Author's Note: Oh hey anyone that's still reading. I'm slow as fuck, I know. But here's the new one boys and gals ;)
R
A heavy, bloody leather sack bounced against Rodana's shoulder as she made her way through the forest. The Exile had put up quite the fight, but he was no match for the next in line for the Chieftain's crown. His head continued to bleed inside the bag, blood pooling at the bottom and leaving a trail of crimson droplets behind the Orc.
She was getting closer to Iri's treehouse; surely her Elven lover would not approve of having a head inside her home, so Rodana looked for a place to stash her trophy. A hole in a nearby tree looked promising, but something was wrong; something was burning.
Emerald eyes looked quickly to the sky, seeing gray smoke in the direction of Iri's home. A panicked cry escaped the Orc's full lips, and she started sprinting without a second thought.
Her chest was so tight she could barely breathe, and her stomach threatened to spill its contents at any moment. Heavy booted feet flew over the ground, the severed head still clenched tight in her fist for some odd reason. She sounded like a stampede coming through the forest, shoving branches and plants out of her way.
There were familiar voices ahead, as well as the sound of a massive fire. Rodana burst through the brush, taking in the sight of her father, Gnash, her husband to be, Adul, and her mortal enemy, Shel. They stood with their backs to Rodana, taking in the sight of a roaring fire, Iri's treehouse completely consumed by flame. The flames were so large that Rodana could barely hear what the trio was saying. It took her a moment to realize they were huddled around Iri.
Without even contemplating her next move, she hurled the bag at her father, striking him in the back of the skull and making him give a grunt of pain and shock. Her greatsword was in her hands seconds later, ready to cut them all down. "You bastards, I'll wear your skulls around my belt as trophies."
Adul had pulled his sword and shield, and Shel drew an arrow on her bow, challenging her, but her father stood calmly, wiping the blood from the severed head off of his own head. "Adul and Shel, stand down now. Rodana, we both know you couldn't hide this forever; you have brought dishonor upon this tribe."
Rodana could barely breathe, her eyes flicking past her targets and down to the crumbled body on the ground. Was she even still alive? "Step aside before I move you all myself."
Gnash gave a single nod. "Get away from the girl, let's allow her to say goodbye." He moved away from the tree, but Shel and Adul stood in shock for a moment.
"You're allowing this? Gnash, show some spine and show your child what happens when you disobey tribal law!" Shel was furious, pointing her bow threateningly at Rodana; Adul stood firmly beside Shel.
The Chieftain placed his hand on the handle of his axe, fixing an icy glare at the duo. "You will step aside, or consider yourselves Exile."
Shel and Adul grudgingly acquiesced, lowering their weapons and joining Gnash off to the side.
Rodana dropped her greatsword and rushed over to the burning tree as quickly as her legs would carry her. She collapsed in front of her lover, taking in the sight of her broken body. Her left leg was twisted off to the side at an unnatural angle, her arms covered in burns and blisters; her once shoulder length brown hair that was always adorned with small braids and colorful feathers was now scorched up past her chin and blackened with ash and soot. Crystal blue eyes were now reddened and bloodshot, tears leaking from them and leaving trails in the ash on her face. "Ro...I tried to get away, I jumped." Those red eyes looked down at her broken leg.
The Orc's hands hovered over the Wood Elf's body; she was afraid to touch her. She felt herself start to hyperventilate, all she could smell was scorched flesh. "Iri, I should have been here; we should have run away like you wanted to. By Malacath, this is all my fault." A wracking sob broke her chest, tears falling onto Iri's burnt fur clothing.
Iri's small hands took Rodana's face gently, looking into her eyes. "It is no one's fault, my love. We were meant for disaster, you warned me and still I craved you; even now, I regret nothing. I will always love you, Rodana Rona."
The Orc gave a weak nod, more tears falling from her eyes. "I love you, Iri." She took the Elf's face gently, kissing her passionately. Rodana pulled away gently, looking into Iri's eyes as a blissful smile crossed the Elf's full lips.
Iri's lips parted to say something, but her eyes focused on something behind her lover before an arrow struck right between those crystal orbs that had always captivated the Orc. Her hands fell from Rodana's cheeks and her whole body went limp, her head nodding down in finality.
Rodana couldn't breathe, the only sound she could make was a hollow cry of pure anguish. Her hands gripped Iri's shoulders tight as if it would make the dead woman react in some way.
"Breaking such serious law entails a serious punishment, Rodana. Let this be a lesson if you wish to remain in the tribe." Her father's voice sounded far away, detached, and almost ethereal.
"I say we exile her for a month to let this sink in," Shel's quip was barbed and hostile.
Rodana's limbs felt cold and numb, her senses failing her. She stood slowly on shaking legs, drawing her dagger from her belt slowly and turning towards the murderers. "You killed her; You burned her and shot her when she did nothing wrong to any of you. She wasn't trespassing on our lands or harming anyone; you tortured an innocent woman."
Shel stepped forward angrily, getting in the other Orc's face, "You could not reproduce with this woman! Adul is to be your betrothed and you spit in the face of an honorable man and the sake of your tribe every time you came out here to see her! You are not worthy to take your father's place, and you sure as shit are not worthy to birth the next Chieftain. You get exactly what you deserve for choosing such a lowly creature to love."
"You do not dare speak ill of her!" Rodana's voice was a dangerous growl as she seized the smaller woman by the front of her leather armor; without thinking she hilted her dagger in Shel's belly and gave it a sharp twist.
The smaller Orc fell to the ground, her eyes wide and her mouth opening and closing rapidly in shock. Rodana smirked and looked at Shel's blood on her fingers. "I hope you drown in your blood like the pig you are."
Gnash and Adul rushed to the injured woman in an instant, the Chieftain looking up at his child with pure hatred. "You are not worthy to be in this tribe any longer; you are not even worthy to be an Orc. My child, my disappointment; you are Exile from this moment on. You have two weeks before war parties will start to track you down."
The now-exile felt nothing. "You've already taken the only person that ever truly loved me; there is nothing else you can take from me. You can have your tribe and your honor; I'd rather be an Exile than call myself the daughter of a madman."
…
R
Her hands reached out for Madetiene without a second thought, but the small bed was empty; the pillow was soaked with tears, and the blankets lay in a twist at her feet. Small sobs escaped her throat and tears flowed freely down her cheeks. That recurring nightmare, that memory that the Orc could not repress no matter how much she forced herself to ignore anything that threatened to make it surface. This was the third time she had the nightmare this week.
Struggling to pull herself back into reality, Rodana forced her mind to focus on the situation at hand. Madetiene was gone, and the sun shone brightly in the window. The room was completely still and silent, save for the occasional person walking past in the hall.
The Orc wiped her tears on the blanket that Madetiene had given her, swallowing thickly and forcing herself to breathe albeit shakily. She stood on legs that felt like jelly, setting the blanket aside since she was alone. Madetiene had not left a note or any indication of where she had gone.
The thought of the Breton leaving her here made her want to vomit, but she told herself that her new compatriot would not abandon her in such a way; they had an agreement after all. "Am I really sure of this or am I trying to convince myself not to start panicking?" She muttered lowly to herself, completely unaware of the door opening silently behind her.
"What exactly are we panicking about, savage?" Madetiene's voice was as smug as ever, but Rodana's heart skipped a beat at the sound of it; a feeling of relief washing over her body instantly.
The Orc spun around to face the smaller woman, blushing slightly from her lack of clothing and the knowledge that her eyes were red and puffy from crying. The back of her throat was still tight from her breakdown, and but she felt like she was hiding it pretty well. "Nothing. Where did you go?" Rodana crossed her arms, attempting to change the subject.
A bundle of black cloth was tossed at her chest before Madetiene lowered her hood. "I decided to pick up a few things from the town square, but you did not answer my question. I am not a woman to be ignored, savage." The comment was sharp and sudden, but somehow didn't come off as rude, just a simple fact.
Rodana held the bundle in her grasp, but didn't unfurl it yet. "Look, I am not a good liar by any means, but I lied to you before. Back there when you were asking me about myself, I lied about running away from my tribe." Guilt was etched deep into her face, her eyebrows knit together in shame.
It was almost unnoticeable, but the mage's stance changed defensively; her right foot came forward slightly, and her right hand loosely gripped her staff that hung on her back. The Orc took note of this, but didn't move. "Look, I was exiled, but I didn't deserve it. They forced my hand."
The Breton still looked cautious, as if Rodana was some sort of dangerous snake that could strike at any moment. "What did you do, savage?"
The former tribal gave a deep sigh and placed the bundle of cloth on the small table. "I didn't kill anyone, I mean I don't think I did anyway."
Madetiene rolled those captivating eyes and gave a sarcastic quip, "That is reassuring." Why was she so breathtaking even when she was being so harsh?
"In my tribe, there were many laws that we had to follow or we could face exile. There were general rules for the tribe, normal things like not killing without reason and not stealing from others; but for the Chieftain and his family there are very specific rules. We have to be role models, be more fearsome than any other Orc, earn more tattoos, get special piercings, and most importantly, the daughter or son of the Chieftain must marry and reproduce to continue the lineage."
The Breton actually seemed intrigued by the culture of Orcs, much to Rodana's pleasant surprise. "So that is why you are covered in tattoos, you are expected to earn them all?"
The Orc gave a genuine smile, excited that she was having a civil conversation with the other woman. "Yes, each tattoo stands for a different task, ritual, or mission that I completed for the tribe. We get tattoos for things like our first successful hunt, defending our lands from outsiders, helping those in need; but its not all kind deeds. These tattoos are bloody things. I earned many of them for besting challengers within the tribe, great hunts, or leading assaults on those who decided to stay on our land, even massacring enemy tribes and eliminating caravans that didn't ask permission to travel through our lands."
Madetiene arched an eyebrow in intrigue, coming close to the Orc and starting to examine some of the intricate designs on her femininely muscled upper arms. Rodana felt herself blush slightly and she opted to continue her explanation. "It's not all so murderous though, I earned this one from walking across a bed of hot coals to prove my loyalty to my father." She offered her left forearm to the Breton, letting her trace the intricate tribal swirls that were etched into her skin.
Her fingers were gentle, touching lightly as if the skin was still tender; it made Rodana give a small grin of amusement. "You Orcs are indeed a strange people. Such extreme tasks for a mark to be etched permanently into your skin," those crystal eyes flicked up to the Orc's lips, "The piercings? Those are unique as well?"
Rodana nodded, pointing to the left stud. "This one is given by your mother when she feels you have earned her respect and approval. I got mine when I was nine after my first successful deer hunt, but my mom wasn't around to give it to me so my dad gave it in her honor," she paused, pointing now to the right stud. "This one given by your father for the same reasons; I got it when I was fourteen when I first killed an outsider who threatened us."
"Were you attacked?" Madetiene's curiosity seemed to grow with each facet of the Orc culture.
"Yes. I was hunting with my father and another senior member of the tribe when Nords came from the woods. They had killed a small patrol of our people and were wearing their armor as trophies. We were outnumbered greatly, at least eight of the fools, but my father was furious and his anger is a legendary thing. He had killed four of them before I even dropped the two men that rushed me."
A strange emotion flashed behind the Breton's eyes, but it was gone before Rodana could ask what it was. "So this last long one in the middle of your lip, what does it represent?"
"This is a piercing that only the child of the Chieftain can earn; it means that the Chieftain deems you an adult and a worthy leader, it means you are ready to take their place and lead the tribe. It's not really official until he or she willingly gives up their role or you challenge them to a duel. If you succeed and you are the new Chieftain, then all of these piercings are removed, and you get a single stud in the middle of your upper lip to symbolize your status. You are above everyone else, hence this being one of the only two piercings that can be in the upper lip. The other piercing in the upper lip goes to the Chieftain's husband or wife, and sits off to the side kind of like these studs on the lower lip; it represents being by the Chieftain's side for eternity."
Madetiene's tone was genuine. "I suppose you savages are much more complex than I gave you credit for. Thank you for this, it was educational; but you never told me why you were exiled, or why you were crying."
The Orc felt heat flush into her cheeks; she had been positive that she had hidden her tears well. "Remember how I said the Chieftain's child had to marry and reproduce? Well I couldn't exactly do that. It's accepted for normal people in the tribe to be attracted to those of the same gender, but for the child of the Chieftain it is unacceptable. We must reproduce at any cost, even if it means giving up our happiness or being forced into an arranged marriage if we do not pick a suitable spouse. I was expected to breed a child that would be honorable and powerful enough to take over for me when I gave up the crown, but I put off marriage because my true love was a woman who lived outside of our tribe."
Madetiene shook her head in disgust. "There is that barbarism that I was talking about; being forced into giving up your own happiness for a title. Who was this woman?"
Rodana's throat tightened again and she cleared her throat to force the feeling away. "A Wood Elf named Iri. I met her four years ago and I loved her instantly; she was the type of person that just radiated happiness and positivity. She had built this treehouse a few miles from our lands, so we should have never crossed paths to begin with, but she had wandered onto our lands when I was on patrol. We were supposed to kill outsiders on sight, but she was so beautiful I just stopped dead in my tracks," The Orc paused, a smile coming over her lips and her eyes drifting to a far away place. "She was picking berries, and she had wandered further than she normally did. I warned her that she would be killed if anyone else found her, and I escorted her home."
The Orc licked at her lower lip again, her habit. "And I just started visiting her and it turned into something more. We became lovers, she was the light of my life. I would make any excuse to leave so that I could go see her. My father grew suspicious, and one day I came back from hunting an exile… He had burned her treehouse to the ground," Rodana paused, her eyes watering slightly, "She had jumped out so she wouldn't die up there, but she was all burnt and broken. Then they killed her right in front of me." She stopped talking, her eyes no longer in that far away happy place; she stared blankly straight ahead at the door as she relived the moment.
Madetiene sat silently, waiting for the larger woman to continue; she seemed conflicted.
"Put an arrow between those blue eyes that I loved so much. So I snapped; I stabbed the girl that killed Iri. I stuck my dagger right into her belly and savored the feeling of her blood running between my knuckles. I don't think she died though. Not when I was there anyway, but the shame of having a daughter that couldn't give him grandchildren and the fact that I attempted to kill another member of the tribe in front of him made Dad exile me then and there." Rodana gave a hefty sigh as she went silent.
The Breton swallowed thickly, seeming uncomfortable at the sudden outpouring of emotion; Rodana instantly wondered if this was the end of their partnership. "Should I go?" The Orc's voice was strong and stubborn, but her expression was fragile, like she was shattering on the inside.
Madetiene rolled her eyes. "Do not be so dramatic. I get it; you are a savage and you got kicked out for acting like one. That does not mean you are useless to me. So when are you going to look at that bundle I gave you almost half an hour ago?"
The Orc's green eyes flitted back to the small table, realizing she had completely forgotten about the cloth that the other woman had tossed to her. Typically, people changing the subject irritated her, but she felt that 2 ton weight get lifted off her shoulders. Madetiene didn't seem to care about the threat of war parties or that she had massacred people for the sake of her tribe. She seemed almost unfazed by it at this point, either that or the Breton was really good at hiding her emotions.
Rodana took in a shaky breath, attempting to choke away the tightness in the back of her throat as she took the bundle of cloth and unrolled. It was a simple cloth pair of pants and a sleeveless shirt. Both garments were such a dark gray that they were almost black and they had white intricate designs along seams. The Orc loved it. "These are perfect, Madetiene. Where did you find this?" The Orc was beaming.
Madetiene crossed her arms, giving a smirk. "I liberated them from the Khajiit caravan that was rolling out of town this morning; no big deal."
"You stole these? Aren't you kinda...I don't know..." Rodana trailed off with a smirk, fiddling with the cloth.
The Breton uncrossed her arms, arching a brow at the Orc. Her voice was low and almost dangerous. "What?"
Rodana chuckled almost nervously. "You just don't really seem like the type to want to get your hands dirty, y'know? I guess I can't picture you doing much other than getting lost in the woods." She smirked, purposefully pushing the Breton's buttons. It was getting hard to hold back her laughter.
Madetiene's cheeks flushed in anger, she planted her hands on her hips. "I get my hands dirty constantly, savage! I killed wolves to save your sorry backside and now I stole for you; you should really be more grateful!"
The Orc gave a genuine chuckle. "Calm down, I'm joking with you!" Rodana looked down at the cloth; it was from Madetiene, so it was perfect.
Author's Note: So for anyone wondering, Rodana got the Rumare Waterfront Casual Wear and Madetiene's veil is the Talon Veil.