Skirmish (Fangdarr): Dereliction
Follow along each week for Skirmishes of characters of the Orcblood Legacy Series. These are real events that take place during the story’s timeline but are not detailed in the book.
Nearly a dozen waded through the brush, their enormous forms unhindered by the screen of greenery in their path. Ogres—all nearly an extra half of Gub’s size. Fangdarr watched as a scowl formed on each of their faces as they all stared at the orc. His knuckles were white around Driktarr’s shaft in anticipation. The orc cast a sidelong glance to Gub in hopes of determining if these ogres were friend or foe, but the dumbfounded creature continued splashing in the stream in blissful ignorance.
The first of the ogres to break through eyed Fangdarr carefully, paying close attention to the axe in his hand. His eyes narrowed dangerously until he too stared upon Gub. The leader of the group stepped into the water, its engorged stomach jiggling from the motion. He watched Fangdarr take a cautionary step back in response, spurring the ogre to take another forward.
“Shoo, orcsie,” the ogre grumbled, waving Fangdarr away. The monstrous creature turned its head to the side to two of its companions. “Go git ‘im.”
For a moment, Fangdarr thought the leader meant him. He tensed his legs, ready to spring into action. There was no chance of victory to be had, he knew. Not against ten ogres that he could only assume were fully matured due to their size advantage over Gub. As soon as the pair of ogres walked past their commanding ally, the orc nearly leapt into the air. But—with all the luck in the world—he held his pose for just a moment longer, enough time to see that, in fact, the ogres were walking toward Gub.
An expression of concern appeared on Fangdarr’s face as he realized they were coming for Gub. Instincts kicked in and the orc found himself taking a step toward his ally defensively—something the ogres did not miss.
As one, every ogre in the group began laughing at Fangdarr. “Orcsie think he do sumthin’?” the ringleader asked before replacing his mirthful smile into a disapproving frown. He took another two steps closer, only a few paces from the orc. “We take him. He ours.”
By then, Gub had lost his attention on the sparkling water running over his feet and taken notice of the group of ogres. “Ogres!” he exclaimed with a smile. Jumping up and down in glee and smacking his pudgy hands together, Gub skipped merrily to Fangdarr. “Look, Faydar, ogres!” He chuckled, pointing to the band of monstrous creatures.
Fangdarr didn’t know whether the ogres could be trusted or not, or if they were Gub’s kin or just happening by, but Gub seemed to trust them. The orc also recognized that they could have ambushed and killed both of them without much effort. He nodded in acceptance to Gub and turned to the leader. “We go with you?”
Once again the band laughed at his expense, renewing the wave of humiliation Fangdarr felt. “No, orcsie. He ours. We take him.” With a motion of his fattened head, the ogre instructed his subordinates to continue their task of claiming Gub.
Gub needed no convincing, however, as he lunged forward and wrapped his arms around the nearest ogre in a great hug. The adorable and wide smile on his face was met with an intense look of disgust by his victim whom tried to push away the affectionate ogre. “Eh! Boss this one funny. Ya sure ya wants ‘im?”
Letting out a low groan, the head ogre responded with frustration. “He is ogre. Ogres stick together. We fix ‘im.”
Still caught in the breath-stealing embrace, the other ogre scoffed. Finally, he managed to push Gub away who seemed entirely unfazed and moved to hug the next ogre in line. With a deadness in his expression, that creature simply accepted his fate and waited for the overly long embrace to end. Fangdarr watched as Gub’s smile remained spread from ear to ear as the pair of ogres he hugged grabbed hold of his arms and started leading him toward the group.
“G-Gub?!” the orc called out in plea. He stepped forward, feeling the pit in his stomach expand with every step further they went. Fangdarr waited for his friend to speak on his behalf and request that the ogres take him in as well. After all, they were friends, right? But as Gub simply kept his ignorant smile on his face as the ogres escorted him away, waving back to Fangdarr as if they would see each other soon, the orc felt a profound sense of despondency. He had never felt so abandoned before. Despite their short time together, Fangdarr had thought that he and Gub were friends.
Another bout of laughter escaped from the ringleader as he watched the orc fall into sorrow alone in the stream. That demeaning chuckle pierced through Fangdarr like a spear, reminding him of just how weak and alone he truly was. He forced back his tears with a struggle, refusing to allow his tormentor to witness his vulnerability. But the condescending sneer was enough to break him.
Dejected, Fangdarr abruptly turned and stormed off in the opposite direction—haunted by the incessant laughter at his back. The wind stung his eyes and cheeks as they chilled the wetness that ran down his face. He sprinted as fast as he could deeper into the Lithe, cursing himself for trusting Gub. As hate burned in his heart like a raging inferno, Fangdarr promised himself that he would never cease his hatred for ogres.