With the onset of the night, Rex slowhy and carefully woke Crystal up. No snack before the exercise for either of them. Rex once again looked over the way the patrols were moving around, noticing the they kept on the same routes and interwals as they had been during the day, he adjusted his plan a bit. He had noticed that these patrols were on a two hour shifts, and they rarely crossed paths one with another, and so to ensure the most efficient and easiest lockdonw and rounding up, he moved with purpose.
They waited another hour, for the new shift to come in, and as soon as the guard patrols changed, Rex and crystal moved. They sneaked up to one of the patrolls as soon as they crossed another one and were far enough to not be in dirrect vision or earshot. Then they both pounced, Rex slashing his greatsword, and Crystal employing her superior strenght,speed, claws and maw to instantly kill the patrol. Assoon as they were dead, Rex used drain, removing any traces of their bodies, adn stashed their equipment in his storage ring. Then they repeated the same with the remaiming patrols in rather great speeds. All in all it took them thirty minutes to silence the guards patroling the perimeter of the camp, and then they proceeded with stealth towards the wooden wall and gate that encompased the small settlement.
"Focus on taking out the males. They are stronger, faster and have absolutely no value for us, but avoid the strongest ones. Those might be of use." Rex instructed Crystal in a low and soft voice and the panther noded her head in compliance.
Then with a swift movement they both jumped over the three meters high wall, using it as a leverage point at the top to redirect their landing to a rather empty spot on the other side. They had chosen a rather desolate spot to go over to maintain the advantage of stealth for as long as posible. They had less than an hour and a half before the missing patrols will be noticed, and they will have to start their activities in the open. And while Rex was quite sure that with him and Crystal here, their victory was as much as guranteed, he still preffered to maximize the efficiency and speed in wraping things up. And once the tribe figures out they are dead if they stay here and start tu run away in panic, it would take more time thna prefferable in catching up to them. Rex also had a plan to test if he can use his chains as an impromptu binding tools for keeping slaves chained and without using actual brands. He was sure the chains were tough enough, but how many could he bind and drag with him was the question.
"Quest generated- Wipe out the tribe, subjugating and chaining as many as posible that you believe to be worthy of sale." Rex murmured to himself, almost treating this as a game of some sort. Ow he was fully aware of his reality, but it just seemed correct to do this, and evaluating the locations of the strongest individuals he signaled Crystal to begin.
They both dashed in away from one another keeping in the same general location but with gerat speed and precision they sliced and diced and orc males that they came across. With savage ferocity, yet deadly precision Crystal employed her claws and maw to end life after life, while trying to be as silent as posible, Rex being just a blir of motion as he dashed from one spot to another ending lives adn using his chains to drain his kills leaving scattering mana dust in his wake. And even with all their attempted subtlty, they were still slashing adn killing almost everything in their path and so within only fifteen minutes the camp was full of horn and drum sounds, rousing the camp from their sleep.
"Take postition outside the gate adn ensure noone escapes. It will be a pain in the ass to chase the remnants!" rex shouted and crystal growled in acknowledgement, finishiing the orc in her mouth, spitting it out, turning aroound and dashing to the gate.
Rex then shifted gears and dashed at the group of warriors charging at him as soon as they noticed his presence. Now Rex was using not only the greatsword to end his adversaries but also his chains, that were employed as whips. Bodies were cut in half, or bones or skulls were shattered when his whips colided with body parts. The orcs dying dirrectly under chains were drained intantly, dissipating their corpses in mana dust and refreshing Rex. Eventually he even switched to mostly his chains, for much more efficient controll and finese. He and Crystal had killed more than hundred by this point, but he wasnt even a bit tired, and the panter was having enough fun with the orcs trying to run away through the gate prematurely.
With a much greater reach, courtesy of his blood chains and his ever growing mastery over the art, once the kill count had reached aproximately half a thousand, Rex started to advance in the dirrection of the strongets energy signatures.There were three in total, and all were quite close to one another, and were staying in the middle of the camp. A seperate building as Rex learned when he reached the place.
What appeared in his vision was a rather large field, the side of a half football court, on one side there was a solitary house, in front of which stood four individuals. Two orc champions, unmistakable because of their greatswords in their hands, but the remaining two did cause and interest in Rex. A middle aged orc woman, based on the energy, barely starting to show age on her features- thirty five to fourty in human age, dressed in somewhat free flowing robes, something Rex has seen for the first time in his life here. Based on the staff she was holding and the few amulets and other accesosories that seemed to enchance her mana circulation and regeneration it seemed some sort of a caster. And next to her stood another woman. Two pont two meters tall, surpassing Rex in heigh by some twenty centimeters, with light brown skin, unlike the ussual shades of green other orcs were sporting. Equiped with unique looking sword and shield and some sort of light metal armor covering her torso with armguards and shinguards. Rex had been murdering his way to this place in his search of the leaders, and the orcs had helped out and trew bodies at him relentlesly. It was only here,once Rex stepped in the opening, none of the ordinary warriors aproached. They all stood outside, not daring to get any closer untill they were given premission by the four in the middle of the zone.
With his weapon in hand and chains retracted in his body, she slowly aproached the four individuals. And once he was some twenty meters away from them, the brown orc woman spoke in a somewhat normal tone, adressing the caster by her side
"A champion aproaches, ask what does it seek, their customs are still strange to us." and she finished speaking the mage spoke in common tongue adressing Rex
"Why do you come here, why kill the ordinary warriors when you are clearly a champion, and what manner of beast block the gate outside?"
"Hoo? How can you speak common?" Rex suddenly stoped, suprised by the unexpected situation. "Why does no one aproach anymore? And why does my strenght matter?" Rex was intrigued. He had never seen such organization and discipline among the dungeon orcs. And while he was aware that there were some mega tribes and they had some sort of society besides the basic tribal system, after all the challenge was commonly known custom of theirs, this was new.
The mage quickly translated Rex words and the warrior next to her then spoke to her once again
"We stand in the circle of champions, only the strong may enter, and so they stay outside. Champions fight other champions unless tribes are at war, so we ask you what do you seek?" And as soon as the mage started to translate Rex interupted her, speaking in orckish
"I heard her, but how can you speak common? There is no way some friendly party of humans taught you." A dead silence took over the clearing, the orcs clearly stunned by Rex speaking their language. He waited for a minute, but seeing as the four still looked at him dazed, he spoke again
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"My patience is limited." and that jolted the four out of their stupor.
"We could ask you the same" the warrior lady then answered "We are still waiting for your answers to our questions too." she spoke with a tone filled with authority, almost as an order.
"It is the strong who question the weak, not the other way around. Now answer my questions" Rex responded, iritation clear in his voice. His blatant arrogance angered the champions and one of them growled in anger and then almost shouted at Rex
"Show respect towards the Valkyrie, its only in her benevolence and apreciation of your decent strenght that you can even still stand. Or we would have cut you down long ago."
The sheer arogance and stupidity of this champion annoyed Rex more than it should have, and having a moment of cruel pettiness and annoyance, he decided to make an example of this one fool. The achievement was still pending in his mind, and Irina was waiting home, so Rex smirked
"Show me then, what you are capable of, but know, that you will be begging for the sweet embrace of death soon enough." And once done Rex placed his sword in the storage ring
"I dont even need my weapon for a weakling like you" he added and that pissed the mouthy champion off even more.
"Valkirie, I have been challenged" the champion roared "you will die for this!" and the champion drew his greatsword and charged at Rex, and once close enough it swung the blade in a chopping motion trying to split Rex in two. The champions movements seemed awfully slow, and Rex just sidesteped a bit to the righ and slapped the orcs side making it fly some four or five meters away, and groaning in pain. Since Rex used palm to strike, no bones were broken just yet, but it was quite painfull regardless
"The other one is not going to help him?" Rex asked, looking at the valkirie while the champion was getting up, clear mockery in his voice. That angered the champion even more. No one had ever humiliated him, and mocked his might, and there was nothing more than Rex's death that this champion desired.
"Call for help. Go on, we both know you are too slow and too weak to manage on your own." Rex's every word enraged the champion more and more, and in that rage it charged again, and obviously, Rex slightly avoided the strike again, but this time he did not strike in a way that send the orc flying. Instead he made a chopping motion, striking the orcs shoulder, making it crash in the groudn and howl in pain, then Rex kicked the orcs gut, knocking the breath out of the miserable champion. While it was clutching his hut and wheezing in pain, Rex picked up its sword, and stored in his spatial ring. Then he looked at the mage and valkirie and spoke
"I dont like to repeat myself. How can you speak common?" His voice was cold and it was clear he wasnt asking anymore. He ordered them to answer, and he was expecting an answer soon. And since the champion was slowly coming out of its pain trip, Rex was kind enough to provide another ticket to pain land for free, inducing another spasm filled scream of pain and wriggling around, all the while not looking away from the trio that stood there, chills runing down their backs. They realized now that the being in front of them was wery strong. At the very least on the level of Royal guards, maybee stronger, so it didnt matter if they attacked him all together, he could most likely wipe out the entire tribe, unless he gets exausted, but even then, before that happens the living ones would be running away in terror. And then they remembered that the exit was blocked by the beast that was with him, effectively cutting down their escape.
They were trapped here with him, they had no idea what his purpose here was, and they knew he most liekly woudnt like the real answer to his questions. While appearing extremely dominant and savage, Rex still was curious. Why did this tribe differ so much from all the outposts and parties of orcs he had encountered so far. Here there was organization, some sort of order, unlike the beastial and savage instincts that lorded over all the other groups he had encountered, with the exeption of the outpost he quired Irina.
'Wait, they had a shaman' Rex mused 'Does higher class overlord for the group make them more intelegent and less primal? What would happen if you remove the leader in such a group? Do they revert to their savage and insticnt based patterns?' Rex mused while being patient with the leaders, but he could wait only so long, administering another round of pain to the one sprawling on the ground.
"You have shown your strenght." Valkirie finaly spoke "He has learned his lesson, would you mind letting him go?" she continiued, her voice much more gentle, almost pleading. Rex could see her and the mage vince evry time he administered another dose of pain. He also noticed terror in the champions eyes, when they were not closed in pain.
"I did say he would beg me for the sweet release of death, didnt I?" Rex's words were arrogant, but his display of power gave him every right to do so "Or do you have something you can offer to appease my anger?" he continiued "Or should I return to the slaughter, since you dont seem willing to answer my questions." and his words sent another chill down the spines of the trio.
Not willing to incur the full wrath of the being in front of them, and since his features were hidden beneath his clothing, valkirie quickly refocused and because of his display of might, she quickly made an asumption that the one before them is most likely not of human race, since there had never been even rumors about such level of might from them.
"The ancestor tribe captures humans they encounter on this floor from timne to time. The brightests ones are used to teach oracles their language." her words relatively low, fearfull and full of hope to avoid death. No sane being wanted to die if they had the option not to, and so the trio hanged to the tiniest sliver of hope.
"And the rest?" Rex asked in a rather monotone voice "used acording to orc traditions regarding slaves?" His tone of voice gave the trio more courage and their hope for survival grew bigger. Rex once again looekd at the champion at his feet once he ralized it had gone silent. Turns out it had gone unconscious from pain, and Rex sighed.
"How scared for your life you are right now?" Rex asked as he looked again at the thrio, and he saw them flinch at his question "Would you ignore human party that your scouts had noticed? Would you let them pass? Or would you attack them with the intention of capturing them and doing whatever it is that you do?" His question once again brought an absolute silence in the clearing.
"Take off your helmet." He ordered the valkirie, since the helmet hid most of her facial features. "Your actions and compliance will mark the difference between your life and death.", and at his words, the valkirie immediatly removed her helmet, and in those few moments Rex crushed the head of the unconscious champion and with insane speed appeared right in front of the valkirie. Neither she nor the oracle reacted to his speed and he inspected both women with an apraising eye.
"You are indeed young" Rex concluded, "And the oracle is also a decent specimen. It would be a waste to kill you, and I came here for a champion anyways, so you get to live." his words visibly relaxed their super tense bodies. They had come so close to death, but survived and all they lost was a single champion. All things considered it was the best case scenario. And since they had relaxed they failed to react to the chains that bound them and only when Rex spoke again did they came to.
"I will keep you two" he spoke as he squeezed the D sized breasts of the oracle. "Of course mages will have the best tits. No running involved in their training."
Realization that such physical power and speed was displayed by a mage broke all the previous calculations of the enemies strenght. This was an existance that should be in deeper floors, the two women realized. The crowd outside the champions arena just stood dumbfounded. It was a being outside of their comprehension. That had frozen them in place, unable to move.
Rex didnt waste much time, and branded all three at the same time. Exausting almost half of his energy.
"I will call you Val" Rex addressed valkirie, then looked at the oracle "and you will be Mel" and since the orc champion was to be sold he couldnt be bothered to name it.
Rex then noticed a slight shift in the atmosfere among the other orcs, ferocity and savagery slowly taking over the crowd.
"Are there any other mages or high class orcs in this settlement?" he asked Val.
"No, all other champions are in advanced raid camp out right now. They woudnt return for at least thirty days." Val replied, obeying and answering the man without a second though. What magic did he use, she had no idea, however she knew what it had done, and seeing as Mel and the champion had the same confusion, and the odd new connection that she felt between herself and the other two elites, linked to the mage gave her a few hints. They were soulbound to him, and the absolute loyality she felt for the man explained the nature of the spell. They were his now, an alien feeling but moments ago, but the most natural and pleasant one now. And she too sensed the change in the orcs that just lost all of their leaders. A bloodbath was coming.