Ogre Tyrant: Chapter 15 - Wrestling with emotions - Part One {Rewrite}

Watching Clarice and Lash fight was almost too painful to justify letting it continue. Lash was easily around eight feet tall and her biceps were thicker than Clarice’s thighs. Her superior reach proved to be a nightmare for Clarice’s attempts at closing in order to go on the offensive. Furthermore, without the Synergies to level the playing field, Clarice was unable to land a blow hard enough to slow Lash down. The only thing keeping her in the fight at all was the benefits of Brutal Momentum, making Clarice’s attacks faster and hit harder than they otherwise would have been capable of.

However, even without her armour, Lash seemed more than capable of weathering Clarice’s hit and run tactics, her dense muscles soaking hit after hit with no signs of slowing down. Meanwhile, Clarice was slowly but steadily being worn down and had begun to slow.

“Aren’t they just meant to punch each other a few times for Lash to unlock Brawler?” Nadine demanded, clearly somewhat exasperated by the prolonged bout.

I nodded in agreement but said nothing. Technically, Clarice should have shown Lash proper form and technique first, then started the fight. But Clarice had been impatient and insisted on ‘sizing her up’ first. However, I didn’t think it would matter too much in this particular instance since Lash had taken the initiative and was copying Clarice as much as possible. This would actually be a good test to see whether there were different ways to unlock the Classes besides those we already knew of.

It had nothing to do with the fact that the Amazonian warrior was dressed only in a loincloth and chest wrapping...

I was still rather curious about why none of us had unlocked a Class like Slinger or something while crossing the desert on the second floor. Tobi had the Archer class, or something similar, so I would have assumed he at the very least would unlock a relevant Class from transferable skills and knowledge.

The Class training session and impromptu bare-knuckle sparring bout were actually providing a great deal of entertainment for the gathered crowd of Serpent-Kin and Deep Orcs alike.

Maybe there was something to Clarice’s insistence on a tournament after all?

So long as we had firm rules of engagement and used blunted weapons, it would actually provide everyone with some much-needed combat experience against a challenging opponent.

However, it would definitely have to wait until the hospital was finished. Hana was doing her best, but it was still going to take a couple of days.

*Thump*

“Euf!!!” Clarice staggered as Lash delivered a punishing kick to Clarice’s stomach.

Giving her no time to recover, Lash stepped in closer while Clarice’s guard was broken.

*Crack*

Lash’s right fist slammed into Clarice’s face, sending her tumbling backwards with blood running from her nose.

Clarice staggered, trying to bring her guard back up and buy some distance between them, but she stumbled and fell to the ground instead.

“Enough!” Nadine called out loudly and rushed into their sparring ring to check on Clarice.

To her credit, Lash immediately backed off and even looked somewhat concerned. Although she was covered in sweat, Lash seemed none the worse for the brawl.

“Gah, fuck...” Clarice struggled into a sitting position and shook her head, “Youw kigh ligh ga muwle!” Clarice nasally exclaimed with a smile while pinching the bridge of her nose. (TN: You kick like a mule!)

Seemingly put at ease, Lash grinned back, “You are fast as a deep hunter!” She replied, her tone implying a compliment rather than an insult.

Clarice, just like myself and most of the audience was a little confused by the comparison, but she took it at face value and grinned wider. “Wewl, youw godda fide Tib negst!” Clarice insisted as she was helped off the field with a helping arm from Nadine. (TN: Well, you gotta fight Tim next!)

“Ah...” I gulped hard and tried not to panic. “That may not be a great idea...” I tried to refuse diplomatically.

Besides the fact that my Mum taught me not to hit girls, being around Lash made me uncomfortable...

Lash’s eyes lowered slightly and her shoulders slumped somewhat as if she was disappointed.

Clarice pulled Nadine in closer, just about holding her in a headlock as she animatedly began explaining something to Nadine while interchangeably pointing between myself and Lash.

Sensing a trap, I knew that I had to leave, now. Pivoting on the spot, I only made it a dozen or so steps before Nadine called out after me.

“Hey, Tim! Wait up!” The slightly amused tone of Nadine’s voice was at odds with her annoyance from earlier and I did not like what it entailed.

Should I pretend I hadn’t heard her? Or should I fully commit to just running as fast as I can? I’m a pretty fast runner and there is no way they would be able to keep up with me. But where could I go? The swamp? Was it really worth that level of risk?

“Tim? Didn't you hear me?” Nadine demanded, suddenly rushing ahead of me and barring the way with an inappropriately amused grin on her face. Apparently, she had abandoned Clarice’s near deadweight to corner me while I was distracted.

“I have things to do-” I began to lie.

Nadine raised an eyebrow inquisitively, but her overall expression made it clear she didn’t believe me in the slightest. “Oh? What things?” Nadine demanded suspiciously.

“Uh, Settlement stuff,” I shifted uncomfortably and struggled to look her in the eyes.

“Ahuh,” Nadine cocked her head slightly and gave me a look that suggested I might as well come clean because she wasn’t buying it. “Well, how about you postpone that ‘stuff’-” Nadine emphasised her disbelief with air quotes, “-and teach Lash the Advanced Class since Clarice is out of commission?”

“Uhm,” My throat felt parched and I was beginning to sweat pretty bad.

“Good! I'll let Lash know to expect you in about a half-hour after you are done with that important ‘stuff’,” Nadine insisted, air quoting and turning on the spot as she headed back to the training grounds with a broad grin on her face.

Watching Nadine walk away, I caught sight of Clarice, who was being tended to by one of the Serpent-Kin Surgeons. She looked entirely too pleased for someone who had been beaten half to death a few minutes ago.

Noticing me staring, Clarice’s mouth slowly split into a wide grin that matched Nadine’s.

I am betrayed...

Spending most of the hour desperately trying to wash the smell of sweat and swamp muck from my tunic, I met with only marginal success.

Ultimately, I decided to forgo wearing it entirely. Going shirtless wasn’t a big deal right?

Unbidden, images of Lash wearing only the sweaty chest binding and loincloth she had worn during her bout with Clarice came to mind.

I had to clench my fists to stop my hands from shaking and clench my jaw to stop my teeth from rattling.

What was the big deal?!

I had taught Clarice before and hadn’t felt anything like this, and Clarice had been incredibly handsy!

Gulping down another mouthful of water, I took one last rinse under the public fountain before heading for the training grounds.

Seeing Lash already waiting for me, I gulped hard and took several deep steadying breaths as I finished making my way over. “Are you ready to begin?” I asked, trying not to show how nervous I felt.

Lash nodded, her eyes flashing determinedly as she tensed and untensed in preparation for the training.

Gulping hard again and narrowly avoiding a coughing fit, I tried to mask it by roughly clearing my throat. “Well it would probably be best to get to it,” I said awkwardly.

Lash silently nodded again and seemed eager for the lesson to begin.

“I guess first things first, I should, uh, show you some of the exercises you can do on your own,” I sighed in relief and made a mental note to thank my brain later. I was so nervous that I could barely string two words together at the moment, let alone form a coherent sentence. I was flying by the seat of my pants and easily could have made an ass of myself there.

After demonstrating the break fall and some limbering stretches, I then motioned for Lash to try.

Lash diligently took to the exercises, and despite a few expected failures with the break-fall, she had no problems since she was very obviously in great fighting shape.

“Uh, next I guess we should try some basic grapple techniques,” I suggested, feeling a little less nervous than earlier. “I’ll demonstrate them with one of Clarice’s student’s. Just try to watch what I do.” I waved over one of the loitering Serpent-Kin and settled into the starting stance.

Demonstrating as many of the grappling techniques, defensive measures and counters as I could remember, I had Lash perform each of them on the same student.

Feeling like a great weight had lodged in my stomach, I realised that the last step would require me to be much more hands-on rather than just providing advice from the sidelines.

Clarice was not a particularly good instructor and none of her students had unlocked the Advanced Class yet because they had not properly learned the pinning and hold techniques. This was very likely the reason they were all excitedly watching this training session with avid interest.

“Hrm!” I cleared my throat far louder than I intended to. Doing my best to ignore my sweaty palms, I somehow managed to maintain eye contact with Lash. “Right, so, next we will practise pinning and holds.” I shifted nervously on the spot as a sudden spike of adrenaline hit my system. “To demonstrate counters effectively, I will need to make sure you learn the pins first. So try to pay attention alright?” Through some miracle, my voice hadn’t cracked despite my mouth and throat suddenly going bone dry.

Lash nodded determinedly and settled into the wrestling crouch I had taught her earlier.

Trying to keep things as professional as possible, it became increasingly difficult as Lash’s laboured breathing kept forcing her bust into prominence. With my blood up, it only made demonstrating the pins and holds even more awkward due to the nature of wrestling making use of every available hand hold.

It really didn’t help that Lash was much stronger than Clarice, so I was forced to take it seriously and wrestle properly, which led to some very embarrassing and awkward positions.

After about an hour of awkward drills and practice, I was just about at my limit and determined that Lash probably knew everything she needed to unlock the Advanced Class. “Now, you should just need to pin and choke out an opponent,” I explained a little breathlessly.

Lash nodded, smiling as she wiped the heavy sweat from her brow and then readjusted her chest bindings.

With my adrenaline up, I was following every movement without meaning to. Seeing the dishevelled and rather unravelled state of her chest bindings, unbidden memories of firm yet yielding flesh amidst the struggle of our wrestling made me blush as I now recognised the association.

“You!” I barked, choosing one of Clarice’s students at random and doing my best to hide my embarrassment by wiping the sweat from my face. “You will be her opponent.

Unsurprisingly, the comparatively anaemic build of the female Serpent-Kin was no match for Lash and she was pinned and choked out by Lash within a few minutes.

Lash looked confused and was staring ahead in such a way that she had to be looking at a status alert.

After making sure that the unconscious Serpent-Kin was seen off to the hospital, I nervously approached Lash. “Is something wrong?” I asked, even though I was pretty sure I knew the reason.

Lash’s cheeks flushed, but she nodded and shifted her attention to stare me dead in the eyes, “Can’t understand,” she admitted bluntly.

“I thought so,” I commented, trying not to sound condescending. “If you say, accept, you should get the Class,” I explained. The Serpent-Kin had been able to gain classes this way, so I assumed it would be no different for the Deep Orcs.

Lash nodded determinedly, “Accept!” She barked. Lash frowned slightly and looked a little uncertain.

Right, she had no way of double-checking whether she gained the class or not.

“Party invite, minion Lash. Status.” I panned my view to bring up Lash’s status information.

[Lash - Deep Orc Drudge: 5 ] [HP: 35/35 ] [MP: 26/26 ]

[Class: Grappling Pugilist. +1 Strength, +5 HP. ] [Exp: 0/5000 ]

[Party: Tim’s Party]

[Strength: 14*(15*) ]

[Agility: 14 ]

[Toughness: 15* ]

[Intelligence: 8 ]

[Willpower: 14* ]

[Presence: 5 ]

[(Racial Ability: Bloodlust {Rank 2}): Deal additional damage while {Bloodied}. {Willpower} increases the amount of bonus damage.]

[(Racial Ability: Contempt {Rank 3}): Takes less damage from smaller enemies. {Toughness} increases the level of damage resistance.]

[(Racial Ability: Brute Strength {Rank 2}): You deal more damage with {Primitive} and {Heavy} weapons. {Strength} increases the amount of bonus damage.]

[(Class Ability: Brutal Momentum {Rank 0}): Increases the momentum of your attacks. {Strength} increases momentum.]

[Group Synergy: {Thick Hide: - }, {Brute Strength: -* }, {Irongut: - }, {Venom Resistance: 3 }.]

I couldn’t help but stare at the status screen for a good few minutes, just to confirm what I was actually reading was correct. Lash had the highest stats of every monster I had seen so far.

Well...excluding myself I suppose.

If the Orcs on the first floor were anything like her, it was hardly a surprise the adventurers had gotten such a thrashing out in the fields.

Like, what the hell was Contempt?!

It seemed like little more than institutionally sponsored bullying!

If Goblins didn’t have the natural counter to it, I would really have suspected foul play. As for the other two Racial Abilities, I guess I sort of anticipated them. If it made sense for me to have Brute Strength, then it made just as much sense for Deep Orcs and Orcs in general to have it. Even Bloodlust generally fit in with what little I had been able to observe of the Orcs on the first floor.

While taking a few minutes to cool off, I was drawn back to the top of the status screen again.

Deep Orc Drudge? Unlike Toofy and myself, who had the suffix of Runt, Lash had Drudge. Is that the next stage of the evolutionary path?

Since she was unable to read her own status, I figured Lash would not really know the reason behind the naming scheme. Similarly, Hana’s evolution had a different naming scheme altogether, so I wasn’t really sure what was going on.

Lash was incredibly close to her next evolution though, so perhaps that would be a good opportunity to find out? “Lash?-” I was surprised to find she was already staring at me intensely with a determined expression and momentarily forgot what I was doing.

“Yes?” Lash leaned closer, inadvertently angling her chest and revealing more of her cleavage. Not that I noticed of course, because I was dazzled by her eyes.

“Ah, just make sure you speak with Ushu and Gric to learn the rules,” I coughed to clear my throat and decided it might be a good idea to take a lie down. I was clearly not well. “I gave orders to Gric to begin teaching the children how to read, but you have my permission to sit in on those lessons if you want,” I caught my eyes attempting to wander again and decided I had better go.

Lash watched me leave, and seemed...disappointed?

I shook my head and headed for the Grove. I probably had heat exhaustion or something.

Hopping into the cool water of the fountain, I felt a fresh wave of clarity flood through my senses. “Definitely a fever,” I muttered distractedly and dunked my head below the water.

Raising my head out of the water again, I was surprised to see Ushu lingering by the stairs. I hadn’t noticed him there earlier and judging by the determined look on his face, Ushu clearly wanted something. Seeing that he had my attention, Ushu hurried over and knelt down beside the fountain, putting us roughly at eye level with one another.

“Lord, I would assk a favour,” Ushu prostrated himself with his arms outstretched in front of him, like I was some sort of mythical god-king.

“What is it?” I asked, trying hard not to sound too annoyed, certain that he would take it the wrong way.

“Lord, I seek the usse of the mana-well to hatch the eggss,” Ushu requested determinedly.

“Oh,” That was not what I had expected. “Sure,” I agreed, then remembered something, “I don’t want parentless children Ushu. Every egg must be claimed and cared for.”

Ushu rose back into a kneeling position, an intense look of gratitude on his face. “Of coursse, Lord.”

“There will need to be a creche or something organised as well. It won’t be safe to have so many children running around all over the place. Besides, I asked Gric to provide lessons on reading and writing the Daemon language so people can read their stat screens,” I explained.

Ushu nodded obediently and looked like he would just about accept pretty much anything at this point.

“And, uh, I hope this isn’t offensive but...your young don’t try to eat one another right?” I asked worriedly.

While not seeming to be offended, Ushu’s silence was rather telling.

“Okay. New Rule, no mass hatchings allowed!” I insisted. “At least one family member, adoptive or otherwise, must be present, per egg, and provide sufficient food to give a designated Settlement leader, most likely yourself or Gric, the opportunity to recruit the child. Understood?”

Ushu nodded with a mixed expression of determined relief on his face, “Yess Lord!”

I took a minute to think of anything else we may have missed. Since nothing sprang to mind, I shrugged and gave Ushu a dismissive wave and settled back into my impromptu bath.

Ushu wasted no time in bolting from the Grove, and only then did I realise my mistake.

Every one of the Serpent-Kin would be wanting to hatch an egg...

Damnit...

As I had expected, within the short span of a few minutes, the first of the prospective parents began arriving outside of the Grove. They each tightly yet gently held an egg to their chest and bore a look of determined yet constrained excitement as they quietly conversed with one another in hushed whispers. Unfortunately, while their whispering was probably made with considerate intentions, it largely defied the point when a few dozen people did so simultaneously.

Letting out a deep sigh, I figured that my bath had probably dragged on more than long enough already, so I reluctantly prepared myself to bring some order to the inevitable chaos.

Stemming the tide at its source, I went looking for Ushu and once I found him, very calmly explained that it would probably be best for no more than ten eggs to be hatched at a time. There was no special shelter arranged yet, so it would have meant a great deal of crowding in the storeroom, and many aspiring parents left out in the rain that would be arriving sometime this afternoon.

There was also the matter of the expedition to consider as well. Clarice would likely need the rest of the day to recover, but the longer we delayed, the more likely it would be that there would be no one left to find. Unsurprisingly, Nadine agreed, so it was decided that the expedition team would leave early tomorrow morning.

Since Ushu would be gone for a week or longer. It meant Gric, Hana or Myself would be responsible for inviting any newborns to join Sanctuary. Since Hana was going to be busy for just about the entire foreseeable future, that really only left myself and Gric.

*****

Standing atop the deck of the small fishing boat, Kirk could hardly believe what he was seeing. A small fleet of tribal outrigger boats was racing towards the direction of the abandoned foothold. At their head was the “Sunstrider”, one of the three trading ships allowed on this floor of the Labyrinth, by special permission of the adventurer’s Guild. It was riding low in the water, so it was almost certainly bristling with goods for trade.

Sunstrider belonged to the Forest Goblins of Sunrock. Unlike the Goblins of the first floor, the Forest Goblins of Sunrock had a reputation for being peaceful and even rescuing adventurers, mercenaries and merchants. It was the primary reason they were ‘allowed’ to have such a large ship. Propelled by a combination of oars and sail, the Sunstrider was crude and somewhat primitive in design compared to the grand sailing vessels employed in other floors of the Labyrinth. However, the arrival of the Sunstrider and its accompanying trader fleet was a good sign.

The emergency flotilla was starting to run desperately low on supplies, and the supply runs to scavenge the foothold and surrounding area were growing more dangerous by the day.

Pulling out the borrowed spyglass lent to him by the flotilla’s council, Kirk took a closer look at the boats. To his surprise, the outriggers were packed with Forest Goblin warriors. Even though it had only been a matter of days, the Sunrock had somehow heard of their plight and looked like they were coming to their rescue.

Only, that didn’t seem right.

Panning to the small trade fleet, Kirk was surprised to see one of the outrigger’s break from formation and perform a one-hundred and eighty-degree turn, now heading back the way it had come. Those warriors aboard strangely bore expressions of grim determination and acceptance.

Confused, Kirk directed the spyglass further northward.

“Oh fuck...” Kirk very nearly dropped the borrowed spyglass into the river.

“Wha’ is it?” The wizened fisherman asked. A retired adventurer himself, he had a second sense for danger.

“It’s a warship...” Kirk answered breathlessly.

The second ship was similar in design to the Sunstrider, however, it bore no sails at all and was only driven by oars. Less well made, the warship was still easily close to twice as large as the Sunstrider and would be able to hold hundreds or even a thousand or more warriors easily.

The outrigger charged straight for the warship, the warriors aboard holding their wooden shields to the front and above in a crude shield wall to protect the helmsman. As they drew closer to the warship, it became painfully obvious why. Narrow projectiles had begun peppering the outriggers crew and one by one they began to fall.

Kirk didn’t understand the point of their strategy, it was just pointless suicide.

However, with just one warrior and the helmsman left standing, both of whom were doubtless riddled with all manner of projectiles, the outrigger slammed into the exposed oars of the warship on the starboard side. The outrigger's mast managed to snap over a few oars before the outrigger was bodily flipped end over end by the momentum, crashing through many more oars before being splintered against the hull of the ship.

Numbed by what he had just witnessed, Kirk didn’t notice the outrigger headed his way until it had already closed half the distance between them.

“Wha’ we doin?” The fisherman asked, stoically eyeing the approaching vessel.

Kirk realised he was meant to make a decision and roughly cleared his throat. “Let them approach. We need to find out what is going on and if they have any supplies to trade...”

The fisherman gave Kirk a dubious look but said nothing. However, he did move closer to the ropes and loosen a few knots in preparation for a hasty retreat.

The Goblins aboard the outrigger were waving frantically as a means to get their attention and pointing animatedly to the incoming warship. Drawing closer, the cries of the Goblins could now be heard as well, although Kirk himself didn’t understand a word of it. Glancing back at the fisherman, he was not at all inspired by the suddenly pale and damn near terrified expression on the formerly implacable man's face. “What are they saying?” Kirk asked.

“Sunrock’s gone,” the fisherman gave Kirk a pained look, “They want shelter in the foothold as promised.”

Kirk felt the blood drain from his face as he looked back out over the river. The Sunstrider wasn’t laden with supplies as he had hoped. It was packed full of refugees.

*****

With everything finally sorted out, I headed to bed to take a much-needed sleep. An expected complication had arisen from the Deep Orcs once they found out what had the Serpent-Kin so excited. Thankfully, all it had taken to resolve it was reminding both sides that the limited access was only intended to be temporary. Once Hana had the free time to make a more permanent hatchery or something, then the restrictions would be loosened, provided everyone behaved themselves. Although I was loath to rely on such petty intimidation, it was proving remarkably effective at resolving minor disputes.

Settling onto my bed with a contented sigh, I began drifting off to sleep almost right away.

Almost immediately, I felt someone shaking me by the shoulder, “Tim, wake up,” Clarice grunted. “Nadine wants to talk to you about something before we leave. Also, you haven’t made the quest yet,” She emphasised the second part with a particularly rough shove.

“I’m awake,” I yawned and blearily sat up.

“Oh yeah, I wanted to ask something else,” Clarice mentioned as she threw me my tunic, “What do you think of that Orc girl Lash?”

Feeling my pulse quicken, I remembered Clarice’s involvement in what happened yesterday. “You did that on purpose,” I accused dryly.

Clarice shrugged unapologetically, “Sure. I mean, it’s pretty obvious that you like her, so I took a couple of hits for the team,” she grinned lasciviously.

“That’s not how the expression works...” I replied dryly.

“And that wasn’t a denial,” Clarice observed with a satisfied grin. “I guess it is kind of obvious that you would have a thing for tall girls.”

“I don’t have ‘a thing’ for-” I spluttered but was interrupted.

“-You really do Tim,” Clarice smirked and shook her head, “Tobi had a crush on Emelia and he was a hundred times less obvious about it.”

“...” My mind was drawing a blank.

“So what is it that you like about her?” Clarice asked mischievously, “Is it just because she is tall? Oooh ooh, it is because she looks strong enough to bend you over her knee and-”

“-It’s her eyes!” I spluttered before Clarice had the chance to finish that sentence.

“Her eyes?” Clarice asked disappointedly. “Not her powerful thighs or abs you could break rocks with-” She gingerly shook her right hand and grimace a little, “-or maybe her big-”

“Shut up Clarice!” I growled in warning.

“I was gonna say heart,” Clarice pouted with a smirk, “Although her tits are pretty big too.”

I glowered at her.

“Just sayin, you spend as much time staring at other places as you do at her eyes,” Clarice shrugged and left my room.

This was not how I wanted to start my morning. Thankfully, Clarice would be gone soon and I would be able to get some peace and quiet. Slowly heading downstairs, I could see Nadine and the others all waiting by the Grove fountain.

Passing by the storeroom, I took note of the prospective parents each attentively cradling their respective eggs and quietly whispering excitedly to one another to pass the time.

“Was Clarice really the best choice?” I asked Nadine as I cleared the final steps.

Nadine shifted a little uncomfortably, “I think you should give Lash a chance,” she insisted, determinedly. “It’s obvious that you find her attractive, so why not spend some time with her and see where things go from there?” Nadine asked as if it were the most simple and obvious thing in the world.

Unwilling to back down, I stared back at Nadine, “Why do you keep trying to pair me off with people?” I asked dryly, “First Hana, now Lash. Is there something you aren’t telling me?”

Nadine blushed, “N-no!” She insisted somewhat unconvincingly, “I just want you to be happy.”

Hana rolled her eyes but said nothing.

“She wants to get you laid,” Clarice corrected, “She feels bad that you look, well, like you. So she thinks getting you laid will fix that,” she shrugged unapologetically at Nadine as the latter glowered back at her.

“Look, I’m fine. Just stop meddling in my love life.” I insisted, mortified that I was even part of a conversation like this.

“It may be a bit too late for that,” Clarice chuckled sheepishly, scratching awkwardly at her nose.

Feeling a deep sense of dread in my gut, I turned my full attention to Clarice and glared at her, ”What did you do?” I demanded icily.

“Geez would ya look at that?” Clarice hurriedly backed away, “Looks like it’s time we were heading out!” She called back to the others as she sprinted out of the Grove, Nadine, Tobi and Emelia close behind her.

Hana gave me a somewhat reassuring pat on the back, her expression sympathetic, “I caught her confessing your affections to Lash on your behalf,” she explained apologetically.

“...” I felt like I was having a stroke.

“Lash seemed receptive?” Hana explained uncertainty, “Or at least I think so. It was hard to tell with all that metal in the way...Are you alright Tim? You look pale.”

This isn’t happening. It’s all part of a nightmare, right? Of course, I just went to bed, this has to be a nightmare.

“Tim?” Hana sounded concerned. “Tim?!” She called out more insistently.

Everything went black.

Sitting bolt upright in a panic, I looked around and was relieved to find I was still in bed. “Thank god!” I groaned and massaged my head. I was just glad the nightmare was over. Even for Clarice, that had simply been too cruel. Getting out of bed, I reached for my tunic and found that it was not where I had left it to dry. Looking around the room, I quickly realised that I was already wearing it.

“Oh no...” My heart began racing again. Feeling dizzy, I sat down on the bed to try and clear my head. “Maybe I just put it on in my sleep?” I muttered hopefully.

“Are you feeling better?” Hana asked as she entered my room.

Damnit.

“So it actually happened?” I asked sourly.

Hana nodded, “You fainted, so I brought you back to your room.”

Hana was growing by the day. Not nearly as fast as the Daemons, who had grown by leaps and bounds, but she was almost taller than Nadine and the girls at this point.

I was about to ask how she managed to get me up the stairs, then I remembered that Hana could literally control the plants and probably made the tree do it with branches or something.

“She wants to talk to you by the way, Lash I mean,” Hana explained, “She wants to dig a hole and fight some underground monsters...or something like that. I don’t know, it was difficult to understand the explanation. Basically, she wants to harvest metal for more tools, weapons and armour, I think?” She shrugged apologetically, “I said I would let you decide.”

“How is fighting monsters related to harvesting metal?” I asked incredulously.

Hana shrugged, “Maybe one of the underground monsters is made of metal, or has a high chance of spawning metal as an item drop?”

“Wait...What?” I gave Hana another incredulous look, “Monsters can spawn items when they die?”

Hana shrugged apologetically, “I don’t know for sure. But it is something I have heard before,” her expression grew sombre for a moment before she continued, “Besides, it isn’t the monster spawning the item, it’s the Labyrinth.”

“That...Actually kind of makes sense,” I agreed reluctantly, “If it can make monsters, why not items too?”

Hana nodded and shrugged yet again, “It makes as much sense as anything else.”

“Well, you know. If they do find decent metal, it's going to involve burning a lot of trees for fuel to make the metal workable. Are you alright with that?” I asked, more than a little concerned Hana may not have fully considered the ramifications.

Hana considered the question for a while and then nodded, “So long as they don’t harm or burn my trees, then I don’t really care,” she stated rather coldly, “Besides, Sanctuary will need more weapons and armour than I can provide on my own.”

“Hrm, I guess that’s true,” I agreed somewhat reluctantly. I couldn’t help but feel Hana was making a compromise with ulterior motives in mind. Specifically, that she believed arming the residents of Sanctuary would help her get revenge on ‘The Destroyer’.

“So you will go speak with Lash?” Hana pressed relentlessly, making it clear she wouldn’t leave without an answer. Specifically, the answer she wanted.

“Fine, I’ll go see her,” I agreed reluctantly.

Hana smiled, “Good. Lash is waiting for you by the fountain downstairs.”

Letting out a deep sigh as we made our way over to the stairs, I could see that Hana had told the truth.

Lash and ten of her warriors were decked out in their crude sheet metal armour and waiting for us by the Grove fountain.

“I don’t suppose she mentioned where she wanted the tunnel to be dug?” I asked dubiously.

Hana shook her head.

As I left the stairs, Lash and her warriors knelt down on one knee, their faces directed downward in deference.

Feeling a little awkward, I motioned for them to rise. “Hana told me you wanted to dig a mine to fight monsters?” I asked probingly.

Lash nodded and rose to her feet, “Seek the Rumblers for iron, make tools, armour and weapons.” she explained.

“The rumblers have the iron?” I asked curiously.

“Broken Rumblers leave iron,” Lash nodded, “Rumblers dwell deep below,” she motioned to the ground.

“Alright. Iron would be useful,” I agreed. The staying power of the Deep Orcs in their desperate stand against the monsters was a testament to how big a difference it could make in a fight against wild monsters. “What other monsters are down there though?”

Lash shifted her weight a little and nodded, “Spikers and Sniffers,” she explained matter of factly as if what the monsters were would be self-evident.

It took a solid half-hour of back and forth before I had a general idea of what each of these three monsters looked like. The rumblers seemed to be stone versions of the Mud Dolls, while Spikers were larger underground variants of the lizards from the desert on the second floor. Finally, and most disconcertingly, the Sniffers sounded alarmingly similar in description to the evolved Vrabbits, the Blood Hunters.

“Where do you want the access tunnel?” I asked despite already having a rather solid idea in my mind.

Lash pointed to the southern end of Sanctuary, “Inside barrier, stop soulless infesting tunnels.”

Yeah, that was just about what I had expected. “What if something happens to the Settlement barrier? What will stop the soulless from flooding up into Sanctuary?”

Lash tilted her head in surprise, or at least I assumed she was surprised since her face was hidden by her helmet. “Underground, iron gates hold back soulless,” Lash explained slowly but seemed to realise the problem, “No iron for the gate,” she grunted in annoyance.

I nodded in agreement. Without some form of security, I did not want to make a tunnel that would simply funnel more monsters towards Sanctuary.

“What about a well without water?” Hana suggested, “You could use ropes to climb down and I could pull the ropes back up again so the monsters can’t use them?”

“A mine shaft?” That...Actually wasn’t a bad idea, assuming the mineshaft opened up into a cavern or something so the walls weren’t able to be climbed so readily. We could post lookouts at the top to keep watch while retrieving the first batches of materials. “Okay, we could give that a try,” I agreed, ‘Worst case, you could always seal the hole with roots and stuff right Hana?”

Hana nodded confidently, “It would be easy.”

“Well, alright then,” I agreed. As Sanctuary population reached required milestones, the protective barrier would increase as well. So theoretically, it would be possible to establish a smaller and more permanent base down below.

Hana excused herself and left the Grove, no doubt to tend to one of her ever-growing responsibilities and work projects.

Lash and her ten warriors remained however and gave off the impression that the tunnel had been only one of a larger number of requests.

“Is there something else?” I prompted. Even though I technically didn’t have much planned to do today, it still felt weird to just ‘waste time’ with a psycho running around out there.

“We offer thanks, for Classes,” Lash bowed her head and her warriors did the same, “Teach us others?” She asked with fragile optimism.

“Oh? Is that all? Sure.” It was only to Sanctuary’s benefit for as many residents as possible to choose a Class. All the more so with the prospective mining shaft being located inside Sanctuary itself. “If you ask around, there are quite a few to choose from, sort of. The Grappling Pugilist is the best close Combat Class we have, but the Surgeon Classes are important too. Also, the Summoner and Pact Binder Classes seem very interesting, and I don’t think anyone has tried Warlock yet...”

Lash’s warriors gave each other uncertain looks, I assumed. It was understandable, the Classes were a pretty big deal, and I was basically giving them away for free.

“I Just have one rule,” I insisted.

Lash and her warriors gave me their undivided attention.

“No revealing the Class unlocks to outsiders. Especially humans.” I had given a great deal of thought to this and was convinced that advertising that my citizens knew how to unlock Classes, especially advanced or restricted ones, would lead to trouble.

Lash and her warriors nodded solemnly to show they understood. Although it was a little strange considering they had probably only seen four humans in their entire lives.

“Was there anything else you wanted?” I asked somewhat apprehensively. The group gave me the feeling like there was an even more pressing reason for their visit.

Lash gave her people a backwards glance.

Without any other signal, they turned and left the Grove, leaving Lash and I alone.

“Where is Leader’s mate?” Lash asked bluntly, her tone both curious and nervous.

All at once I began nervously sweating again. “Ah, what?”

Lash removed her helmet and stowed it under her arm, “Where is Leader’s mate?” She repeated, her cheeks flushed from wearing her stuffy helmet.

“W-what?” I gulped hard and backed away slightly.

Lash dropped her helmet and stepped closer, staring intently at my eyes, “Our child would make the caverns tremble,” she purred, carefully enunciating each word, proving she was more than capable of stringing together more complete sentences.

“Uh...” I couldn’t think clearly and stepped back again to try and buy time.

Lash didn’t let up and even managed to draw closer, her hot breath washing over my face.

Continuing to backpedal, I had no idea where I was going, too fixated on the scintillating amethyst light in her eyes. Feeling my back suddenly press up against something hard, I saw a sudden flash in Lash’s eyes, something akin to a desperate need.

Blood crashing through my veins and heart hammering in my chest, there was only one thought going through my mind, “Her eyes are beautiful...” I couldn’t look away.

Lash leaned in closer, resting her forehead against mine, her captivating eyes less than an inch from my own. Then, all at once, Lash stepped back with a shy smile on her lips. Slowly backing away, she retrieved her helmet, gave me a final lingering stare, then left the Grove.

Incredibly lightheaded and feeling exhausted I staggered over to the stairs and all but collapsed. Okay, Clarice and Nadine might have a point I reluctantly conceded.

But now what?

I spent just about the entire day sitting on the stairs or pacing the Grove.

Intellectually, I was aware of how flirting was supposed to work. It was obvious, hopefully, that Lash was interested, but what the hell was I meant to do now?!

Besides cliches from television, movies and novels, I had absolutely no idea what I was meant to do.

“Tim hungry?” Toofy and her shadow Ril caught me by surprise. Each of them was carrying a small woven basket with roasted meats inside.

Letting out a deep sigh, I tried to put Lash out of my mind, which proved more difficult than I expected. “Hi Toofy, hi Ril. Yes, I am famished,” I agreed and motioned for the girls to join me on the stairs.

Toofy grinned and hopped up onto the stairs beside me and offered me her basket.

“Thanks, Toofy,” I gratefully accepted the basket and gave her hair a quick tousle. Picking a piece of meat and taking an experimental bite, I was reminded that acquiring more cooking herbs would be a nice long term goal. They really made quite a big difference.

“Why Tim smell like big Orc?” Toofy asked slyly, giving me a dramatic sniff for emphasis.

I tried not to choke on my food and gulped it down.

Toofy grinned wider, a malicious glint in her eyes.

“Maybe it’s time you had another swimming lesson?” I suggested.

Toofy froze, “Uh...”

“Do you want to learn how to swim Ril?” I asked innocently.

Ril took some time to consider the question.

Toofy rounded on Ril and began silently waving her hands back and forth like somehow I couldn’t see it.

“Ril swim,” Ril agreed.

Toofy collapsed and groaned despondently.

“Swim now?” Ril asked, gnawing distractedly on a meaty bone.

“Alright,” I agreed and set down the basket. Stripping off my tunic I hopped into the fountain and waited for Ril and Toofy.

Ril was excitedly dragging Toofy to the fountain, bodily throwing her weight to make headway.

Once Toofy and Ril were both in the water, Toofy didn’t seem to mind so much. What was really surprising though, was how quickly Ril took to swimming, although it quickly became obvious why.

The little cheater had grown gills in the side of her neck and chest. As Ril spent longer in the water, she changed still further, growing retractable crimson fins along the lengths of her outer forearms and shins. It was actually a relief, not having to worry about Ril drowning or by extension Toofy, since they were basically inseparable.

For her part, Ril really seemed to enjoy swimming in the fountain and was remarkably fast and agile. It actually gave me an idea for a game. Retrieving one of the baskets of food. I tore the roasted meat into smaller pieces and began tossing them into the fountain for Ril to catch before they were swept away by the cycling current.

Soon Toofy was in on the game as well, although that was probably just a convenient excuse for her to get out of swimming lessons. All the same, it was a fun game and by the time Ril began getting tired, the food was just about gone anyway.

As I had suspected, Ril’s fins retracted and along with her gills, nearly seamlessly sealed themselves, or appeared to. A closer inspection revealed that special muscles were holding either side closed on each seam. “Very clever,” I gave Ril’s soaked hair a few gentle pats.

Ril grinned toothily at me and looked expectantly at Toofy.

Toofy gave Ril some head pats as well, “Good baby,” she agreed with a sombre nod and helped Ril back into her tunic-dress.

Seeing the both of them off, I pulled my own tunic back on and decided to give the hospital a visit.

As I had expected, Hana had made significant progress and would probably be finished sometime early tomorrow. I was pleasantly surprised to find the Serpent-Kin Surgeons teaching a pair of the Deep Orcs the basics. It was nice to see both groups getting along, especially with Ushu gone. I suspected that it may be because everyone was on their best behaviour to have access to the grove. Or more specifically, not to be denied access.

Heading to the training grounds next, I made a mental note to organise Clarice’s students into hunting parties to make sure we had enough food coming in each day. Hopefully, Ushu had arranged something, but I knew I really shouldn’t take it for granted.

As I had expected, just about every one of the Deep Orcs was paired off and either throwing punches at one another or engaged in attempting to pin one another to the ground and choke their opponent unconscious. I wondered if any of them besides those two aspiring to be surgeons, had actually asked about other Classes. I supposed it didn’t really matter all that much. I intended for them to choose what they wanted, and judging by the laughter and loud happy conversations taking place, this was it.

It was still quite odd though. Just about every one of them was wearing their crude plate armour. Only those who paired against Clarice’s students were fighting unarmoured, probably out of sportsmanship.

In the midst of it all was Lash. Near as I could tell, she was instructing Deep Orcs and Serpent-Kin alike, focusing a great deal more of her attention on the grapplers than the boxers. To Lash’s credit, she seemed to be doing a pretty good job. Unlike Clarice, Lash didn’t seem particularly pressured into asserting dominance. Although I did notice that she would have others take the submissive roles in more active demonstrations. Besides that though, Lash was doing well.

Using Sanctuary’s registry, I was still quite surprised to see that Lash was making solid progress, More than half of Clarice’s students had unlocked the Advanced Class and twenty of her fellow Deep Orc’s had as well. That actually raised a rather interesting dilemma.

Contrary to Gric’s request, I hadn’t promoted Ril to an Underlord yet. I just didn’t feel comfortable forcing her into a leadership role like that. I had done it to Gric and...well, he turned out a bit weird.

If it was something Ril wanted, I would give her a chance, but until then, maybe Lash would be a good choice for my third Underlord?

“Hrm,” Watching Lash had made me anxious amongst other things and I needed a clear head for a decision of this importance. Deciding I would leave the decision for tomorrow, I made my way back to the storeroom and retrieved my morningstar.