Hello, this is my first fanfiction. I do not own Orphen in any way, shape or form. Enjoy!
CHAPTER 1: The rock, the hard place and the squishy thing in between
They were trudging through the mud, their boots squelching with each step as the repugnant stench of sulphur lifted into the air. The first two moved in silence, while the third, who had great droplets of sweat dripping down the base of her loosely tied bun, continued to voice her distain and exasperation. "Orphen this; Majic that; why? Oh why?" were the short, huffed phrases the young man near the front of the troop heard every now and then. He refused to carry all the baggage this time, so perched on her small back was a fairly light knapsack, and to her side, was an even lighter satchel, which contained medical supplies for the wild and wily traveller. Yet she persisted in her half mumbled, but mostly grumbled tirade on everything and nothing in particular. In truth, his muscles were also feeling the burn of lactic acid, but he decided against vocalising his discomfort, for in the distance, about ten paces ahead was his former master. Even with the space between them, Majic could clearly see his fists clenched tightly: the muscles in his forearms stiff and coiled, ready to exert his fury on anyone remotely close enough to reach. This, of course, did not include Cleo. Partly because she was too far behind, but mostly because she was more trouble than she was worth. So here he was, caught between a rock and a hard place, walking through the marshes of an uncharted moor, way out of bounds and far beyond nowhere. Determining who was the rock and who was the hard place took up most of Majic's attention for the next hour.
"Well, if we go by characteristics, master would definitely be the rock... cold, heavy, hurts you when you kick it, but then again Cleo also fills those last two criteria, which –" suddenly, he felt a woosh of cool air and sensed an irregular amount of nauseating odour accompanied by a flurry of squishes.
"What the hell did you just say?" came a cold whisper, caressing his right ear like a soft wintery breeze.
His eyes turned to saucers as his voice cracked into a dozen tonal variations, rendering him a 13 year old boy in the throes of puberty, once again.
"Well, you see Cleo," he started off with a squeak, which was especially evident as he said her name.
"I was, um... uhhhh. Trying.. y-y-yea, uh, t-trying to f-figure out," a combination of stuttered mid tones and high pitches.
"Whowastherockandwhowasthehardplacel," he exhaled in one great breath, his voice undulating uncontrollably with, what seemed, like every tone in creation.
She squinted her eyes, puzzled by his unusual choral display, giving Majic the very attractive and miraculous possibility that she might be too stupefied to respond. But, of course...
'"DID YOU JUST CALL ME FAT!?" nothing got past Cleo.
"WELL, ACTUALLY, I WAS JUST TRYINGTO FIGURE OUT WHO THE ROCK AND THE HARD PLACE WAS!" Majic yelled hysterically, overreacting to his panic and rigidly sticking to his story.
"SO, WHAT? I'M AS HEAVY AS A BOULDER? IS THAT IT!?" she bellowed, going for the jugular once again; knowingly fuelling her rage with the fire that had been burning over the past four hours.
"No! You're being too dramatic, Cleo," Majic pleaded, drawing out the 'E' in her name as he clenched his fists in anxiety. The look on her face told him he had said the wrong thing.
"How DARE you call me dramatic!" Majic tried to interject, but was trampled by her next barrage of statements and interrogations.
"It's because I'm a girl, isn't it? OH, OF COURSE, I CAN'T CONTROL MY FEELING!" She screamed into his face. "I'm just SOOOOOO overrun by my emotions, which are controlled by the tides and the moooooooon, RIGHT!?" as she said this, she whipped her hands into the air, in long, swooping motions making Majic regret his previous choice of words even more. "Oh, it's such a surprise that I'm not having my period right at this very moment. Why, oh why on Earth would I be SOOOO dramatic," she hissed "if it wasn't related to my LADY BITS?!" Majic's eyes widened further. Did she just say 'lady bits'?
"I'LL TELL YOU WHY!" she raged, her face red with fury.
'Oh no. Please, please don't Cleo,' he prayed silently.
"HIM!" she pointed an accusing finger at the lanky figure off in the distance, who had only moments ago turned silently to witness Cleo's menstrual outburst.
"He, who decided to refuse the cart and horse and MAP that was so KINDLY offered! HE, who chose to lead us into nowhere. HIM! YEEEAAAAHH YOU!" she pointed even harder, waving the offending finger in his general direction, knowing she had his attention. "I know why you're not talking! WE'RE LOST AREN'T WE?! I TOLD you we needed to stay on the road! I TOLD YOU –" but she was cut off in mid sentence as the skin between her lips knitted together, almost silencing her completely.
Her muffled screams of outrage were directed at Orphen as he hastily trudged towards the two. Meanwhile, Majic was dancing around his distressed companion, panic stricken and torn between Cleo and his former master; his gaze repeatedly turning to meet the oncoming sorcerer.
Before Majic could perform an experimental reversal spell, he was shoved out of the way. Orphen stood directly in front of Cleo, casting an ominous shadow over her form. "If you're good, I'll unzip that foul mouth of yours," he hissed though gritted teeth.
Cleo glared defiantly and made a low rumbling noise, signalling that he had over stepped his bounds.
"That means you stay quiet and keep walking until we've reached firm ground," his deep throaty growl overshadowed her previous response, letting slip the anger that he had been bottling ever since her conceited mutterings began.
Orphen was definitely loosing it. This Majic knew for sure, because every time he reached his breaking point, the muscles in his jaw would twitch and the long vein down the middle of his forehead would pop out and pulse with fury.
But, of course, he was talking to Cleo, and whether she knew how to read Orphen or not, she obviously didn't care because what she did next encompassed their entire relationship.
"Humpppff," was the muffled sound that Cleo made as she thrust her knee into Orphen's groin. His eyes bulged and he was immediately brought to his knees, crying out in strangled anguish as his breath was forced from his lungs.
Cleo, of course, a smart woman, realised that he would not be indisposed forever and immediately whipped around, deciding to jog as quickly as she could in their original direction; blazing a trail westward, as a plume of sulphur followed behind her.
Orphen, of course, being a highly talented sorcerer, bided his time; his breathing was harsh as he recovered, but he honed his rage to a sharpened point as he prepared to strike out at his prey. He focused his energy as he closed his eyes: imagining her clear, azure eyes widened with panic; her rapid breathing that had no option but to leave her nose as she ran; her golden hair slowly slipping from its tousled bun; and the sweat that was sliding down her neck to meet the damp cotton blue blouse she wore.
His eyes snapped open; the sun's setting rays highlighting the auburn flecks in his irises, turning them crimson.
"Heavenly winds, seek my prey. Arcane magic, take me there."
Within a fraction of a second, he had materialised in front of her, exactly aligned with her running form, which was unprepared for his. As a result, she was thrown back from the collision and while Orphen only received a mild blow, stumbling backward slightly, she was completely covered in mud, which was soaking through her jeans and pouring into her boots. Her powder blue blouse was now a slimy brownish green and there were splatters of mud dripping down the skin of her neck and jaw.
"EEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" came the shrill, piercing sound that spilt from her newly unknitted lips.
Regarding her vocal liberation as another part of the sorcerer's twisted game, her hand, which was currently submerged beneath the murky surface of the swamp, grabbed hold of whatever slimy, smelly material would fit in her palm. Then, with the force and fury that befitted her current situation, she hurled the glob into Orphen's face, which was smirking arrogantly.
Or at least, it was.
Majic, arriving only seconds after the first mud-ball was thrown, looked on as his former master wiped the slime from his mouth and spat out the excess. He quietly raised a black, gloved hand, his fingers tense and pointed to the orange sky. Muttering once again, the mud around them began to vibrate and rise slowly in round, shining spheres. About a dozen.
His face contorted into an evil, sadistic grin and with one sweeping motion of his arm, all 12 mud-balls hurtled their way toward Cleo, who was currently sitting stunned at the sight.
Whatever clean skin she had left, was now gone and out from the swamp raised a monstrous form. Her eyes peeled back, revealing those arctic orbs; determined and burning with blue fire.
With a warriors cry she charged, springing out and tackling Orphen into the mud. Majic on the other hand, who was relatively clean, wondered whether he should intervene or not. Cleo currently had Orphen pinned down and was attempting to submerge his head, in hopes of drowning him. Majic sighed, knew he was going to regret this, but decided it was for the best. He grabbed Cleo by the shoulders and tried to pull her back. When it came to Cleo, though, looks were deceptive. She was as strong and ferocious as a lion. She spun, grabbed Majic and slammed him into the mud bed, effectively soaking all their wares.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, YOU STUPID BRAT?!"
"SHUT UP!" she turned her attention back to Orphen, her hands grasping for his neck. This time he was ready and seized her wrists, brining her towards him roughly.
"You massive fool! Now all of our things are wet!" he hissed in her ear, a little too close for comfort. She began to tug backwards, trying to release herself from his steel grip.
"Not to mention me..." whispered Majic, barely audible and completely miserable "... I was only trying to –"
"SHUT UP!" they yelled in union.
He sighed, thinking if one of them was the rock and the other was a hard place, just who the hell was he?
End of chapter. PLEASE COMMENT! :D