Wings of Destruction and Duty

07 || Orion

The pounding was agonising, it kicked his skull and felt like thousands of blunt needles had been forced into his head. Each throb seemed to bring on new challenges and at one point Orion started to smell colours. The world spun as he struggled to heave himself up off the ground, but he quickly gave up as arms collapsed weakly underneath him.

Blinking through tears and gritted teeth Orion was able to see that he had been confined to a dimly lit room. Leaves and small creepers raced up the walls in varying shades of green and brown, and small white flowers bloomed evenly up their stems. Each one emitted a strangely sour smell that coated the back of his mouth with a bitter tasting layer of mucus.

Just where was he?

Orion grunted as he tried to push past the aching in his body. He rolled his head to the left and inspected his arms. It made no sense, even though he felt like he'd been rammed into a wall there were no bruises on his skin. Stranger still, his captors hadn't bothered to tie him up. As the ringing in his head became more intrusive, he groaned and wondered what he had done to deserve this.

Murky thoughts swam lazily through this mind, some flickered while others just slipped away. Then the forest man's shouting pushed its way to the front. "I just want what was stolen from me, give it back." Orion carefully turned to words over in his head before sighing. Even from a young age, he was smart enough to know that thievery was a very dangerous game to play. Even more so when you didn't know who your victims were. In a world of broken loyalties, it was nearly impossible to distinguish between friends and those who would prefer to see you dead on a wall.

And no one was stupid enough to steal from the elves.

Except him apparently. Orion rolled onto his back and admired the battered ceiling, if he squinted hard enough he could just make out the clumps of glistening cobwebs along with a flash of tiny feet. Small pinpricks of orange light shone through the scattered holes and cast an unusual glow around the room.

Orion cast his mind back towards the previous week and his trip into the small town that bordered the Mulgar river. Given how far they were from the main citadel it made no sense for merchants to sell anything truly valuable, let alone bring it along with them. And while rare fruit might occasionally stir excitement within the people, those days were scarce and nothing worth waiting for. As far as he could remember all he had purchased was grain and cloth, there was never a moment where he'd wander off to take something.

Unless he'd made another mistake.

His eyes roamed the windowless room, the shimmering green wall and delicate flowers seemed out of place in such a small empty space. He ran his fingers over the prickly leaves and took note of the little tingles they sent running through his hands, living zapping plants were an oddity but at least he had company.

Unfortunately his spirits sank as he finally turned his head to the wall beside him. There was no door or even a sign of an opening in the mass of green, and with that he found the strength to spring up onto his feet. He took two steps before his leg exploded with pain, it arched up his back and forced him back onto the soft dirt ground.

He tasted blood and winced as it mixed with the oddly sweet soil. The walls seemed to shift closer together as the sound of his breathing filled the room. They were just too close, and the silence in the room was deafening. Fear began to well up inside him and while Orion tried to push it away, this time it refused to back down. His encounter with the Dilid man swiftly consumed his thoughts and his mind turned once again towards the advice that his aunts had once given him. A quick glance at his bare surroundings failed to reveal a time and place. Orion paused and tried to remember how long his aunts were away for. Assuming that he hadn't passed out for too long, he might still be able to make it back home before they returned.