Page 41 of Orc's Little Human
"I am no longer your chief," I announce, my voice carrying to every corner of the encampment. "Effective immediately, I renounce my claim to leadership of the Blackmaw clan."
The declaration hits like a thunderclap. Warriors who moments ago were watching in respectful silence now erupt in confused shouts, angry questions, desperate pleas for me to reconsider.
But I'm not done.
"Furthermore," I continue, raising my voice above the chaos, "I leave Gor'thul tonight. Anyone who wishes to follow me is welcome. Anyone who chooses to stay will select a new chief by dawn."
It's the only way.The certainty settles in my bones like forged iron. Varok was right about one thing—my presence here will only breed more conflict. As long as I remain, there will always be those who see Selene as a threat, who view my magic as corruption.
But if I leave...
My eyes find Thali in the crowd, see the terror and confusion warring across her young face. She doesn't understand why I'm abandoning everything we've built, why I'm choosing exile over the clan that raised us both.
She will.The thought carries its own pain, but also hope.Someday, she'll understand that some things are worth more than tradition. That family isn't always defined by blood.
I stride toward Selene, ignoring the warriors who try to block my path. Onog steps forward as I approach, his weathered face creased with something that might be sorrow.
"You don't have to do this," he says quietly. "The clan needs you. Especially now."
"The clan needs a leader they can trust without question," I reply, stopping before him. "That's not me. Not anymore."
His dark eyes flick toward Selene, then back to my face. "And her? What happens to the human when you're no longer here to protect her?"
"She comes with me." The words ring with finality.
I reach for Selene's hand, feel her fingers intertwine with mine despite the blood still staining my palm. Her skin is warm against mine, steady and certain in a way that makes the rest of this bearable.
"Are you ready?" I ask her.
Her smile is fierce as a blade, beautiful as sunrise over the storm-battered sea. "I've been ready since the day I met you."
Then we go.The decision settles in my chest like coming home, even as everything I've ever known crumbles around us.We go, and we find our own path.
Together.
19
SELENE
The flames crackle and spit, casting dancing shadows across the rocky outcrop we've claimed for the night. Five days of walking have brought us nowhere in particular—just distance from everything that threatened to destroy us. My feet ache despite the sturdy boots Korrath found for me before we left, and my shoulders burn from the pack I've been carrying.
But it's not the physical discomfort that keeps me staring into the fire instead of sleeping.
I ruined his life.
The thought circles through my mind like a carrion bird, picking at every moment of doubt I've tried to bury. Korrath gave up everything—his leadership, his clan, his birthright—because of me. Because of whatever cursed mark burns beneath my tunic, because of the magic that responds to his blood like metal to a lodestone.
He's lost in thought beside me, methodically sharpening his knife with a whetstone. The rhythmic scrape fills the silence between us, steady and soothing in a way that shouldn't be possible given how thoroughly I've destroyed his world.
Thali sleeps curled against my other side, her small body warm and trusting despite everything that's happened. She adapted to our exile with the resilience only children possess, treating our journey like an adventure instead of the desperate flight it really is.
"You're thinking too loud," Korrath murmurs without looking up from his blade.
I shift against the stone at my back, pulling my cloak tighter around my shoulders. "Just wondering how far we'll need to go before we're safe."
"We're safe now." His voice carries quiet certainty. "No one's following us."
That's not what I meant, and he knows it.The real question isn't about distance or pursuit—it's about whether we can build something lasting from the wreckage I've created. Whether three exiles with nothing but the supplies on their backs can carve out a life worth living.
