Yet another year had passed since my fight with the challenger. I still haven’t learnt his name, haven’t bothered too. No one else had dared challenge me. I was too strong, in sparring matches or sport matches, sure, I had pretty much defeated any and all of my opponents. Sooner or later, many of my peers looked up to me in awe. Though, my father did not let me socialize with them too much, not wanting the Chosen one to be distracted too much.

I had begun to learn how to use weaponry, the orc way. It was quite simple really, a few basic forms and drills, which relied primarily on brute strength and explosive power. Very slice heavy and chop heavy. I guess you didn’t really need to stab considering this was the open savannah, with a lack of real armour and where large formations weren’t really a thing.

I was still practicing my goblin martial arts from my slave tutor, Kiv’Lar. Having spent over a year with him, I have learnt a lot more about goblin culture and his origins. In turns out Kiv’Lar was the goblin equivalent of an “immortal”, which explained how he was so good at his skills. But of course, considering that he was a “coward, by his own admission, his fate was to now serve me instead of escaping.

The Lord of the Plains, Pandar ruled over Goblin, Orc and Ogre kind. Yes, Ogres apparently existed, but they stayed near the mountainous regions of the plains. I have yet to learn more about this world but I have only knowledge of this continent, which consists of savannahs, plains, mountains and occasional rainforests that dot around the coast.

Apparently there is rumor that human, elvish and dwarf settlers have begun to settle along the coast of this continent. But who knows, we are deep within the centre of the continent, which is named Azula, there’s no human, elf or dwarf in sight, as of yet.

Regardless, I am dressing up to go on my first hunt. At the age of 3, I’m the equivalent of a 7 year old child, with the strength of a 16 year old. Standing at 4 feet tall, I’m still able to chuck spears that most human teens would be able to. Orcs apparently hit maturity at around 12. But are allowed to participate in combat at the age of 6, which would be around the size of a 13 year old child.

Something I am definitely looking forward to. Once I prove myself in warfare, my status and my ability to make some serious changes around the clan will rise once more. But first, killing something. I’m wearing my usual garb, lion fur boots and pants. However, this time I’m donning a leopard fur cloak, making it easier for me to blend into the savannah.

The hood that was once the leopard’s head and upper jaw itches a little, but nothing that I couldn’t shrug off, it keeps the sun off my brow after all. I walk over to the Stone mason, Ash’ari, an old Orc, roughly around 50 years of age. He has many scars on his wrists, hands and forearms from working the stones. He’s pretty tall, standing at 6’6. When I walked over, I already saw him knapping the stone that would make a dagger inside his own little shop/hut.

I enter, coughing once to let him get my attention. He glances up from his work and immediately bows his head in respect. I am the Chosen one after all and I am the son of the chieftain. He has a gravelly voice, deep of course, like most of the other Orcs.

“Young lord, what do you require of me!?”

And like most other Orcs, he was loud. Very, very loud.

“I have been instructed to inform you that my father requires 2 spears, an axe and dagger. My father will recompense you shortly.”

“AHA! No problem! Give me a minute!”

He stomps further back into the hut, rummaging around. I looked inside the building, it was standard, somewhat smaller than my father’s, but good enough. The main difference is the abundance of stone weaponry and stone tools just laying about.

He quickly came back out with two spears, an axe and a dagger. The axe looked similar to a native american tomahawk in design. The two spears had broad and long head, making it easier to cause a wider wound inside the creature, doing more damage to the internal organs.

The dagger? Just a generic stone dagger you might find in the stone age. Nothing really interesting or significant. I thank him with a dip of my head, gather my equipment and quickly run off.

____

An hour or so later, I was on the savannah, tracking the footprints of a herd of zebra as we made our way across the tall grass. Of course, I was following my father and companion’s lead, said companion being Chaganath. Chaganath was similar to my father in many ways, except that he was 7 feet tall. He was the childhood best friend of my father, having aided him in the overthrowing of the previous chieftain and killing their offspring with him. Seating him on the Throne of the Asatru tribe, so to speak.

This was my first ever experience hunting and I must say, it was pretty damn tedious. Hunting was incredibly boring and there was no real enjoyment that I could take out of it. Thankfully, I had my pet Hyena, Chad, accompanying me. She helped us track the scent of the zebra herd and its footprints.

We might’ve gone the whole day without any prey if we were unlucky. But thankfully, that's why we have tamed hyenas and all that. I continued sneaking through the tall grass, my father had commissioned leather straps and equipment that would make carrying the equipment I had significantly more convenient.

And finally! We spotted the herd, being roughly 20 feet away, we were down wind as well, making it so that the herd could not scent us. I could feel the adrenaline surging through my body, my heart began to race as I closed in on the herd with my father and Chaganath.

My father tilted his head toward me, signalling that I come to him. I move closer, slowly and surely to ensure that I wouldn’t spook the herd of zebras. He leans into my ear, whispering slowly and surely to ensure I could hear him.

“My son, as this is your first hunt, you shall have the honor of throwing the first spear.”

My heart skips a beat. My first hunt and my first ever proper prey to potentially be mounted on the wall of the hut, or just to be kept as a trophy. I nod quickly, sifting quietly and far closer to the herd. I pick the one that seems to be the strongest, the one with the most muscle, the buck of the herd, or however Zebra social sexual dynamics worked.

I removed one of the stone spears quietly and slowly, ensuring the zebras couldn’t hear me as I prepared to chuck the spear. I fixed my eyes on the target, the largest zebra of the herd. It would make a fine kill.

I inhaled deeply, suddenly sprinting forth from the bush. I swung my arm backward in a split second, flinging my spear forward. In an instant, from my powerful orc muscles and the sheer amount of adrenaline coursing through my veins, the spear managed to lodge itself in the side of the zebra.

However, even though I was an Orc, I was still a child. The spear lodged into its sides, but did not land an instant killing blow. The Zebra herd scattered and in a frenzy, I began to chase after it.“Come on girl!” I waved quickly to my pet hyena, it tore right after, sprinting after the prey. Two spears sailed overhead from both my father and Chaganath, however, considering how fast Zebras can run, both spears miss by inches, one of them, thrown by Chaganath, manages to cause a pretty deep cut on it’s rear leg.

I could hear the snarling and growling of the hyena in front of me. My adrenaline was sustaining me for now but I could not keep up with a large zebra going at a full sprint, even if I was an Orc. However, thanks to my pet hyena, Chad had managed to get a good bite into one of the zebra’s rear legs.

A hyena’s bite could crush bone and suffice to say, that bone was crushed. We were nearing a slope now. I did not want my hyena and my quarry from getting away so when I got close enough, I chucked my other spear, right into the other rear leg of the zebra.

I had gotten quite lucky, the spear had managed to pierce right into the rear of the knee of the zebra and had lodged there, making it basically impossible for the zebra's rear legs to work. As it neared the slope, I dove forward in an attempt to catch it and drag it down, but I was too late. By the time I latched onto the zebras hindquarters, we were tumbling down the side of the slope.

In the distance I could hear my father cry, “SHIT! SIMBA, COVER YOUR HEAD!”

It was obvious he was in a panic. And certainly, so was I. This was not how I pictured my first hunting trip to go. Well, Shit. All I could do was hold on to the zebra, cover the back of my head with a spare hand and close my eyes, hoping that I would make it down the drop unscathed.

_____

It had been a minute of tumbling down the slope, thankfully, my orc body and the zebra being used as a cushion managed to break my fall without much injury. I groaned loudly, looking up into the sky. The sun beat down on me fiercely, the glare causing me to squint. But thankfully, I had just managed to make out the bronze skinned form of Chaganath and the green skinned form of my father and Chaganath climbing down the slope. It wasn’t a very high drop, roughly only 40 feet or so, but enough to knock the wind out of me.

Orcs, commonly called greenskin, weren’t actually always green. Like the humans, there were various skin tones and eye colors. Grey, Green, Bronze for skin tone, as well as varying shades of each. And for eye color, green, yellow, red so far are the ones I’ve seen. However, in the future, there may be more various skin and eye colored variants of Orcs. And who knows, maybe even goblins and ogres too!

I shake my head, looking over at my pet hyena. My blood froze as I saw her corpse there, unmoving. She had not survived the fall. I felt my heart hammering in my chest as I reached over to her body with a shaking hand. I stroke her fur, feeling the still warm corpse of the hyena. I exhaled and inhaled loudly, fighting back the sickening feeling in my throat.

I gulped loudly, as my father and Chaganath reached me. The Zebras pelt was ruined from the fall, but the meat could still be salvageable. My father didn’t give me time to grieve, simply nudging me with his finger and gesturing to the zebra. I was going to have to somehow carry this 992 pound zebra back up with them. Even though Orcs are strong, very few Orcs could successfully carry such a large weight and climb up the side of a rocky slope.

We were going to have to cut up the meat and put it in leather satchels, each carrying a separate piece of meat. We had to be fast as well, or it would go bad. Thankfully, Orcs had stronger immune systems which made them innately able to eat week old food that humans might have gotten food poisoning from.

As I begin cutting with my dagger, driving the thought of my dead pet from my mind. I manage to sift out the steaming hot entrails and various other organs out of the muscle and fat of the creature, setting them into my satchel.

This went on for another 2 or 3 minutes before I was ordered to stop by Chaganath. My father looked at him in a confused manner

“What’s wrong Chaganath?”

“It’s too quiet, something’s wrong.”

Chaganath immediately drew his bronze weapon from his hip, a club with inlaid bronze studs that could easily crack open the skull of any predatory creature of the plains, let alone an orc.

“There’s something stalking us.”

I looked around, the tall grass seemed to be shifting slightly but that must be the wind no? There was nothing that could be there. It was quiet and calm, nothing seemed to be the problem. Well, there was no problem until out of the brush, 6 lionesses erupted from the brush, snarling and roaring as they came towards us. I was frozen in fear, simply staring, slack jawed at the lioness that was barreling towards me. I couldn’t move a muscle, I couldn’t do anything, all I could was stare at my killer.

Wow, this really couldn’t get any worse.

____

Chaganath’s perspective

Damn it! I knew there was something hunting us! As one of the lionesses pounces upon me, a quick swing of my club catches it right on the nose, crushing bone and rending flesh. It howls its pain but the momentum of its pounce manages to knock me to the ground. In a fit of rage, the creature tries to bite and snap at my neck. But in the nick of time, I manage to duck my head out of the way and in turn, sink my large teeth into the throat of the creature.

Orcs, similar to most of the Demi-human races, possessed sharp teeth and large canines capable of ripping through flesh. The fangs and jaws of the beastmen were far stronger, but the seasoned bite of a warrior would be enough to subdue even a beast. My canines find true, ripping through the jugular of the creature. I immediately shove the creature of, releasing it immediately, allowing the blood to spray into the air.

However, with no time to rest, a lioness leaps at me. With the luck of Pandar, I manage to duck under the creature, slamming my fist right into the throat of pouncing creature, sending it to the ground. In a flurry, I remove my bronze serrated dagger, sinking it into the jugular of the lioness, killing it immediately.

With a quick glance, my good friend Gortholax had dealt with the attack well, having tackled one of the lionesses that was attacking his son and my future lord. He took down the creature with vicious efficiency, sinking his teeth into its jugular and tearing out the side of its neck like a feral animal. Praise be to Pandar!

However, his cloak was shredded from a huge swipe of the lionesses paws as he attempts to roll out of the way from the creature. The Chieftain could hold his own, but what of the child? It seems Simba has awakened from his stupor and is now fighting back, holding off two of the lionesses with his spear, managing to keep them at bay.

A deft thrust from the spear however, misses! The lionesses pounce and one of them manages to land a powerful swipe across his face, orcish blood sprayed into the air from the strike. However, Simba was not some welp milk sop, managing to rotate his neck and body away from the strike, lessening its damage.

It will leave a scar, but that is the mark of a warrior and a mark of pride. For a mere 3 year old child to have already won his first battle scar is a mark of success. Truly, my charge is blessed by Pandar Himself! Of course, I couldn’t dally for long, rushing to help my young lord with a quick throw of the spear.

The spear makes its mark, jamming it right through the eye of the lioness and deep into it’s brain, killing it instantly. The creature slumps onto the ground as its growl dies in its throat in a disgusting noise. Blood poured from its eye sockets. The ground had become a small river of blood, making it slippery and hard to maintain one’s footing on.

I curse, seeing Simba almost lose his footing from the slick ground and nearly catch a swipe of the claw as he attempts to stand back up. I would not aid him, for him to prove his worth as a warrior worthy of Chiefhood and being chosen by Pandar, he shall win the fight on his own.

I glance over, looking at the Chieftain. It appeared he had the same idea, drenched in the blood of the lioness, he heaved loudly. He offers no words of encouragement to me or his son, simply letting the fight play out on its own course.

_____

Takeshi/Simba’s perspective

“SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!”

I swore as loud as I could as I swung the spear this way and that, warding off the lioness. The lioness was obviously starving and had not found prey for long. I could see the skin hanging off her bones, the desperation in her eyes as her comrades died around her in a sea of their own blood.

I was panicked, I was scared shitless and I certainly didn’t want to fucking die! This was my first ever time fighting a lion! I cursed, ducking under a wild paw swipe and diving out of the way of a lioness bite.

Shit. Thanks to the blood and stones making it hard for one to find their footing, I slipped and landed square on my arse. The lioness obviously took the opportunity and pounced on me. I quickly jammed my spear into its jaws and obviously, the spear was crushed, leaving me with a shortened spear head.

“FUCK! SHIT! FATHER! HELP ME!”

I duck my head this way and that, the lionesses claw marks on my face were bleeding quite badly, making it hard to see. Blinking sweat and blood out of my eyes, I could just about see my father and Chaganath standing there like a bunch of fucking idiots! Just staring at me about to get mauled!

“FATHER! PLEASE!”

Still, no response, no movement. What? I thought I was his pride and joy, his son! What the fuck! WHAT THE FUCK!? In a fit of rage, I manage to grab onto the base of the lionesses jaws, somehow holding it upward. I jammed my palm into the base of her jaw, grabbing on for dear life to make sure she couldn’t bite down on my face.

The paw swipe comes down towards me, however, all of this was happening in slow motion. It was as if time slowed down, and my mind was running at normal speed. In a fit of rage, I drove the broken spear right into the paw of the creature, ripping through the pads and out through the bone.

The lioness roared in pain as it reared backwards, the spear sliding out of its hands. In an explosion of energy, I darted forward. At the exact time, I could hear a sudden crack of thunder and a sudden bolt of lightning arcing down from the clear skies and directly into my stone spear.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the looks of shock and surprise on Chaganaths and my fathers face as the spearhead glowed a bright red. I jammed the spear into the skull, somehow managing to pierce all the way through and out the jaw of the lioness.

The already shortened spear proceeded to shatter to pieces once the spear struck through. All of a sudden, I felt a wave of exhaustion come over me. My eyes rolled up into my head as I felt myself falling to the ground. I could hear the cries of my father as he rushed towards me!

“SHIT! HE’S LOST TOO MUCH BLOOD! GET THE BANDAGES!”

As I hit the ground with a loud thump, my vision grew blurry and as my eyes began to close, a single voice emanated loudly in my mind.

YOU HAVE DONE WELL. ARISE MY CHAMPION AND REVEL IN YOUR NEW FOUND POWER!

And then, it turned to black.

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Feedback/comments are appreciated as always. If you enjoy, please upvote the post, thanks! Oh also, any speculation about the future of the story? Feel free to leave that in the comments too, I fucking love that shit.