C9 The hunt: Part 2

"We should find a safer place to rest, it dangerous here," Rode said.

"İ don't sense anything," Elor told him.

"We also didn't sense the ants but they came. And ants are social creatures, they walk in groups so if the four we there it means they could be more around,"

"So we find a cave on our way north,"

"A cave won't do, when I was in side the cave you left me in their we some gel like things on the cave floor, the caves could be their home,"

"We should start walking as we discuss where to go," Circe tells them.

And they started walking, the village wasn't far, they would be able to arrive before the next day if their was no accident on the way.

As they walked further north they didn't see a single ant but they noticed that the amount of trees were increasing. İt was quite unsettling considering the fact that it was already dusk.

After walking for a while they noticed a forest, it was the same as the one on the map. The village was on the other side of it.

They walked in.

"Hey isn't this forest too quite?" Elor asked and as if on queue they heard a branch snap.

Something was listening.

They had to be careful, around them was an unfamiliar forest, a huge shadow passing above them making them stop to look up. A moment later, a loud creepy sound was heard from above them. İt was a bird, a very huge bird. Then suddenly more of the same huge birds passed them flying to the direction of the mountain.

İt was quite again but they were not stupid enough to believe that they were alone.

They could see them.

In the shadows of the trees, several creatures with red eyes appeared and started to walk towards them. About thirty green-skinned creatures twice their size with giant canines protruding out of their mouths were seen, they just had their lower bodies covered with leather attire and on their hands were stone axes each looking close to their height.

"Oh come on," Asnir said pulling a dagger from his waist belt. And the rest followed suit picking theirs only Circe stood still, cause one; he didn't have anything on him and two he knew that although brave his companions couldn't beat orcs of this level on their own.

Circe lifted his hand and used the snow on the ground to make the orcs temporarily blind and shouted one word..

"Run!"

Deep into the forest they ran. They could hear the sound of the orcs behind them. They were fast.

Circe heard a thud and turned around spotting youngest of all of them, Elor, on the ground he sighed went back and tried to pick him up it wasn't working, " Get up! Do you wanna to die?"

Elor tried getting up but his legs gave up on him and Circe noticed he was shaking. He was scared.

"Well this is a problem," he said and the others stopped. Circe had noticed from when they met that the boy didn't look brave, but he chose to ignore it due to his past experiences of being judged before they knew him, he thought that he could hold on, he had found them surrounded by ants twice the size of the orcs and he wasn't down which showed he wasn't a coward.

İce orcs, he'd read about them they don't hunt the whole group, they hunt the weakest by applying cohesion and slowing them then capturing them and putting their heads near their forest to warn intruders.

They hadn'tseen a warning skull. İt was probably hunting season. There is no way the king would not have known that, yet he sent them on the same direction.

"Get up Elor," one of the boys shouted.

"Don't rush him he's in shock," Circe told them.

"But there orcs after us and carrying him will slow us down, what will we do,"

"I guess we'll have to fight," he told them picking a broken branch on the ground.

"You. Want us. To fight head to head with an orc?"

"Yes well have to face it either way in order to get to the village, so why not now," he told them as they started to appear from the trees.

"I guess you are right," Rode stated as they took out their weapons and headed towards one orc and Circe facepalmed ' do they even know how to beat an orc?'

"Get ready everyone we are surrounded," he shouted and they tensed they had just stopped for a few seconds and the were already surrounded.

They were tense and the orcs also looked… scared?

Something wasn't right.

Just as the orcs were ready to attack a large booming sound which every one heard as a screech but Circe heard as a very clear.

[STOP!]

He had to double check If he was hearing things. He wasn't.

Behind the orcs was a huge orc, probably the chief looking down at them. Elor who was already down directly fainted.

[MY QUEEN THESE MONSTERS WANT TO INVADE OUR HOME]

[AND YOU WANT TO ATTACK THEM DO YOU THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT THEM THEY WIPED OUT OUR SOLDIERS WITH JUST A FEW BLOCKS OF İCE. WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT CHOOSING YOUR OPPONENTS WISELY]

[WE APOLOGISE]

Ah so that's what happened, they have been in the orcs territory ever since they arrived.

[WHAT DO YOU WANT HUMANS]

The others heard a growl and prepared for an attack but they posed when they heard Circe speak.

"We just want to go to the other side of the forest,"

[YOU CAN UNDERSTAND ME?]

"I wouldn't be speaking to you if I couldn't and why would you as a question without knowing if we could understand you,"

[YOU ARE A RUDE ONE]

"I wouldn't be if your people had not attacked us first,"

[I APOLOGISE ON THEIR BEHALF. MY CHILDREN CAN BE RUSH SOMETIMES, I'LL GET YOU A CANINE, WE SHED EVERY YEAR THE ELDEST TOOTH IS THE MOST POWERFUL, AS AN APOLOGY BUT WE CANNOT ALLOW YOU TO GO TO THE OTHER SİDE.]

"Why? We won't hurt any one,"

[THAT'STHE DİRECTİON OF OUR VİLLAGE, WE NOMARLY DO NOT ALLO OUT SİDERS İN ]

"Ah, your village," Circe gritted his teeth hopping that it was not what he was thinking," is their any other village around like a human village,"

[NO, ONLY WE AND OTHE BEASTS LİVE HERE]

"Well this is going to be annoying.