Falkreath: The Stone Orc Settlement

As Kold'Ron broke away from Gash, leaning against a wall, obviously in pain, she would speak up. His eyes were closed tightly, groaning and nearly shouting aloud in pain, soon pushing off to reveal normal eyes. However, it appeared his eyes were hurt before her coming, shaking his head and snorting, his arm brushing against his nostrils as he looked down to Zar'Dura.

"Zar'Dura? What concerns have brought you to me?" He questioned, looking with wide eyes. "I generally do not find myself socializing with the children, so this must be of importance?" He questioned with eagerness to change the focus of his pain to something else, tears seen gently gathering along the corners of his eyes, but nothing too much. Sadly, Gash's conversation would have to wait another day, as this sudden interruption engulfed importance.

Kold'Ron looked to her with narrowed eyes, listening with great interest. "So I am to come as your assistant, ironic, is it not?" He joked aloud, but suddenly realizing her sketchy mood as she seemed worried. About what? It was the journey, surely, wasn't it? He chuckled, shaking his head as he looked to the scroll, studying it. It was different to others, actually having decorations to declare importance of travel. With that, he slid the Writ into his pouch, marching forward slowly, waiting for Zar'Dura to finish speaking with Theev'Nok to continue his regular pace.

Theev'Nok listened patiently, his chest puffed out once more. "Your apology is appreciated, as well as respected, Zar'Dura.." He sighed, a hand reaching up to behind his neck, clasping onto it as he looked to the people resuming their business. "I just.... I need to find another way, to remove their eyes of hatred from their once-pure ways of living. For too long have we remained a cult, rather than a tribe." He stated, looking back down to Zar'Dura. He frowned, eyebrows narrowing as he soon spoke up once more. "Even you, Zar'Dura, would not let your hang head for this long over such a simple mistake. Tell me... is there something you wish to confess?" He questioned, his eyes curious as he looked to hers.

Prof. Edward "Echoes" Laurént grins at his collected party: Jun of the Celadine , Konan , Zar'Dura the Listener , and @koldron . This was a reality were he got far more people than he expected. Still it didn't really matter to him.

"Time to go."

With that simple statement Echoes whisks his party to parts unknown.

<Exit to Yee Hua Hua.>

Kold'Ron viewed the others to leave, and sighed, turning back with wide eyes as he rushed to Zar'Dura's side, unknowing if she'd fall from exhaustion. From there, Kold'Ron headed the child's words, eyes narrowed. Why should he see his father so soon? He nodded to her, confusion seen in his face as he began walking back to the hut, which for some strange reason became a famous place quite recently.

He knew the right thing to do was be cautious, as it appeared that Shorbolg's Hut's door was opened widely, and rather than seen meditating, the King was seen hunched over the fire, staff upon the side of him as both his hands circled the flames. As Kold'Ron marched forward, seeing the privacy once more, he spoke aloud. "Father, it is I. Zar'Dura told me-" "That child did NOT!" He exclaimed, turning around as his face was revealed. Kold'Ron's eyes widened mightily as he looked to his father, heart pounding in his chest as the door suddenly changed.

Shorbolg's eyes remained stone, yes. But what wasn't meant to  be seen was the horns and strange stones growing around his temple and forehead. What appeared to be demon horns, growing from his forehead, were seen. And upon that, his hunchback didn't seem.. prominent, anymore. If anything, Shorbolg was standing taller than before! How? And his face, apart from the sudden, horrid decorations, seemed to be ten years younger from before.

"F-Fath... father..?" He called aloud, looking to him with hesitation, stepping back once. "Do you know how long I've suffered in this form?" He questioned his child, staff in hand, yes, but held as if a spear, walking forward as he looked to his son. "The mere use of my sight for less than Ten Seconds would curse me in such ways!?" His face was now in Kold'Ron's, raging. "Father!" He shouted aloud, a hand attempting to grasp onto his father's shoulder, soon launched back with some strange repelling spell. Kold'Ron went wide eyed, looking to his father with fear. "What has taken over my father? I command you!" He exclaimed, looking to his father. At that point, he would view his own father's back to outspread with wings.

Then, he'd be snapped back into reality by a hand upside his temple, Shorbolg's calm face looking to him with a gentle chuckle after what he had to do, not seeing Kold'Ron's face for the eyes were stone still. "F-Father!-" "It is nothing permanent, Kold'Ron my son, do not fear." He sighed aloud. "I would expect Zar'Dura to tell you, of course, as everyone here seems to think you are the special shaman, which indeed you are." He looked back to Kold'Ron, grasping onto his arm with both of his own.

"Now, tell me! What is of the child? Have you saved him?" Shorbolg questioned, entertaining eyes only viewed through the eyebrow movements as Kold'Ron hesitantly told his story. "Quite astounding, well done my son!" He exclaimed, hands though blind, still were capable of tracing his son's marks on his arms. "You have done a great deed for such a wizard, this will not go unnoticed, I'm sure of it." His smile gently left, looking up to Kold'Ron with a frown, grunting weakly. "Fear not, my son! The curse will leave me, as soon as I make amends for my foolish decision." He exclaimed, smiling gently as his hands held onto his son's forearms.

"Now, go. I'm sure you would wish to speak of this with Zar'Dura, surely. There's too much you've done to not be excited!" His smile seemed plastered, to Kold'Ron, and why wouldn't it? His face was of fear and confusion still, nodding and his forearms were released, where Kold'Ron left Shorbolg's Hut with swiftness. From there, he sprinted, dashing forward to Zar'Dura's hut, looking for it with questions answered by the younger ones on where exactly it was. And from there, a slamming on her door was heard from Kold'Ron. "Zar'Dura!! Open! It is Kold'Ron!" He exclaimed, obviously holding interest with his sudden urgency.

"We must speak in privacy!" He exclaimed in a hushed tone as he turned his head over his shoulder as he sped into the house, trusting her to close the door as he hurried to the center of the greeting room, looking back to Zar'Dura. "You didn't tell me... his eyes... that my father is blind yes. But this time, it was something more!" His hands gently gripped to her arms, looking to her eyes with fear. The way he spoke revealed that this would've happened before, even though Shorbolg spoke of it as if a first time.

"There is something wrong, a curse, something dark among my father." He spoke, every ounce of the speech seeping into his skin, causing goosebumps to rise sharply. "I took your advice, I traveled to his home, and there, I saw..." He looked away for a moment, a hand to his face in fear as he tried to muster up the courage to state it bravely. "Something came over me, and I witnessed my father with the crown of stones upon his head. But there was more!" He turned to her. "As if it was part of him, the crown was beginning to grow from his skin!" He exclaimed, eyes widening.

"He spoke of a miserable form, his miserable form! And then something of his resentment towards not being capable of using his gift.. and then, then... he had wings...!" He shuddered upon the last couple words, falling to a nearby stool as his hand gripped to the seat, the other on his head. "And then I awoke from this allusion, and he was as normal as we were, his body was normal, and his tone was as calm as the wind that carries my words." He looked back to Zar'Dura. "My father is not my father.." He stated gravely, referring to whatever had taken his eyes in such a manner to view his possession.

Kold'Ron growled at Zar'Dura, after her second part of the sentence followed. "Perish the thought of ending my father!" He nearly shouted, soon biting his own tongue and looking around, through any holes in the wood and in the windows for any eyes upon their hut. "I don't know... I.. I don't know..!" He looked back to Zar'Dura, locking eye contact once more. 

"For all we know, he is saved, and I could be mad. But no... although I wish to carry all the burden to be, it is not true." He stared to the ground after her action, deciding it'd be a good place to look for his own explanation, but soon proved to be wrong. "We must keep this a secret, away from Thorok, away from Theev'Nok, Rev'Nahn, Fal'Thoma, everyone... For all we know, Shorbolg is witnessing us as we speak." He stared back up to her, eyes of horror. He could be watching them. 

Kold'Ron looked to her with a sudden rage. Had she not focused on anything but elminating what is only a possiblity of a threat!? "I said bite your tongue...Zar'Dura" He commanded through his teeth, a trail of glowing light painted onto his tattoos now as he stared to Zar'Dura, obviously using his force as a platform against her. "You are going to be silent of this, we have no idea what it is yet. If we choose to tell Thorok- what happens then? Do you think any of us, damn it, even ALL of us can defeat my father?" He questioned aloud, pointing to where the Chieftan's Hut would be.

"The good of the tribe." He nearly spat to his left, growling in hesitation as he looked back to her. "Was it for the good of the tribe that you saved that child? To help Shorbolg gain even more power if he wished? Was it the good of the tribe that kept us in isolation, murdering our children which didn't seem strong enough to survive? Was it for the good of the tribe that sent those with goods away, even in our times of plague?" He preached out, his fists gripped hard and his muscles tensing wildly as he looked to her.

He shuddered, the glowing fading as he let his shoulders hand, looking to Zar'Dura with a plea now. "You will not tell them, I beg of you, and command you as authority that you perish the thought." He began to turn around, soon violently whipping as he thought of one last thing. "Would he really trust you with my name if he hadn't already with his life?" 

"And you are not seeing how he is within Shorbolg's debt as well!?" He questioned out, referring to how it was he of all who allowed them to aid the Professor Echoes. As she spoke even more about her cleansing nature, that broke Kold'Ron, right there. Upon the top of his lungs did he shout aloud, "AND BECAUSE OF YOUR PURITY YOU MAY JUDGE AS YOU DO!!" He roared out, looking to his blade as soon he raised it into he air as he slammed his own chest even harder, nearly winding himself as he continued to roar out his own argument. "I've ended the lives of three already!!! It was I who'd blooded his hands, NOT YOU!! You preach as a patriot for our Chieftan, that he's maintaining the correct governing for our people! That makes you just as bad as those who've acted upon your thoughts!! Dare you try to make amends by preventing CHANGE!?" With that last statement, he realized his own meaning in the last statement of it, narrowing his eyes to his hands, opening them as he stared at the palms. "I've ended the lives of three...." And with that he marched outside of the hut. He was too old, too tired, too pent-up with this, this aggression, this hatred for how they've lived, to be in an arguing position. He was an alpha among the pups, but yet it didn't seem as rewarding as it should've been. From there, he tried to find Gash, hoping he'd break away the thought process he had right now, or maybe, if Kold'Ron would dare to speak of it, take sides with defending Shorbolg if the need would be so. It would be too late when it came to realization that he'd accidentally spoke of supporting change, which could've easily been interpreted by someone as young as Zar'Dura that he was in fact hoping change would come of this.

After Kold'Ron left with Zar'Dura for their important task the elderly orc returned to his duties, having taken a nature walk and praising the earth for its bounty and benevolence.

By the time that the prospective shaman king came looking for him again Gash was back by the entrance, deep in a meditative trance in which he was trying his best to commune with the spirits. Over the decades he'd come close to getting a few clear messages from his forebears and with each passing year he got closer and closer. Still, he feared he would die before ever truly discerning what his ancestors had to share with him and the tribe.

It was a sad thought but it was the way of things. Life and death walk down the same dirt trail hand in hand.

His brow furrowed under his ceremonial mask, an indistinct jumble of ethereal whispers assaulting his mind. He tried to decipher their meaning but he could only get one word out of the entire mess. Dragon.

He wondered as to the significance of that word and whether it was a good or bad omen.