The orks had begun harvesting the dead boar in front of them. A great portion of hide, meat, bone, and tusk were tied to their backs. It took them only a minute to complete their task. All the while Ren was ready to kill the strongest of them first, an empowered sneak attack ready to be aimed at the ork’s head.
Cella beside him, studied the orks further, trying to understand how to replicate the ork’s natural affinity towards life. She had never seen them before, though the rumors of similar creatures did float around the Underdark. Though those she heard of were pure white of skin and feared light. These orks loved the light around them, drank it up, and added it to their overwhelming life force.
The two orks were far taller than a man, well muscled, and far more primal in their appearance. Their skin was the color of dark evergreens, while their faces looked brutal. Large tusks protruded from their mouths, this gave them a great deal of the ‘primal’ look.
Besides their tusks, their clothing was the greatest indicator of their primitive nature. They wore hides that were barely processed beyond the point of skinning. Their weapons were great primitive javelins tossed by throwing sticks. The shafts were plain unadorned wood, while their tops were sharp flint.
Though Ren believed they could kill these two if needed, Cella feared Ren did not understand what he was looking at. He could see their life affinity with his lightless eyes, the eyes that saw the ethereal world. The trace of their bodies were marked by the unforgettable trace of life affinity. Though he could not see the life within them burning as strongly as Cella could. He could not see their every movement, their every action being empowered by the very concept of life.
Cella doubted the eldritch corruption could easily consume the constant flow of life throughout the orks. You can poison a pond, but what happens when you try to poison a river? It took far more effort, one must poison the very ground, and every bit of the water that is rushing across that earth. To kill the orks, he’d had to poison the very cores of the orks, all while the constant flow of life affinity through them would carry away that very poison.
The prospect troubled her greatly, and she was glad to be a distant and unknown observer.
As quickly as the orks had come, they left. The remains of the giant boar would feed the weaker beasts of their first for a great while. Some might see leaving a corpse to rot as a waste, but to those who would feast from the great corpse, it would be a God-send. Cella felt a sacred nature to this, the orks killed life but were the embodiment of life. Brutal and crude, she also saw the majesty in the more animalistic life. While they left behind parts of their kill, they left it as an offering for the weaker beasts of the forest to grow strong, then those weaker now would grow into the strength to challenge the orks. And so, the cycle repeats.
Pieces of a puzzle, one that was seen with disgust by most of the sapient races, fit together. The puzzle of the orks and their place in the world made sense to her. It made far more sense than the humans in their great cities, those who poison the rivers, those who poison life.
Ren relaxed as the orks left, he got up for their hiding spot, and gave Cella a hand. “Ren, I don’t think making enemies with the orks would be any sort of a good plan.”
“Yeah, another enemy would be bad, I guess. It’s not like I have a lot of friends in this world.” He smiled and looked at her, her face was stern.
“I don’t think you understand. The orks, they’re different, they are life.”
“What do you mean, they’re life?”
“Humans, we can find different affinities, make them part of us, nurture them. The goblins, they fundamentally can’t because they're marked by Alkyri. Orks, they’re fundamentally in tune with nature affinity. I don’t think your power would be very strong against them, and I think they’d be a terrible enemy. They live out here, out where it’s just the trees, the animals, and them. There’s something special about them, and I need to find out what exactly it is. I think, no, I know that it’s my path.”
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Ren looked at her for long moments. “So, do you want to become their… friends?”
“I wouldn’t say that, but maybe. Friend of orks, it does sound like a great title.” She smiled. “But I do believe their help will be invaluable to us. Whatever we can do to get their trust, I think it would be worthwhile.”
“Well, it’s not exactly like I have a great plan to become the killer of an eldritch God, so maybe they might have a better idea?”
“I doubt they can help with that part, but I do believe we can grow far stronger by working with them. I doubt any humans will come and wage a war with orks to get at you. Well, maybe they would.”
Ren sighed. “So, do we follow them?”
“It might be a bad idea, but I think we should.”
The two began to slowly walk along the path of the dead boar. Over a mile and a half, it led to an area where a cave met a large creek. The creek ran northeast and southwest. The tracks began there, where a large amount of blood could be found.
“This looks to be where they first found the beast.” Using his tracking, the tracks of the two orks could be seen following the side of the creek, where they had used underbrush to hide themselves from the boar in order to get close enough to launch their attack.
From where the orks had begun stalking the boar, they found a small game trail, one likely made by the orks, but was indistinguishable from that of usual animals.
They followed the trail, Ren watching the faint white outline of the ork’s tracks. The ability was almost completely negligible. It barely consumed any resources, while making tracking utterly overpowered. Ren was relieved to have chosen such a useful class way-back-when.
They travel for several miles until Ren entered stealth, Cella staying back. He went on alone as her ability to use any form of stealth was completely lacking. Druids were quite bad at sneaking, even if their footfalls caused less noise. They naturally moved far more quietly than some cleric, but their instincts to find good hiding spots were lackluster.
Now alone, he crested a small hill where an opening allowed from a simple meadow. The grasses grew tall, while wildflowers and weedy plants sprouted everywhere. Occasionally a bush with white flowers sprouted out from the tall grasses.
At the midpoint of this meadow, a score of simple tents, and one large yurt-like tent sprouted up. The tall grasses half covered the tents, as they were low and simple. Trails throughout the grasses were trampled down from frequent footfalls. Several orks moved around the camp, as the two orks from before were preparing their food over a fire. Children within the camp, there being several, were all eagerly awaiting to be fed.
The adults in the camp all went about tasks, the children playing small games with each other.
Ren felt a small heartache at watching the small celebration. He feared what would happen if he had to defend himself, what he might be forced to do if trying to befriend these orks left him hunted again. The price the orks could have to pay if the clerics sent warriors after him, that was even if he was accepted by these people.
He made his slow return to Cella, and they spoke. “If they’re having a celebration, then maybe it would be more likely we are to be accepted?” Cella questioned.
“Maybe, or, we become part of the feast?”
“That’s not funny. They might be different from us Ren, but there’s something more about them.” Cella gave him a disapproving look.”
“What if, even if they welcome us, the clerics end up wiping them out for giving us aid? Those men who fought the dragon, I doubt they would struggle to slaughter orks to hurt us. They could become tools against us.”
“Ren, I know you’re scared after everything that happened. Remember, I’m still mourning the loss of my entire people. I know the idea of meeting new people, only for them to betray you, or get killed because of you is frightening. But, we need the secrets these people hold. If I could use life affinity, only a fraction as well as they do, it would magnify my power.”
“I get it, I just have doubts. Who’s to say they don’t hate all humans? Why else would they be so far away from all other civilizations?”
“Because they are so different from others. They’re innately in tune with life itself, so of course they don’t go living in cities of stone.”
“Alright, alright. I get it, let’s just get this done. If we die, it was fun knowing you. Maybe we’ll meet under better circumstances in a less fucked up world.”
Cella gave a small smile. “I would like that, but let’s go.”
The two of them travel towards the small meadow, hope in their hearts, and fear in their stomachs.