Kaius the Fierce by Cara Wylde

Chapter Twenty-Five

Ulgan placed his hands on his captain’s shoulder blades, then lowered his head until his forehead almost came to rest on his knuckles. Grace looked at him suspiciously. She sensed that something was going on, so she sat up. She checked her mate’s pulse and sighed in relief when she felt it was a bit stronger than before.

“This is it?”

Ulgan stood up, swaying slightly. He’d expended a lot of energy mending a wound not inflicted by a sword.

“Lucky,” he struggled to say.

“Lucky? How was Kaius lucky?”

Ulgan waved his hands chaotically, gesturing something Grace couldn’t understand.

“The boar had no claws.”

“I know that. Wait. Who’s the boar in this case?”

The mage sighed, shook his head, and walked away. He stopped beside the first wounded orc he found, knelt, and applied some of the ointment he’d also given to Sasha, murmured some words, then moved on to the next. He saw Birma, eventually, and his eyes widened. Grace realized he hadn’t even known Sasha had needed him for Birma.

Thrak covered Kaius with a clean pelt he’d found in the caves.

“He means to say that the mage who did this wasn’t strong enough. In his good times, Ulgan could cut someone in two with his blade.”

“It wasn’t a normal blade... Made of steel, I mean.”

“Energy. Much more dangerous. It’s easier for Ulgan to heal wounds made by enchanted blades.”

“Then Birma is going to be fine.”

The raider nodded.

Before he could leave, Grace stood up and touched his arm briefly. When he snapped around to stare at her questioningly, she hid her hand behind her back.

“Sorry, I just wanted to know... What did you do with Goroth? Is he dead?”

Thrak snarled. “No. The captain wanted him alive, so he is alive.”

That made another wave of fear and anxiety rise inside her chest. She tried to hold it together.

“Where is he?”

“We captured him. He’s in the woods, guarded by the Giant. He can’t get to you and can’t hurt you. I promise.”

“I...” That took her aback. “Thank you. Can I see him?”

He furrowed his brows. “Why?”

“I want to see him tied up and helpless. It would give me great pleasure.”

That made the orc smile broadly, and Grace congratulated herself for having chosen the right words. For once, she didn’t sound weak and useless. And she’d told the truth, too. She did want to see Goroth the Devourer in the same position he’d put her and her daughter in not long ago.

“Follow me.”

She did, and the raider led her through the forest, towards the north. There were fallen orcs everywhere, and she easily identified them as belonging to the enemy horde. Kaius had struck hard and fast. He’d taken them by surprise, and he’d showed no mercy. As they walked deeper and deeper into the woods, she saw two orcs she knew belonged to their horde, and she averted her gaze. There was nothing she could do for them.

“We’ll bury them honorably,” Thrak said.

“Of course.”

Goroth the Devourer was in chains, tied roughly to the trunk of a tree. When Thrak and Grace approached, the Giant raised his gaze and nodded, then returned to sharpening his many daggers.

For a minute, she studied the disgraced captain, thinking about what she wanted to say to him. She wasn’t sure. It was over, and it didn’t make any sense to lash out on him. He’d been defeated, and no amount of curses she could rain down on him would make her feel better than the knowledge that his end was near.

“Go ahead, pretty,” he said, his voice sounding gurgled. He turned his head slightly and spat blood on the ground, then lifted his gaze. His face was badly bruised, but that wasn’t what made Grace take a step back. He was missing an eye. “Not as handsome as you remember me, hm?”

She felt sick, and she had to take a couple of deep breaths. Thrak was studying her with interest. She reminded herself that she was the captain’s bride and straightened her back.

“I have a question for you.”

He smiled, showing her his bloodied teeth. “Why don’t you ask them to unchain me first? That crazy mage of yours enchanted the chains, and they’re poisoning me slowly. Not comfortable at all.”

Grace noticed that the chains were wound tightly around his body and were digging into his skin. Where they touched him, the skin became ashen and the veins showed.

“Won’t he die before Kaius...”

“Ulgan comes and heals him once in a while,” Thrak explained. “He won’t die before the captain orders it. This is a good way to keep him subdued.”

“Right.” She remembered how Kaius had lifted the barred door from its hinges with his bare hands. Goroth would break out of the chains easily if they weren’t enchanted. “Smart.”

“We’re just good at what we do,” Thrak shrugged, but it was easy to tell he was proud of himself. And of the entire horde.

Grace shot him a confused glance.

He grinned. “War.”

“Oh.”

“You did well this time,” Goroth said. “That mage of yours... Without him, you’d be dead, not my orcs.”

“Enough about war,” Grace said in a firm voice. “Let’s talk about peace, Goroth. Kaius didn’t want to share the valley with you. He was here first, and you should’ve respected that or moved somewhere else. But I’m curious... Had he suggested you did share the valley... would you have agreed?”

Goroth stared at her for a second, as if he didn’t understand what she was saying. Maybe she’d formulated the whole thing in a much too complicated way. But then he started laughing – a full belly laugh, with his head thrown back against the tree trunk.

Grace frowned. “What’s so funny? Why are you laughing? I know Kaius never came to you with such a proposal, but I just wanted to know if there would’ve ever been a chance for diplomacy on your part.”

“Never came to me...” He was laughing so hard he could barely talk. “You pretty, pretty thing. You’re also so, so stupid.”

“What?”

He started coughing, and he spat out more blood. He licked his teeth and looked up at her.

“Your Kaius... Kaius the Fierce, as you call him... is not fierce at all. He did come to me, twice even. He was more than willing to offer me half of the valley and make it official with the Council, just so there wouldn’t be any misunderstandings in case I changed my mind.”

“Or in case he changed his mind,” Thrak snarled.

Grace noticed that both Thrak and Dharg were tense. Tenser than before. They were looking at Goroth with pure murder in their eyes.

“You didn’t know,” she whispered.

“No, of course his raiders didn’t know,” Goroth was happy to explain. “His proposal was the approach of a coward, and he knew it. He came to me alone, and I was amused enough to meet with him in private. I refused him twice and kindly asked him to find another place for his horde. Now, that was the extent I was willing to go to. He could’ve taken his horde, left the valley to me.”

“But he was here first.”

“And what do I care? Your captain was weak! Seeking peace when peace is not the way of his people... The thought alone disgusts me.” He spat more blood, not because he had to, but because he was trying to make a point. “He wanted us to work in the valley together, like brothers.” He stared the two raiders in the eye. “Your captain is a weakling! This world has made him soft. Is this the kind of leader you want to follow?”

The Giant bent forward and punched Goroth hard, breaking his nose. Grace yelped and jumped a few steps back. Goroth laughed again.

“You can kill me right now, and that won’t change the fact that your captain is unworthy. He should’ve never been given command of a horde. He’s not a warrior, he’s a coward looking for peace and brotherly agreements.”

“You’re wrong,” she said. The fact that Kaius had actually sought peace with Goroth made her feel proud of him. So proud because he hadn’t been too proud to negotiate with his enemy. “The war is over, and Kaius is stronger than you because he has adapted to the new way of things. You’re the weak one. And now your horde is gone, and you’re in chains, awaiting your sentence. What more proof do you want that you got it all wrong? I hope you’re happy with what you’ve achieved. You could’ve settled somewhere else if you didn’t want to share anything with anyone, taken a human bride, had heirs of your own.” She touched her stomach, and hope filled her heart. “I’d say that you’ve at least learned your lesson, but what’s the point? I don’t think you’ll live to apply it.”

With that, she turned on her heels and headed back to the clearing. Goroth sputtered something, but she ignored him. Her question had been answered. Thrak rushed after her.

“I can’t let you walk alone.”

“I think I’m safe now.”

“The captain would want someone to watch over you at all times.”

“What do you think about what Goroth said?”

Thrak was silent. She knew he’d understood her question, so she gave him time to think. In the end, he replied in his usual manner, using few words.

“Kaius the Fierce is my captain.”