Scarab hated the desert.
Haaaated it.
Especially right now.
Clutching her thick, protective robes and adjusting her head wrap, she stomped through the sand, huffing to herself. This was ridiculous. And it was a disaster. A ridiculous disaster! For last night, a fierce sandstorm had blown through without warning while she and her caravan traveled toward the dig site. In the chaos, she'd been separated from the group when her kaadir bolted, carrying her with it, and off into the sandstorm they went until she'd gotten thrown, and could do little else but huddle in a ball and keep moving so she didn't get buried.
And now, here she was. Impossibly lost.
It was daytime now, with no shelter in sight, the sun beating down with its unforgivable rays. Her white robes and wrappings helped reflect some of the heat, but it didn't keep her from feeling like cooking entirely, and she could feel sweat trickling down her back and pooling beneath her breasts. Gross.
And worse still, the sand? Was everywhere. Even wrapped up as she'd been, if there was the slightest opening, it had gotten in! She walked awkwardly, and had given up acting like a lady since there was no one around to bear audience, and did the undignified but highly satisfying thing and scratched at her ass as she walked, hoping to dislodge some of that blasted sand!
It didn't yet occur to her that she was actually in grave danger, considering she had no water. She was too annoyed, and too intent on finding her way back, to process that she was in a life or death situation.
And she was so caught up in her own itchy misery that she didn't notice the way the sand rippled behind her as she stumbled across the scorching desert.
Houssam was riding his way back to Essyrn, riding the new kaadir he had ranted.
It was a wonderful beast, with dark-brown scales and lively, dreadful amber eyes, and he found instantly with it a strong connection, more than all the other dragons he had ridden.
The last merchant he escorted gave him a good pay and, considering all the money he had put aside, soon he would have been able to buy a kaadir on his own and, who knows, maybe he could have buy right that one.
While he was lost in his thoughts, he suddenly noticed a shadow in the horizon, so he slowed his mount and started watching carefully at it.
It looked like it was a human, probably a girl, judging his slender build, but what was she doing all alone in the desert? Judging how she was moving and her lack of equipment, she probably lost her party during one of the last sandstorms.
When he got closer, he was suddenly attracted by all the ornaments she wore. Her long, black hair were falling down her back in a lot of dreadlocks wrapped in glittering strings and her white clothes seemed to be of a really good quality.
'A rich girl lost in the desert, that could by my lucky day...' thought Houssam while riding faster toward her.
But he suddenly changes his mind when his trained eyes glimpsed at that quick shadow moving behind the girl, almost impossible to see, but not for him.
Scared for that sight, he spurred his kaadir to his limit drawing his sword and, getting finally within earshot, he shouted with all his voice:
"Watch out, run!".
(*calmly looks to the left and the right, before crossing the street into the thread* this chance was too good to pass up)
Suddenly, around a second after Houssam yelled, and about half a dozen feet behind Scarab, massive javelins struck the sand, followed by the screech of whatever was stalking her before it dove further under the sand in a violent explosion of fine powder. The javelins were easily the size of a person, and with their arrival, came thundering hooves and equally gigantic voices.
They were distant, but more than powerful enough so that they carried across the desert with ease. A couple dunes away, a group of large mounted figures was seen peaking over it. One was riding a Kaadir, while the others occupied these stocky, rhinoceros-like animals
"You missed it, Drex!" Borzclubb shouted, deftly smacking the mountain ogre next to him in the helmet with the tip of his Kaadir training stick. His Kaadir, a powerful looking all-white breed with icy blue eyes, lazily surveyed the scene before them as they rode. The ogre identified as Drex, who was rather weedy for an eight-foot tall mountain ogre, huffed, the bag of javelins on his back rattling loudly as he adjusted himself on the saddle of his rhinox.
"It was under the sand! Besides, I didn't want to hit the lady" Drex replied, taking up another couple javelins in his meaty fists as he guided his mount with his knees.
"Then why bother throwing!? Now it's been spooked, and it's going to be another day in damn desert!" Borzclubb continued, and the other five ogres riding with them groaned. This was supposed to be a fun thing, hunting the rare Desert Ankheg, but this recent spat of bad luck had made a weekend's hunt into a week-long affair, and everybody involved was slightly peeved.
Regardless, they continued riding. At their pace, they threatened to beat Houssam to Scarab's location.
A voice shouted out, and Scarab was so relieved to hear another voice that she didn't even pay attention to the words. She whirled around--
And a javelin struck the sand just feet from her.
And the sand writhed and thrashed and screeched, throwing sand into the air, and soon Scarab was screaming, too, and running!
Especially since, not far in the distance, she saw all those huge, monstrous looking men, riding kaadir and some strange horned beasts!
It was difficult to run across sand, but she was certainly trying, though the problem about the desert was when the sand stretched on as far as the eye could see, sometimes it was hard to spot sudden dips in the path ahead of you. Which was exactly what happened as Scarab took off running, for by the time she noticed the way the dune sloped ahead of her, it was too late, and she went tumbling and sliding down it in a most graceless manner, landing at the bottom in a sandy heap.
Houssam nearly fell off his kaadir when he saw those huge javelins land behind the frightened girl and he heard those animal-like screams.
Keeping on riding toward Scarab, he looked worried to those figures on the horizon. They were really fearful, even at that distance they seemed so huge and dangerous, riding those strange horned beasts he never had seen before.
'Who are they, and what's their purpose, are they bandits or what?' those were Houssam thoughts while he rode furiously toward Scarab who, in the meanwhile, started running away from those frightful group. 'Damn it, why are they threatening my source of income?'.
Scarab's run didn't last long, she fell almost instantly in the sand and Borzclubb and his group were coming quickly closer, they would have reached Scarab before Houssam for sure, but he didn't give up, but he forced his kaadir to run as quick as he could. "Run, my friend, those girl could be your way to become my personal kaadir, don't disappoint me now!".
When he finally got close enough for his voice to be heard from that group, he quickly drew his dagger and, swinging it furiously trough the air, he shouted.
"Stay there, don't touch her!".
Watching at the ogres standing there, the only thing Houssam could do was to wish they weren't bad-intentioned or, if they were, that his kaadir had still the energy to run away faster than them. At the end, his life was so more important than Scarab's money.
The hunting party of ogres came to a stop on the peak of the dune Scarab fell over. They were massive in the distance, but they easily cleared over twenty-five feet in height atop their mounts. When Houssam drew his dagger and waved it around like he was trying to fan someone with it, the ogres all glanced among each other before breaking into raucous laughter.
Borzclubb himself laughed, before abruptly stopping and patting Drex on the shoulder, pointing to the two javelins embedded in the sand a couple feet away from them. Giving Borzclubb a glare, he hopped down off of his rhinox to retrieve them.
Borzclubb's Kaadir lost the constantly unamused look on its muzzle, its eyes locking onto Houssam's own.
"You know the desert, boy?" Borzclubb asked in his somewhat proficient Essyrni. "If you do, there could be a fat sack of coins in it for you." He asked, and turned his gaze to the sandy mess that was Scarab.
"And you look like you could use a professional escort out of this desert, m'lady."
Scarab had just drawn herself up onto her knees, spitting out sand while kohl ran from her eyes in dark lines. She'd gotten sand in them, which had made her eyes tear up and water, and she knew she must look hideous now--but that was only a secondary concern. Her primary concern were the huge, hulking shapes she saw standing atop the mound.
She scrambled backwards and away from them, wiping at her eyes and smearing her makeup, her breath coming in panicked pants because those monsters were surely out for her blood--
...Wait. Did they just offer her a professional escort?
She froze in place, and squinted up at them. "E...escort? You intend to help me?"
The ogres all looked among each other, and then back at Scarab.
"'Course we intend to help you, lass. 'Course, you'll have to pay us, but since we're mostly doing it out of the goodness of our hearts, I can assure you it won't be much. Wouldn't shine very good with The Mountain Mother if we just left you to starve." Borzclubb explained as he stepped down from his Kaadir. The flightless drake turned his head to look at Borzclubb, and Borzclubb replied with "Easy, Tiam" as he patted him on the side.
What at first seemed to be natural blue streaks and patterns in the beast's chalky white scales turned out to be primitive looking tribal designs and war paint. Like they had been before, Tiam's eyes observed Scarab and Houssam with an intelligence that was rare in his kind.
Pay them? Scarab sighed with relief. Payment was nothing! She doubted these brutes knew her worth, so whatever they asked for, it would more than likely be a gain of sand to the vast desert of her merchant empire. She'd just have to be sure to keep her true identity secret, in case either these ogres of the other man got any wise ideas.
"Payment is no issue," Scarab said, drawing herself up regally and climbing to her feet. She shook more sand out of her clothes and fixed the arrangement of her dreadlocks. "Provided you can get me back to Essyrn in one piece, of course."
She looked the group of them over as she stood there, straight and proud, though deep inside she was still afraid. She'd never seen anything like them before--and part of her was genuinely worried they might, you know, eat her or something.
But what other choice did she have, out here in the middle of nowhere? It was either that, or dehydrate.
"Oh, we'll get you back in one piece alright. We've just got some unfinished business here in the great Moraki that needs wrapping up before we go." Borzclubb said, and the other ogres in his party groaned. He turned around sharply, leveling a finger at them. "We came here to get a Desert Ankheg's head, and I'll be damned if we trekked through this damn desert tracking it just to go back!"
The other ogres nodded, looking among themselves.
"A...desert Ankheg?" Scarab repeated, not really liking the sound of it, and yet also a bit intrigued by it--much like this entire situation! These creatures were terrifying, but also curious, and either way, she wasn't about to piss any of them off. Better to just smile and nod and go along with their quest, so long as they were promising her safety.
And it wasn't like she had other options; she'd die out here.
Picking at her clothes and shaking the sand from them, she nodded. "Yes, yes, that sounds agreeable enough. How long will this venture of yours take? I'm on a bit of a tight schedule."
"We'll give it a couple more days. After that, we head back. You lot have something to grumble about this time?" Borzclubb asked as he turned about. The other ogres either shook their heads or shrugged their shoulders. At least two gave a nasty look to Drex, who adjusted himself on his mount, the many quivers of javelins clacking about on his person.
He motioned for Scarab to approach.
A couple days. That was not...ideal, but this wasn't an ideal situation, either, and she still had no guarantee that these...creatures...wouldn't turn out to be bad. Either way, being stuck with them for days sounded downright awful! They were frightful looking, and their mounts? Hakeshna. The only normal one was the kaadir their leader rode.
And as said leader motioned for Scarab to approach, she swallowed hard, though she kept her posture strong and regal despite her nerves. Of course she would ride with him; she had no mount of her own.
Bit it still didn't mean she liked the idea.
Stepping closer to him, she gave the other strange mounts a wary look. "A couple days works for me. So long as you're certain this is, ah, safe." Her eyes drifted toward their many weapons as she spoke. She really hoped she wasn't going to wind up roasting over a spit on one of those javelins!
"'Course it's safe! you just keep yourself comfortable on Winterpeak here, and she'll keep you safe. Isn't that right, girl?"
He patted his kaadir Winterpeak at the base of the neck, and she released something like a purr. He looked back at Scarab, tracing her stare. "Listen here, lass. If we were fixin' on killin' you, you'd be dead a long time ago. Besides, you don't got nearly enough meat to feed five ogres. Hell, you're hardly enough to feed me".
He reached downwards to help her onto his abnormally large kaadir. The saddle was large, hardly fit for humans, but there was a spot on the front where she could sit relatively comfortably.
Scarab wasn't sure how comforting that statement was, since in a way it implied he'd sized her up in terms of edibility, but she brushed the thought away. This right here was her best option--her only option, in fact! And so with a deep breath, she let the ogre haul her up and into the saddle, though she adjusted herself to sit side-saddle, as seemed more appropriate, since she wasn't wearing breeches but robes.
She adjusted her dreadlocks, tossing them over her shoulder--and smacking the ogre with them in the process.
"Well, then. Here we are," she said, a little awkwardly. Awkward because of the situation, and because ogres, and because, well...she was a tad spoiled back home, and a little picky, and the smells of this band and their animals weren't exactly favorable. Ugh, how she longed for her perfumes! It was how she survived the cities.
"Where is our first stop?"
Effortlessly hauling her up, Borzclubb didn't even notice Scarab's dreadlocks hitting him, since they hit him more or less in the belly (His saddle on Winterpeak was more of a mounted seat, similar to the saddles mounted onto flying dragons).
When she inquired about their next stop, Borzclubb held a finger up and turned his head back.
"Any of you lobs catch where that Ankheg was heading?" Borzclubb said, and one of the others piped up.
"She was bearing due east, Borzclubb!"
Nodding, Borzclubb turned back to Scarab. "We'll track the Ankheg east until night falls. Then we'll stop for camp."
"Oh, okay," Scarab said with a smile and a nod.
A long moment went by before she added, "Ah, pardon, but what exactly is an Ankheg?"
Reaching down to his belt, Borzclubb procured a folded Parchment (http://pathfinderwiki.com/mediawiki/images/thumb/b/b4/Ankheg.jpg/250px-Ankheg.jpg) depicting an Ankheg. He handed it to Scarab, waiting for her to finish inspecting it.
The blood drained from Scarab's face. With shaky fingers, she handed the parchment back to the ogre.
"...And you're absolutely sure you can't drop me off in Essyrn first?"
"Well...no. We're hot on this one's trail, and I'm not about to give it up," Borzclubb growled. His voice carried a certain amount of animosity with it, as if this beast was some great enemy of his.
Scarab buried her face in her hands. "I'm going to get eaten after all!"
"Oh, for...Nobody's going to be eating anyone!
shaking his head, he nudged at Winterpeak's side with his boot, and their hunt resumed. At the moment, Winterpeak was moving at a light trot, but once she was warmed up, she started running properly.
And once that kaadir started running, Scarab let out a squeak and twisted into the beast's neck, arms wrapping around it to hold on for dear life, afraid she'd fall off! Ah, this was madness! Maybe she should have taken her chances out in the desert, rather than get dragged along on this suicidal mission--with ogres, of all things!
She just hoped they'd catch their beast quickly! But in the meantime, she was too focused on keeping her eyes shut and hanging on to ask anymore questions!
It was the afternoon now, the sun hung low in the sky. They had been moving for a few hours now, following a trail of upturned sand. The only speaking the ogres had partaken in was the occasional grunt or alerted gasp followed by disappointed groan. However, they were making progress.
Finally, a voice came from Drex, the Ogre carrying the javelins. "There she goes, Sir! Off in the distance! She's breached the surface!" the weedy Ogre called, leaning forwards on his saddle. Sure enough, there was a large amount of sand being kicked up not too far away.
"She's goin' back in her burrow, we've got her now!" another Ogre chimed, and a few quiet cheers were shared.
"Ah, pardon me." Scarab finally spoke up, raising her hand as though to get attention. "Ahem. Should I maybe wait back here while you all run up ahead to slay the beast? So I don't get in the way? I wouldn't want to hinder your hunt!"
Mostly, she didn't like the idea of being on the front lines during the upcoming battle!
"Aye, you should stay back here," Borzclubb said with a nod. The Ankheg off in the distance was massive, and it was still pulling its gigantic body out of the sand.
Winterpeak reared up as they stopped, eager to fight, and lowered her neck, so Scarab could dismount.
Scarab started to slide down, but then she froze, half off, and clung to the kaadir's neck.
"Wait! What if while you're fighting something else comes and gets me? I hear there's sandworms, too! All this activity might attract them!"
Borzclubb looked down at Scarab, an annoyed look on his face. "Well, then I suppose you're coming along. Get on Drex's rhinox, he'll be the farthest one from the Ankheg." Borzclubb said as he motioned to the javelin carrying Ogre two riders behind him. Drex waved at her, motioning for her to come over quickly.
Poor ogres probably had no idea what kind of high maintenance Essyrni they were dealing with!
A little reluctantly, Scarab slipped down from the kaadir and headed over to Drex, pausing before reaching his rhinox to eye it warily. She'd never seen anything like it, and those horns looked rather...unsettling.
She gave one last look back to the kaadir-riding ogre--Borzclubb, she'd heard the others call him--and then turned back to Drex and waited for him to help her up. "Thank you," she said, and looked out toward where the ankheg was. "Have you bagged one of these creatures before?"
"Nope, but I got some tips from someone who has. We do these kinds of hunts all the time," Borzclubb explained as they started to pick up speed. "Don't you worry, lady, I'll keep you safe!" Drex boasted as he drew one of his javelins. This was the very same ogre that had nearly hit her not too long ago.
Not too reassured, Scarab ducked low against the rhinox as Drex lifted a javelin. "Just be careful of with that thing!" she said, and then added, "These hunts you do. Does your party survive them all?"
"We're all still alive, aren't we!?" Drex laughed, and shortened his grip on the javelin as he took aim.
"Drex! Kick her off for us, won't you!?" Borzclubb yelled in an excited voice, and Drex cocked his arm back, loosing one of his massive javelins. It soared through the air, and struck the Ankheg in the side. It turned its head to look at the approaching riders, its corrosive spittle dripping from its mouth.
"You might want to hang on a bit tighter."
Scarab didn't need to be told twice! She clung on tighter and ducked down low, her heart beating fast with anticipation. She just wanted this to be over quick!
"I thought he said you'd be in the back!" she said. What did he mean hang on tighter? They weren't going any closer, were they?!
Drex didn't answer Scarab's question, instead preferring to ready another javelin. The Ankheg released a low roar that shifted the sands around it, and started galloping towards them on its thick, shelled legs.
"Fan! Drex, take the left!" Borzclubb ordered, and the group of ogres parted into two seperate groups, splititng up just in time for the Ankheg to go charging between them, running into a tall dune behind them.
Scarab let out a shriek, feeling very lied to right about then as the ankheg raced right between the line of riders and passed right by her!
"I thought you'd be in the back!" she yelped, clinging on tighter. "That's what he said! But this is not the back! This is very much the front!"
"Dammit, woman we WILL BE IN THE BACK!" Drex yelled. The other riders peeled around, turning their mounts to head back towards the momentarily dazed Ankheg. Drex kept riding forwards, however, coming to a stop and turning his rhinox to face the Ankheg before he started riding towards it. His intention was to skirt around the fight at a moderately safe distance.
The others were busy laying into the Ankheg with their weapons. It was quick, however, and it blocked their strikes one by one with its thick legs.
Drex launched another javelin, striking the Ankheg in one of it's knees, immobilizing it just long enough for Borzclubb to score a hit across its face with his club. And still, it was not dead.
"Ah! Kill it! Kill it kill it kill it!" Scarab cried, for though they were a good enough distance away, it was still horribly stressful watching this! And ogres or not, the last thing she wanted was to see one of those savage fools get killed by the bloody thing!
Besides, the quicker they killed it, the quicker she could go home!
Why wasn't it dying yet?!
The Ankheg, realizing it was surrounded and likely outmatched, started to kick up sand, intent on burrowing away. One of the ogres, however, was prepared for this, and hit the Ankheg with something that looked like a cross between a grappling hook and an anchor. The grappling anchor hit the Ankheg in the side, stabbing into and getting caught in the rigid plating.
Borzclubb rode by, and Winterpeak took the grappling anchor's chain into her mouth, pulling the Ankheg off balance and onto its side. As it scrambled to get up Drex sunk another javelin into the beast, hitting it in the softer carapace just above its mandibles. The other ogres took their chance, and went on the offensive, lopping pieces off of the beast as they rode by. It looked like the fight was in its last run.
And Scarab had to look away, because even if it was a nasty, terrible beast, it...was still a pretty gruesome sight, seeing a thing get chopped up like that and leaking blood everywhere.
Feeling a bit queasy, though that could have also been from dehydration, she covered her mouth and took a deep breath. For someone who had moments ago shouted for the thing's death, she couldn't handle the actual killing!
On the bright side, this no doubt meant she could go home soon! Thank Hakeshna that had gone without a hitch!
That was Scarab's thought as, in the distance just behind them, the sand began to ripple.
The sand beneath them rumbled violently, and Borzclubb paused his assault on the wounded Ankheg to look. There was something else coming their way, something bigger. Behind Drex and Scarab, a much larger, much darker colored ankheg breached the sand, its monolithic black carapace casting a shadow over them. Before Drex could get his mount moving, it lunged forwards, knocking them both off of it as it snapped it up in its jaws.
Drex was on his feet in an instand, and he didn't even wait for Scarab to get up onto hers before he snatched her up under his arm and started running.
Scarab had barely processed what had happened, was still reeling in the shock and terror of it all with her wide eyes transfixed on that monster that had just eaten a rhino creature, when Drex grabbed her and started running. She grunted, the air driven out of her when he hauled her up and tucked her under his arm, and that was enough to bring her back to the here and now.
And she started to scream.
This was far more adventure than she EVER wanted!!
"Faster! Run faster!" she cried. "Hakeshna smite you ALL, I AM going to be eaten, you liars!"
"Mountains above, if you don't shut u--"
Half of Drex's mount came flying in hitting the sand next to them like a furry meteor. Drex stumbled as the sand shifted, but quickly regained his footing.
Ahead of them, Borzclubb was smiling.
"Finally!" He yelled, just as the first ankheg finally fell from blood loss. "Our real quarry's arrived, boys! Let's have at her!"
Wooping and hollering, the Ogres all started riding towards the massive newcomer, who was still only halfway out of the sand. They thundered past Drex and Scarab, intent on engaging.
Scarab screamed again at the sight of that gory, dead thing that came flying at them, feeling hopelessly helpless as she was carted along. She had not signed up for this! Not at all! She wanted to go back to Essyrn now!
And worse, the others were running off the fight the beast!
"Oh Hakeshna, you're all mad!" she cried. "I thought you just wanted the one! Why would you go after that! It's going to kill them!"
"What are you talking about? That's our original target! We were chasing its young!" Drex yelled, and dropped Scarab after they were a safe enough distance away. The mounted ogres, who hadn't lost a single member yet, began their attack. One of them drew a cannon-like thing from its back, and fired a sharpened, steel rod into it. It shrieked, and writhed around some more, still pulling itself out of the sand.
Drex threw a javelin, and leered down at Scarab.
"SHUT UP!" he bellowed.
Unceremoniously dropped, Scarab scrambled back to her feet and spit up sand, which was officially everywhere. But right then she didn't care about the grating, chafing sand and how it had gotten all into unfortunate places; her eyes were glued to that massive beast, that beast that just kept coming. It was still buried, and there seemed to be no end to it!
"I won't shut up! That thing is going to eat us all! It's too big!" she shouted back, her heart in her throat. "And unlike all of you, I'm young and successful and don't have a death wish!"
Drex shook his head, and lined up another javelin throw.
"You're going to shut up, or by The Mountain Mother, I'llshut you up!"
He threw another Javelin the ankheg's way, but all it did was jam itself into one of its armored plates harmlessly.
And at that threat, Scarab did shut up. She shut her mouth so fast her teeth clicked together, her face paling.
"Thank you."
It looked like the ogres were starting to get the upper hand on this one. They were using the same technique that they used on the smaller one, although it was reasonably less effective.
And Scarab watched it all with wide eyes, both hands covering her mouth to keep quiet, because someone was going to lose an arm or a leg at least and it was going to be horrible!
As Scarab predictied, something did go wrong. The Ogre with the iron spike cannon fired one more shot, this time skewering one of the ankheg's joints, and it lashed out with the injured limb, knocking Ogre and mount clean into the air and behind a nearby dune.
Borzclubb roared, and actually lept right off of Winterpeak's back, and managed to land just behind the Ankheg's head.
And despite Drex's warning to shut up, Scarab cried out at that, and spun away so her back was to the chaos. "I can't take this anymore! You're all mad!" she said, and crouched down with her eyes shut and ears covered. She didn't know if that one ogre was even still alive; that dune was too close to the action for her to be brave enough to look.
If this wasn't the middle of the bloody desert, at this point, she might have taken her chances with the sands! At least she wouldn't be intentionally chasing death!
Drex lined up another throw, but he quickly lowered his javelin.
Borzclubb pulled his weight onto the Ankheg's head, and mashed one of its eyes with his fist, burying his burly Ogre arm elbow deep into it. The ankheg shrieked with pain, a noise that shook the sand, and started to buck and writhe as Borzclubb started tearing out what was left of the eye.
Even with her ears covered, she heard that shriek, and she looked over her shoulder before she could think that was probably a bad idea.
Which it was, because she got nice eyeful of Borzclubb tearing out the thing's eye!
As as the thing's eye came up, so did Scarab's stomach as she turned away from the sight again and vomited into the sand.
Drex looked back at Scarab, wrinkling his nose. Ignoring her, he launched another javelin at the Ankheg, but it was clear it was only a matter of time now before it succumbed to its own wounds. It was starting to list off to the side, disoriented by the loss of half its vision.
Rather than prepare another Javelin, Drex knelt down by Scarab. "You alright?" He asked. Given his line of work, it was unusual for him to see someone vomiting at the sight of gore.
Scarab spat into the sand, trying to get the taste out of her mouth, and wiped her lips off on the back of her hand.
"Just...wasn't quite prepared to see that," she said, still feeling queasy but at least not like she was about to lose it again. "That was...that was something else..."
Drex smiled, misunderstanding her completely.
"Yeah, Captain Borzclubb's something else, isn't he? We've got this in the bag."
"What? No, that's not--oh, never mind," Scarab said with a sigh, in no mood to argue. Her stomach was still doing flip flops, and she was trying very hard not to think about the gory scene she'd witnessed!
"Is he done murdering that thing yet?"
To answer her question, a large boom sounded off from behind them, and clouds of sand were kicked up, their remnants blowing over Drex and Scarab to patter them with grains. The ankheg had fallen, and a singular cheer came from the ogres. Even the ogre who was launched over the dune reappeared with his mount, looking boisterous and cheerful despite the fact that he had a weeping gash across his chest.
"Yeah, I'd say we're just about done here..." He said.
"Shame about my rhinox, though. I'll probably have to bum a ride on someone else's. I don't know if you've ever seen two Mountain Ogres trying to share a single mount, but it's pretty damn hard.
Scarab shook sand from her hair and brushed it off of her shoulders. The cheering had to be a good sign though, right? So after a little hesitation, she looked over her shoulder and saw the creature was down--and all the ogres were in one piece.
Jeez...crazy buggers, the lot of them...
Her knees shook a bit as she rose to her feet and shook more sand out of the folds of her robes, though she knew it was a pointless gestures. "What will they do with it now?" she asked. "Do they carve it up and take its parts? Or do they just leave it after they've killed it?"
"Well..."
Drex stroked the short beard on his chin, idly tossing a javelin up and down in his hand.
"We're going to take trophies from it. And we're probably going to have it for dinner tonight."
"Dinner?" Scarab repeated, and her stomach twisted again. "Who do you mean, 'we'?"
"Well, we as in everyone present. Mountain Ogres are a hospitable people. We'll share our kill with you."
With that, he started walking towards the dead ankheg. The Ogres had all started to gather in front of it, admiring their work.
"A week in this damned desert. Good to know it was worth it!" Borzclubb laughed, kicking the ankheg's lifeless head.
"WHAT?" Scarab said, staring, aghast, at Drex as he walked away. "Surely you can't mean...you don't expect me to...? I can't eat that!"
And she glanced over at the celebrating ogres and the dead, disgusting creature, and her stomach did another flip flop.
"Why not? It's meat. Besides, you've got to eat something. Look at you, you're as thin as my fingers!" Drex said nonchalantly, and got up, stretching a bit.
The other Ogres had started to carve the creature up, beginning the process of taking anything that might be even remotely seen as a trophy and isolating the meat from the rest of the body.
"Because it's disgusting! It's like...like a giant bug! I don't eat bugs!" Scarab said, watching in abject horror as the ogres carved the creature up.
Drex shook his head. He watched the ogres systematically take the thing apart. He figured they had it handled, so he stayed with Scarab.
"Don't knock it 'till you try it, lass. If you're feelin' squeamish though, I suppose one of the boys will happily trade you your share for his meat ration," He explained.
Scarab shot Drex a cautious look. "What kind of meat?"
Because she had seen now that these ogres had no qualms about eating giant...bug things! Who knew how far their definition of "meat" stretched?
Drex sighed.
"Well, it varies. But if you're intent on pryin', it's never anything too fancy. It's mostly just rhinox, cow, and other large mammals. You might get bear, if you're lucky."
At the mention of bear meat, Drex hungrily rubbed his ample belly, which was a common feature that all Mountain Ogres seemed to share.
Bear? Scarab wrinkled her nose at that as well. Clearly, they had a much different idea of what was 'good' than she did!
"Maybe I'm better off not knowing what you give me," she said, her shoulders slouching. She wiped some sweat from her brow, feeling like she could melt in this heat. "Hakeshna, I would kill for just some flatbread and tahini!"
"What and what now?" Drex asked.
"Why would anyone flatten bread?"
"What? It's not...it's not bread that's been flattened, it's...it's flatbread. Bread that bakes flat, and you dip it in things..." Scarab said slowly, staring at Drex in horror and wonder.
"Oh. You mean grindbread. Yeah, we have that.
Drex scratched his belly.
"What was that second thing?"
"Tahini?" Scarab asked, still staring at him. "It's a sauce, you can mix it with things and put it on things, make a yoghurt with it, dip your grindbread in it..."
"What's it made of?"
Drex turned to fully face her, the conversation at hand taking his attention away from the ankheg being butchered a hundred feet away.
"Sesame seeds!" Scarab said, her mouth watering at the thought. "Sesame seeds and spices. It's very good! I can't believe you've never had it. Have you even been to Essyrn?"
Then she paused, taking in his size and odd looks, and added, "...Probably not, right?"
"Well, we're called Mountain Ogres for a reason. I'm sure we can come up with something at camp you'll be comfortable eating. After all, if nothing else, us Mountain Ogres are foodies at heart. The itinerant chef'll whip something up for you, no problem!"
Drex smiled at her, hoping that'd pick her spirits up.
Scarab still wasn't so sure she could trust what they'd cook, but she also knew her options were to suck it up--or starve until she got home. And she didn't think that would do! She never skipped meals, not on purpose, and she got dizzy when she did. In the worst of cases, she passed out.
So, it looked like she'd just have to deal with it. Sigh.
Yet at the same time, wouldn't this be good for her? She did like to try new things, and did enjoy broadening her horizons, but...well, even then, there were limits! Like eating unidentifiable meat...or bugs.
"As long as it's something I can identify, I am...open to trying new things," she said cautiously, as she glanced over against her better judgment at the beast being sliced up. She looked away just as quickly, making a face.
In the brief moment she looked over to the Ankheg, she'd notice it was looking a whole lot more barren than it was a few minutes ago. Borzclubb was putting some of the ankheg's plates against his shoulders, wondering if they could be fashioned into pauldrons.
"Don't you worry, lady. Mountain Ogres may not look it, but we're a hospitable people. We'll arrange for you as best we can. I mean, there's not much else we can do with our immeasurable wealth."
That got Scarab's attention.
She turned to look at Drex, her eyebrows rising. "Immeasurable wealth?"
"Oh yeah. Living up in the mountains, we Mountain Ogres don't get that much trade. We just kind of hoard all the rare gems and ores we mine up. You know, frost diamonds actually come from Mountain Ogre mines. They're so damned rare because nobody's got the constitution to trade with us. So much gold sitting around, too. Most Ogres are too large to work that delicate stuff, so we just have piles of gold ingots laying about."
He looked down at her.
"I know we don't look too wealthy, but mercenaries like us have no need for fancy clothes and all that."
Scarab was all ears now! Her eyes wide with interest and wonder, she leaned forward as though wanting to absorb as much information as she could. Frost Diamonds?! She didn't even know what those were, but they sounded expensive and he said they were rare. Hordes of gems?! Gold? So many riches they didn't even know what to do with them and had no use for them? Those words were music to her businesswoman ears.
"And how would one set up a partnership with you?" she got out in a rush. "To trade? What would you like in exchange? You see, I'm a businesswoman. I head a jewelery empire. So everything you're saying right now is very relevant to my interests and I'd absolutely love to know more."
"Well, you can take it up with the boss when we get back to camp. Actually, I think they're just finishing up now..."
The other ogres were loading heaps upon heaps of sacks stained with greenish blood onto their mounts, and Borzclubb motioned for Scarab to approach.
"You should probably return to him. We're going to be mounting up in a couple of minutes."
Following Drex's gaze, Scarab wrinkled her nose. She really, really hoped she didn't have to ride next to any of those gory sacks.
But before she went back to Borzclubb, she turned and flashed a genuine smile Drex's way. "Good talk," she said. "Thank you for the information. And for saving my neck. I know I panicked and annoyed you, but I do appreciate it everything. I'm just really, really not used to..." She spread out her arms in an all-encompassing motion. "Any of this."
She shook out her robes in a vain effort at clearing off some of the sand, then turned and headed back for Borzclubb.
Borzclubb was adjusting himself onto Winterpeak when Scarab made it to him. Smiling, he looked down at her. Winterpeak was currently digging into a slab of ankheg meat, so it didn't really pay any attention to her.
"Sorry if it got a bit rough for you there, lass. Nice to see it all turned out alright. You injured?"
"Oh, I'm fine," Scarab told him as she approached. "I think I ate a little sand, but I'm not hurt. Drex did a good job keeping me safe."
She cast a look at the kaadir, turned a little green when she saw what it was eating, and then held out her hand for Borzclubb to take and pull her up. "As you can probably tell, I'm a bit out of my element here. That was...rather exciting, to say the least."
"He's a good boy, that Drex. A bit scatterbrained at times, and a little skinny for an Ogre, but he more than pulls his weight."
Borzclubb reached down and effortlessly pulled Scarab up, depositing her in front of him.
He turned around, calling to the other Ogres.
"We all ready to go?"
"Yes, boss!"
Nodding, Borzclub turned Winterpeak around in the direction of their camp, and with that, the Ogres were all on the move again. It was starting to get late. The sun was already dimming in the sky.
Seated in front of Borzclubb, Scarab held onto Winterpeak's neck and tried to get comfortable. She was unused to riding in such an unladylike fashion, and her thighs were starting to ache as a result. But she bit back the discomfort and focused on staying on as they rode, her mind mulling over what Drex had told her about their horde.
She decided she'd bring that up when she didn't have to yell over the wind.
"Where are we going now?" she asked Borzclubb, trying to figure out what direction Essyrn was in by the sun's position.
"Back to camp," Borzclubb said.
"Desert gets dangerous at night, so we'd better play it safe. Don't you worry, you'll be safe there. Us Ogres are hospitable types. We can give you a hot meal, some water..."
He looked her over.
"...A bath. You look like you need all that stuff."
Scarab didn't really know how to take that. She must look a walking disaster for an ogre of all people to insinuate she needed a bath.
However, she was not going to complain about that, either! After the stress and heat of the day, she was drenched in sweat. It would be nice to cool down and de-stress.
"All of that sounds wonderful," she sighed, and shook some sand out of her thick dreadlocks. Peering over her should at him, she added,
"And then perhaps over dinner, if you don't mind, I'd like to talk about something with you. A potential business partnership, if you will."
"Do ya? Why, that's very interesting indeed. I'll take you up on that!"
Borzclubb didn't know what use a rich, frail little woman such as Scarab would want with a company of Ogre mercenaries, but he was hardly going to turn down company over dinner!
"Fantastic!" Scarab said, clapping her hands--and then gasping and gripping onto Winterpeak tighter when she almost pitched sideways.
"How far is your camp?" she called over the wind rushing against her ears.
Borzclubb's arm had swung down, prepared to catch her if she fell, but when she righted herself, he straightened back up.
"A good half hour from here. We set it up on the edge of Ankheg territory, but it's safe. Seated on bedrock, so they can't tunnel over to it."
"A half hour!" Scarab repeated with a groan. "I may not be able to walk by then!"
Borzclubb looked down at her, eyebrow raised.
"You're lucky you can even walk, period. That tumble you took with Drex was pretty impressive. I took you for dead when I saw it."
"Really?"
Scarab looked back at Borzclubb at that, and paled a little. Since she'd been the one doing the tumbling, she hadn't, you know, been aware of what it actually looked like or what had actually happened. She couldn't really remember much of what happened before she wound up floundering in the sand.
"...It was that bad?"
Borzclubb nodded, leaning back in the saddle.
"Oh, you must've cleared a good fifty feet! You're lucky Drex held onto you the way he did, or you would've probably broken yer neck!"
Scarab's eyes widened, and she touched her neck at the thought.
"...I didn't realize..."
Borzclubb directed his eyes back to the horizon.
"I wasn't expecting you to. It all blurs away when you're up in the air..."
"That's for certain!" Scarab said, still rather shocked that it had been that bad! "I didn't even realize anything had happened until I was back in the sand."
Borzclubb said nothing at that, only breathing deeply as he allowed himself to relax into the saddle, leaning back against it like it was a chair.
And while he relaxed back in the saddle, Scarab scooted close to the front, feeling a tad awkward to be so close to him. She gripped onto Winterpeak and watched the desert pass around them, her ass and thighs already smarting from the ride. Why did kaadir have to run so...bumpy!
Hakeshna, she was going to sleep well tonight!
The sun was already starting to crawl behind the dunes when they arrived at the camp.
It was a large, brutal looking affair, placed brazenly out on open sands. It was a circular arrangement of massive tents, surrounded on all sides by a palisade of sharpened logs that towered ten feet into the air.
The camp itself must have been two hundred or so feet wide, with the tents occupying the edge and a massive space in the center. The space in the center was occupied by a grouping of several Ogreish pack animals. They weren't the wooly rhinos that the warriors seemed to ride. They looked more like massive, hairless mastodons than anything else, purpose bred to be laden down to the tusks with cargo.
The entire place smelled like cooking meat and revelry as they all rode in, a common feature of most Ogre encampments. As Borzclubb and his fighters returned, a collective cheer was raised around the camp by the many other Ogres that occupied it.
This wasn't just a hunting camp, it seemed like a miniature, mobile settlement!
...This was not what Scarab had been expecting.
When they all mentioned a camp, she'd been expecting a dinky little camp with a few tents and a fire.
This was like a little village! And there were a lot of ogres and strange animals!
Scarab's eyes went wide as saucers as they rode into camp and she heard the collective cheer go up. Oh dear Hakeshna, she was not prepared for this! The few ogres in this party were one thing, but a whole settlement?! She truly felt like an ant among giants...
"...Oh my," she breathed, staring.
"It's not my mercenary camp, but it gets the job done!This is just a small fraction of my mercenary company. " Borzclubb said, seeing Scarab's amazement.
"Really, it's not as big as it seems. To populate this camp, it's me, my riders , a few other guards that stay behind to guard the camp, and no more than a half a dozen support workers, like cooks and animal keepers. There's eighteen of us in total, actually."
He stopped Winterpeak near the center, dismounting in front of a massive tent that was presumably his. He held out a hand that Scarab could step onto to dismount.
"Ogres like to pack for the long haul, no matte how far we're going."
"Better too much than too little, I suppose," Scarab said as she looked around in awe. Adjusting her robes carefully, she swung her leg over Winterpeak and stepped down onto Borzclubb's hand, then hopped the rest of the way to the ground--
And landed rather ungracefully in the sand, because her legs had cramped up from riding!
Borzclubb hadn't really been paying attention, so he didn't immediately register the fact that she'd fallen. He only looked over to wonder why she was taking so long to get off, and just happened to see her face-down in the sand.
"You alright, lass?"
Well, that was graceful.
Climbing back to her feet, Scarab sighed as she brushed sand out of her hair and blinked it out of her eyelashes. "Oh, the only thing hurt here is my pride," she said, rubbing at her sore thighs. She spit to the side, getting some sand out of her mouth. "I am so done with this desert. I can't wait to be home to Essyrn, in my estate with my bed and my cats and my coffee! Ah...coffee..."
"Well, if you're looking for cushy, this is the wrong encampment for you. Although, it's better than freezing out in the desert without provisions, so you can't really complain."
Borzclubb started rubbing his hands together, smelling at the air. A delicious cooking meat smell had begun wafting throughout the camp.
"Ah, the cooks are working on dinner already. Can't wait! Care for a bath in the meantime?"
The meat smell did smell good--and Scarab really, really hoped it wasn't giant bug! Even if it smelled or even tasted good, her mind and stomach just couldn't get over the idea of eating insect. Especially insect she'd witnessed being so brutally beaten to death! She didn't even like bugs, but that had been...rather sad to watch.
Definitely something she'd think about whenever she screamed for a servant to smash a spider.
But at the mention of a bath, Scarab perked up, her eyes going big. "I would love one! If you can spare the water."
Borzclubb looked over to the collection of hairless mastodons and pack rhinoxes idling about in the center. A few of the mastodons had massive collections of barrels strapped to their backs, and Borzclubb rubbed his chin, thinking. He motioned to a passing Ogre, and said a few things in Ogreish before the Ogre left.
"I reckon we do. We'll be leaving for Essyrn in the morning, so I think we've actually got an excess at the moment!" he laughed, before opening the flap to his tent and stepping inside, motioning for her to follow him.
The inside was furnished a bit like a wartime commander's tent, complete with large table, sleeping necessities, and even an armor and weapons stand. Of course, everything was Ogre-sized. for example, The table itself cleared nearly five feet in height, and the bed was almost impossibly massive, large enough for around ten full grown men to sleep comfortably together.
The most interesting feature of the room, however, were the various tribal fetishes that hung from the roof or stood on the walls. Rough, geometric shapes. Sometimes fashioned into faces, sometimes into stylized animals, and sometimes into some sort of glyph. All the fetishes were done in precious metals like gold or silver, but the most interesting piece was a mask, hanging over the bed.
It depicted a snarling, mountain predator, like a lion with vast tusks. The eyes were two fist-sized diamonds, both the color of ice and sightly opaque.
Frost diamonds!
To say Scarab was in awe would be an understatement.
She barely made it inside the room before she stopped and just stared at everything. First, the sheer size of so many commonplace items--like the table that nearly came to her shoulders, and the huge bed she could swim in. She felt like a child looking up at an adult-sized world all over again!
But once she got over the sheer, massive size of everything, she could focus on other things.
Like the fetishes.
Those were very relevant to her interests, and she soon stepped further into the room and headed for the walls so she could get a better look at them.
"This is amazing," she said, half to herself and half to Borzclubb as she craned her neck to get a look at it all. It was difficult because it was so much taller than she was, but a poke and a prod here with her geomancy gave her a good read on the items, let her feel the purity of the metals and--
And then she saw the mask.
And the diamonds.
Her breath caught.
"Those diamonds. What are those called?" Were those the ones Drex had mentioned?
Borzclubb quietly closed the tent flap behind them, and watched Scarab idle about the room, with her jaw on the floor, staring at all the fetishes and things. He smiled, amused by her wonderment, before she asked about the diamonds.
"Frost diamonds. They're from the Thunderblacks."
Scarab felt at the gems with her magic, still gaping up at them in awe.
"They're gorgeous," she said. "I've never seen anything like them...Drex had told me about them, actually! He said you have hordes of them?"
"Tons! They're usually as big as your fist, too."
Borzclubb lumbered over to the mask, and pulled it down so Scarab could look at the frost diamonds. The whole thing was made of wood, except for the tusks and eyes. The tusks were made of platinum, and they gleamed in the torchlight inside the tent.
"Every Ogre gets one when they reach maturity."
"All these precious metals...do these metals come from your home, too?" Scarab asked, reaching out to lightly run a finger along one gleaming tusk before leaning forward to examine the diamonds more closely.
Borzclubb nodded proudly.
"Yep. Us Mountain Ogres mine a lot. It's one of our only pastimes, really."
"And you wouldn't happen to have, say, an excess of these precious items, would you?" Scarab asked. "You know, so many you have no idea what to do with them all, and perhaps would like to clear up a little room, maybe trade them with someone for other goods you need..."
"That's a discussion over dinner, remember? I never do business on an empty stomach."
As that was their cue, the tent flap opened, and a pair of ogres carrying an open barrel with steaming water entered. They set it down in the center of the room, and left.
"Well, your bath's here, so I'll go ahead and leave you to your own devices. Dinner'll be ready by the time you get out. Any questions before I go?"
"Oh! Indeed, you're right! Please pardon my rudeness, I fear I lost myself there," Scarab said, coloring at his rather polite reminder. But she'd gotten so excited once she'd actually seen the gems! After all, gems and jewels and precious metals were her life! They were her empire!
Buuut it was still nothing that couldn't wait.
Especially since she had a bath waiting for her!
Looking over at him, she shook her head. "Nothing I can think of. Except, perhaps, where should I meet you when I'm done?"
[Argh, I'm really bad at remembering to bold the Ogre speech! *Angrily shakes fist*]
"Just call for someone to take the bath away when you're done. We'll eat in this tent." Borzclubb said, and rubbed the belly plate of his armor.
"Can't wait for dinner...Mountain Mother, I'm hungry..." He muttered as he turned to leave. Stomping towards the door, he started guffawing.
"If you need some fresh clothes, I've got a scarf that might fit ya!" Borzclubb added with a snicker. He always found the diminutive stature of humans to be an endless source of amusement.
"I might have to take you up on that offer!" Scarab said with a laugh as she looked down at her clothes. The sand would be easy enough to shake out, but she was all sweaty and dirty, and she didn't really want to slip the same clothes back on after getting all clean.
Even if it meant wearing an ogre's scarf.
Heading for the barrel (not the most elegant bath, not at all the luxurious sort she preferred, but it would do), she started to undress. Even the barrel was huge! She could probably swim laps in that thing.
The barrel was, in fact, massive. However, the ogres that brought it in had been kind enough to set it down next to a chair, so she could climb up onto that and then into the bath, as if she was still a toddler.
The scarf in question hung cleanly on another chair. It was red, and made of velvety cloth hemmed with silver thread. Most likely, it was big enough for her to use it as a robe.
Borzclubb stuck around, in case she needed anything, but left as soon as she began undressing, closing the tent flap behind him. His thundering footsteps quickly faded away, and Scarab only had the idle sounds of the camp to keep her company.
Scarab was quite thankful for the chair. Thankful and amused. Once again, she felt like a child in an adult-sized world as she climbed up onto it and sank down into the water, sighing at the warmth. Sure, the day had been hot, and was still warm, but when night fell she would appreciate this.
And even in the heat, she preferred hot baths, baths that were hotter than the outside air, so it felt cooler outdoors when she got out.
Still, she didn't take a long time to bathe, because she was warm and didn't want to overheat, but soon she was all scrubbed and clean, and when she climbed back out, she just let herself air dry. Her skin was still a little damp and her thick dreadlocks were still wet when she took the scarf and looked it over, marveling at the craftsmanship. It might be a scarf, but it would make a rather elegant robe, and no one had to know any different. She sniffed it once to be sure it was clean, then shrugged and wrapped it around herself, and tied it in such a way that it left one shoulder bare.
When she was done, she didn't think she'd done a half bad job of making it work--and even so, it felt soft and wonderful against her skin, and much better than her gross clothing.
Stepping to the tent flap, she parted it and poked her head out, looking for Borzclubb, or anyone else familiar.
Borzclubb was outside, talking to a group of ogres by the center. One of them was leaning against a hairless mammoth, while Borzclubb had Winterpeak curled up next to him. Borzclubb was idly rubbing the top of the albino Kaadir's head, and Winterpeak looked to be enjoying it, in much the same way a cat would.
A third ogre, standing up with his arms crossed, said something, and all three burst into hearty, torrential laughter, before one of them noticed her poking her head out, and motioned towards her. Borzclubb turned his head, and patted Winterpeak's snout a few times before standing up.
Winterpeak wandered off towards her stable, and Borzclubb began to stomp over to Scarab.
"How was your bath, lass?"
"Wonderful!" Scarab said, and she drew the tent flap back all the way to be polite and hold it open for the ogre. She looked past him at the group just outside, and couldn't help but feel a tad shy--which was a strange feeling for her, since she was normally so confident in everything she did. But she was well and truly out of her element and plunged into a new world of giants, so that was definitely different!
Of course, she was going to do her best not to actually show her awkwardness.
"Granted, it was no oil and flower-petal-infused luxury bath, but I'm clean and that's all I cared about. Your scarf also wound up working really well," she said, twisting a little to show it off. "It almost looks stylish!"
Borzclubb gave her a good looking over as she twisted about to show off how she was rocking his scarf, and chuckled.
"Well, you know the old saying: Essyrnis can make a bundle of dishrags look stylish," Borzclubb said, stepping under the flap and into the tent. A few more ogres followed him in to take away the barrel, and he plodded on over to the table. Looking at the seats, he hummed thoughtfully, before he placed one of his bed pillows on top of a chair so Scarab could actually sit at the table.
"We do have a talent for that, yes," Scarab said with a smile as she moved to the chair and climbed atop it. Hakeshna. He really was treating her like a child! A pillow on the seat and everything. She shook her head, endlessly amused, and even sitting on the pillow, she was a little too short for the table.
"I'm surprised you know the saying. You've dealt with a lot of Essyrni, have you?"
"Well, I've had dealings with many cultures. If I recall correctly, it was my company of mercenaries that turned the tide in a very important battle for the Essyrnis. What was it...It was recent..."
Borzclubb went into thought, trying to remember the name of the battle. All he remembered is that he'd served on The Shah's behalf, and that it was important. He spared a glance to Scarab, and chortled a little.
"Need another pillow?"
"Ah...I may need another pillow actually, yes," Scarab said with a sheepish look his way. "Everything here is giant-sized! Oh, but as you were saying, the important battle. And for the Shah! Was it one you were in, personally?"
She looked at him with genuine interest, curious about this battle. "I'm afraid history and politics aren't my strength, and my work keeps me rather distracted!"
"Yeah, I was stuck in with my fellow ogres. I think...it had something to do with a group of extremists, or something. They'd formed an army, and there was a battle out in the desert. I don't think many heard of it, even though it was just a couple of years ago. It wasn't close enough to the city for anyone to really care, actually. But it was important."
He thumped on the table a few times with his palms.
"Ach, it's on the tip of my tongue! They gave it a name, I don't quite remember what..."
Scarab's eyebrows rose. "In other words, a horde was advancing on Essyrn, and your party intervened? Before we even really knew about it?"
"Yeah. The Shah didn't want to start a panic. So he paid us a tidy sum to remove the threat."
A bell rang out from outside, and Borzclubb smiled deeply.
"Dinner!"
"He? Oh, it must have been some time since then. The current Shah is a woman!" Scarab said, before looking up with interest when the food was announced.
"Not bug, right?"
"No. Beef for you, lass. Drex told me you were adverse to eating Ankheg."
The flaps to the tent opened up, and several Ogres laden with massive trays (A veritable feast's worth of food!) entered. A tray was set down in front of Borzclubb and Scarab, and two tray were set down between them. Utensils were in the form of two-pronged forks, although their size was a bit unwieldy for Scarab.
The lids were lifted off of the trays, and the air was bombarded with delicious scents. Borzclubb had all kinds of Ankheg "cuts" heaped onto his plates, from stuffed mandibles to crackers made from boiled chitin, to straight slabs of meat, cooked until golden.
Scarab's plate was heaped down with various different meat dishes, such as pies and steaks. The space between them contained a tray laden with local vegetables, and an almost comically oversized hunk of warm bread, complete with hummus for spreading.
"Oh, I've been waiting for this..." Borzclubb purred, rubbing his hands together as he contemplated where to start.
"Sweet Hakeshna!" Scarab gasped, as heaps and heaps of steaming meats and dishes were placed before her on the massive table, the portions all obviously ogre-sized, and the bread definitely looked as big as she! She stared in wide-eyed amazement, the wonderful, wonderful aromas making her stomach growl and mouth water, reminding her she hadn't eaten since the morning.
God! Hopefully he realized there was no possible way she was going to make even a dent in this meal! And she found herself looking between the dishes as Borzclubb was, not even sure where to begin.
But she was starved, so after a moment, she picked up the fork, which for her was more like a small spade in size. It definitely wasn't going to fit in her mouth.
"This is...wow. This is a lot of food," she said, stating the obvious, as she broke open the crust of a pie and let the steam escape, filling her nose with the wonderful scent of meat and vegetables. She had a feeling there was going to be no real way to eat neatly, but she tried, shoveling a small bit of meat and crust onto her fork and nibbling at it, burning her tongue at first but not even caring, because it tasted like paradise, and she closed her eyes in pleasure as the flavor washed over her tongue.
"Compliments to the chef!"
At first, Borzclubb didn't even bother with the fork!
He picked up a stuffed ankheg mandible, and took a big old bite out of it, juices running down his chin as he chuckled pleasantly, eyes rolling backwards as his experience seemed to be almost sensual.
He swallowed, and patted his stomach.
"Little known fact, actually, that us Ogres are some of the greatest gourmands on this continent. We've got excellent tongues for food, and our chefs are always top class."
He licked some errant juices off of his lips, still holding the remaining half of the mandible.
"So, what was it you wanted to discuss?"
"I can, without a doubt, admit that this is better even than some of the meals my own cooks have prepared me," Scarab said, sounding like she was surprised to admit that, herself. Admittedly, she had been judging Borzclubb and the other ogres. They all seemed rather brutish to her upon meeting them, and she hadn't thought there was any way they could cook a decent meal, when their idea of good food had been--to her understanding--giant bug.
To her, they had seemed like savages at first, with their mindless hunt and wild looks. Of course, once she'd actually started to talk to them, she'd realized that was hardly the case, but she couldn't help being skeptical all the same.
Hakeshna, was she wrong.
She had just stuffed another bite of pie into her mouth when Borzclubb spoke, reminding her of business! Swallowing it down, she wiped a bit of juice from the corner of her lips with her fingers.
"Ah! Yes! About that!" She set down her spade of a fork and folded her hands on the table. "The thing is, I make my living dealing in gems and precious metals. I'm a merchant in Essyrn--a rather prominent one, not to brag, but I am successful. I run a jewellery business, and my pieces only include the highest quality items. I've sold many of my pieces to royalty, near and far."
She smiled, eyes shining with pride. "Of course, I work with a lot of the old, classic standards. Gold, diamonds, rubies. The usual. But I'm always on the lookout for fresh, exotic gems and metals. Unconventional, rarer things. I...may have heard that you perhaps have an excess of frost diamonds? And I would be very, very happy to help with that problem, in a way that's mutually beneficial to us both."
"Aye, that we do. The Mountain Tribes have enough wealth and riches to let you bathe in swimming pools of gold for the rest of your life. However,"
Borzclubb leaned back, scarfing down the rest of the stuffed mandible. He placed his elbows on the table, resting his chin on his put-together hands.
"The Mountain Tribes are a sovereign nation in their own right, and I do not presume to speak for them," Borclubb explained parting his hands. He laid his hands on the table, adjusting himself in his seat.
"If trade's what you want, you're going to have to deal with The Conference of Tyrants, a council of tribal leaders, yourself. Normally, this'd be hard to get an audience with, especially for an outsider such as yourself. However, you have the honor of knowing the great Borzclubb Treeswinger, mercenary captain to The Gaping Maws. An audience is pretty much guaranteed for you."
"...The Conference of Tyrants?"
Scarab brought a hand to her temples, some of the wind leaving her sails. But i was only a brief setback! After a moment, she drew herself up again, not one to be discouraged so easily, not over something as silly as an intimidating name! Borzclubb said an audience was basically guaranteed! And if she was successful, she'd be allies with a huge supplier! She could dominate the market!
"I am going to assume they're not half as frightening as they sound. Correct? I mean, your group is the Gaping Maws and you're all a rather jovial, selfless, hospitable people." She smiled up at him, genuinely.
"I would love to have an audience with your council."
"Actually, the Conference of Tyrants, although not really tyrannical, is nothing to play around with. The leaders of ogre tribes are called Tyrants simply by name. They rule just as any other chieftain would. However, this doesn't mean that a few of them can't be mean sons of bitches."
He picked up a particularly massive slab of ankheg meat, and took a hefty bite out of it.
"Either way, you better pack for the long haul then, lass. The Mountain Tribes all live in the Thunderblacks."
Scarab had started to take another bite of pie as Borzclubb spoke, but she hadn't yet gotten it to her mouth when she choked. The Thunderblacks?!
"That's in ADELA!"
Borzclubb looked at her incredulously.
"Well, yeah. They're called The MOUNTAIN Tribes for a reason!"
"I...well...you're not in the mountains, so I..."
With a sudden laugh, Scarab rubbed her face. "Oh, goodness. Of course it sounds obvious when you put it like that!" she said sheepishly.
"So, you have this grand, lucrative opportunity in front of you. The only stipulation is that you've got to travel to Adela, and stand in front of the six meanest ogres walking this continent right now."
He set down his meat.
"Fortune favors the bold, as they say."
"And I am nothing if not bold," Scarab said with a smile, letting out another soft laugh.
"That's how I got in this mess to begin with, you know. Many other merchant princes and princesses just hire others to do all the work for them, and oh, I do, too, don't get me wrong. You have to have people working under you; it's impossible for one person to handle everything! But I've always enjoyed being involved. Hakeshna blessed me with geomancy, so I often accompany my people on excavations. I like getting my hands dirty. I was just returning from a dig site with my crew when the haboob hit."
She poked at her meal. "It's not the first time I've gotten into a fix, nor the last, I imagine. So I guess what I'm saying here is of course I'll do it."
Looking back at Borzclubb, she flashed him a grin. "It sounds rather exciting, actually. I've never been to Adela."
Birzclubb smiled at Scarab's small speech, taking another bite out of the meat before continuing.
"Reminds me a lot of myself, you know. I'm a very hands-on mercenary captain, if you get my drift. You'll be happy to know, then..."
Borzclubb scarfed down the rest of the meat, and reached over to tear out a hunk of bread, dipping it in the hummus before biting down on that as well.
"That me and this small contingent of mine are traveling back to my company, and to the Mountain Tribes after this. You can tag along, if you wish, but it won't be the luxury treatment you're used to, princess."
"I am positive I can handle it," Scarab said, though she wouldn't know. Her expeditions had been as luxurious as she could make them under the circumstances. "The reward is well worth the sacrifice. So yes, I would love to travel with you, if you don't mind an extra mouth to feed and..."
She looked around the room, at all the extra large items. "And if you don't mind that I'm not sure how much use I'll be in your camp. I am willing to pull my weight where I can, don't get me wrong! Things just look rather heavy here, for a human."
Borzclubb waved away her words as he began eating the next portion of his meal. He was blitzing throguh his food at quite the astonishing rate, and it looked like he wouldn't be slowing down any time soon.
"Oh, don't worry about that, lass. Really, if this dinner's anything to go by--"
Borzclubb motioned to the half-eaten pie sitting on Scarab's plate.
"Then really, bringing you along wouldn't put a hamper on us at all. You might gain a few pounds, though!" he added with a hearty laugh.
Scarab's face actually paled at that, and she stared down at her hefty meal--and then leaned back in her seat.
"...It's all about portion control," she said with a slight cough as she pat her belly.
Borzclubb chuckled a bit more.
"A few more pounds never killed anyone, lass. I think little more weight would do you some good. You're as thin as a pin."
"Oh, I'm hardly thin!" Scarab said, though of course that was a lie. She was thin, and worked hard to maintain that weight! Appearances were everything, after all, and she was very, very conscious of her appearance.
"No, you are thin. And that might not necessarily be a good thing, where you're going. Us ogres are all fat, as you might've noticed. A skinny lass like you won't get much headway with The Tyrants. If you put on some pounds, though, they might be more inclined to listen."
Borzclubb patted his belly.
"Fat's good, you see. Especially in The Tribes."
Scarab's eyes widened even further.
Was he saying...?!
"You...you expect me to gain weight?" she said in horror. "Not to say you don't wear your weight well, you understand! I mean no offense! But I...I am not an ogre! It takes a lot of work to stay this size! When I get older, it will be ten times as difficult!"
For Scarab, though she would die before admitting it, had been a chubby child, and though she would also never openly admit it, it was obvious to everyone around her that she was quite vain. Curves were beautiful to the Essyrni, and she had hips, definitely, though she'd never developed large breasts like she'd prayed for! She wasn't about to cover those hard-earned curves up with fat!
"Okay! All right! Just a suggestion!" Borzclubb said as he motioned his open palms towards her.
"Didn't realize it was such a touchy subject for ya!"
"Not...sensitive, necessarily..." Scarab said. It was a total lie. She was very sensitive about this!
But now he had her worrying, because was he serious about what he'd said? About the council not taking her seriously? She looked across the table at him, lips pursed. "My size isn't really going to be an issue, is it?"
"It's just a slight matter of prejudice, really. The way you're looking now, you better have a great offer in store for The Conference. They're going to be a little impatient with you."
Borzclubb shook his head slightly.
"I wouldn't worry, though. You've got me on your side, remember? I can vouch for ya."
"Thank Hakeshna," Scarab said with a relieved breath, and after a thought, she was tempted by the bread--and caved, breaking off a small chunk and dipping it in hummus.
"Thank you, really, for going out of your way like this and helping me here. I really do appreciate it. Though, I am curious--what kinds of things would ogres want? I'm quite wealthy, not to brag, so I have a lot I could offer, or acquire to offer, but I admit I'm not sure what sorts of things would interest your people."
"Steel. Useful metals."
Borzclubb wiped some grease off of his face with a forearm.
"Thunderblacks have plenty of precious metals, but not many sources of iron. On top of that, a suit of full steel armor for an ogre is ludicrously expensive, steel-wise."
Scarab brightened considerably at that. "Oh! Well, I am certain I can pull some strings and cut some deals and make that happen," she said, her mind already working on the problem. "If iron is what your people need, iron is what you'll get."
"Iron and steel bars would definitely get The Conference considering your offer. Although, what you offer to The Conference, you're offering to the Mountain Tribes. You'll have to be able to come up with quite the amount of iron and steel."
Borzclubb patted his belly, and took some vegetables from the bowl, a handful of tomatoes, to be precise.
"...All the Mountain Tribes? How many of them are there?" Scarab asked, her eyebrows rising. She...was not certain she could supply that quantity! She had influence, but come to think of it, she wasn't actually sure how far she could make that influence stretch.
But then again, if this worked out, she'd be ridiculously wealthy. Surely wealthy enough that this wouldn't be a problem! Those frost diamonds would make her a killing!
"Five. It's not that big of a number, but when we do use steel, we use a lot. Twice as much as a normal human settlement, more or less."
He scratched his beard.
"Don't let that confuse you when we arrive, though. There's six Tyrants. One from each tribe, and then the Mawspeaker. Think of him as a high priest or something."
"Oh. Goodness. Well. I will...definitely have to pool my resources. I'm not certain I can provide such a massive quantity of steel, but I can certainly see what I can do," Scarab said, scratching her temple.
"One thing is for certain, all these names definitely sound...scary."
"That being said, it's not like you're completely supplying us. We do produce our own, just at a snail's pace."
Borzclubb was almost finished with his heaping plate of Ankeg. Just a few more things left, and his plate would be empty.
"Don't let the names scare you. The last thing you want is to slip up. The Conference doesn't like it when its time is wasted."
"Well, I certainly hope I won't be wasting their time!"
Finishing off her bit of bread, Scarab brushed crumbed from her fingers. "I will have to make some preparations, though. I don't want to go to the council and have nothing to offer, or have any...nasty surprises where I discover after making the deal that I can't provide as much as I said I could! I don't think that would end well. Will you be able to stay in Essyrn a bit? Or near it, at least?"
Borzclubb rubbed his sideburns at that question, chewing slowly as he thought.
"How much time do you need?"
"At least a week, probably!" Scarab said, brow scrunched. That might not even be enough time, but she thought that might already be seriously stretching Borzclubb's hospitality. "I have a lot of people I need to contact."
Borzclubb shook his head.
"We didn't bring enough supplies to stay that long. I have to be traveling back to my main encampment soon... It's on the edge of the desert."
He drummed his fingers on the table, in thought.
"And if I gave you a map to my main camp, would you be able to meet me there?"
"The edge of the desert!" Scarab said, staring. "I...well. I haven't been anywhere near as far as that, but I'm sure if I gathered a party--and Hakeshna willing, the men from this expedition are well and back in Essyrn by now!--I could...make that happen..."
"Such a successful merchant princess, and you've never been as far as that?" Borzclubb asked, almost incredulous in his tone.
"I would've expected someone like you to be well traveled..."
"My business has been locally based for quite a while," Scarab said, sitting back in her seat. "I have financed expeditions that have gone much farther! But I never had the time to stray too far myself. I've been to various dig sites in the desert, but not beyond it."
She smiled and shrugged. "I've always been curious, though, so perhaps the stars are saying that now is the time to start."
"Oh, so you don't have a coat?" Borzclubb asked as he gave her a sharp-toothed grin. He finished his plate, and sat back, almost purring as he rubbed his full belly.
"I suggest you buy one. The mountains get cold."
"So I've heard!" Scarab said, still eying the food, though she was deciding to exercise restraint. It was tempting, but she'd had enough! "Though I can't say the thought displeases me. It gets ridiculously hot here. It might be nice, for a change, to get to wear makeup for a day without sweating it all off."
"Oh, I don't know how you Essyrnis can stand this heat. It's unbearable," Borzclubb said as he fanned his face slightly.
"Although, if you can't find yourself a coat, I'm sure you'd many of the Mountain Ogres fashions to your liking. Personally, I think you'd look ravishing in a Sabretusk pelt."
"Well, I was born here, so that helps," Scarab said with a grin. "But even us natives don't stand the heat so much as deal with it. The evenings and mornings are lovely, in any case, but I digress! What's a...sabretusk, was it?"
"Sabretusks are predatory cats up in the mountains. Big as a man, they are. But their fur's luxurious."
Borzclubb motioned to the fierce looking animal mask with frost diamonds for eyes that Scarab examined earlier.
"That's what they look like."
"Those live in the mountains?"
For a moment, Scarab felt a flash of alarm, and it was evident in her wide-eyed expression. But then reason took over, and she realized...that was a silly thing to be startled by, when she lived in Essyrn and traveled the desert, where sandworms and ankhegs prowled, where her people tamed the kaadir, where crocodiles lurked in the water and lions hunted in prides. It felt silly to be startled by the dangerous beasts of some other place when her own nation had its share of monsters! But she supposed she was more accustomed to Essyrn's beasts--and besides, those were some massive fangs.
Alarm quickly turned to curiosity, and Scarab tilted her head as she studied the mask. "Interesting. What color are they?"
"Usually, they're white, or a shade of it. Sometimes, though, you can find some who have coats the color of iron, or dark gray. There's a few black ones, but those're exceedingly rare, and you can only find them in the rockier parts of the mountains."
To pass the time, Borzclubb took a piece of bread off of the loaf, and ate it.
"We use 'em to hunt."
"You use them to hunt? You mean, you tame the beasts?" Scarab asked, still studying the mask. She could probably fit her head in that mouth...
Borzclubb nodded.
"No different than how you humans use dogs to hunt. Except Ogres have always liked cats more."
That had Scarab laughing, the idea of ogres as cat people! "Do you keep them as house pets, too?" she asked. Now that was a kind of adorable but strange mental image. A big old beast like that curled on Borzclubb's lap, purring away. If they purred. She'd never gotten close enough to a big cat to know.
"I prefer cats, myself," she continued. "I had better. I own five of them!"
"That's a lot of cats..."
Of course, house cats for humans might as well be nonexistent for ogres.
"We keep them as house pets, yeah, but only when they're kittens. They get much too big and fierce to keep around, especially if there's children about."
"Ah. So they're never really tame, in other words," Scarab said.
"Though I imagine even if they truly were tame, well..." She lifted her arm and turned it, showing him some old, thin scars, pale against her dark skin. "Even my sweet little monsters maul me sometimes when they get in a mood. A little scratch from one of those beasts would be...quite different."
"Sabretusk kittens are docile enough, if you keep them fed. A bit on the bite-y side, but docile. But!"
He raised a finger up, looking Scarab dead in the eyes.
"Mountain Mother help you if you've got one that's teething."
Scarab's look turned knowing. "Let me guess: they destroy everything?"
Borzclubb chuckled.
"Well, it's right about when those fangs of theirs start growing in. So you can guess the kind of damage they can do."
"Hakeshna, I can't even imagine! My cats about destroyed my home when they were young! Granted, I probably shouldn't have taken five kittens at once, but their mother was dead and how could I resist such cute faces? But the damage they did!"
She rubbed her temples, remembering it with horror. "They shredded my settee, made ribbons of my bedding, chewed everything! I had to rush several to a healer because they'd swallowed things they ought not swallow! Expensive things like rings, I might add. They broke so many vases and I had to hide everything for nearly a year until they learned to scratch and chew only the things I wanted them to scratch and chew."
She shook her head. "They still break things, now and then. I swear they do it out of spite. I once saw Lily look me dead in the eye before she swatted my coffee clear off the table."
Borzclubb nodded along, smiling wistfully at Scarab's horror story. Because that's what it sounded like, really. Pure, unadulterated horror.
"I have a friend--he's not in this camp, mind you--who oversees the beasts back at my main encampment. He's raised several dozen sabretusks, from the womb. His place... "
Borzclubb glanced around, leaning forwards on the table as if he was going to share some damning secret.
"I have seen troll caves that look less ragged than his house."
The joke was somewhat lost on Scarab, since she had no idea what a cave troll's home looked like, but she supposed from his conspiratorial tones that it must be pretty bad! So she barked out a laugh anyway, not wanting to be rude, and because she could only imagine what someone's home must look like after having some of those cats in it!
Ir probably made her situation look pristine.
"Hakeshna! I can only imagine what his hands must look like, for that matter!"
"Funny thing about that. Since he's the beastmaster, he's the one who has to raise his Sabretusks into adulthood, and train the adult sabretusks that other ogres give up. No lie, he's only got one hand. He lost the other one when one of his less docile "babies" got a bit moody. He loves them to death, though. I can't picture him without them."
Yeah, the little, thin scars on Scarab's hand didn't look so bad anymore. With a slight cringe, she rubbed at her wrist in sympathy pain.
"And with how much he loves his beasts, enough to lose a hand for them, he's alright with people wearing their furs?"
"Well, all animals die eventually, don't they? Sure, he might not appreciate it that much, but in the end, furs are a necessity."
Borzclubb nodded a bit, as if undergoing a nostalgia trip.
"It's a sad thing, though. He hold funerals for them and everything."
...That was a rather depressing thought.
Little kitty funerals...
"Well, I'm not going to lie. When my cats go--and Hakeshna willing that won't be for many, many years, I don't even want to think of it! When my cats go, I'll probably do the same. Does this mean you wait for the animals to die before you take their furs? You don't hunt them?"
"Well, if there's no particular need for furs, then we just wait for the sabretusks to die on hunting trips, or of old age. Sometimes, though, we hunt the beasts. However, there are many more predators out there on the slopes that provide more hide," Borzclubb explained.
"Well, Hakeshna willing we don't meet any on the way there! Oh. Speaking of which, not to change the subject too terribly, but..."
Scarab folded her hands on the table and peered up at Borzclubb. "Is there any, say, ogre etiquette I should be aware of?"
"Well, as far as table manners go, it's a free for all. However, if you're offered food, eat it. It's a grand offense to turn down food."
He leaned back, stroking his short beard.
"Never bow to an ogre. Always look them in the eyes, because it shows that you respect them. Never, under any circumstance, call an ogre skinny. And if they are skinny, don't compliment them. Never eat standing up. What else...uh...Always use the standard ogre greeting."
With that, Borzclubb clapped his hands together, and intertwined the fingers.
"That's how it goes. You hold it for three seconds, and then you can stop. If you're seated at a table, just bang your fists on it three times."
Scarab clapped her hands together and interlaced her fingers, held it three seconds, and released. "Like that?" she said, taking mental notes.
"Oh! Or actually...I'm at the table. Do I bang both fists three times, or just one fist?"
...She was a bit of a perfectionist, and she certainly didn't want to make a fool of herself, if she was going to be among ogres for some time. Especially if she was going to meet their Council!
"Yes, just liek that. It's not a hard gesture to learn. As for the table..."
Borzclubb leaned forwards, and pounded both of his fists three times against the wood, causing the earth beneath them to rumble and the plates to shift about.
"Three times. Both fists. As hard as you can do it."
Well, her attempt was certainly not going to be so impressive.
With a nod, Scarab banged on the table with both fists, as hard as she could--and stopped short with a yelp. Jerking her hands back, she rubbed at her fists and shook out her hands. "Ow!"
Borzclubb frowned, but he appreciated the effort nonetheless.
"Well, don't worry if you don't get it right. The effort's what counts. Especially if you hurt yourself doing it, like you just did. That will be appreciated."
"Really?" Scarab looked up at him, her expression brightening. And here she thought she'd just made a total fool of herself!
"They won't think I'm stupid and weak for injuring myself?" she asked, still rubbing her bruised hand.
"On the contrary! You'll look so dedicated to impressing them, that they might even think better of you for it."
He snorted back some laughter, leaning forwards on the table again.
"Oh! Well, thank Hakeshna for that! God willing I don't break my hand or bloody it up..."
With a shake of her head, she cracked her knuckles. "Am I correct then in assuming that your people care more about the effort made than a person's sheer physical strength?"
"You are sorely mistaken," Borzclubb said.
"If you were an ogre, and you did what you just did, you'd be laughed off the table. You can get away with fudging it because you're a human woman."
"Ahhh, I see," Scarab said. "That's very polite of you! Taking into account the limitations of not-ogres!"
"Well, it's only fair," Borzclubb said, not feeling that it was worth compliment.
"People aren't always fair," Scarab said, folding her hands on the table. "So I tend to find fairness an admirable quality. It's not a given in all places."
Borzclubb nodded. "That's true enough, I suppose."
Scarab let out a yawn, and quickly covered it with her hand. "Thank you for dinner, by the way. And for all your hospitality. I must say, looking back, I'm a bit ashamed of how I behaved upon meeting you."
She bit her lip, cheeks coloring a little. "I hope that can be forgiven. I know I said some very rude and undeserved things."
"Oh, don't you worry your pretty head none. You were scared, is all. I never took it personally." Borzclubb said, waving the issue away.
"Now, there's no real space for you around here, but I was gonna have a bed of furs set up for you in a corner of my tent. Any objections?"
"Oh, none at all! Right now, that sounds wonderful," Scarab said, and stretched her arms over her head. After bathing, eating, and getting to sit down and rest for a bit, fatigue was starting to catch up to her. It had been a long day for her even before she'd met the ogres! She and her team rose with the sun, and then the sandstorm hit, and she'd been walking after that for several hours, at least...
She was beat.
"I think after today, I could sleep on the floor!"
"Well, that's what you'll be doing. We're gonna lay some furs out on the floor, give you one to cover up with, and be done with it. We ain't exactly got any spare beds."
"Oh! Well. In that case, it's all the same to me!" Scarab said with a shrug. "I know you must think I'm quite the princess--and I'll admit, I like my comfort! But I've slept in tents on rocky ground before. I think I'll survive."
"Well, you did say you were a princess, but I had a feeling you were hardier than the average skinny merchant girl," Borzclubb said, before promptly standing from his seat, groaning as he rubbed his belly.
"It's really quite good, though. The furs of mountain animals are quite soft."
"Ah, well, that's true enough! I am a merchant princess, so--" Well, it might be too complicated to explain that the title was not really one of actual royalty. She hadn't a lick of royal ancestry in her veins! Her family had come from rags and worked their way to riches, so it was important to never take that for granted since it was always possible to lose what you'd gained.
"So...I guess I am a princess," she finished with a laugh, before she started to climb down from her chair. And she really did have to climb. These seats were made for people seven feet taller than her!
Borzclubb nodded, "Duh!" painted all over his expression.
"Obviously, you're not royalty, though. No way royalty's getting lost in the desert by themselves. I'm just gonna assume it's some kind of Essyrni title, and leave it at that."
"You'd be correct!" Scarab said, and dropped down onto her feet. "In Essyrn, anyone can be nobility, really. If you work hard, or just get really lucky."
She paused, pursed her lips. "Or if you're really cutthroat and scheming."
At that, Borzclubb chortled out a laugh.
"Well, I'm going to go hit the sack. There'll be some ogres along with your furs to sleep on in a bit. See you in the morning."
He began stomping over to his bed, rolling his shoulders and popping his neck as he did so.
"Sleep well!" Scarab said as Borzclubb stomped to bed, and while he settled down for the night, she poked her head outside the tent to gauge the position of the moon.
Slipping back inside, she knelt on the ground facing that direction and touched her forehead to the floor so she could do her nighttime prayers.
"I wish you the same!" Borzclubb said. He reached down to his gut plate (the only armor he wore, really) and dropped it to the ground with a thud. Apart from that, he was only wearing a pair of breeches.
Giving his belly a rather casual scratch, he plopped himself down into his bed, something that made the earth itself rumble, and pulled his fur blanket over himself.
When Scarab was finished giving thanks to Hakeshna--and she had much to be grateful for, for surviving this day and also lining up a potential business deal!--she remained kneeling on the floor. She glanced up at Borzclubb, who was burrowed in furs in his bed, and then let out a sigh.
Well.
Guess there was nothing for it but to wait until her own bedding arrived.
Borzclubb wasn't the quietest sleeper in the world, that was for sure. And he wasn't even asleep yet! He was still in that pre-sleep "find your comfort zone" phase, and he was making quite the bit of noise as he rolled about. In a pretty comical way, he looked like some sleeping giant out of a children's book, further emphasizing just how whimsically large everything was.
The flap to Borzclubb's tent parted after a few minutes, and it was none other than Drex, carrying a bundle of furs.
"Oh, hey!" Drex whispered, smiling to see Scarab.
"Got your bed. Only the finest spare pelts for you, m'lady."
Oh, goodness. As Scarab waited there, trying to stay awake even as she sat on the floor, the only thing that kept her awake was Borzclubb's noisy tossing and turning. Oh dear. She hoped he wasn't going to keep doing that or--Hakeshna forbid!--snore. She could only imagine what snoring sounded like coming from him. It was bad enough coming from humans, but with ogres, everything was giant-sized. She imagined ogre snoring would tear down the walls.
It was while she was fretting that Drew appeared, and she snapped to full alertness and brightened at the sight of him and those comfortable-looking pelts.
"Good to see you again," she said with a genuine smile, and reached out to the furs. "Thank you. These look wonderful!"
[Am I the only one who had a temporary Drex/Scarab ship flash through my head? I mean... I did describe Drex as being undersized for an ogre in the beginning...]
"Oh, it's no problem, really!" Drex happily replied, rubbing the back of his head.
Borzclubb snorted, as if he might awaken, before he fell still again. Drex grimaced, and spoke up again, this time in a whisper.
"Don't worry, he gets quieter. I had to sleep in a tent next to his once. He makes a bit of noise as he's getting comfortable, but once he finds his spot..."
Drex waved his hand.
"Dreadfully silent. Like the grave."
[I'm not gonna say I didn't but I'm not gonna say I did...>____>;;; *cough*]
"Thank Hakeshna," Scarab whispered back, as she started to arrange the furs on the floor to make the best bed she could fashion. "I'm unfortunately a very light sleeper at the best of times!"
She patted the top layer of furs down to smooth out any lumps. "Thank you for all your help today, by the way. I'm aware I was a handful."
"Oh, don't worry about it," Drex said, and clasped his hands together, idly tapping his knuckles with his fingertips.
"You were scared, and you were dragged along to something scarier. I wouldn't blame you."
"Ah, thank goodness! I'm glad you're all so understanding," Scarab said as she folded the top layer of furs back so she could slip beneath them. She didn't lay down yet, but simply pulled it up over her legs and to her waist for now.
"It's funny. None of the stories I'd grown up on ever talked about ogres this way. They make you out to be brutish people-eaters. No offense! It's just part of what threw me off at first. But it's true what they say, you can never trust hearsay, and I'm sure those stories were told by someone who had some sort of a beef with your lot. I'm just glad they proved false! You've all been so kind."
"Oh, no. regular ogres are a bunch of inbred, lowland savages," Drex venomously spat. There was plenty of ancient hatred between mountain and lowland ogres. Centuries, even.
"Nothing to do with us proud mountain ogres."
"I see," Scarab said with a wry, knowing look.
"I take it the lot of you aren't friends."
"Of course we're not. Lowland ogres--"
A sharp groan from Borzclubb cut him off, and he winced sharply.
"I better go, before the bear wakes up. Sleep well, uh..." he trailed off, scratching his short beard.
"I don't believe I ever learned your name."
"Scarab," she said. "Yes, like the beetle. I prefer to think I was named after the really pretty, iridescent ones! And you're...Drex, was it?"
"Wow, that's a real good name, especially for someone like you. Scarabs look like little gemstones and everything," Drex said.
"Yep, you can call me Drex. I'd love to stay and talk a bit more, but I don't want to risk waking up sleepyhead over there. See you tomorrow!"
He ducked back out of the tent, leaving Scarab by herself.
As soon as Drex was gone, Scarab smiled to herself and burrowed beneath the furs, staving off the night's chill. He was right; the name was rather ironic, considering the business she ran, but her parents had been crafting jewellery and working with gemstones before she'd been born. They'd wanted to name her something gem-related, but they hadn't wanted it to be stereotypical or obvious, like Ruby or Garnet.
Of course, some children had teased her. Scarabs were pretty and they were sacred--but they all rolled shit!
With a yawn, she nestled her face against the soft pelts, closed her eyes--and it wasn't long after that when a deep sleep claimed her.
"All right, pack it all up!"
Borzclubb's voice boomed from outside the tent, probably waking Scarab from her slumber.
She'd find that she was all alone in the tent, and all around her, there came the sounds of hustle and bustle. Tents being unhitched, cooking fires crackling, and things just being moved in general. One of the hairless mammoths outside let out a trumpet as it was being coaxed into movement. The smell of breakfast (primarily meats, by the deliciously greasy odor that permeated the camp) hung heavily in the air.
Borzclubb's voice started back up, this time in ogreish, and it seemed to get farther away as he continued to yell out orders.
Scarab jackknifed awake with a gasp, furs clutched to her chest, and it took a moment or two before she remembered where she was and whose voice she was hearing. With a sigh of relief, she pushed her dreadlocks back over her shoulder and yawned, letting her body relax again.
Had she slept in? It sounded like she was the only one still in bed, which she appreciated, honestly--she'd needed the rest. Rubbing her eyes, she pushed the furs off of her and realized she'd been sweating. The day was warm already, and adding those furs on top of it meant she'd been getting very toasty!
She climbed out of her "bed" and rose to her feet, stretching sore muscles and rubbing at her shoulders, right at the base of her neck. Some animal let out a loud trumpet and she jumped again in surprise--that sounded kind of like an elephant! Probably one of the weird, hairless ones? Curious, she went to the tent flap and pushed it open, then stepped out into the sun and stood there to watch all the activity in fascination. Hopefully she wasn't in the way there, either! She knew that, considering her size, she wouldn't be much help, so her best bet was to just stay out from underfoot!
Ogres were all stepping about like 12 foot tall ants. Borzclubb was in the center of it all, standing up on a rock and overseeing the flurry of activity. Tents were being furled up, fires stamped out, and packs loaded to bear. The animals were being loaded as well!
The hairless, blubbery mammoths were being laden with the wooden stakes that made up the camp walls, while the wooly rhinos were the recipients of packs, cargo, and the spoils from the ankheg.
On top of it all, breakfast was being distributed in the center. It smelled strongly of sausages and meats, and some ogres could be seen walking around, food in one hand, and small pots of honey in the others, which they were using as dip.
Borzclubb was too occupied to notice Scarab emerge, but Drex, who was all the way by the massive cooking fire, waved her over.
Catching sight of Drex, Scarab looked around the area quickly to make sure she wouldn't be darting out into anyone's path, and then she sprinted from the tent and over to Drex as though afraid a herd of hairless, giant, blubbery elephant-things would come charging out to trample her.
By the time she reached the cooking fire, she was out of breath. Exercise wasn't really a thing she did, and it was hot, besides!
"Goodness! It's a like a circus here!" she said, a hand pressed to her chest as she caught her breath. "I must say, if I didn't feel like an ant before, I certainly do now!"
"You'll get used to it, I suppose," Drex said, amused to see Scarab out of breath after what would have been considered a leisurely stroll for an ogre.
"Besides, you think it's hot for you? All of us ogres were raised in the snowy mountains. We just don't sweat much, is all, but if we sweated like humans...Gods, I wouldn't want to think."
He chuckled, and offered Scarab some sausages and a cup of honey.
"Breakfast?"
Scarab crinkled her nose at that, also really not wanting to think about ogres sweating, either. Because if humans stank when they sweat, ogres must really reek--and produce a lot--and...
She couldn't help but laugh when Drex offered her the sausages and honey, a light, amused sound.
"What a wonderful segue into breakfast!" she said as she took a sausage link between two fingers, like she didn't want to bee too messy. She grabbed the honey cup, as well. "Really whets the appetite!"
"Eugh, whet..." Drex said, biting down on his tongue as he shook his head. Quite the choice of words on Scarab's part...
Drex put his focus back onto his breakfast, but he was quickly interrupted by the ogre standing next to him. If there was ever the ogre equivalent of a bull moose, this armored newcomer was it. He dwarfed Drex, making the eight foot tall scrawny ogre look small.
The large ogre said a few things to Drex, motioning to Scarab with a bob of his head. After that, he laughed, along with a few other ogres who were in the vicinity. Drex smiled, despite looking a little flustered, and gave his large friend a friendly slug to the shoulder.
Still, Drex's eyes glanced over to Scarab, if only for a second, before returning to his food.
Scarab snickered, glad her joke wasn't lost on the ogre. She dipped her sausage in the honey and took a bite, too hungry to ask what animal it was made from--and when the delicious juices hit her tongue, she didn't want to know, anyway! If it was bug she was eating, she hoped no one would spoil it for her by letting her know that!
Though when a giant of a newcomer came to join them, Scarab paused in eating to look up at him--and tilted her head in confusion as they spoke in their language. It was clear enough they were talking about her, though! The looks and pointing and laughter sure gave that away!
When Drex looked over at her, looking flustered, Scarab caught his gaze. "Er...what were they saying?"
"Oh, nothing, really!"
Drex bit his tongue to keep himself from speaking, although he sounded a bit embarrassed.
"They're just...teasing me, is all. I've always been the smallest around here."
"You're considered small?" Scarab said, craning her neck to look up at him. "You're a giant anywhere else!"
"Well, yeah. But when it comes to ogres, I'm as small as it can get. Look at me," He said, motioning to his small, tight belly.
"I'm as thin as a rope!"
"Oh, come now. You hardly look so!" Scarab said with a smile and a shake of her head, remembering what Borzclubb had said about ogre thinness, that it was not a desirable trait. "You're still as well built as any man I've seen in the Colosseum!"
Drex blushed a bit, but he shook it off.
"But I don't want to be well-built! Tight abs and all that are for small, weak things."
He looked back up at Scarab, taking a big bite out of his sausage.
"It's not like human tribes, where you get to be all skinny and pretty. It might not look it, because we're just mercenaries, but in the Tribes, runts like me get it pretty rough."
"Really? But don't 'tight abs and all that' mean strength and muscle and power?" Scarab asked, and finished off her sausage. She dipped her finger in the honey instead and licked some of that up.
"Well-built, at least where I come from, means the farthest thing from weak!"
"Size is strength, Scarab. Us ogres bulk up kinda like bears. The bigger we get, the stronger we are. That's why Borzclubb and the others got to fight the ankheg up close, and I got stuck throwing spears."
Drex shook his head.
"You wouldn't understand."
"You're right. I probably wouldn't understand," Scarab said as she reached for another sausage without even thinking about it.
"I'm human, after all! Completely different mindsets and all that. I...I take it you're done growing? Excuse me if that's a rude question! I'm not really well versed in ogre etiquette"
"Yeah, I've pretty much hit my peak, here," Drex said, having accepted his station in life long ago.
"At least there's somebody out there who doesn't find it so bad," Drex said as he shot Scarab a smile.
"I don't see what's so objectionable. It's not like it's your fault you stopped growing, anyway, so I don't see why you'd be bullied over something you can't help."
But even as Scarab said it, she paused, made a face, and shook her head. She was saying that, and yet she'd been bullied, too! "...Of course, it's human nature to be mean like that. And I suppose ogre nature, too, from the sounds of it."
"Well, when your tribal chiefs are called Tyrants by title, that gives you a hint. Believe me, everybody finds a reason to bully somebody else. It's normal for ogres to throw their weight around."
He finished another sausage, began gulping down his mug of honey.
"Kind of a requirement, really. I know Borzclubb gave you the impression us ogres are kind and hospitable, but really, he's an exception to the rule. It's pretty rough, back in the mountains."
From what Drex was saying, Scarab was starting to get the sinking feeling that maybe, just maybe, Borzclubb had sugarcoated things a bit. Probably not even intentionally! But he was a leader, strong and powerful, so he probably had a different perspective than someone like Drex.
"I...see. Er, speaking of that, I'm apparently going to be speaking before the Conference of Tyrants."
And then she watched for Drex's reaction.
"Hah!"
Drex nearly dropped his mug of honey, unable to contain his laughter.
"You're screwed. I mean, it's customary for traders to appear before the Conference. The Tribes are all a confederacy, you see. But these days, it's a bit rough for your kind. You wanna know the name of the Tyrant who holds the majority vote?"
Drex gave Scarab a few seconds to wonder.
"Golfgag Maneater. Of the Maneater tribe. You better have some well-honeyed words, because he ain't too keen on humans. The others are pretty relaxed, though. You won't have much trouble with them, as long as your proposal's fair."
While Scarab was hoping for honesty, her pride was a bit stung by his words and his laughter. She bristled, her cheeks flushing dark, and let out a soft scoff.
"Goodness! Thank you for your vote of confidence!" she said with a pout. "Borzclubb at least seems a bit confident that I might do okay! Though, yes, he did fail to mention this...Maneater one...he doesn't sound very nice."
"Well, maybe if Borzclubb pulls a few strings, you can pull it off. He's got a bit of pull with the Tyrants, seeing as how he's so successful."
Another bite out of his sausage.
"He probably didn't want to worry you. Or maybe he forgot about old Golfgag. Even for an ogre, that crazy old rock is disagreeable."
"And this Golfgag has the most sway? Do you mean to say if I get everyone else on my side, but not him...it won't matter?" Scarab asked, hoping she had heard wrong.
"To a degree. Golfgag might have the biggest tribe, but if everybody except him wants to go forwards with trade, he'll have no choice but to play along. The Conference is quite the massive affair, really. I'm sure Borzclubb told you about the six Tyrants, but there's also twenty Undertyrants. Not to mention the Bull Pit, which has two hundred members."
"Wh...what? Undertyrants? Bull Pit?" Scarab's eyebrows rose with alarm. "Er. Indeed. He did fail to mention these details. Please explain?"
"Undertyrants are chieftains of smaller tribes, and the members of the Bull Pit represent the general population. Say what you will about The Mountain Tribes, but our government's pretty in-depth. I'm sure Borzclubb didn't forget, though. If anything, he was probably going to tell you later."
Drex coughed, and brushed some sand off of his knee.
"I don't think he'd ever forget to mention all those things."
Scarab's head was starting to hurt. This was getting more complicated by the second! She dipped her second sausage in honey and took a bite.
"It sounds about as complicated as many human governments," she said. "And I'm afraid I've never had much of a head for politics! Though, I suppose, running a business has a lot of things in common with that. But this involves cross-cultural etiquette and nuance and all the delicacy that comes with that! I'm basically going to be an ambassador."
"Ambassador Scarab. Sounds pretty official!" Drex said.
"Maybe if you got yourself something a bit more conservative to wear, you'd look the part!"
"Conservative? This isn't?" Scarab looked down at the scarf she'd fashioned into a dress that strapped over one shoulder but left the other bare.
"Really? I must say, this is the most conservative thing I've worn since childhood! My usual garments are sheer."
"Like to show off that flat belly of yours, don't you?" Drex teased.
"Of course! I earned this body, why wouldn't I show it off?" Scarab said with a bright smile.
"Besides, it's bloody hot! If I can afford the more expensive fabrics, the sort that feel like wearing nothing at all, or like a caress on your skin, why wouldn't I buy and wear it? Only peasants wear heavy cloth."
"Yeah, even as an ogre, I gotta admit that you're real pretty," Drex said a bit sheepishly.
"What do you do, anyways? Are you like, a nobleman's daughter or something?"
A sincere compliment was a sincere compliment, no matter where it came from. Even if it came from an ogre. And so Scarab blushed at his words, her cheeks warming and eyes brightening, and smiled a beaming smile.
"Why, thank you!" she said. "But no, I'm not nobility--not in the sense that other nations have it. I'm a wealthy merchant--a very wealthy merchant! And in Essyrn, that basically makes me the equivalent of a nobility. But my family wasn't born into it. We're self-made, and I'm only continuing my parents' legacy. Ah, right, you asked what I do! I run a jewelery business, one of the largest in Essyrn."
"Jewelry, eh? That explains a few things," Drex said, giving Scarab a knowing look.
"Sounds like you're rollin' in dough, too."
"Oh? What does it explain?" Scarab asked, taking another bite of honeyed sausage.
"It explains why your eyes lit up like a campfire when I brought up the ogre hoards," Drex said. He gave her a smile, and set down his honey mug, which was now empty.
"Oh! Haha, yes, of course! Now you can understand why that was very relevant to my interests!" Scarab said, a little more than halfway done with her sausage.
Drex chuckled a bit, before he sort just...ran out of things to say. He sat there, shooting Scarab the occasional glance for a good minute, before he spoke up again.
"I don't think you came in here with that dress. Where'd you get it?"
Scarab was still chewing a bit of sausage when Drex asked that, and she had to cover her mouth and hold in a laugh, not wanting to flash chewed up food! Swallowing it down as soon as she could without choking, she looked up at Drex, lips curved with amusement.
"It's...not exactly a dress," she said, and plucked at it.
"...It was Borzclubb's scarf."
Drex's eyes widened, and he offered her a small applaus.
"Really? Wow. You rock that, girl."
"Hah!" Scarab pointed at Drex with both hands (and the last quarter of her sausage), grinning widely. "I see what you did there! Rock that. And I deal in gems! How clever!"
"Oh yeah. Nice to see that particular piece of genius wasn't missed!"
Drex glanced around. Time must have flew by, because the camp's disassembly was nearing completion.
Scarab noticed Drex's straying attention, which was a shame, because she was eating up the compliments! She followed his gaze to the busy camp, and finished off her sausage with a large dollop of honey.
"Almost time to go, I take it?"
"Soon. Borzclubb's gonna start yelling any minute now."
Drex scratched his meager belly. With his physique, he kind of did look like an arena fighter, save for his height.
"Also, word is you're going to be traveling with us back to the Mountain Tribes. You excited?"
"Excited...and nervous," Scarab said, playing with a dreadlock. "I feel like a toddler among adults. And there are so many customs and cultural nuances I don't know! I feel like I'm destined to make a fool of myself or offend someone."
Drex shook his head.
"Don't fret about it, you'll learn. Us ogres aren't a very complicated people. What did Borzclubb teach you?"
At his question, Scarab flashed him a bright smile, eager to demonstrate, and laced her fingers together as she turned to him. It was an effort not to add a bow to the gesture, but she held her posture straight and looked him in the eye, counting three seconds in her head before letting her hands drop back into her lap.
"Alternatively, if I'm at a table, I should pound on it with both fists. Three times, to be exact!" She held up one hand, showing off a faint bruise. "I may have gotten a little overzealous, but it seemed to delight Borzclubb well enough."
"Very good!" Drex said as he clapped.
"What else?"
"Hm. Never call an ogre thin. That's a grave insult. The equivalent of calling a human fat, really! Always look an ogre in the eye, and don't scrape and bow. Treat each other as equals, essentially. Is that right?" Scarab asked, tapping her cheek with a manicured and lacquered nail as she thought.
[dangit, I can't get the Drex/Scarab ship out of my head. And it's gonna keep bothering me, too...]
"Yep."
Drex nodded, visibly impressed.
"Pretty and smart."
[Bahahahaha! xD]
Scarab visibly preened, straightening up with a delighted smile and tossing her hair back. "Of course! It's not just good breeding that got me so far in life!" she said proudly.
[Seriously it's like...I know it's sorta possible, but at the same time, I'm like "NAO STAHP". I'm curious, do you feel the same way about it?]
Drex nodded.
He sat back in his seat, running out of things to say again.
[My shipping brain says YES, BUT NO!, but my only thing is I can't tell if Scarab would be down! xDDDD]
"So..." Scarab shifted a little as Drex fell quiet. "Is there anything else I should know? About ogre etiquette and culture?"
[(http://www.quickmeme.com/img/dc/dc2fd6da2c741a3b2f6ae5fcf700e06fafe43267ea271579118ef4292ffb25c6.jpg)
We need to make this happen. Just as like a one-night stand thing. Involving alcohol. And/or drugs]
"Um, that's pretty much the basics, for foreigners. The rest is really nuanced, but you'll probably pick up on them as you go. If you see anything and get curious, you can always ask me or Borzclubb, Drex said, scratching his short beard.
[Looool. She'd probably have to be very outta her mind. How ogre-ish does he look? |: She's vain.]
"Oh, good! And I'm doing well so far? I haven't said anything too horribly offensive or stupid?" Scarab asked, for that was the last thing she wanted to do!
[Well, Drex is still a youngling, technically. Barely above adulthood, so he actually looks pretty close to a human. Except you know, he's really big. And has a statuesque physique, actually. It's when mountain ogres get older that they start to look more like monsters.]
Drex shook his head, stifling some laughter.
"No, you're doing pretty solid. If you'd have said something, I'd have let you know."
[Ah! xD Well if he looks more like a big, strong, Colosseum brawler of a human and isn't hideous, Scarab might actually be interested!]
"Thank Hakeshna for that!" Scarab said, pressing a hand to her chest in relief.
"So you're not one of those sorts that won't say anything for fear of embarrassing the person, while simultaneously letting them embarrass themselves further? Because that drives me mad! Like when I've smeared my kohl or have a piece of something stuck between my teeth and no one says anything! They just let me go about my business looking ridiculous, because they think they'll offend me if they mention it. Ohhh, that's the worst!"
[Really?! Maybe it could be that thing where they're both like "Man, I know Drex/Scarab isn't really my species, but they're kinda hawt..." but they're too afraid to share it because they're afraid they might come off as REALLY WEIRD 8D]
"Nope!"
Drex leaned forwards, to stay more engaged with the conversation.
"Ogres in general are like that. If you say something that unkowingly offends their grandmother, an ogre will immediately let you know. We don't beat around the bush, and that's just part of who we are."
[Hahaha, yes! xD]
"Thank goodness for that. I wish more people were like that in general. I prefer that sort of bluntness--said nicely and discreetly, of course! No one wants to be humiliated, and a little tact goes a long way with honesty."
Drex snorted.
"Well, us ogres are a bit short on tact. Oh, another rule! This won't really apply to you, but if you know ahead of time, it'll keep you from being spooked. We settle everything with fighting. Disputes, ties, even debates. You need to watch where you step, because you never know when a fight can erupt."
"...Oh! Well. Ah. I'm glad that wouldn't apply to me since, well..."
Scarab made a sweeping up and down motion to encompass the entirety of herself. "Tiny and squishy. You could crush me beneath your thumb."
[So yeah. Is there any specific moment you think would be best for Drex and Scarab's mutual slip and subsequent awkward morning? Because I was thinking about it happening at the Mountain Tribes, after they've had about a week of travel together to build up. Probably something involving a celebration and a ton of drinking.]
"Well, maybe not my thumb. One of the Tyrants is this really big and fat ogre. Guy can barely move, but man he's big, you know?"
"...Bigger than Borzclubb?" Scarab asked, trying to imagine that.
"Oh yeah! He's the biggest ogre alive. He can't really walk, though. He's like, for lack of better words, this tub of lard and muscle. He needs to be moved by servants, but at the same time, he can pick you up and crush you into paste without thinking about it," Drex explained.
"Real nice guy, though. Also leads the wealthiest tribe, so you should have no problems with him."
"That's good to know! Ah. The part about him being nice. Not the part where he can't walk and can crush you! That just sounds dreadful. And a little sad..." Scarab said with a frown.
"Though I suppose if he has lots of people to do everything for him, it must not be so bad."
"He's got five of the strongest ogres, just to carry him around on this big platform!" Drex laughed.
"It's quite funny when you see it. He's so jolly..."
"Than I shall look forward to meeting him!" Scarab said, grinning at the visual. It was a pretty silly image!
"I think I would be jolly, too, if I had people to carry me around wherever I went and do everything for me! Ah. You know, as terrifying as going up before the council sounds, I have to admit, this trip is sounding more exciting and less intimidating. Though I do have to stop in Essyrn first to make preparations. Have you ever been there?"
"Oh, no I haven't. Always wanted to go, because I heard they they have this drink that's supposed to give you tons of energy! Borzclubb says we don't have time to stay, though. We gotta head to the rest of the company on the edge of the desert nce we drop you off," Drex said, disappointment in his voice. Then, his eyes widened.
"Wait! You think you can bring me some? Of that drink, I mean."
"A drink that gives your energy...? OH! You mean coffee? You've never had coffee?"
Scarab looked at Drex with something close to horror. "Hakeshna, you poor thing! Of course I'll bring you some! I'll bring you an entire bag of the beans! Hm. Several, actually. I'll need enough to get me through the trip! Oh, but it's delicious stuff! The flavor may take a little getting used to at first, since it can be rather bitter, but with some cream and sugar, it's like drinking dessert!"
"Oh, thank you! You're the best, you know that?" Drex chuckled.
"I've been having a bit of trouble sleeping, so mornings have been killing me."
"I do know that!" Scarab said with a wink, rather surprised at how comfortable she was around this Drex. She'd loosened up around Borzclubb, sure, but talking to this one was almost effortless.
Perhaps because he looked almost human.
Perhaps because he was also strangely...easy on the eyes? More like a ruggedly handsome gladiator straight from the arena than an ogre. So strange...perhaps it was an age thing? He was young and undersized, but all the older, bigger ones looked monstrous.
Suddenly aware of her odd thoughts, Scarab snapped her focus back to his words.
"Well, this drink will certainly help! Just be sure to drink it only in the mornings, because if you drink it past noon, you won't get to sleep at all."
Drex blinked a bit awkwardly at the short period of silence that ensued when Scarab was caught up in her thoughts. He glanced to the sides, but his eyes shot back to her when she spoke again. He nodded, and impressed look on his face.
"Woah, that sounds potent. Is it like, magical or something?"
"Magical? Oh, no, not at all! But it is very potent! It's a miracle bean, that's for sure. Of course, you have to be careful. It can be addicting, and the headaches are terrible when you don't have a cup after having it every morning for a while. And you definitely shouldn't rely on it. If you drink too much of it, you'll start to crash late on in the day once the energy wears off."
Scarab smiled knowingly at that, letting out a small laugh. "I'd know from personal experience."
Drex nodded.
"Gotcha. Although I'm willing to bet it'd take a lot to make an ogre crash on coffee."
"Oh, probably! An entire bag of coffee would probably be the equivalent of a cup for you! Hm. I may have to up the number of bags I pack..." Scarab tapped her lips, which were pursed in thought. "It's a good thing I'm wealthy."
Drex stifled a hearty chuckle. He opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by another ogre, who stepped up to say something.
Drex nodded, and stood from his seat. It seemed the entire camp had been disassembled by now, and the ogres were all mounting up and getting ready.
Borzclubb shouted something at Drex, and he nodded.
"Looks like we're leaving, and I'm on mammoth duty. Wanna ride with me?"
"Mammoth duty? Are those the...the strange elephant creatures?" Scarab asked as she rose to her feet and cast a look toward the beasts, her eyes lighting up.
She had always rather liked elephants, intelligent, powerful creatures that they were.
"Because if so...yes!"
"You bet! let's go!" Drex said, excited to not be alone on top of a mammoth for the whole journey to Essyrn, a trip that would basically last them the entire day.
He motioned for her to follow him, and he began walking towards one of the beasts.
At his prompting, Scarab took off after Drex, practically jogging to keep up since she had to take several steps to his one.
And the closer they got, the larger those mammoths got, as well.
"Hakeshna, they're huge!"
"Yep. Got very few natural predators. We use 'em kinda like the way you humans use oxes. Some ogres even know how to train 'em to fight. Not this one though, she's just a big sweetheart."
The mammoth had a rope ladder hanging from the platform mounted on its back, which looked large enough to mount two ogres comfortably. There was an open barrel filled with javelins as well, just in case the mammoth needed to be defended.
Drex began to ascend the rope ladder, but he stopped at the second rung.
"You gonna need help to get up there?"
Scarab was still studying the beast in awe, neck craned to take her all in, when Drex spoke again. She tore her eyes away and looked to the ladder he ascended, then at Drex.
Like everything else, that ladder was built for ogres, not humans. The rungs were spaced with an ogre's arms and legs in mind, not a human's! If she climbed that thing, she would literally be climbing.
With a slight frown as she weighed her options, she decided it was probably best she not risk breaking her neck.
"I believe that may be best," she said at last, stepping closer. "I'm afraid, judging by the rungs, I don't really have the reach for that climb."
Drex nodded, and descended the two rungs he'd gone up, patting his hands off. He knelt down, and motioned to his neck.
"Get your arms around it, I need both my hands to climb."
Scarab was quick to obey, though she checked her makeshift dress first to be sure it was properly tied. It would be awkward for it to come undone now! With everything in order and the knot tightened, she came up behind Drex and wrapped her arms around his neck--
And was suddenly quite aware that she now had her body pressed to his bare, muscular back, able to feel every hard ripple against her front.
She pushed the thought from her head fast! "All ready!" she said, and held on tight.
Unlike Scarab, Drex's mind happened to spare him any awkward thoughts at this moment, so without a moment to spare, he began ascending, giving Scarab a great view of his powerful arms as he pulled them up onto the platform on the mammoth's back in short order. He let her down, and began rolling up the ladder.
"How's the view?"
Scarab wasn't particularly afraid of heights, though it was quite a different experience to be this high while on the back of a massive animal. With a small gasp, she shifted closer to Drex, one hand on his shoulder, as she stared out over the desert stretching out before them, golden and seemingly endless in all directions.
It was breathtakingly beautiful. She'd never seen the desert from above like this. Oh, sure, her own home had several levels and an excellent view of the Niafi, but that wasn't the same as being out in the middle of nowhere like this, looking upon the smooth, rolling dunes scarred with intricate ripples. It was living art.
"Gorgeous," she said, shielding her eyes against the sun with her other hand. "You must love being on mammoth duty."
Drex shrugged, and sat down in a seat near the back of the platform. He reached behind him, and pulled up an awning to shield him from the sun.
"Eh. It's okay, I suppose. You don't really do much. The view's great, but apart from that, it's pretty boring. Should be better this time around, though, what with having you to keep me company up here."
"Boring?! It's not everyone that can say they've ridden a mammoth! Though...I suppose if you do it often, and never have any company up here, it could get dull after a while."
Adjusting herself on the platform to get more comfortable, Scarab moved more toward the middle of it to feel more stable, and folded her legs beneath her, hands in her lap. "Does your lot come to the desert often?"
"Well, as a mercenary company, The Gaping Maws have been pretty much anywhere people'll pay us to fight. I'm pretty new, so I've only been to Adela and Essyrn, but I know the company's been everywhere. From what I hear, the desert's not really a popular destination for us."
He scratched his abs, sighing as he settled down into his seat. From a holder next to him, he grabbed a pair of reigns, and waited for Borzclubb to give the order to move.
"I can imagine not. if you come from a colder climate like the mountains. You must feel like you're melting here! Just as I'm sure I'll feel like an icicle there," Scarab said, idly fanning her face against the blazing heat.
"Oh, you don't know the half of it. Us ogres are lucky we don't really wear anything, or else I think I would be melting..."
Borzclubb's voice boomed from below, and a horn sounded off. Drex gave the reigns a flick, and the mammoth began to move.
"Are you sure you want to sit there? It's pretty stable back here with me. And there's a seat. And there's shade, too," Drex said, puzzled as to why Scarab would opt to sit in the middle of the platform, in the sun no less!
"Then you understand why Essyrni don't wear much, either!" Scarab said, before looking back at him when he pointed out how much better the back was.
Which was obvious very quickly when they began to move!
She gasped at the creature's rolling gait that made it feel like the platform was tilting with each step, and she needed no further encouragement after that. Carefully timing her move, she scrambled back toward Drex, basically crawling her way there, and fell into the seat next to his, gripping the side of it hard. "Oh, gods! I imagine you get used to the swaying?"
Space in the back of the platform wasn't the most plentiful resource, so in order to stay comfortable, Drex had to swing one of his powerful arms up onto the edge of the platform's railing, and it stretched past Scarab.
"Yeah, it takes a bit getting used to. If you get dizzy, just close your eyes. Other than that, there's nothing to worry about, really."
"Oh, I'm not worried. I trust you all know what you're doing," Scarab said as she peered out at the landscape stretching around them with wide eyes, like she couldn't get enough of it. Plus, she was trying to distract herself from the unsteady sensation!
"My stomach, however, is another story. I daresay this isn't making it very happy, even though I love the sights!"
"Well, it's why I had such a light breakfast. Well, light for me. I know it must've been a feast for you."
Suddenly, he straightened up, and looked at her with bright eyes.
"Oh! How was dinner, by the way?"
"Oh, it was surprisingly delicious! Er." Scarab winced lightly. "I only say 'surprisingly' because...as shameful as it is to admit it, I'm afraid I made a lot of incorrect and offensive assumptions, ahem. Assumptions that have been corrected."
She played with the end of a dreadlock, adjusting some of the decorative threads woven into the hair. "There was rather more meat there than I'm used to, but I must say, your people certainly know how to throw a feast, not to mention cook. It was as good--even better--than some of the things I've had prepared in my own home!"
Drex watched her carefully, eyes narrowing slightly when she made her flub. His expression softened again when she corrected her mistake, and he nodded.
"You'd best believe our cooking's great. Size is the source of an ogre's power, so food is everything to us. An ogre who can cook is said to be blessed from birth with that ability. Their noses and tongues are sharper, you see. True masters of their art. One of the Tyrants is a Feastmaster, I believe."
"Another thing our cultures have in common, it seems. We love our feasting, to be sure! Perhaps not to the same degree, but who doesn't love food? Er...perhaps we shouldn't speak of food presently, however..." Scarab said, placing a hand over her belly as one particularly lurching step of the mammoth sent her stomach fluttering.
"Eh? Oh, yeah. That. Sorry..." Drex mumbled as he rubbed the back of his neck. He leaned further back against his seat. Up ahead, an ogre scout took off, mantling a dune ahead of their convoy.
"So...Got any loved ones waiting for you back in Essyrn? A man, maybe? No way a girl like you's single."
And at that, Scarab gave a hearty laugh that she tried to hide behind a hand.
"Oh, I have many men vying for my affection," she said, ever humble! And her eyes sparkled with mischief as she said it. "But none who have completely won it. I'm a very busy woman, you see! As for other loved ones, well, I have friends and slaves, but otherwise it's just me. And yourself? Any ogre wives or children?"
Drex sighed.
"With a slim, toned body like mine?" He asked pretty incredulously, placing a hand over his gargantuan abs.
"No. That's only in my dreams."
One eyebrow cliiimbed as Scarab looked at him, then at his abs, then back at his face. It was crazy to think that, one day, he would start to look monstrous, when he currently looked...surprisingly handsome. Never something she thought she'd think about an ogre.
"Ogre women are clearly crazy, then."
Drex's face held a little confusion as well.
"Are...are you saying you find me attractive?"
ERP.
Scarab's eyes flew wide open and she held up a finger as though to say something, then let it drop, her cheeks darkening as they warmed.
"I...yes. I suppose I was. Don't take that the wrong way! I mean, any human with a pair of working eyes would think so. You don't look much like an ogre."
And then her eyes grew larger and she clapped a hand over her mouth. "Ohhhh, Hakeshna, that was probably very offensive, wasn't it?! I didn't mean it badly! I mean it as a compliment! Not that there's anything wrong with looking like an ogre, I--"
She bit her lip. "I will stop while I can still climb out of the hole I dug."
She...she did?
Drex looked away, not out of anger or spite, but out of sheer surprise as his own pale cheeks lit up quite visibly.
"Er...No! It's fine, really. Uh... I don't mind. I'm just really surprised, you know? Because I'm so scrawny..."
It was like a weight was lifted from Scarab's shoulders when he wasn't offended! She let out a relieved breath, shoulders relaxing from around her ears.
"See, that's the thing, though. To a human, you're not scrawny at all. Why, you look like one of our gladiators, one of the truly ripped ones!"
"Oh. Thanks, I guess? I don't really know what to think, really. Always used to being pushed around for my size..." Drex said.
Suddenly, he grinned at her, and lowered his arm from the wooden railing behind her. He held his bicep up to her, smiling.
"Wanna feel it?"
If she took up the offer, she'd find that Drex's muscles felt even better than they looked. They weren't just hard, they were like stone.
Well, seemed ogres and said gladiators were no different from each other after all. Always so proud of their muscles and flexing them all over the place!
With an amused grin, she looked from his bicep to his face and back.
"Oh, ah...sure?" she said, and reached out to give it a tentative squeeze--and was surprised when there was no give. He was rock solid, all right!
"Wow. And to think they call you scrawny! You're anything but," she said, poking at the muscle.
"Well, the other ogres have basically the same amount of muscle, if not more. If he wanted to, Borzclubb could lift me clean off the ground!" Drex said, lowering his arm further for Scarab.
"The thing is, the bigger ogres all have their muscles hidden beneath the fat, and the fact that that they're much heavier means their bodies need to be much stronger to support them."
"That may be so, but having your muscles all out where they can be seen isn't a bad thing by any means," Scarab said with a laugh, poking at his bicep. "On humans, it's ideal. People want them to be seen, generally, as...hmmm..."
She tapped her nails along his arm in thought. "As a sign of their prowess, I suppose! Or to attract a lover."
"Hmm. Bit of a funny thought, really. I didn't really know I was attractive by human standards. Would've actually been useful to know sooner..."
He relaxed his arm, even as Scarab's nails played along his muscles. Even in a loose, calm state, they were so incredibly solid.
"So, by that reasoning, is it going out on a limb to suggest that you like my muscles?"
Eyes going wide, Scarab quickly released Drex's arm and sat back in her seat, hands folded demurely in her lap. "Ahem. Er. They are very nice. Very strong! I'm sure you could punch down a tree with those things!" she said, her face heated. Oh goodness! Hopefully she hadn't given the wrong impression!
"In any case, why would that be useful to know? That humans like it, I mean?"
"I dunno. Might come in handy one day. It's better than not knowing, at any rate."
If Scarab's skin had been any lighter, Drex might've noticed her blush. Instead, seeing that she was done with his arm, he raised back above her and onto the backrest. He looked out ahead, staring at the mammoth's bobbing head for a few moments, before looking back at her.
"See? Don't you just get used to the swaying after a bit?"
Whoa.
Scarab hadn't realized it until then, but she had acclimated to the swaying! Either that, or her mind had been occupied enough that she'd forgotten to be bothered. Regardless, she hadn't noticed she no longer noticed the swaying until Drex pointed it out.
"Oh! Oh, wow, that's so strange!" she said, though she was starting to notice it again now that it was brought to her attention. "I suppose the distraction helped."
Drex grinned like a cocky bastard, and looked back out over the desert.
"Make a nice distraction, do I?" he teased while scratching his belly. He yawned, and stretched his arms out, inadvertently putting one on the backrest and around Scarab when he set them back down.
He didn't really seem to notice, though. He'd been up on the mammoth alone so many times, he was just sort of used to occupying the space.
GAH!
"Wha--oh! OH!" Scarab went rigid with embarrassment, her face flushing, and waved her hands frantically. "Oh, no, I didn't mean it like--" Oh dear. Stop! Pause! Reassess that statement! She realized what she had been about to say could come across as rude or at least ego-crushing, so she restarted!
With a sheepish laugh, she said, "That is to say, yes! Of course you do. Your company is wonderful and our conversation has been eye-opening!"
[Dunno if you meant to finish your post there or somethin'...]
Drex laughed, and waved a hand at her.
"Don't worry about it, Scarab. I'm just playing around with you!" he laughed, and looked back out towards the desert.
"If it helps, you make a pretty good distraction too."
[Doh! xD It was finished! My tablet was just being dumb. |: ]
"Do I?" Scarab said, and tried to pretend she didn't notice where his arm had ended up. It seemed one of those situations where it might actually be more awkward to point it out than to quietly ignore it, considering the odd direction of their conversation. She folded her hands in her lap and watched the mammoth's head as it walked and swayed.
"Not surprising! I've been acting like a stupid, gawking foreigner my entire time here!"
Intentional or not, that was the only place Drex's arm could go! By himself, he didn't have much space up here. But with Scarab sitting next to him? His arm had nowhere else to go!
"I wouldn't call it stupid, but I can see where you're coming from. Us ogres are a bit tough to get used to."
"To be fair, I'm sure people are, too. It all depends on your perspective and what you're accustomed to, after all."
Scarab paused, scrunched up her face, and added after a thought, "Then again, I find plenty of other people plenty tough to get used to!"
Drex released a grunt of agreement, nodding.
"That's true. Very true..."
Awkward silence could be felt edging over on the horizon.
"So... You excited to see the Mountain Tribes?"
"Ah...now that, my friend, is a question with a very layered answer," Scarab said, cupping her chin in her hand and scrunching her brow.
"I think the better word is terrified," she said, glancing over at Drex. "Positively terrified, and I'm not ashamed to admit that. I'll be going to a foreign land to represent myself and my company. I'll be, in a way, representing Essyrn itself as a sort of informal ambassador! My very reputation will be at stake. I must conduct myself in the best fashion a human can possibly conduct themselves, school myself on ogre etiquette, prepare and present my proposal, and pray to Hakeshna I don't make an absolute fool of myself and put Borzclubb through all this trouble for nothing. He seems to believe in me, so it would be disastrous to let him down after he took a chance on me."
She shrugged her shoulders uncomfortably, loosening up the tension there. "All that said...yes. Yes, I am excited! Aside from the terror, I'm very curious and intrigued about this all. I never once thought I'd be traveling so far beyond Essyrn, and despite the inconvenience and dire lack of amenities, I really enjoy travel so...of course I'd leap at the opportunity! It'll be fun! Aside from the crippling fear of failure!"
Drex laughed, throwing his head back as he bellowed out heartily.
"That makes two of us. I mean, nothing'll put the fear of crippling failure in you like working in a mercenary company. But you shouldn't really worry about it too much, though."
He turned his palms upwards.
"I mean, us ogres have a lot of scary names for things, and I'm sure we must look like monsters to average people, but you've seen how nice we are. You've experienced our hospitality! Trust me, you're gonna have a great, wild time. We know how to treat our guests right."
"Oh, I've no doubts about that! You've been nothing but cordial and hospitable and I appreciate that! I know everything else will be fun, it's just the whole council part that's scary. But I'll not talk about that anymore! We can talk about the fun things. I'd definitely like to hear more about that!"
Scarab leaned back to get comfortable, felt Drex's arm there, and shifted forward again. "For example, how wild is wild? What do ogres get up to for fun?"
Drex noticed her move forwards to not lean on his arm, and he brought it back, draping it across his abdomen. It wouldn't be the most comfortable for Drex, but he didn't exactly want to cause Scarab to have a bad trip, either!
"Fun? We feast, fight, drink... general merriment, really. Spring festival's coming up, so you might just be there for the craziest party on the continent."
"That all sounds fun! Except for the fighting. I can't really say I'd stand much of a chance in a fight against any of you," Scarab said with a teasing smile.
"Sounds interesting, though! If rowdy."
"Rowdy's a good word, yeah."
Drex yawned and leaned his head back.
"Damn... So tired..."
"Can you nap?" Scarab asked. "Will the animal follow the others, or does it need to be steered?"
"Ugh, that's the problem with mammoths. They tend to slow down if somebody isn't prodding them along. Problem is, they don't do it that often, but it's often enough that I can't just nod off."
"Oh," Scarab said, looking to the mammoth. And then she looked back at Drex, a curious look crossing her face.
"So...all you have to do is poke them now and then?"
"Yup."
He caught her look, and returned it.
"We train them pretty well. They follow the convoys just well enough.
Scarab nibbled her bottom lip, debating with herself and her own curiosity. Would it be overstepping to ask, or just helpful?
Finally, she gave a little smile and a shrug. "If it's that simple, and you're feeling sleepy...why don't I give it a try? You could catch a little rest, and I can just poke him every now and then." She paused. "Or her."
Drex considered Scarab's offer. And by consider her offer, he considered just how tired he was in relation to how comfortable he was at the current moment.
After a few seconds of deliberation, he nodded.
"Sure! Lemme just give you a quick crash course," Drex said.
He motioned to a simple compass set on the front of the elephant's saddle, facing the both of them.
"We're going east right now. If you see the compass start to deviate, just reach on over to either side, and give one of these poles a nudge," He explained, motioning to poles on either side of the seat they were occupying.
"If you feel her start to slow down, there's another pole behind the seat. Got it?"
Scarab listened intently to Drex's explanation, and when he was done, she broke out into a bright smile. "Oh, that sounds easy. Yes, I think I can bear to remember that. That shouldn't be anything I can't handle."
She sat up as she spoke until she was straight-backed and alert, and she rolled her shoulders back to loosen them up. "Trust me not to do too terribly?" she asked, and cracked her knuckles in a most unladylike fashion, a habit that drove her mother crazy and would have had her whacking her hand.
"I trust ya..."
Drex popped his neck, a sound that made Scarab's knuckle crack sound like the fluttering of a butterfly.
He leaned back, shifted about to get himself comfortable, and let his head drop backwards.
"Anything happens, just wake me up..."
"You got it," Scarab said with a smile as she folded her legs beneath her and settled in. "Get some rest, now."
Perhaps Drex thought the job dull, but for Scarab, it was a fresh new experience, and there was a lot to watch. Watching the other ogres work, watching the scenery pass by, observing their strange animals, all of that was new and interesting to her.
Though she could also see how it would be painfully boring to someone who found all this totally normal.
"~Thank you~" Drex hummed, and closed his eyes. It took him a few minutes to fall asleep, but when he finally did, he might as well have died. Head thrown back, one arm draped over the edge of the elephant's saddle, he was no longer on the material plane.
What was best, though, was his light snore. So light in fact, it could feasibly come from a human.
If it weren't for his snoring, Scarab may have thought he'd gone and died. She glanced over at him, biting her lip to hold back a snicker, because it was kind of...strangely cute? This big, tough, muscle-bound guy sleeping like a baby and snoring like a lamb. From the looks of it, it looked like the only thing that might wake him is a full on crash.
With a smile and a shake of her head, she turned her focus to navigation, and found it rather easy. Every now and then, she had to urge the beast to pick up her pace when she started to lag, but she seemed pretty intent on staying with the others.
Still, it was a pretty neat experience! It wasn't just anyone that could say they'd not only ridden, but guided, some sort of massive mammoth beast owned by ogres!
A good half-hour passed, and Drex was still knocked out. Suddenly, Borzclubb's voice boomed down from beneath them.
"Drex! Your water ration's up."
Drex didn't wake up.
"Drex!"
Half an hour in, and Scarab could definitely see how this job could get boring. With company, it was one thing, alone like this, it swiftly got dull. There was only so much of ogres riding about that you could watch before it lost its shiny newness--and Scarab's attention span could already be fickle.
She sighed, nudging a pole to make the mammoth veer left more, and resigned herself to the mediocrity.
At least, until Borzclubb's voice came booming up for Drex--and Drex remained motionless. He didn't stir the first time, nor the second, so Scarab reached over and nudged his arm. "Drex? Wake up! Borzclubb wants you."
Drex didn't stir the first few nudges, but after a good couple more, he started awake. He glanced around rapidly, expecting an emergency.
Before he could say anything;
"DREX!"
Drex leaned over the edge of the railing.
"what?"
"Your water ration!"
A heave from Borzclubb, and a firm pat as Drex caught his water jug ration and held it in his lap. Without hesitating, he started to uncork it.
Scarab had been so distracted with wonderment and awe that she'd forgotten some very basic things--like bodily needs. It wasn't until Drex caught and uncorked the water that she realized it had been a while since she'd last drank, and that she was very, very thirsty. She hadn't done much but sit here, but she'd already lost much water through sweat.
She eyed it, licking her lips--which were quite dry. Ugh. She'd gotten so distracted she'd forgotten that, too, but she was sure she looked a wreck. No makeup on or anything.
"Oh, what good timing. I almost forgot how thirsty I was!"
Drex looked over to Scarab, smirking a bit.
"This drink's for the both of us, so try not to gorge yourself too much, alright?"
Drex handed Scarab the jug. The liquid inside smelled slightly sweet and tangy, very much unlike water. The jug contained a very light ale, mixed with honey and lemon juice. More flavorful than water, and just about as hydrating.
Scarab gave Drex an amused smile. She was tiny compared to him; how much did he think she could drink? If she did gorge herself on the drink, she was sure it would leave hardly a dent in that big jug!
Taking it in both hands, she tipped it back carefully and drank gracefully as she could, spilling not a drop. She could smell it before she'd even taken a sip and knew it wasn't just water, and when it hit her tongue, it was even better. Tangy and sweet and delicious all at once, it was an effort not to chug it and to take dainty sips instead. But she knew better; chugging water when you were hot and potentially a little dehydrated would just make you sick.
When she was done, she handed the jug back to Drex and licked her lips. "That's really good. What is that? I tasted honey and lemon...ale?"
"Yep. The sweetest, lightest Serenian ale we could find, and honey and lemons. The drinks usually change with the region. It's probably gonna be some of your Essyrni drinks on the ride back."
He lifted the jug ine one arm, like it weighed almost nothing to him. He drank deeply, pulling his head back with a sigh.
"It's pretty great stuff."
"Serenian. Is that so? It's quite good. Light, and befitting of what I know of its people--what I know of them, anyway. Whimsical, I think the word is."
Scarab stretched her back and shoulders, arching backwards and letting out a yawn. All that sitting was starting to make her stiff.
"Have you ever had Essyrni ale? It's a lot stronger than that. Of course, most people water it down for meals. No one really drinks it uncut unless they're trying to get drunk."
"Never really been to Essyrn, soo... Nope."
He clapped his free hand onto his thigh and looked at her plainly.
"I'm pretty surprised you can grow stuff around her. All I've seen is desert..."
"That's because you haven't been to Essyrn proper," Scarab said with a small waggle of her finger.
"Essyrn is beautiful! It's lush, a paradise in the desert, the spring from which all life on this earth came. The Niafi runs through it, the precious artery of the desert, and the lands there are quite fertile. A lot grows in Essyrn. It's the jewel of the desert for a reason."
"Woah. Sounds pretty big..."
Drex adjusted the mammoth's course and speed, and leaned back into the seat.
"You know, I think it's great that you're coming down to the Mountain Tribes to visit. I can't remember the last time we've had a visitor, let alone a merchant princess."
"You don't deal with many humans, then?" Scarab asked. She figured she knew the reason for that, but thought it would be very impolite to mention that. Of course most humans would find them monstrous and scary, and even Drex, who looked almost human, was huge and intimidating! Her first thought had been that they were going to eat her when she encountered them!
So it stood to reason they probably didn't deal with humans much.
"Can't say we do, no. Humans don't really find us the trading and cooperating type, no matter what we do. You're like the...what... third human I've ever talked to."
"THIRD? Really? That few? Then again, I can't talk. Your group are the first ogres I've interacted with."
Drex shook his head.
"Well, Borzclubb does most of the talking. I'm not really high-up around here either. I throw the javelins, remember?" Drex said, motioning to the bag of titanic throwing spears laying at his feet.
"But, if you think I'm big and strong, I guess it doesn't really matter what all the other ogres think."
Scarab looked at Drex and raised her eyebrows, head slightly tilted with curiosity. "Oh? Does my opinion carry that much weight already?"
"Well, it's unbiased. A third-party opinion, I guess. Don't that count for something?"
"Good point! That does count for a lot, I suppose. I just hadn't thought of it that way. Very well, then! I find you very big and strong, Drex! You are by far stronger and bigger than the strongest gladiator I've ever laid eyes on!" Scarab said with a laugh, thoroughly amused. What a strange culture ogres had!
With a curious glance over at the ogres milling about beyond, she looked back to Drex as a question popped into her mind, one she'd wondered about before but hadn't yet asked. "Say, where are your women? I've only seen men among your people thus far."
"Women? Well, of course there's no women," Drex started.
"Borzclubb leads a mercenary company, not a tribe. I think there's a couple female ogres in our ranks, but none of them are here in Essyrn. The rest of the company's waiting for us to return, on the border."
"I see!" Scarab said, a little disappointed, because she was intensely curious as to what orge women looked like. "I imagine they're as big and strong as the rest of you?"
Drex nodded eagerly.
"For the most part, yeah. They're hardy, just like us men, although they tend to be lean, like me."
"What's your society like, if you don't mind my asking?" Scarab asked, still rather fascinated by the topic. After all, she was well read in a variety of topics--though she was no expert in any, for she lacked the attention span to commit to only one thing.
"For example, in Essyrn, women generally tend to the home while men do the soldiering and herding and craft trades."
"Well, us Ogres are strong as hell, and we know it. Men and women both fight, except women only fight to defend the tribe. Men take care of all the offense. Apart from that, anybody can be anything. The environment's harsh, so valuable skills are still valuable, no matter who's got 'em."
Drex looked to Scarab.
"That make sense?"
"That makes sense," Scarab said with a nod. "Makes more sense that none of the women are here, in that case. Though I'm sure even your society had exceptions, yes?"
And at that, she puffed up with pride. "For example, I'm an exception in my society. Unmarried, wealthy, entrepreneurial--and female. It's almost unheard of in Essyrn. There are plenty of male merchants, and plenty of merchant princes. Merchant princesses, though? We're a rare breed."
"Wow, that's pretty impressive," Drex said, hiding his tiny bit of amusement at the sight of her all puffed up. Mostly because even seated he was more than twice her size.
"Well, there's been a fair amount of female tyrants and warlor--er, warladies. I think the Maw Preacher at the Council of Tyrants has been run by women for as far as anyone can remember.
Scarab tilted her head. "Maw Preacher?"
"Well, you know how the council of Tyrants is made of the tribal leaders? The whole event is presided over by the Maw Preacher. A priest, technically."
Drex cleared his throat, and took another swig of his honey-ale ration.
"Ohhhh. So is she like the...head leader? Or do your tribes have a ruler? A ruler that presides over all the tribes, I mean," Scarab asked, thinking it best she learn what she could about ogre politics while she had the chance. It was always good to know who she had to suck up to! Or at least work hardest to impress.
"Not really," Drex said, and offered Scarab the jug of ale.
"She's got just as much power as a tyrant, except she doesn't really rule a "tribe". All the tribal shamans and priests report to her, though, so I guess her "tribe" is spread around, rather in one place."
Drex shrugged.
"That make sense?"
"Ah, yes! That does make sense. She is the spiritual leader, then? Goodness, you have a lot of people to keep track of!"
With a languid, feline stretch that arched her back, Scarab leaned her head back against the seat, a little sun-tired. "I hope I'll be able to remember all this."
"Well, they're our leaders, so I reckon we get used to keeping track."
He coughed a bit, and adjusted the mammoth's course again.
"I'm sure Borzclubb will remind you."
"I'm sure I'll need it!" Scarab admitted with a laugh, before giving him a quick once over.
"So you've really never been to Essyrn. Hmm, that's a bit of a shame. You'd very likely dominate the Colosseum, if you ever entered."
"Borzclubb's been in there once," Drex said.
Drex cleared his throat, and wiped a few beads of sweat off his brow.
"He said it was boring. No place for an ogre."
"Boring?!" Scarab exclaimed, staring at Drex, before she burst into laughter. "Ah! I suppose he would think that! But he's huge! He could just step on his competition. You might have a better time of it, and get to show off and get famous in the process!"
"Hm..."
Drex crossed his arms, giving her a look.
"Gotta say, that sounds real tempting. But my place is here. Of course, if things ever go wrong, I'll consider that possibility."
He snickered a bit.
"Maybe you could sponsor me."
"I could! I do have the funds!" Scarab said, rubbing her chin as though seriously contemplating that. "You could be my champion."
"I can see it now," Drex mused, extending a hand and holding it out to him, as if he was beholding the future.
"I would stride out onto the sand, my jewel-trimmed armor shining in the sun. I'd take a swing, mash my enemy into the ground in a single blow, and go back inside for a nap."
He laughed, and took another giant swig from his honeyed ale.
"Mighty champion indeed..."
Scarab covered a giggle with her hand as she pictured the...lackluster entertainment along with him.
"Truuuue," she conceded. "But it's not JUST humans that fight. Dangerous beasts get tossed in there, too. And onc time there was an orc!"
"Well, if you ever find something that can stand shoulder to shoulder with a mountain ogre, don't hesitate to contact us."
In the distance, the glittering buildings of Essyrn came into view.
"Woah..."
"First time seeing it?" Scarab asked with a grin, quite pleased with his awe.
"Yep..."
Drex leaned back to properly take it all in.
"Gorgeous, isn't it? It's without a doubt the most prosperous, wealthy city on this earth. It's where all life originated, you know," Scarab said as they approached, all puffed up with pride. "We are the envy of every other nation."
"Not all life," Drex said casually, scratching his chin.
"Mountain Ogres were borne of ice and stone. Not--" He motions to the desert. "--This."
"Oh, well..." Scarab waved a hand dismissively. "It was a long, long time ago when all life was created. New things have been created since that time. Just because life started there doesn't mean no life has started elsewhere since."
She smiled. "I'm sure once life poured from the desert and gave the world all the fundamentals, your ogres came around a little later from your mountains."
Drex remained silent, not really feeling like challenging any beliefs right now, and he took another swig of honeyed mead. He held it out for Scarab, in case she wanted another.
Scarab happily accepted the mead and took a swig, rather too warm to worry that she was swapping spit with an ogre.
"You could pass fairly easily as an absurdly tall human, if you ever wanted to visit Essyrn, you know," she said as she wiped her lips clean of excess mead.
Drex scoffed, Ogreish pride visible on his face.
"Disguised as a human? If I'll go, I'll go as I am."
"You misunderstand! I'm not suggesting you pretend to be human. I would never suggest you lie," Scarab said, resting a hand on his shoulder as though to assure him. "I'm just suggesting you...omit the truth, perhaps."
"So... you say I just keep quiet, then?"
Drex looked down at the tanned hand resting on his pale shoulder, almost like a bug resting on stone. Indeed, his shoulder muscles did feel like stone.
"Only say I'm an ogre if someone asks?"
"Exactly! And no one should ask, because that would just be rude. You don't just go up to someone and ask what they are. See? Rude!"
"Well, I won't always be in polite company," Drex said, smiling.
The city was getting closer, now. No doubt the guards on the wall could see the incoming ogre caravan.
No doubt they could, indeed.
Scarab could already see a few shapes on the wall scurrying about, relaying the news to others down the line. Scarab shot Drex a look.
"Should I get off here and walk the rest of the way? Or do you think it'll be okay?"
"Yeah, maybe you should..."
Drex stood up, and walked to the edge of the palanquin, looking down at Borzclubb. They had an exchange in Ogreish, and then the convoy came to a halt.
Drex walked over, and tossed the ladder off the side.
"Need help getting down?"
"Oh, yes, please! That would be much appreciated!" Scarab said as she edged closer to the ladder. She adjusted Borzclubb's scarf better around her, hoping it would keep her decent when she descended, and then looked to Drex for assistance.
"Perhaps you could escort me to the city, too?"
Drex's eyes widened a bit at the proposition, and he smiled, rubbing the back of his head.
"Sure!"
He offered her his arm to use as a perch, and got situated on the ladder.
Oh! Scarab's eyes widened when Drex took his place on the ladder and offered his arm, for she had been prepared to do the climbing herself. This made it better, though. Less daunting.
Though also kind of funny! She'd of course seen those street performers and acrobats and muscle men who let ladies sit on their biceps and toted them around for show, and she briefly imagined this playing out like a performance. With an amused smile, she stepped over to him and perched herself on his shoulder and held onto his head for balance and security.
"Be careful..."
"Relax, I've done this a hundred times."
Drex descended the ladder, and before long, his feet hit sand.
His head turned to look at the woman perched on his shoulder.
"Having fun up there?"
"I feel like I should be doing some form of acrobatics up here," Scarab replied with a smile, and let her tight grip on him relax. It was also in that moment that she realized, yet again, how very, very small she was compared to Drex. He was huge! She was like a bird perched on his arm!
"I'd welcome the attempt," Drex said with a grin, but he suddenly froze. He glanced around, realizing that the entire caravan of Ogres was watching them.
Borzclubb said something in ogreish, and Drex's cheeks reddened up a bit.
"We... we should get going."
Scarab caught Borzclubb's comment, but of course couldn't make heads or tails of it. She did catch its tone, though, and the way Drex suddenly faltered.
Peering down at him curiously, she leaned toward his ear and pitched her voice low. "What did he say?"
"Oh, it... It was a joke."
Drex cleared his throat, and motioned for Scarab to get down so he could mount up. He held an arm down to hoise her up onto the saddle in front of him.
"Oh! A joke!" Scarab slid down at his direction, and then waited for him to help her up onto his mount.
"I love jokes! And I love hearing new ones, especially from different cultures! What was it?"
"Erm..."
Drex helped her up, setting her down in front of him on the seat like he was moving a child.
"Let's just get going."
Scarab poked her lip out in a pout at that, feeling rather left out. It always drove her crazy when people talked around her like she couldn't hear and then wouldn't tell her what they'd been saying! Of course, in Essyrn, most people that did that did it to be patronizing, and claimed she wouldn't understand because she was a woman.
No matter that she was a self-made, intelligent, very wealthy woman! Misogyny knew no bounds.
"Hmph," she said, settling down on Drex's mount. "Is it because I'm a woman and you don't want to be impolite?"
"No," Drex said plainly as he took up the reigns. He glanced back at the others as they got going.
"They were just teasing me. Making jokes about what we were doing up there."
After a few moments of quiet, Drex spoke up again.
"Ogres don't really make a fuss about gender. It's all about size."
"About what we were...?"
Scarab trailed off, then covered her mouth and burst into laughter, a light blush dusting her dark cheeks. "You don't mean like...that?"
"Scarab and Drex, sitting in a mammoth saddle," Drex said, and he laughed a bit.
"You can guess the rest."
"You mean to say they think we were...doing things?" Scarab said, her blush only growing. With another laugh, she shook her head.
"Is that even possible?"
"I don't think they actually think that," Drex said, a little bit of a blush visible on his pale skin.
"They're just teasing."
He remained silent for a few more moments, and he shrugged.
"It... might be possible. I mean, I'm not saying that it won't be a tight fit, but... Half-ogres are a thing."
Scarab hardly let Drex finish his sentence. As soon as he got to "tight fit", she threw her hands up with a choked sound and waved them vigorously. "Sweet Hakeshna, I didn't actually want an answer!" she sputtered, face on fire now.
"Then don't ask!" Drex laughed, and he spurred the mount to go a bit faster.
"Us Ogres are extremely blunt people."
"I can see that! Goodness gracious..." Scarab said, and relaxed into the saddle.
"Well, shocking as said bluntness is, I think I'd honestly rather someone be blunt with me than obscure."
Drex nodded, settling into the saddle a bit more as the rhinox picked up speed. If she didn't watch herself, Scarab might bump against his chiseled body.
"Same. Wouldn't have it any other way."
With the swaying of the rhinox, and the closeness of Drex's body, it was nigh impossible not to bump into him. And each time she did, it was like bumping into a brick wall; he seemed to her to be made of all muscle with very little give.
Hakeshna...
The city wall was fast approaching, and Scarab shifted in her seat a little, brushing against him in the process. "You know, if you wanted, you could always accompany me inside Essyrn," she said. "Rather than have to make several trips back and forth. If you're curious to see the city, that is. You would blend in fairly well, as I mentioned previously."
As Drex hadn't yet reached that age where Mountain Ogres put on pounds by the wagonloads, his body was nothing but pure muscle, hard as bricks. Combined with the relatively thick skin of a Mountain Ogre, this meant that Drex's bare skin could turn away blades and arrows if they were of a lackluster forging.
"I'd love to go in with you, but I gotta take this rhinox back to the caravan. You're gonna have to follow the original plan, and meet up with our caravan at the edge of the desert."
Drex adjusted in the saddle a bit and straightened up, giving Scarab the opportunity to use his abs as a backrest, if she so desired.
"We don't got the supplies to wait out here."
"A shame," Scarab said as she leaned back against him when leaning forward so long started to make her spine all stiff. "Perhaps another time, then! In that case, I'll be as quick as I can, though it shouldn't take long, Hakeshna willing. Say..."
She twisted around to look at him. "How long of a trip is it to your mountains, again?"
"Well, it's a pretty decent trek to the Thunderblacks, and then there's the crags. After that, though, there's a highland hidden in the thunderblacks. Mountain Tribe territory."
Drex shrugged.
"If you want an estimate, I'd say around three weeks from the edge of the desert."
Scarab nodded, idly tickling off numbers on her fingers as she tried to figure out how she would need to pack. How many sets of clothes...3 weeks there, 3 weeks back, not to mention the time she spent among Drex's people...
"What sorts of clothes should I pack?" she asked. "For cooler weather, I assume? Hm...I'm not even sure I have clothes for cool weather." She tapped her chin. "Most of my clothes are quite sheer."
"Oh yeah, cold weather clothing for sure. It gets pretty snowy up on the peaks," Drex said.
As Essyrn's walls got closer, Drex fell silent. He looked down at Scarab, and thought flashed through his eyes.
"You know, I reckon I could go inside with you. I mean, I've gotta escort you to your place anyways, the boss won't mind if I'm gone an extra minute or so."
"Oh? Well, then, excellent! You can at the very least get a peek at what Essyrn offers! The sights, the sounds--and, of course, a nice view of my home. I do love to show that off. I don't have many people to show it off to, come to think of it."
She beamed back at him. "Perhaps you can make a brief trip to the market with me, too? Help point out what might be more suitable for the weather?"
"To be honest, I don't think Essyrnis havem uch in the way of winter clothing. At least, not the kind you're gonna need. I think..."
He rubbed his chin.
"I think youll be much better off waiting for us to make a stop in Adela to buy a coat. The caravan will probably a stop to resupply in Ketra just before we start to head into the mountains. I'm sure the Adelans will have just the kind of coat you need."
He rolled his shoulders.
"Probably for much cheaper, too."
"Oh, Ketra! I've always wanted to see Adela. I hear it's very green with so many trees!" Scarab said with a wistful sigh.
Drex laughed at Scarab's eagerness.
"Oh, it's beautiful. If you get up high enough in certain places, it's green as far as the eye can see. There's nothing like it."
With a beaming smile, Scarab twisted in her seat to peer back at Drex. "Will you show me, then? When we arrive in Adela?"
Drex nodded, beaming right back at her.
"i'll make sure you get mammoth duty with me once we start getting into the country," he said.
"So you can see the green slowly roll up from the distance."
"I'd love that! Thank you!" Scarab said, trying to imagine it and failing. She'd seen paintings and drawings, of course, but nothing compared to the real thing, she was sure. To see those rolling green hills and endless trees in person...
But for now, something else was approaching them far faster. Or rather, they were approaching it. The city wall loomed before them, the sentries watching them with wide eyes. But it wasn't Drex they gaped at--it was his beast, and they looked like they were about to swallow their own tongues.
Kaadir were one thing, but rhinoxes were far less common!
Smiling up at the guards, Scarab waved to them. "Salutations!" she called in Essyrni. "I'm Scarab Allunah, just returning home!"
"I gotta tell you, it's a hell of a view. In the mountains, all you get is white. White and black," Drex said, and he brought his rhinox to a stop so the gates could open.
"It took my breath away,"
The gates creaked open enough to let the beast through, and soon they shut behind them as they entered the rich, vibrant city filled with the scents of spices and perfumes and savory foods. Kaadir mulled about, lead by or ridden by their handlers, and Scarab watched Drex's face as thoughtl to gauge his thoughts.
"It sounds very cold--I can't even imagine!" she said, and gave a little shiver at the thought. "But it must be lovely!"
"Well, cold for you, maybe..." Drex mumbled, too taken by his surroundings to even properly reply. His rhinox let out a grunt when they passed by the kaadir.
"So, uh... where's your house?"
"On the other side of Essyrn," Scarab answered with a smile. "Near the river delta."
Which was the wealthy part of the city, though Drex might not know that.
"About a half hour's walk from here by kaadir...perhaps less by your beast. I'll tell you where to go, but for now head straight on." And then, pausing, she looked curiously at him. "What do you think so far?"
"Well, I can definitely say that this city smells amazing," Drex said.
"The wingless dragons are pretty cool, too," he added as they passed by one of the beasts. He spurred his rhinox, and the beqst snorted before falling into a canter.
"I'm gonna have to pick up some food on the way out."
"Oh, I can show you all the best places! Don't get anything from here," Scarab quickly added with a sniff. "It's low class and you just don't know what they've done to your food. Or what's in it. I wouldn't trust it."
She absently played with the ends of one dreadlock. "Besides, the least I can do is feed you after everything you and yours have done for me."
"Why, thanks!" Drex said, and he looked down at Scarab to give her a smile, bag of giant javelins on his back clattering with the movement.
"I'll happily accept your hospitality! I've never really been in a human house."
He went quiet.
"Will I fit through the door?"
Scarab choked out a laugh at the earnestness of that question, and quickly covered her mouth out of politeness. "Your shoulders might brush the sides and you may have to duck, but our doors aren't that tiny!"
A pause. "Granted, my doorways are larger than most..." Considering her wealth and status.
"Oh...kay," Drex said, and he glanced around at the various low-wealth buildings as they passed them. Those doors seemed pretty damned tiny. Couldn't even fit an adult Sabretusk through some of them...
"So are humans like ogres, then? The more important you are, the bigger your hut?"
Scarab had never thought she'd ever in her life be compared to an ogre! And if she hadn't come to know Drex and his band as she had, she certainly would have been offended!
But right then, she only laughed behind her hand and shrugged. "I...I suppose you could say that, when you put it like that!" she said. "Though I don't have a hut. I have an estate. It's large and beautiful and--well, you'll see!"
"Estate," Drex repeated.
He didn't quite know what that word meant, but he just asummed it meant that Scarab's home was big.
Drex looked forwards, and he could see the Shah's palace in the distance, even from where they were. He pointed towards it.
"Is that where the human Tyrant lives?" Drex asked.
"Tyrant? Oh, no, she's not a tyrant! I hear she's actually quite lovely! Not to mention she's beautiful!" Scarab said with a small gasp, placing a hand to her chest as though scandalized.
"Oh."
A few moments of quiet.
"Well, if she's not a Tyrant, then what do they call her?"
"The Shah!" Scarab said, obvious admiration lacing her words. "She's the Shah of Essyrn."
"Shah," Drex repeated, and a crooked smile appeared on his face. It was a rather amusing word to the ogre.
"I've never seen a tribe this big," Drex said, motioning around to the city as they travelled through it.
"Golfgag Maneater's clan is the biggest mountain clan there is, and it looks small compared to all of this..."
"Oh, well." Scarab waved her hand in a gesture that encompassed the city as a whole. "This is a city, not a tribe. Most of us here also live here, but we have many foreigners and traders, too."
She rubbed her chin. "You can think of it like...we have many tribes here, not just one."
They were making good progress as she pointed out where to go, and the city soon began to give way to richer homes--and more well-dressed people.
"Oh, I guess that makes sense," Drex said, leaning back a bit to stretch before resuming his original posture, a movement that caused his abdomen to arc against Scarab's back.
Although Drex was woefully uneducated in regards to human structures and culture, he could tell that the fancier people meant that they were getting closer. Suddenly, he laughed.
"You've spent a day getting used to our giant furniture. Now, I suppose the roles will be reversed."
"It'll be rather comical, I suppose!" Scarab said with a laugh, trying to imagine it. Drex, holding one of her cups. Oh, his hand would dwarf it! And his head would bump her ceiling. He definitely wouldn't fit in any of her beds or chairs, not without breaking them.
This would be interesting!
Soon enough, they reached her home, a beautiful building with great, artistic pillars and sweeping archways. There was a garden filled with palms heavy with dates, and fig trees as well, with a little fountain that flowed into channels through her home to keep it cool inside.
She pointed it out with a smile. "There it is."
Drex looked up at Scarab's home, and he didn't need to say how impressed he was because it was all over his face.
"Wow, hell of a hut," Drex said, and his eyes followed the channels until they disappeared into her house. He maneuvered his rhinox in through the gate, and dismounted, holding a hand to help Scarab dismount.
"And you live here by yourself?"
Scarab let him help her down, landing lightly on her sandal-clad feet, her dreadlocks trailing down her back.
"It's not a hut, it's a small palace," she said with a smile, and motioned him to follow as she lead the way through the garden. "And I'm not really alone. I have my servants and my slaves and my guards. I have no family, though, if that's what you mean," she added, and though there was sadness in those words, her parents had been gone for ages. It was an old ache, rather than a fresh sort of pain.
"Yeah, family is what I meant," Drex said, following alongside her as he glanced about the garden.
"And everybody in the ogre kingdoms lives in a hut. I think the Tyrant of the village I came from had a hut this big," Drex said, motioning to her house.
"You got any beasts?"
"Beasts? Like pets?"
The guards standing watch opened the massive doors for them to enter--though the doors would probably not be massive to Drex, and would be more "just his size". She stepped inside, sighing at the cooler air.
"I have cats," she said with a smile. "Lots of cats. Including a serval."
And as though on cue, a young serval came padding around a corner on long, graceful legs, ears up and eyes bright and curious. Scarab smiled brightly at her, but the serval saw the ogre and bared her teeth in a hiss before scampering off.
Scarab shot Drex a sheepish smile. "That was Queen," she said. "She, ah, is shy around strangers."
Drex was too taken with gawking at his surroundings to notice the serval until it hissed, and his eyes caught a glimpse of it as it scurried away.
"Is she ever," Drex commented, and he glanced about the room they were in, clearly captivated by his surroundings, and by how small everything was!
Scarab looked up at Drex, amusement sparkling in her dark eyes. For Drex, walking around her massive home must be like playing inside a doll house! She knew she certainly felt like a doll compared to him.
"It shouldn't take me long to write up a list of what needs to be done in my absence. I'll delegate, and my servants, scribes, and advisors can run things for me from there. I'll need to pack, though, of course."
She lead the way down a long, ornate hall, and to the massive double doors at the end. Pushing them open, she stepped inside and held them open for Drex.
They opened into Scarab's bedroom, a massive chamber with an equally huge bed that could no doubt fit a number of people. Not that she had ever tested that. With anyone. She just liked sleeping in a bed she could swim in. It was a canopy bed with a gauzy curtains and so much silk, and it was surrounded by numerous wardrobes and several desks, the space fragrant with the lingering smell of old incense. She marched to one of her wardrobes and opened it, then began to toss clothes onto the bed as she rummaged through it.
"Feel free to take a seat. As I said, I won't be long, especially since I have an extra pair of arms to carry everything!"
"Oh! Are you just going now?" Drex said.
"I'm sure Borzclubb will be damn thrilled that you're sparing him the wait," Drex continued, although he cut off as soon as his rear touched her bed.
It was quite literally the most comfortable thing he'd even been in contact with.
"By The Mountain Mother," he marvelled.
"You sleep on this?"
"Yes, I figured the sooner I go, the sooner I can come home and return to my affairs, so no time like the present!" Scarab said, and soon she pulled a large chest out from under her bed and began to fill it with clothes. None of them looked like they would be any good in a mountain climate; they were all robes and sheath dresses, and almost all of them were sheer.
But they would be spending quite a while traveling through the desert, so...she just imagined she could pick something up in Adela.
She packed in some traveling robes, as well, so she could cover up to protect herself during the day.
"And yes, that's what I sleep on. It's like sitting on a cloud, isn't it? The mattress is stuffed with down."
"Down?" Drex said, and he let himself flop backwards. Even his massive size couldn't take up the bed in its entirety, a testament to its size.
He looked at what she was packing, and raised an eyebrow.
"You got any thicker clothing?"
"Yes, down. You know, feathers? But the softest ones," Scarab said, and paused at his next question as she took out a dress thin enough to be transparent, and glittering with jewels.
"Oh, goodness no. I don't own any peasant clothes."
"Oh."
Drex glanced about, raising an eyebrow at her transparent dress.
"Well you're gonna need it."
Scarb frowned down at her dress. "Not for a while though, right? We hav to go through the desert first, yes?"
"Those'll do fine for now, I suppose," Drex said.
"Although why you'd wear anything that transparent is beyond me."
"Because it gets very hot here," Scarab said, giving him a puzzled look. "Sheer clothes are cooler than thick linen ones. More expensive, too."
And she packed away the glittering, transparent dress as she spoke.
Drex nodded his head at that, although he didn't quite seem so sure about the concept.
"I don't doubt that you'd look stunning in it."
"Oh, I do," Scarab said without missing a beat, flipping her dreadlocks over her shoulder. "No doubt you'll get to see for yourself along the journey."
"Yeah," Drex said with a chuckle.
"You're going to be the first outsider in a long time to be in the Mountain Tribes during the spring festivals. I hope you like drinking."
"Of course I do," Scarab said with a laugh and a wave of her hand. "I have wine with all my dinners, you know."
"If you say so," Drex said, a bit of a teasing tone in his voice.
"But us ogres don't drink any fancy wines. Nothing but the strongest brews at the spring festival."
"Oh?" Scarab said, and arched an eyebrow with a playful cock of her hips. "Are you saying you think me weak?"
Drex sat up in her bed, and returned her cocky look.
"I ain't saying anything about you. I'm just warning you it won't be what you're used to."
"I didn't imagine it would be. Everything bout your kind seems bigger and stronger than what I'm used to," Scarab said, and closed her chest after tossing in a few more items, cosmetics and personal items and the like.
"I'll just drink a human-sized amount!"
"Careful you don't actually say that when the time comes to take a drink. The servers will take you literally," Drex said.
"OH!" Scarab said with an incredulous laugh. "Well! How impressed would they be if I actually managed that?"
Drex laughed along with her, and he stood up o he could stand with her, fists planted at his side.
"Well, if you're conscious enough to receive it, you'll probably get quite the share of praise."
"I'd also likely be dead, so I'll refrain," Scarab said, and pointed to her chest.
"Take this to the door, if you will, and I'll meet you there. I have a letter to write and send, instructions for my people, but I shouldn't be long!"
Drex nodded, and he picked up her chest full of luggage and held it under his arm like it was nothing.
"Take your time," Drex said, and he walked to the front door. He set the chest down, and waited.
It took around twenty minutes for Scarab to compose her letter, and hand it off to a courier. Her home would be taken care of, as usual, but she wanted to ensure the business end would be accounted for. When she was done, she said goodbye to Queen, then joined Drex at her door.
"My business should survive without me for a time now," she said as she stepped up to him. "And by the time we arrive in Adela, I should have a message waiting for me concerning acquiring all the iron and steel I'll need to make the trade. It will cost me a good chunk of my gems, but for frost diamonds? I'm willing to pay. A lot. And I know many people willing to provide."
For about three of those twenty minutes, Drex waited patiently at the door. The other seventeen were spent wandering around her house, ducking under archways and chandeliers, and terrifying her cats.
It wasn't his fault that he spooked them! It must've just been his size.
When she finally came, he listened to her, and nodded at her words.
"Many a trader has met their fortune as a result of their dealings with the Mountain Tribes," he said, and he picked her chest back up.
"Are you ready to go, Scarab?"
"It's now or never!" Scarab said with a smile and a nod and motioned for the door.
Drex smiled at Scarab's eagerness and he opened the door, stepping through and holding it open for her. He went to his rhinox and strapped her luggage to the side of the saddle. He mounted up, and held his hand down to her.
"Let's go, then."
Scarab reached for his hand and let him haul her up, once more taking her place in the saddle before him. And then she took a deep breath and let it out slowly, hardly believing what she was doing.
She was really doing this. And on such short notice.
Her parents would roll in their graves! But she was also certain they would be very proud, to see her taking risks and being as bold and fearless as they had taught her.
She smiled back at Drex. "To the Thunderblacks, then!"
Drex pulled her up and set her against his abdomen so she had something to put her back against. He took up the reign, and gave them a gentle shake while nudging the rhinox in the side with his feet. With a grumpy whuff the beast started to move.
"Borzclubb's gonna be pretty excited that you're coming along sooner than planned. I think he likes you," Drex said.
"You think so?" Scarab asked with a smile back at him. "Good! I had that impression as well but a fresh, unbiased perspective always helps! He seems to believe I'll do well before your Tyrants."
"You've got the spunk for it," Drex said.
"But here's a tip of my own. From a perspective not as high up as Borzclubb's."
He looked down at her.
"It's not just the negotiation and your manners that you've gotta watch out for. You gotta show them that you can party, too. Us ogres love to feast and celebrate, and if you do as we do, you'll click much better with them."
Scarab blinked, then let out a soft laugh. "Well, that's the least objectionable bit of advice I've received thus far! Everything else sounded a little intimidating, I'll confess. Being told that the key to their favor is partying..."
But then she paused, twisted, and looked back at Drex. "Wait. What is an ogre's idea of a good party?"
She somehow had a feeling it would be vastly different from that of an Essyrni merchant princess.
Drex sighed wistfully at her question.
"Drinking, maybe some fistfighting, music, dancing," he listed.
"It's wild. You're gonna have a great time."
Scarab swallowed.
"I...can't really be expected to partake in any fistfighting, I hope."
"No, no, it isn't mandatory to get into a fistfight. You... also might want to watch yourself when you dance, too."
A pause.
"If you dance with me, though, you'll be fine."
She let out a relieved sigh at that, slouching back against his chest.
"Then save a dance for me," she said. "Ah, what are your peoples' dances like? You'll have to teach me before we arrive."
"Uhh..."
He thought about it for a good moment or two.
"Well, there's stomping, clapping, swinging around on each-other's arms."
He cleared his throat.
"How do humans dance?"
"It varies from culture to culture," Scarab said, "and even varies among the rich and poor. In Essyrn, at least, our most popular form is belly dance, an art that emphasizes grace, sensuality, and core strength."
And then her expression soured as she looked back at Drex. "Not to be confused with the lewd, perverted version that low lifes sell to gullible foreigners. There are many forms of the real sort, from social dances to ones you do alone, to dances for worship, or dances for children, dances as prayer and art and celebration, dances around the campfire or for one's husband."
She waved a hand. "We have other dances too. Some native, some new. But that dance is our dance."
"Seems like we're gonna be teaching each other a lot then, right?" Drex said, and he smirked.
"I'm sure it won't be too hard to learn."
They rode in silence for a few moments.
"You should bring some drinks. The Tyrants love gifts like that."
Scarab looked back at Drex, and had to bite her lip to keep from giggling at the sudden, powerful image of him belly dancing to an Essyrni tune. Now, it was said anyone could do the dance, regardless of body type, and that was true--but something about the thought of Drex doing it seemed...really silly. He was so huge! Could he even pull off delicate movements like that?
Of course, she may as well laugh while she could, because she imagined she would look equally ridiculous doing ogreish stomping and carrying on.
She cleared her throat to stifle her laughter, though she was still grinning widely. "Shall we stop at market and get some, then?" she asked. "Or should we wait 'til Adela? Will it keep that long?"
"Yeah, as long as you get it in caskets," Drex said.
"I think I'm going to pick some up, too. I have some coin on me."
"Caskets it is! Perhaps your Tyrants will like Essyrni wine. It may not be as strong as they're used to, but perhaps they'll appreciate the flavor. The kind I enjoy it meant to be tasted and savored, anyway. It's not meant to get drunk on."
Not that she would know much about drunkenness. The most she had experienced was a slight buzz.
"Golfgag, one of the tyrants, would like the wine. All the others would probably think it too soft. Don't your people have any harder drinks?" Drex asked.
"I suppose we can ask when we get to the brewery."
"Of course we have harder drinks," Scarab said with a frown. "But it tastes fair to awful. I had thought that perhaps your Tyrants would enjoy something more flavorful, rather than something fit to burn the taste buds from your tongue."
"You kidding me? The fierier the better!" Drex said, and he chuckled rather heartily, the vibrations traveling through his chest and into Scarab's back. A few moments of silence, and he spoke up again.
"Not that I'm not open to other drinks, but Mountain Ogres are raised on meat and stiff ale. I might hold a racial preference."
"Hmm. In that case, we'll just have to pick up some Crocodile Milk, rather than the Savannah Rose I was going to offer," Scarab said with a wrinkle of her nose.
Drex nodded.
"I might buy something too," Drex said, and he patted what sounded like a pouch of coins on his belt.
"So, where's the brewery?"
"Make a left near the hookah house right up ahead," Scarab said, pointing. "It's not far. It'll actually be right at the end of that lane!"
Drex didn't know what a hookah was, or a hookah house, or even a lane, but just by virtue of Scarab pointing it out, he was able to make the right turn.
He ignored the fact that literally everybody on the street was staring at the unusual sight they were. Part of Drex wondered if they'd run into anybody Scarab knew.
Scarab wasn't worried about encountering anyone she knew. She had dealt with adversity all her life, and developed a thick skin from it. If anything, she delighted in the stunned looks she got as she paraded past with an ogre and a huge beast, her head held high and a sly smile on her lips. Her parents had raised her to be strong-minded and strong-willed and to laugh at the haters, and so little phased her.
Besides, she had enough money that she didn't have to worry about public opinion--so long as people kept buying her product.
She pointed out where he should turn, and then told him to stop before a large building that served as the brewery. Then she waited for Drex to dismount so he could help her down, until a startled voice drew her attention.
"Scarab?!"
Scarab turned her head to see another young woman, wealthy like her from the clothes she wore, staring at her with wide eyes.
"Oh! Yes, hello Khalilah!" Scarab cheerfully waved to her stunned friend. "Nice to see you here!"
Drex waved at Khalilah, but didn't quite say anything as Scarab started to talk to her. He didn't know the culture around these parts, and he didn't want to intrude on the conversation either. Instead, he opted to just observe his surroundings for the moment.
Khalilah gawked at them both, staring from Scarab to Drex and back. For a moment, it seemed the young woman was lost for words.
"Who...what...is that?" she finally blurted, manners gone right out the window in her shock. "Scarab, are you...do you need help? Do I need to go get help for you? Are you being kidnapped?"
Scarab blinked. "What? No! No, no! Oh, goodness, where are my manners? Khalilah, this is my new friend Drex! We'll be going off on a trip together," she said with a beaming smile at the ogre.
Khalilah's jaw dropped.
Drex visibly bristled at Khalilah's words, but he kept his trap shut, instead waiting until he was introduced to prove her wrong by smiling warmly.
"Hello, Khalilah," Drex said, and he dismounted, offering Scarab the usual assistance. His eyes went from Khalilah to the brewery, and then back to her.
Yeah, she was still staring.
"Don't see many ogres 'round these parts, do you?"
"Ogres?" Khalilah repeated, her voice an incredulous squeak. She whipped a look at Scarab and lowered her voice to a stage whisper. "That's an ogre?"
"He is Drex," Scarab repeated as she stepped down with Drex's assistance. "And yes, Drex is an ogre. We were just actually heading to the brewery before we head out. Were you going there, too?"
But Khalilah was still stuck on the ogre part, and wasn't to be hooked by that subject change. She gave another wide eyed stare at Drex. "Scarab, stop! Don't ogres eat people?"
When it comes to the average male Mountain Ogre, patience is not a commonly found trait. Drex was very much average, so when Khalilah's words finished processing, his expression turned sour.
"What?!" he suddenly said, stepping forwards into a more confrontative pose.
"Don't you compare me to no knuckle-draggin' lowland ogre! Me and my kin are a proud folk, not some kind of beast," he asserted.
Khalilah let out a tiny yelp when Drew rounded on her and half ducked behind Scarab for protection. After all, though for Drex it was just a sour expression, to Khalilah it looked utterly frightening. He towered over them all, after all, and was so massive and intimidating in comparison that even a little displeasure looked terrifying!
"Oh, do pull yourself together, Khali!" Scarab chided as she side-stepped out of Khalilah's way. "Drex is a friend! And you heard him. He's not that kind of ogre. Please accept my apologies on her behalf, Drex. Khali doesn't really mean it, she's just a scaredy cat."
"Scarab, I--"
Scarab shushed her with a finger to Khalilah's lips and a shake of her head. "Khali, it's fine. Really! Now, I'll be away for some time. Likely a couple months. I'll be sure to write, though. Oh! And please check in on my cat now and then? She gets so bored and the servants won't walk her, and the slaves claim she bites. She likes you, though."
"Scarab--"
But Scarab just hugged her and then pulled away with a smile. "Send my regards to your family! I'll see you all in a little while!"
And with a bright smile, she grasped Drex by the finger and started leading him toward the brewery.
Drex's expression softened when Scarab jumped to his defense, and he watched the exchange between Khali and Scarab with a mixture of amusement and surprise. When Scarab grabbed his finger to lead him into the brewery, his expression mixed mostly into surprise.
No doubt, he easily weighed five times Scarab, but when she wrapped her fingers around his like that and started moving, Drex couldn't do much other than let himself be pulled along.
"Friend of yours?" he asked as they approached the building.
"She seems nice. Ill informed, but nice."
"She's very nice! One of my best friends growing up, and my best friend to this day," Scarab said with a nod. She pat his hand.
"You mustn't hold it against her. Remember how ill-informed I was at first? I'm afraid there's a great deal of misinformation traveling about, but it's possible to change minds." She smiled up at him. "You and Borzclubb changed mine."
Drex managed a smirk. He glanced down at their hands, noting just how small and dainty her fingers were compared to his own.
"You're right. I'm just bullheaded sometimes," Drex said.
"We can be friends, right?"
"Are we not already?" Scarab asked with a smile, and motioned to the doors. After all, she was used to having doors opened for her!
"Well, yeah, but..."
When she motioned to the doors, he lost his train of thought. Was... was there something about the doors that was interesting?
She seemed to be really urgent towards them.
"Is this the place?" he said, looking towards the brewery.
Scarab flashed Drex a bright smile and a nod. "Indeed!" she confirmed.
And waited, lifting a smooth brow.
"Oh, nice!"
He turned towards the door and opened it, ducking down and stepping straight in and leaving the door open for Scarab.
"Oh, it smells great in here!" Drex said from within.
...Huh.
Didn't he know he was supposed to open it for her?
Stunned as Drex just went inside and left her, Scarab frowned, straightened her shoulders, and walked in after him as the door began to swing shut. It must be a cultural difference. She would have to keep her patience and correct him later, that was all.
Stepping up beside him, she nodded. "It does, I suppose, if you enjoy ale. I prefer wine, myself. Unfortunately that means I'm not too familiar with the brews here, or the difference between them, but I'm certain the brewmaster can help you!"
"Well, I hope he's got a lot of whatever I'm smelling," Drex said, still oblivious to the faux pas he committed. He turned to Scarab, smiling brightly.
"I've never had human ale."
"It's likely weaker than what you're used to," Scarab said. "But the men here claim it's delicious."
She wrinkled her nose. It always just tasted like piss to her.
Looking around the place, she waved as she caught sight of who she assumed was the brewmaster as he sealed up a keg. "Hello! What brew is that? The strong one smelling up this place?"
Yeah, she wasn't really sure how to go about asking for it.
"This brew? Oh, it's--"
The brewmaster cut off once he caught sight of Drex. He seemed almost intimidated, but then Drex spoke up.
"This ale smells magnificient! How much is it?" the young Ogre said. The brewmaster managed to shake off his incredulity and approached the two.
"This is our newest stuff," he said, motioning to a rack of barrels.
"It doesn't come cheap, it's Essyrni grown."
Drex looked a little disappointed as he reached for his coin purse.
"Oh. All I've got is ten of these," Drex said, and from that purse he pulled out a thick gold coin that was easily larger than a man's fist. The brewmaster's eyes turned to saucers, and he looked to Scarab for a few moments, as if wanting to double check that this was real.
"Ten of those'll get you five barrels," he said, eyes glued to the massive coin.
The brewmaster wasn't the only one whose eyes bulged. Scarab's eyes rounded at the sight of those gold coins, and the flippant way Drex flashed them! And the nonchalant way he said they were all he had. As though that was some meager amount! But then again, his people seemed to have gems pouring out their ears, so maybe they just didn't value them the same way her people did?
The brewmaster turned his incredulous gaze on her, and Scarab snapped out of her shock and cleared her throat and rolled her shoulders back, straightening up imperiously.
"Well then? What are you waiting for? Prepare the barrels," she said, and waved her hand to indicate he should hop to it.
The man immediately got to preparing the barrels, and Drex shrugged.
"I'm guessing the coins are smaller here?" he said, and he shot her a knowing smirk. He'd seen human coins before, and the young ogre did like to play a good prank every once in a while.
"You should've seen the butcher when our caravan paid him a visit. Thought Hakeshna herself had blessed him with fortune."
Oh, he knew exactly what he'd done. That smirk was telling.
"They are...much smaller, yes. I'm surprised the man didn't have a heart attack," she said, as the brewmaster soon returned with a small crew, rolling the barrels out to them.
"A peasant could live off a single one of those for a year. Probably." She pursed her lips thoughtfully. Actually, she had no idea what the value would be top a peasant. A great amount, surely, but she had no real concept of what such a life was like, and thus no point of reference to make a comparison.
Drex nodded along at her words. If she didn't know anything about life as a peasant in Essyrn, then Drex sure as hell didn't have a ghost of an idea either, so he just took her word for it.
He glanced around a bit, a bored expression settling on his face as he waited for the barrels to be unloaded before he gave her a gentle nudge (he didn't want to bowl her over!) and he started walking towards the aisles of barrels in the warehouse, taken by a bit of curiosity.
"I'm glad to have you come with us. It'd be nice to have a new face around, even if it's for a little bit."
"You don't get many visitors?" Scarab asked as she followed a pace behind him, giving the workers space to load up.
"Not even during your festival thing?"
The workers motioned over at the two of them, signaling they were done, and Scarab tapped Drex's arm. "Looks like we're set to go."
"Not really," Drex said. It took him a few moments to register that Scarab was tapping his arm, and he glanced over towards the workers with a start.
"We live, er, pretty high up in the mountains. Our trails are harsh to the smaller folk as well. We only hear about the outside from the few visitors we do get."
As he spoke, he picked up three of the barrels by wrapping his arms around them, and lifted them up onto the ground as if it was just a moderate feat of strength for him to carry three barrels filled with ale.
"I got these. My beast's outside," he said to the workers, and he started to walk to the exit.
"Anyways, not a lot of folk got the stomach to hike up to one of the villages just to trade. It's a dangerous trip up if you're not prepared."
Drex left the workers gaping, and even though Scarab had seen do similar feats of strength without breaking a sweat, she still let out a low whistle. She couldn't imagine how much each barrel weighed. They may as well have been small buckets of water, not full on kegs.
Scarab smiled and waved at the workers, then turned and trotted after Drex, taking many steps to be able to keep up with each of his one. "I see! Well, that makes sense. Which, er, I suppose that begs the question! I actually hadn't given much thought to the trip itself--how dangerous, exactly, is it?"
And then she laughed, waving a hand. "I imagine it's not very dangerous for you. You've all done it before! But only for us small folk, hm?"
"Dangerous? Not so much, I'd say. You're travelling with ogre mercenaries, after all!" Drex said. As they stepped back out into the sun, he squinted his eyes a bit and set the barrels down by his mount. He started loading them onto pack hooks.
"It's a tough hike, though. The winds are merciless and the Mountain Mother devours anything that loses its footing. The old clan trails are wide enough for the caravans, and the predators didn't bother us when I came down with The Maws."
He lugged the last barrel onto his rhinox, and the creature snorted dismissively. He looked to Scarab and gave her a sheepish smile.
"I've only ever taken the trip once. Borzclubb's done it a hundred times by now, though."
He offered her his hand so she could step up onto the rhinox.
"Predators?"
Scarab took his hand distractedly, her mind now on another topic entirely as she let him boost her back onto the Rhinox. She settled down on its back, shifting until she got comfortable and adjusting her skirts, and shot Drex a concerned look. Mountain Maw. Predators. Devours.
Yikes...
"...What kind of predators?"
Drex leaned back a smidge in the saddle, mulling over his thoughts. The rhinox started moving and they started to make their way back to the city's gate, where they would meet up with the rest of the company.
"Well, there's the sabretusks. They never attack the convoys though. Usually they go for stragglers. Um..."
He paused for a moment, distracted by a street vendor selling assorted meats on a stick. He pulled up alongside it, and used his long reach to give the merchant a handful of human-sized golden coins from a pouch on the front buckle of his javelin belt. In return, he recieved four meat sticks. He offered one to Scarab as he started to eat, evidently pleased with the food.
"I hope we don't run into a dragon. Or any giants or trolls," he continued.
"I saw an Inirak on the way down too but nobody believes me..."
...Those things existed?
He had to be pulling her leg.
But then again, she hadn't even realized ogres were real until she'd come across his band.
She took the kebab absently, her mind on the list of creatures he'd named--including one she didn't recognize. "What's an Inirak?"
Drex took a moment to enjoy his food before replying, relaxing in the saddle as his rhinox followed the road back through the city gate.
"Mountain spirits. Ogre legends say they guard the sacred peaks and hidden chasms. It's said that if you sacrifice flowers to them, you won't get caught in an avalanche during your travels."
He waved his hand dismissively.
"But not as bad as a dragons, though. Tribes're always having problems with them."
He looked down at her.
"What kind of beasties are down here in essyrn?"
"...Should we bring flowers with us?" Scarab asked, suddenly less afraid of these strange beasties and more afraid of the snow when she remembered that avalanches existed. One of the characters from one of her favorite books had survived one, and for years she had thought they were just the stuff of fiction until a foreign slave informed her they were very real. "They'd be wilted by the time we got there, but we could press and dry them! Would they accept dried flowers?"
Because an avalanche sure didn't sound like her idea of a good time. She only knew they were like a faster version of the shifting of sand dunes, able to bury an army beneath the snow in one fell swoop. A bad sand storm could do that, too, but those took time and you could see those coming and prepare; everything she'd heard about avalanches sounded fast, sudden, and violent. And apparently sound could trigger them!
She shivered at the thought.
"We don't have anything quite so exciting here, I don't think. Oh, there's sandworms of course, and those are nasty but uncommon. And there's djinn, and who knows what lives in Seraj Isa in all that glass. There's people who can change into hyenas and things like that. I've never seen any of those things, though. Just heard about them. Though I once thought I saw baby sandworm marks in the sand! But my friend told me it was probably just a snake."
She huffed. "It seemed awful big for a snake."
"Well, what if it was a snake? There's all kinds of big beasties out there, what's saying that there can't just be a huge, fat snake?" Drex said, "hmph"ing to himself as if to assure his point.
"Yeah, something that big's likely to just swallow you right there..."
He looked back at Scarab.
"But either way, you'll have me there for the whole trip, and I get put on mammoth duty a lot so the views will be good."
"Speaking of mammoth duty, there's nothing out there big enough to swallow a mammoth, is there?" She let out a laugh. "I mean, it certainly doesn't sound like you encountered anything frightening out there, if you're asking me about desert beasts."
Scarab said it less as a statement of fact and more as an act of reassurance. She knew sandworms grew huge, but she wasn't actually how big. Just big.
"The only other real threat I know of are brigands. Surely they wouldn't trifle with your band?"
Drex seemed to give her question some actual thought before shaking his head.
"If there's something big enough to swallow a mammoth then I haven't seen or heard of it," he said bluntly. He looked down at her.
"Brigand's ain't nothing. You should hear some of Borzclubb's old war stories, people are the least of our problems."
He quickly corrected himself.
"Er, well the warband's problem. I'm not a full member yet."
"You may as well be!" Scarab said, a puzzled look on her face as she glanced at him. "You travel with them and work for them, do you not? You seem dedicated, considering I recall you mentioning this isn't your first trip. So what does it take to be a full member if not that? What's the difference between a full and not-full member?"
"Well, can't you tell? I'm a runt," Drex said.
They passed out through the gate at this point, and they must've looked like quite the sight. A shaggy, foreign beast carrying a merchant princess, her luggage, two kegs, and an ogre.
They certainly got their share of odd looks.
"I've got a good throw, and I'm good with the animals, but Borzclubb's never going to put me on any battle lines until I put some more size on and, well... I'm pretty much done growing. I've tried to bulk up but all that did was make me sick," he said.
"Just a measly eight feet tall, no way I could stand up there with the bulls..."
"Measly eight feet tall?!" Scarab's jaw dropped. Granted, she had seen the size of the other ogres, including Borzclubb, and Drex had mentioned before that he was small, but a runt? That was the last word that popped into her head when she looked at him!
"So you can never become a member just because you're too short? That doesn't seem fair if you otherwise have the skill and experience! You basically do everything they do, don't you?"
"I mean, I get paid well. Not as much as the actual soldiers, but It's not like they drag me through the dirt, I just..."
He shook his head.
"You haven't seen Ogres at war. When we form lines it's a wall of muscle and metal, running straight through armies. When one of you is worth twenty of the enemy and you're outnumbered twice as much, ever Ogre needs to be able to cover his brothers. I'd just be a liability, a chink in the wall."
Then, he smiled.
"None of the other ogres can throw a spear as hard as I can, though. Or as well. And the others are too big to scout, too."
...Well, when he put it that way, it made more sense. A chink in the armor. But what a sad way to regard oneself.
At least he didn't seem too upset, having found a few things to boast about after!
Scarab smiled at him, tossing one of her dreadlocks over her shoulder. "And for what it's worth, you're ten times as strong as any human man I've seen, and at least twice as tall. You would be the terror of the colosseum! You may be small among your kind, but you're hardly a runt. I think you're quite powerful!"
She winked. "You'll have to show me your throwing skills some time. I'd like to see it."
"O-oh, well, you saw my throwing skills against the Ankheg," he said. He was quite unused to hearing compliments like that from a female. Ogre women grew on the same scale as the men, and being called powerful and winked at made him a little bashful.
Borzclubb had told him that Ogres were like giants to humans, but he'd never thought...
He snapped back to reality, probably overthinking it all, and shrugged it off with a laugh.
"You'll see it alright. I can throw a javelin from here to the tops of those walls," he started, pointing backwards at the walls of Essyrn. Ahead of them, the Ogre caravan (or rather, the large shapes of the mammoths) could be seen in the distance.
"Easy."
Scarab grinned, and decided not to mention that she remembered that, and also remembered that he'd missed. But it had still been pretty impressive! She wouldn't have been able to lift the javelin at all.
And also, was he...suddenly being all shy? Was that the tone she heard?
"Just because I've seen it before doesn't mean I don't want to see it again! Especially in a situation that isn't life or death, so I can properly concentrate on the feat and not on, well...not dying," she said with a laugh. "But might I suggest you don't throw javelins at Essyrn's walls? I don't think the sentries would be very happy about that."
Gar chuckled.
"Yeah, I bet they'd have an issue with it," he said, relaxing a bit more in the saddle.
"Gotta say, I've never met anyone who was so interested in javelin throwing. I know you humans do all kinds of sports, though."
He took his hands off the reigns for a few moments to take a swig from his canteen, more of that sweetened light ale that refreshed the whole mouth with just a few sips. He offered it to Scarab, arm coming at her from side.
"Want some more drink?"
"Oh, I love sports! Well, watching them, at least, and not the bloody ones. The reenactments and mock battles are entertaining, but I don't like when people actually get hurt. So yes! Javelin throwing sounds fun and interesting enough to me," Scarab said with a smile as she accepted the canteen from him.
She took a quick swig from it, too hot and parched to care about drinking after him. Besides, she had been on enough business trips to worry about swapping spit that way.
"Do your kind care much about sports?"
"We do, we just don't got as many. Not as much space in the mountains," Drex said, shooting a smile down at her.
"Boulder tossing competitions are loved in all the clans. Troll wrestling, eat-offs, both're pretty common. Armwalling and headbutt tournaments are preferred by the foothill clans but we mountainers are above that kind of stuff."
"Those are...certainly unconventional choices of sports..." Scarab said slowly. Boulder tossing? Troll wrestling? "Although, we have eating contests here, too! Nothing, I'd imagine, like what you would have."
She looked back at him curiously. "Do you play those sports at your festival?"
"Aye, I've tossed a couple boulders before. Wasn't too bad at it, either." he said, smiling as he remembered home
"And sometimes, if the lowland clannies were present, I've even played Headbutt once, when I was really smashed," Drex continued.
"I lost, but not for any lack of tryin'. Hilldweller's skull was thicker than stone."
"...What's a Hilldweller?" Scarab said with a tilt of her head. For every question he answered, it seemed she had five more, using terms she was unfamiliar with but which obviously meant something to him. "And, ah, Headbutt? As in literally smashing your heads together?"
She winced in sympathy, passing a hand over her own forehead. "Just to be doubly certain, I won't be expected to participate in any, ah...rough games, will I? I don't wish to be a spoil sport nor do I want to be rude, mind! I just don't think I'm quite built for that level of play."
He gave her an appraising glance backwards, and shrugged.
"Who knows, maybe you've got a mammoth's heart in you," he said, but gave her an honest smile to soothe the tease.
"Hilldwellers're those ogres who build their clans in the foothills around the mountains. Ain't as high-minded or as industrious as us higher ogres, but they're clan nonetheless."
They arrived at the caravan, then. The mammoths had been tended to, and many of the ogres looked relieved to be taking their leave from the hash deserts of Essyrn.
"Nobody's forced to do anything, but if ya needed a champion I'd volunteer for you," he added with a chuckle.
a few moments of quiet as he guided his rhinox towards the beast handler, and then slipped off. Once again, he offered her his hand and arm to help her dismount.
"And yes, headbutting as in smashing your heads together. Until one of you can't do it anymore."
"Er...does anyone ever die from that sort of thing?" Scarab asked as she took his arm and slid carefully off of the beast. She adjusted her clothes as soon as she was stable, straightening out the parts that had gotten rumpled from their ride and a little dusty from the rhinox.
"And when you say champion, you mean that your fights are sometimes sponsored? Like, say, some of the more successful gladiators here? Interesting. Is it just a formality, or are there rewards for these contests of yours? Though I suppose pride in accomplishment could be considered its own reward, but I mean more like tangible benefits."
She rubbed her chin musingly. "I wouldn't be opposed to watching your games. But, I suppose that is for the future, no?"
"Who'd die from just a couple harmless knocks to the skull?" Drex said, looking at Scarab rather quizzically. He unloaded her luggage and carried it all rather easily.
"And yeah, you'll have all the time you'll need to learn about us," he added with a thoughtful nod of his head towards her.
"Eat our food, drink our booze."
Drex himself was mostly just happy to talk to someone who wasn't an Ogre. She was just so... different!
"There isn't always rewards, but if someone wants to bet something there's usually takers. When the clans gather for Feastmoot there are great contests over promotions or prizes of treasure."
Then, he nudged her with an elbow.
"The very same Feastmoot that we're returning to the holds to celebrate."
"Feastmoot," Scarab repeated, and she pressed her lips together to keep from giggling. They had such funny names for things, these ogres, but no doubt it would be terribly rude to voice that out loud.
"This will certainly be an interesting cultural exchange, for sure. And again, I really must thank you for everything you've done so far," she said, turning to him and laying a hand on his arm. "You've been a wonderful guide and a true help. I truly appreciate it, I hope you know."
"Ach, it's nothin'," said Drex, and he gave her a warm nod.
"You've made pleasant company of yourself so far " he teased, and he looked around. After a moment, he looked back to Scarab with a raised eyebrow.
"So, you packed a tent, right? "
Scarab's face fell, giving away her answer before she even said a word.
"Do...do you not have extras?"
"Well, nobody died, so... no," Drex said, scratching at the back of his head as he looked around sheepishly.
"Maybe we could fashion you one, at least until we get to somewhere you can get one," he offered. His first instinct was to offer Scarab a stay in his own tent but that seemed improper, and he was too nervous to air it as an option.
Somebody had to die before they had a spare? Scarab's eyebrows climbed, a look of mild alarm crossing her features. And Drex didn't sound all that confident in his suggestion that they could simply fashion one for her. Did they even have the supplies for that?
Well. They were doing her a favor here, really, and though a rugged lifestyle wasn't her preference, she didn't want to be an annoyance. She flipped a dreadlock over her shoulder with a shrug.
"That sounds burdensome," she said with a frown. "I suppose I could sleep under the stars for now, provided there's at least extra blankets?" For the night did get terribly cold. "If your tents are large enough to support it, I wouldn't mind bunking with someone, either. I don't take up much space."
"The tents are big," Drex said with a nod and assuring smile. Indeed, if she looked around at the camp, what must have been a single occupant tent for an Ogre looked like it could hold four or five people, easily!
"And you'll need one for the mountains. Not one of those rip-raggedy tents humans make out cloth but a good vestibule made out of solid pelt. Only thing that breaks the wind up there."
Speaking of tents and camps, the Ogre convoy was officially starting to pack up now. They'd hunted their giant beast, feasted on it, and were now ready to head home with full bellies and plenty of leftovers to enjoy along the way.
"We can't have our honored guest turning into a pretty snowpile on the side of a mountain," he started, and managed to speak the following words with a surprising confidence.
"So you can share mine if it gets a little colder than you're used to."
Scarab let out a sigh of relief she hadn't realized she was holding. Oh, thank Hakeshna he said it before she had to! She wasn't fond of the idea of sleeping outdoors with the insects and animals and the cold (especially the cold--she hated it!), but she also wasn't fond of the idea of sharing a tent with a stranger. She may not have known Drex well, but she knew him better than the others, and he seemed a decent enough lad.
"I think that's reasonable," she said with a smile. "I promise I don't snore too much."
Though she imagined she would probably sound like a mouse snoring compared to any of the ogres...
"Thank you, by the way. I truly appreciate your hospitality! If you are ever again in Essyrn after this, I will be sure to return the favor tenfold."