Not the Place to Pick a Fight - The Order: Part 2

Not the Place to Pick a Fight
The Order: Part 2

   Right after the elder finished announcing Ruga’s and Eshin’s doom, one of the guards sounded a loud horn. Vazghar couldn’t help but stop in his tracks, expecting something supernatural to happen while his escort decided to do the same, maybe just to see the two non-believers getting eaten alive. When the sound stopped echoing in the surrounding tunnels and corridors, an annoyed roar responded from behind the walls, soon after followed by heavy footsteps heading their way. Judging by its speed and the shaking ground beneath their paws, this creature was absolutely massive. Eshin felt tears forming in his eyes as he was paralyzed by fear to move, let alone push off the ground and fly away from the evil Haedians while Ruga frantically recalled several powerful spells he could conjure, should something attack him and the Empyrian quivering behind him.

   The heavy thuds reached the gate, where they stopped. With a loud bang, the enormous stone door opened, revealing one very angry, ridiculously large Haedian standing behind it. On top of that, it was wearing an impressive crown of antlers, which only fueled the intimidating appearance. The elder and the guards turned to face it, bowing down in respect as it approached Eshin and Ruga, eyes burning with rage nailed on them.

“Why was I summoned?”

   She demanded an explanation with a voice packed with power and authority. Vazghar felt another rough nudge against his side as his escort decided to move on, bringing Vazghar through the gates towards the Order’s arena. Meanwhile, Ruga awaited for the newcomer to make her move while Eshin suppressed the urge to put every since drop of will to live into escaping this dreaded place.

“Lady Shira, those two heretics have come to sow poison in our minds and hearts. They have disavowed the True Path and succumbed to the light’s blindness.”

   The elder had a nasty sneering tone to his voice, as if he was happy to serve the two innocent souls to his boss. Fortunately, Ruga managed to maintain at least some cold nerve to argue the unjust treatment while Eshin still hadn’t peeped a word.

“Lady Shira, there’s been a misunderstanding, I-”

“Shut it.”

   Before Ruga could finish, Shira snaps at him, giving the poor Chaser the deadliest look she could possibly conjure. The intimidation works as Ruga takes a step back from the surprise, nearly bumping into Eshin, who was on the edge of fainting from the stress. However, Shira’s expression slightly softened as she acknowledged the tiny critter’s courage to talk back at her. The leader’s eyes narrowed as she was thinking of something.

“Shira, what is their punishment?”

   The elder inquires impatiently, but Shira smoothly ignores him, still looking straight at Ruga.

“You’re brave, little one, I can respect that. If you wish to leave, you’ll have to face me in combat and by some miracle, survive it.”

   The idea seemed to entertain the Haedians around them, whose snouts wrinkled into evil grins. Oh, they were definitely into absolutely barbaric and unjust violence, but seeing no other option, Ruga agreed to follow Shira inside, while the guards had to basically drag Eshin along, as he had given up any and all intentions to move any time soon.

   When the caravan reached inside, other members of the clan greeted Shira loudly, and seeing how the new guests were being treated, they got the gist of the upcoming action. This made them head towards the arena, near which Vazghar was already present and squirmishly talking to an enormous Puller, who was wearing fancy armor and emitted powerful authority. The big guy seemed to be displeased with Vazghar, before both of their attention turned to approaching Shira with her guards and two more topsiders in tow.

“Shira, I assume we can continue our conversation later on?”

   The colossal Puller spoke with an icy cold deep voice when Shira was close enough. They came to a halt, the guards dropping Eshin to the sandy ground while Ruga judged his surroundings, trying to find an exit or something he could use to his advantage. Shira first gave a command to the Haedians around her, to which they scattered to fetch Shira’s armor and weapon. Then her attention stopped on Vazghar.

“Is this runt with you, Azravan?”

   Before Azravan could answer, Vaz was nodding vigorously and squeaked.

“Yes, my lady, I’m my master’s loyal and humble servant.”

   Well, this little trick ruined Azravan’s option to serve Vaz as a treaty offering to Shira, meaning the dog gets to live another day. By now, Eshin had regained some capability to move, so he took a peek towards the creepy Puller, trying to figure out what his intentions could be. Azravan confirmed Vazghar’s words, which gave Shira yet another idea, fueling the fanatic’s flame in her eyes.

“Azravan, prove yourself in battle for Oris, and I’ll hear what you have to say by sparing your runt.”

   She then glanced back towards Ruga and Eshin, also noticing how her people were returning with her armor, after which she once again looked at Azravan.

“And to prove your devotion to Oris, you’ll also be fighting for the lives of those two meager bugs. Let’s see if he still favors you over me.”

   With an evil sneer, she left towards one of the dressing chambers to have the armor put on her. Azravan didn’t show any emotion, but Vazghar could tell his boss was displeased of Vazghar butting in and putting Azravan in such a situation. As Shira’s frightening presence went further, Eshin was able to stand up on his fours, sharing the slight relief with Ruga of having the chance to survive all this after all, as Azravan seemed to be an experienced fighter, based on his armor and scars he was proudly wearing.

“Azravan, sir, I-”

“Keep your jaws closed, Vazghar, and go get my sword.”

   Vazghar yelped to that, but ran off towards the direction where Azravan was looking, hoping to find his sword from there. While Shira had her armor put on, Azravan kept Vaz running around to prepare for the battle, while Eshin and Ruga decided to keep their distance from Azravan as he gave off just about as eerie vibes as Shira. They watched the crowd move through the arena gates to gather for the show, which made Ruga gently nudge Eshin as an indication to find some seats for themselves as well. One remaining guard didn’t seem to mind the heretics moving, so she kept following them around, simply to make sure they weren’t going to try something as stupid as escaping.

   When Shira was ready, she stepped on the arena, which made the crowd go wild. Azravan observed her display of strength while Vazghar was coating the massive sword with something, making it look like he was sharpening and polishing it. He had already adjusted Azravan’s armor and checked the straps, so this was the final thing he could do before he probably had to pull away to the sidelines. As Eshin and Ruga were witnessing Shira’s strange armor and the confidence in her skills she was demonstrating to the shouting clan members, nobody noticed how Vazghar’s eyes glimmered with something sinister as he finished preparing the potentially deadly weapon.