First Time Encounter with an Almost Death
@Jester & @Kat collab
Shakol'ath, or Shako, snapped the heavy leather reins against the horse's side and grunted as he brought the back of his hand up to his nose and wiped away some snot rolling onto his upper lip. The green orc leaned forward and focused on the cobblestone road ahead, grumbling impatiently as the faeries in the street took turns scrunching up their noses and inadvertently stepping in the cart's way to give him a piece of his mind.
De'ardra, the dark green orc beside him, was the only person who kept his head on straight to not tear the eye sockets out of the pretty purple and gray walking sticks or bash them limb from limb. He grimaced, "These damn hosers won't let me through. Graah! Outta the way! Outta the way!" He snapped the reins again and again. Some of the younger unseelie screamed and moved out of the way as the horse sped up a bit.
"Outta the way!" Shako roared, and De'ardra pulled out her knife on him. "Listen here, big boy! Slow down dem horse and let me take those reins. You've got nothin' in those bones to keep you from goin' on. Move it!" De'ardra grunted and pushed Shako aside to where he almost fell off the cart, if not for his grip on the side of the seat. "Old woman!"
"You heard me!" De'ardra growled. "Move!"
The cage behind the two orcs rattled, "Oh my god, could you both shut it? No one wants to hear your bickering!" Andara rocked the cage again from side to side. It was loose in some way that De'ardra's grubby fingers hadn't tightened the chains on the cage. "Shut it, sticky!" Shako growled and came around to tighten the cage. "Stop rattlin' this or I'll make sure you stop it myself! I ought to slice off your mouth!"
"Oh, you couldn't handle last night? Ah, that's right. De'ardra kept slipping while you two were off on it. Get me out of here!" She rattled the cage again. The orcs were focused well on the faery outcast that they didn't notice a young unseelie had caught wind of their conversation and the slight flap of the black blanket over the cage. Whoever was in there, they could've likely been a faery. The young unseelie didn't know, but these orcs were up to no good, he felt, so he decided to deliver the news to one of Aulo's advisors, if not directly to him.
He dashed as fast as he could back to the court. Inhuman speed and the ability to fly came useful when he jumped to the window at inhuman height and launched himself through one of the grand, long, tall windows with grace. "Your Grace! A troupe of traveling orcs have a fairy in tow in a cage! She looks… distressed!"
Aulo set down his glass of wine and silently regarded the fairy before him, keeping as calm as he could muster. "What fairy?"
"I don't know. The cage was covered with a black blanket."
So, a fairy. He paused, swirled the wine in his glass, and rose from his chair, tall and formidable. "I'll go handle this myself. These orcs will taste ice in their veins if they attempt to stop me," he said quietly, and flipped himself out the window, gone in a flash. The fae boy watched him go from the window, and wondered.
Shako pulled off the top blanket and opened up the cage. Andara huffed, her cheeks burning as the orc reached inside and grabbed the faery by the hair. He dragged her carelessly outside of the cage and let her fall onto the ground, ankles and wrists bound together. Shako grabbed another handful of chains and cursed as he squatted down and held her by the throat, cutting off her airways every time she tried to defy him with words or movement.
He laid the chains on the ground, "This'll teach ya, ya snob. No talkin'! I'll cut ya!"
He began to wrap the chains around her throat and mouth. She could barely breathe with the weight of the heavy metal bearing down on her neck.
"De'ardra, hold down this little thing! I gotta make sure these chains are on tight!"
"On it."
The flashes of bright blue, and stings of cold were all De'arda could feel. Something pierced her skin, and she screamed looking down and seeing a small pyramid of his own blood flay the skin. It wasn't too long before the blackness swallowed the ability to see, and things spiraled away like a dream.
Authello stood where he was and considered Shako carefully. "You can let the girl go or suffer the same fate. The choice is yours."
The orc was still dumbstruck by the speed in which things occurred, and considered the fairy girl curiously before choking on his resolve, and choosing to let her go. Orcs were often a cowardly lot, and Aulo had known this would play on his fears while also making a good example.
"Hello, little one," he said calmly, and unwrapped the chains carefully around her neck. "For now, I'm going to ask you come with me."