On The Road To Herein

Chapter Four

"Poor desperate fool," Lox thought to himself as he left the poor elf to his own self-destruction. 

Sol did not care if it was foolish, or desperate, his safety was not his concern it was hers.  She was his everything, he had given up the world for her, his birthright. He wasn't going to let her die, even if it meant his end. 

He went back to the wagon for supplies he needed, he was desperate, not stupid and he had been after all trained well. The wagon was a lot more burnt and tattered then he last remembered, even now smoke rose off it where holes had been seared into the canopy. Had he done that? 

"Get a hold of yourself," he said aloud. "Rainnah needs you focused." 

He climbed up on to the wagon and found what he needed almost immediately: A water-skin and his sword which he should have kept with him. Cursing himself, he attached both to his belt and hopped down to the ground. It was time. He would hunt them down and kill them all if he had too. He heard a lot about were-rats and none of it was good. He shuddered to think of what they might do to her. His only solace was the hope they might find her valuable and she would be alive when he got there.

After filling his water-skin with what remained of his Mana Tea he took off into the night. Following the Orcs instructions, he headed toward the river. He hoped he hadn't been led astray.

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Lox however headed in near opposite direction towards his cabin. He would need to warn Ta'nnah of what he, unfortunately, sent her way. He was after all a part of them, sort of, and an angry fire-elf was no small fiend.  There was a part of him that didn't want to do it, Ta'nnah had always been friendly with him, but they were outlaws and made enemies, they like him, had to understand the consequences of that. His grandmother the witch, taught him to live free and do no harm, but letting an innocent woman be captured was not that. The poor elf had only vengeance left, and so for his part in it, he owed the elf. Ta'nnah, however, did not kidnap the woman, not directly. She had no Idea that Laimon, he assumed, was headed her way with the wife of an elf bent on their destruction. He owed her too. Lox groaned in frustration at his own inner thoughts, he wasn't an ignorant orc, but he didn't like complications. 

Would they turn on him once they knew? Probably. 

Something was wrong. He knew very well his door was shut when he left locked with a key, a key he still had on him. An intruder had broken in and carelessly left the door ajar. He unsheathed his dagger and approached cautiously. He didn't know what he'd find on the other side, but he had an Idea and he hoped it wasn't so.

"Laimon explain yourself," He demanded.

"I didn't have a choice. I had to take her it was the only thing to do." Laimon sounded desperate. "I very much like my position in the Mangari and I've just mucked it up. I need to fix this!"

"What are you doing in my cabin?" lox demanded.

"It was the only place I could think to go, Ta'nnah is expecting us," Laimon said.

Lox was of the mind to pick Laimon up by the neck and strangle him. "You picked my lock!"

"Well, it wasn't very hard, cheap lock."

Lox made an audible growl. "Did you take anything!?"

"My god's, haven't you been listening! I've got more pressing matters then stealing your precious marble collection."

"Those were my Grandmothers!" Lox moved forward his blade ready for blood. "You dare touch them!"

"Believe me I don't have a desire for your grandmothers family jewels. I have more pressing matters at hand." He gestured to the bed where Rainnah lay tied to the bedpost her mouth gagged with a dirty old rag.