instead of diving aside, Gnak raised both of his
blades, letting their edges absorb the momentum, slicing his enemy as he rolled
backwards to the ground, Korx upon him, before shoving with both of his legs
using every ounce of his strength. Korx was flung away using both his own
momentum and Gnak’s strength, where he landed in a ball with a howl of both
pain and rage.

Rising quickly Gnak turned and watched as his opponent
gained his feet as well. From forehead to chin, Korx wore a deep gash that
continued down his chest. Across his abdomen he wore another, where now he
reached to hold his insides from spilling out. Such was his hatred of Gnak and
his rage, however, that even defeated he did not relent, choosing a new weapon
with which to attack Gnak.

“Korx cut her. Korx beat her. Korx use her body,” he grinned
wickedly. “Kill her good.”

Gnak struggled to fight it, seeking out her memory to hold
it at bay, but there was no use. Up came his rage again and he leapt upon Korx,
smashing him to the ground as his guts spilled around him. Again and again he
struck the Orc, his blades driving through him into the soil below. Over and over
he hit the Orc, screaming out his hatred, roaring his pain. Again and again he
lashed out as the body beneath him became unrecognizable, until the rage, as
before, dissipated, leaving him exhausted and empty.

Dropping his blades as he rose to his feet, he turned and
stumbled back towards the village, his clan parting before him and following
behind. None of them spoke, curious of his actions. Ahead he moved across the
sand, dragging his feet, all strength and purpose having left him. Still he
continued on. With nothing left but the nothing she left behind, he fell to his
knees and gathered her small lifeless body into his arms.

Smoothing her clothes and hair, he clung to her like a babe
and petted her cheek, feeling her smooth skin with his fingers.
Remember her,
she had told him and he did. With pride he held her thoughts and wisdom within
him, knowing it was better than his own. But still too he was empty. It was not
enough. She was too much to let go. He knew not how to move forward, and wanted
her words. But her blood dripped beneath her, coating his arms. And he knew
that she was lost to him.

Destitute of anything but empty, soul-wrenching loneliness,
he tilted his head back towards the heavens and screamed a seething growl of
rage, crying out to the gods like no Orc before him. He demanded an answer of
them, blinded by emotion, and invoked the only name she had told him that he
could recall in that moment. The world around him was lost to him in that instant
as all was obscured by his rage and tears but even so, he felt the tug and
blinked to clear his vision.

Crying out to the gods, demanding of them an answer for
allowing her to be taken away, he had not expected when one of them answered
his call.

Blinking away the fog, Gnak found his arms empty and looking
around him he realized that he was not where he should be. Below him a floor of
stone leeched a cold chill into his armor, the surface riddled with slippery
lichen, moss, and mold. Confused, he rose and explored his surroundings,
finding himself trapped in a room of the same cold stone. No light shone in the
damp place, the smell of decay within it pervasive. Seeking the outer wall, he
followed it from corner to corner until he had inspected it in entirety, yet still
no escape presented itself. In life, he was now just as alone as he was in his
heart.

Defeated he turned, the breath catching in his chest, as he
witnessed that which few mortals would ever share with him. Out of naught but
darkness a shape coalesced, forming of the deepest shadows, it became more and
more solid with each passing second.

Watching, Gnak dared not speak as the form grew in size,
shape, and definition. It was a woman. Human, so far as he could tell. She was
small, petite, with milky white skin and charcoal black hair that fell behind
her in a long cascade. Upon her body, like he, she wore black armor that clung
to her curves like a lover, accentuating her every perfection. But it was not
the vision that stood before him that made him uncomfortable. No. It was her
feeling. Gnak could feel the woman even though paces stood between them. Looking
upon her, feeling the power she gave off, he knew what she was and he felt
insignificant in her presence.

Watching as the process that created her slowed to
completion, she turned to face him, and again his breath caught. She could have
been Jen’s Ma, so alike were their features, the eyes alone setting them apart.
For all the human that stood before him, it was the eyes that told him he stood
in the presence of more. In her eyes no color shone. No white orbs sat within
the sockets. Instead a hollow black that searched through his soul, looking
through him to the core of his being. In those depths he could see infinity and
knew that no matter his deeds, to her he was but a speck of dust in a vast
ocean.

To his knees the proud Orc fell, prostrating himself before
the tiny woman, his head bowing to touch the floor beneath him. A floor that
made no sound as she approached.

“You dare to make demands of me?” Her strong voice filled
the room.

It took several moments to piece a clear answer together, so
distraught, confused, and pathetic he felt, but finally he decided upon one.

“No, goddess. Ask help. No demand.”

“You
did
demand, pathetic Orc. Who are
you
to
command
me
?”

Again he struggled, discarding words, wishing he had a
better command of the common tongue.

“No demand. No command. Gnak dumb Orc. Ask help. Serve.”

“You think that I should help one so pathetic as you?”

“Not think. Pray,” Gnak replied.

“What is it that you want, tiny Orc that you
pray
I
help you?”

Gnak had the distinct feeling that she knew his answers
before he spoke them, knew them even before she had appeared, but still he
pieced together the thoughts to create the words he hoped would best convey his
meaning.

“Want Jen back. No dead. Bring back.”

“You wish to bring back the dead? That is a great power, a
great responsibility. What if it does not give you the satisfaction you seek? What
if she hates you?”

“Bring back. I fix. Give precious life. Make OK.”

“Is that what you want, tiny Orc?”

“Yes, goddess.”

“And what will you do for me in return of this power?”

“I serve. I do you wish. All time. No ask.”

“You will serve me blindly, trust in my words, and ask no
questions?”

“Yes. Trust like Jen.”

“And if your plans are ruined?”

“My decision. My fault. I serve,” Gnak answered,
uncomfortably feeling that she knew the future and warned him of an impending
doom that approached him, but he wanted more time with Jen at any cost. She
alone could help him to make his people better. For a moment the goddess looked
down upon him, a maelstrom of possibilities laying somewhere deep inside the
black orbs that stood where her eyes should have been. Finally she spoke again,
her voice both commanding and haunting, the sounds not matching the movements
of her lips.

“Very well, pathetic Orc. I will give you the power you seek
in return for unquestioning service. You can use the power to your own devices
if you wish, but such power has consequence. Return to your people and use my
gift to unite them. Create for me an army unlike any other seen upon Thurr.”

“Yes, goddess,” Gnak replied, the emptiness inside him
seeming to subside.

“I am not finished, slave. Return to Thurr, and call me by
name. Tell those that serve
you
that you serve
me
. Build me
temples. Build me an empire. When this is done, I will send to you another of
my servants and you will join him, and together you will conquer my enemies.”

“Yes, Ishanya. I serve. Your name, I tell.”

“Then I will open your eyes, tiny Orc, and show you what you
need to revive those returned to the gods. You will recognize it, and you can
summon it to you, but be wary, little Orc, you serve me, and if I see otherwise
I will put you to an end without hesitation.”

Then she was gone. He sat upon the stone floor a long
moment, wondering if she had been there at all. Deep inside he believed that
she
had
been. That he
had
been in the presence of a god. That she
had
made him a bargain that suited his situation perfectly. She said he
could bring Jen back. He could unite his people. He would build temples and
cities and more, and eventually he would conquer whatever she wished. Gnak
pressed his hands to the floor, pushing himself up as if to rise, when the
dizziness overtook him.

With his world spinning, again the fog enveloped him and
again he felt the tug to his mind. Clenching his eyes closed he ground his
teeth, waiting for the feeling to relent. And then it was gone. Blinking again,
he focused on those around him. They stood staring at him, their eyes wide and
mouths hung open. Had he spoken his words in this place too? Had they heard him
bargain with a god?

It didn’t matter. First he needed to figure out how to bring
back Jen. Looking down to his arms he found that he still cradled her there. Her
flesh grew darker, the veins standing in stark contrast to her skin. Shuffling
his legs beneath him, in an effort to stand, he watched as her head tilted back
slightly, her small mouth falling open. And then he saw it.

Like a small swirling orb of light, it came from her mouth
and floated slowly up into the air. Not knowing what else to do, he pulled one
arm out from beneath her tiny body and snapped the shimmering orb out of the
air, closing his fingers around it. He could feel it… To him his hand glowed
strangely.

It was not the sensation of holding an object in your hand,
at least not on the surface of the skin. Instead it was a warmth, within his
hand, a warmth that emanated up his arm, making it tingle strangely. He could
feel the eyes of the clan upon him, and reminded himself that they could not
see that which he now could.

Opening his hand once more, he turned his palm up and
watched as the glowing orb extricated itself from his control, beginning to
rise once again. He grabbed it.

Not knowing what else to do, he pressed his hand to Jen’s
tiny chest, feeling the ragged edges of the wound beneath it, and waited. Nothing
happened.

Lifting his hand once again, he sought out the orb but it
was gone. Angered by his failure, knowing he would be without her after all,
his emotions began to build within him again. Then she shuddered. The crowd of Orcs
gasped.

She shuddered again, and Gnak watched unblinking. Her eyes,
having rolled back into her head, blinked twice and again her pupils resumed
their normal orientation. Gnak held his breath, his heart swelling, he was
unable to contain his happiness as tears streamed unchecked down his face.

Her mouth moved then. Open and closed it worked, as she
raised her tiny arms and wiggled her fingers, rubbing the stiffness from her
flesh. Then finally, her eyes met his, as if she had just realized he was
there, and she spoke.

“Hi, Gnak,” she said, a strange wheezing sound coming from
her chest with the words.

“I bring you back, Jen,” Gnak replied.

“I know you will. Can I go home now?” she asked, the
wheezing a bit more than distracting.

“Not back home, Jen. I bring back life.”

Realization seemed to strike her, and remembering the
details of what had been, she looked down to the wicked hole in her chest and
screamed. The Orcs surrounding them backed up, but Gnak was unafraid. He held
her close, and waited for her pain to pass, and when the screaming and wheezing
stopped he relaxed his hold and again looked her in the face.

“I bring back. You heal. Gnak take home. All fix.”

Her big eyes turned back upon him, understanding spreading
across her features as she tilted her head and began to pray. Gnak listened and
watched as her expression began to change again. She stopped suddenly,
confusion on her face, and began anew. This time she repeated her prayer
louder. She stopped again, looking to him with tears in her eyes. Then she
yelled the words, praying frantically as the tears streamed down either side of
her face. Her magic was gone. She could not heal.