Chapter 117 - 117

Darkness came and engulfed the world, but inside the Skalsser Tribe in the central tent where the chief of the tribe resides. Noise of arguments ensued as Xok'nath deal with the elders of the tribe and his rivals as the leader of the tribe.

The central tent was decorated with bones of different creatures. Some of them are huge bones and finely polished till they sparkle like precious gems. In the center of the tent was an enormous skull, which was turned into a table.

The warg riders of the tribe made use of their knowledge about the surroundings and made it past the Verakhs who were watching them in the shadows. They split into many smaller groups to confuse those who were monitoring them. The unseen flying bolts from the dense cover of the thickets and treelines wounded the unlucky ones. Those who made it safely through the encirclement of the hidden hunters arrived at the hills where they could make a silhouette of a camp.

"That's a big camp! How many warriors do you think are there?" the lead of the scouts muttered as he strained his eyes to have a good understanding of their enemies. "Which tribe do you think they are from?" one of his companions asked as he patted the neck of his steed.

"Hmm... If I remember correctly, that boastful and noisy orc said that he is the clan chief of the Rumbling Clan and something belonging to the First Horde of something called Yohan. I don't really know much about this Yohan, but I know that the Rumbling Clan is one of the overlord of the plains with their mighty steeds." the leader of the scouts muttered as he continued watching the movements of their foes.

It was just a few weeks ago when the leadership of their tribe changed hands, as their previous chieftain was already too old and weak. Xok'nath Stonetooth easily prevailed over the weakened chieftain because of many factors. Many said that it was unfair and the chieftain should pick someone to fight for him, but his pride as a warrior can't take it and he fought himself.

The Mazu'rotha between Xok'nath and the previous chieftain was deemed a joke and a mistake, but they can't do anything, as it is part of their traditions. Unfair as it might have been, it must be carried out, and they had to endure the outcome.

"Why don't we try to talk with our visitors and maybe we could reach some sort of agreement. I don't want another chaos to ensue within the tribe like the one before where Xok'nath Stonetooth purged the tribe of his other rivals who showed an interest in snatching power from his hands." a young orc muttered.

"Hmm... Do you think they will allow us to approach their camp unharmed?" the leader of the scouts asked his companions and glanced back at them. "I'll go... Even if I die, at least we tried to avoid more bloodshed than necessary." one of the warg riders stepped forward and volunteered to be the messenger.

The leader of the scouts was about to agree, but when he glance back and acknowledge the bravery of the one who volunteered, he saw none other than his one and only son. "Ikrah, there is no way that I am sending you to the jaws of death himself. I don't agree. You are not allowed to leave my side." the father of the brave orc snorted and returned his focus to the camp of their foes.

"But father! It needs to be done. If I have to put my own life on the line so that I could prevent others from loosing theirs, I would gladly do so." Ikrah retorted as he kicked the sides of his steed and sprinted down the hills to approach the camp of their visitors.

*****

Deep inside the woods with the cover of darkness and the surrounding vegetation, the marksmen of each squad kept watch of the movements of their targets. "Why did we receive orders to just wound and not kill them like their leader?" one of the Verakhs muttered as he peeked through the tall and thick bushes. "Orders from above... Nothing we can do about it..." the marksman of the First Squad answered back while still keeping all his attention on their targets.

"This would have been over quickly if we just assaulted their positions with our full might. I can't understand the thinking of those above. We are the ones suffering here and putting our lives in danger just to fulfill their wishes... It's...-" the complaining Verakh continued, but then he was suddenly raised up by their leader while grabbing the collars of his armor.

"Do you know that you can be executed for your words and I myself can do it right here, right now! All of you! We were trained to obey orders no matter what! We take pride in being the elite of the elites! We are the best warriors of Yohan! Remember the teachings of the chief... We are his hidden sword that he trusts the most to strike down all who oppose his will. We have the honor of being his most trusted warriors, and this is what I hear from you. Pathetic... You endured all throughout the training just to utter such words." the Captain of the First Squad shook his head and let go of the nervous orc who was already trembling in fear after realizing what he just said.

"The mark on your shoulder, the Black Panther that symbolizes that you are one of us. One of the Verakhs, the few and the proud! Remove it and surrender it if you no longer want to be part of us." he continued, then walked away.

"Keep things to yourself. No matter what happens. Never utter such nonsense again or my weapon will be pointed at you and its bolt will not stay in its place." the silent marksman who was watching the entrances of the Skalsser Tribe muttered as he snorted and moved away from the complaining orc.

The poor orc was covered in beads of sweat from head to toe, as he really didn't mean what he just uttered. He just spoke what is in his mind carelessly and forgot all the things that he was taught for a few moments. He shook his head, facepalmed, and regretted everything.

*****

Within the tent of the Skalsser Tribe chief, a brawl was about to happen.

"If you didn't throw your weapon, we wouldn't have been besieged right now. Many of our scouts returned with varying injuries from our foes who kept themselves hidden from sight." one of the elders of the Skalsser Tribe muttered as he really can't accept the fact that Xok'nath is now their leader.

"You and your pride will be the downfall of our tribe!" Yakuh angrily snorted. He was the favorite of the tribe to succeed their previous chieftain. The Skalssers were sure of it as the old chieftain and Yakuh were so close with each other that they were almost together all the time. Everything that Yakuh knew was taught to him by the old orc.

It must be the will of the gods above that he is not in the tribe when Xok'nath challenged the old orc to a Mazu'rotha and let the leadership of the tribe fall into the hands of that orc with a stone tooth.

"I am Xok'nath Stonetooth, Chieftain of the Skalssers and as your chief, you should show me the appropriate respect!" Xok'nath stood up from his lofty throne made of piled up bones, mostly from skulls of humans. He grabbed an axe behind his throne and swung it down hard on the gigantic skull in the center of his tent. The skull cracked and some parts of it flew away towards the orcs gathered there. At first the orcs were confused but then surprised after Xok'nath brought down his weapon upon the huge bone, which made them raised their arms to cover their faces as chips of bones came flying their way.

"I am Xok'nath Stonetooth! Challenge me to a Mazu'rotha if you have the guts. Don't question me and my decisions. You have no right to do so. Come, stand up! Stand up! Those who think they are better than me! Come on! Me and my axe are waiting." Xok'nath leaned on his weapon as he looked down at all the orcs inside his tent.

Surrounding the tent were the hundred warriors that Xok'nath trusted the most. They are like his guards who would aid him no matter what happens. They stood in silence just outside the tent and just waited for the signal to be given.

"Any worthy foe?" Xok'nath mocked those who were inside his tent who now went silent. Looking from the far left to the far right, he stared at them directly in the eyes. Most of them evaded his gaze after just a few seconds, but the one who held his gaze steady and defiantly stared back at him was Yakuh.

"What do we have here... The old chieftain's pet..." Xok'nath chuckled as he remembered who Yukah was in their tribe. "Your master is no longer here and if you need a new master, I am easy to talk to. Hahahaha!" Xok'nath broke into a loud laughter as he grabbed his crotch.