Orna directed the conversation back to the main point.
“Then let us review the deal once more. In return for this energy rich fruit, you will receive my protection in this region where none are allowed to harm you and your allies, three of my scales, and a decade to learn and perform the life cluster ritual. I will also inform the orcs to cooperate with your kingdom in the research of the Mystic Blood Clan’s ritual and the exploration of the dwarven tunnels. If they don't cooperate, I will forcefully evict them from my domain. Oh, and also the life of this orc.”
Orna treated Kirgar's life as an afterthought at most, but Kirgar didn’t forget. He was ready to embrace his death and knew he couldn’t avoid it.
Sol glanced at the orc and realized it was all happening according to the visions. He remembered his previous pleas and how they matched the second to last vision; the final vision ended with him being reduced to small shards. He glanced downwards and saw his hands stained with Lapis’ blood. He just had to say the word, and the premonition would be complete.
He glanced at Lapis’ body that had completely turned to ice and felt a rising sense of rage. He never wanted to say yes so badly in his entire life. He wanted this orc to die for what he had done. But a voice whispered at the back of his mind, asking an important question.
‘If I see another vision like this, do I follow it like before? Can I even change what I see in the visions?’
It was because he followed the visions that Lapis died. He should have known the blood was either his or from one of his squad members; there was no other alternative looking back on it now. But this was the future, maybe even fate itself. He didn’t know if he could actually go against it, even if he knew what occurred. If he did know and tried to prevent Lapis’ death, could he? And if he let the orc go, what if Orna killed him anyway for personal reasons to pay back the debt? What if he died soon after as fate caught up to him?
Sol wanted to say yes and let the orc pay for what he had done, but he also wanted to let him live to see if the future was set in stone.
As he was deep in thought, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Duncan looking at him solemnly.
“I know you’re conflicted between avenging Lapis and letting him live to facilitate cooperation with the orcs. The decision is solely yours as Captain, but let me share something I’ve learned over the years. Violence always begets more violence. An A-Ranker like him is very important to their clan, and his death would create resentment not unlike the one you hold for him now.”
Though Duncan was wrong about the reason Sol was conflicted, he raised a good point which Sol had never thought about. Sol had completely forgotten about how important the orc’s life was to the Frostaxe Clan. A-Rankers were few, and even the loss of just one would be very painful. If Kirgar did die, the orcs would easily connect his death to them and, in turn, to their kingdom, leading to repercussions further down the line.
Sol turned to see his allies, and though none of them spoke their thoughts, he could clearly see their own opinions on the matter based on their facial expressions. Aron appeared to be more in favor of sparing him. Rex was indecisive on the matter. Nataly, on the other hand, carried a look of deep resentment to the orc, clearly wanting his death. After all, Lapis sacrificed herself to save her.
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Seeing his own squad split on the matter, he couldn’t go with the majority decision; it was up to him. Orna stayed silent as well, not wishing to influence the human’s decision. Even Kirgar remained silent; he knew he had no choice in the matter and believed he was already dead. His only comfort was knowing that his killer would save his clan even after what he had done.
Eventually, he came to a decision. One that he hoped Lapis, wherever she was, would understand.
“No, he can live.”
Everyone showed different reactions: surprise, understanding, and even disagreement. Kirgar was extremely grateful for being granted such mercy.
“Really?! Thank you, savior!”
Kirgar already considered Sol the savior of his clan. He cared greatly for his people, and seeing Sol go through such effort to save their future impacted him greatly.
Sol glared at him. “That doesn't mean I forgive you. I will never forgive you.”
Though the threat came from someone much weaker than him, Kirgar still felt chills. He felt that Sol was the kind of person to remember a grudge and come back later to dish it back tenfold.
Orna then spoke. “Might I offer a suggestion, human? If you don't wish for his death yet seek retribution, there are other ways he could pay for his actions against you and your deceased companion. He could serve as the ritual's focus for the duration of his life.”
“The ritual’s focus?”
Sol still didn’t know much about the life cluster ritual. Kirgar, on the other hand, did and took a step back in shock.
“F-for my entire life?”
Orna confirmed and explained. “When the ritual is performed, all participants offer a sliver of their life essence, but to combine it all into a life cluster, a medium is required—the focus. They would receive all the life essence, temporarily overloading their body before ejecting it into what becomes the life cluster. It is by no means a painless process, and those who serve as the ritual’s focus lose a greater share of their life essence by the end of it, leaving them drastically weakened for an entire month. Normally, it would be a role they take turns performing, but it's possible for just one to carry the burden.”
“So, if he does it every month, he would be in a perpetual state of weakness for the rest of his life.”
“That is correct.”
Sol turned to Kirgar. “Though your opinion doesn't matter, how does that sound to you?”
Kirgar lowered his head in resignation. “My life is yours to decide, savior.”
In a way, he could consider himself fortunate he would still have a life to live. While orcs all desire a meaningful death, that didn’t mean they would actively seek death.
Sol faced Orna’s eye and nodded.
“Then let it be so! I declare this deal now in effect!”
Once the dragon stated that, everyone suddenly felt some kind of intangible connection being formed between each other. It didn’t linger long before disappearing, but if they thought about it, they could feel it was still there.
Orna explained. “Now that it's been declared, any party that fails to uphold their side of the agreement will face the law of trade's punishment. Though in the case of you humans, there is no punishment if you fail to make the ritual work; I would simply be allowed to once more accept sacrifices as payment. The orc, on the other hand, if he doesn’t serve as the focus for even one ritual, will face a punishment on the same level that I experienced centuries ago. And unlike me, I doubt you could endure even a second.”
The dragon made it very clear to Kirgar that he shouldn’t take the deal lightly. The orc shuddered before shaking his head up and down extremely fast.
“I understand, Great Orna!”
Seeing all was done, Sol walked over to Lapis’ body and kneeled beside it. He gently lifted her body, careful not to cause it to crack, and placed it in his spatial ring. When he arrived back at the kingdom, he would give her a proper burial.
He stood back up and gave Orna a light bow.
“It's been a pleasure to meet you, Orna. We will head back and report to our kingdom so we can decide our next course of action.”
“Likewise, human Sol. But before you leave, remember to take this. Give it to your scholars to help them get started on their research.”
A thick book popped into the space in front of them. When Sol held it and read its title, he realized he didn’t recognize any of the words. Clearly, it was written in a different language, and he didn’t know any other language than the common tongue. He stored it in his spatial ring and decided to leave it to the scholars to figure out.