It had become... harder to stand beside Dura normally after her proposal, even though the Orc herself seemed to have forgotten the entire thing, simply going about as if nothing had happened!
Even when I was placed under such mental turmoil because of her question, she was just..!
Just perfectly normal!
How was that fair?!
Why was she acting like what she said meant nothing to her?!
Like my answer didn't matter to her at all?!
My heart was in a conundrum; should I be relieved that she didn't allow my non-answer to affect our ability to work together, or livid that she was showing not a single damn reaction to what she made me feel?!
What the hells was I supposed to do?!
Even as we marched towards Lyna Easria and massacred the Elven Armies, I found myself more focused on how I should respond to her emotions than worrying about what was to come.
I even somehow - someway - managed to not notice that her decision to propose to me had helped me improve myself in ways I couldn't imagine.
With something to focus my mind, I subconsciously began to relegate some of my movements to muscle memory faster than I should have, which allowed me to begin making leaps forwards in my fighting abilities.
Additionally, since Aura mastery was a matter of the mind, the heightened emotions I felt stimulated the Aura inside my body far faster than I would even dream of, which was only further amplified by the elixirs that Dura made me take.
That is to say, in a short month spent marching and waging war on the Elven Forest, I... grew far stronger than I would have if I had been stuck anywhere else with just myself to train.
My techniques improved by leaps and bounds now that more of what I was previously needing to think about was gone, while my Aura strengthened under my turmoil, the multitude of strong positive and negative emotions tempering my Aura perfectly.
Looking back, I have no idea if Dura had that all planned out, or if it was just a single, really lucky coincidence, but...
Either way, I am ever thankful to the blunt directness of the Orcs, as it helped spur on what would make the Specter one of the most feared women on the continent, just beneath her War Chief.
But first, I needed to help the Fenryika Horde conquer Lyna Easria and dispose of the Crown Princess and the Judges, allowing the throne to be occupied by someone worthy of the weight that comes with it.
Equipped with my dual blades, powerful Aura, and at the head of a ferocious, hardened army of Orcs, I led the charge against the Elven Soldiers of Lyna Easria - true soldiers, trained and forged by the fires of war, unlike the naive brats that played at being soldier in the other cities.
Lyna Easria wouldn't fall quickly, so I began to occupy the lands around the city, ordering the Orcs to construct ladders and barricades for us to place on our way towards the large city walls.
Archers renowned for their marksmanship stood atop those walls, but not even their powerful arrows could pierce Verdant Wood that easily, especially not wood that had been hardened with Fiery Aura and imbued with Nature Aura.
It turns out the Orcs are a crafty bunch, and within days we had an abundance of siege equipment, allowing us to begin the attack.
Sure, we could have just constructed something to protect Dura and shepherd her to the gates, but that would be easy to counter as the archers turned whatever we would have made to scrap.
This way, we could try and 'sneak' Dura in amongst the other Orcs and have her scale the walls, while I led a group with a 'fake Dura' towards the gate.
With that plan in mind, the troops gathered their equipment and we set out, preparing to end this war once and for all.
My group was large, and we all carried thick tower shields as we huddled together, marching slowly but steadily to the gate, all while the rest of the Horde carried their ladders towards the walls to scale them.
The stress of a strategy like this was always immense, but I bolstered my will and pushed forwards, minutes feeling like centuries as we traversed the battlefield for the gate, switching around as we tried to confuse the archers, never allowing them to pick one person to focus on.
Ladders slammed against the walls, and the Orcs began to scale up into Lyna Easria, with us reaching the gate a few moments later.
With a significant portion of the archers now occupied with the Orcs in their midst, we traveled quicker, and when I reached the gate I imbued my blades with Aura and shattered them, opening the way for the rest of the Horde.
Letting out a wordless roar, Orcs streamed into the heart of the Elven Forest for the first time ever, all because an Elf had been betrayed once before.
An Elf that was back for blood.
Pointing my blades into the city, I waited for the Horde to crash against the shield wall that waited for us before joining them, dashing forwards as I released my Aura once more.
With a single leap I sailed above the Elven shield bearers and landed amongst them, my blades dancing around me in a black and green blur as I butchered those I had once viewed as kindred.
Potential friends, lovers, and family died under my swords, and I danced around the entrance square of Lyna Easria, bathing in Elven blood as I allowed the Horde further access into my once home.
Silently, I ran amongst the Horde as we pushed for the palace, where the Crown Princess and the Judges were waiting for me, defended by some of the strongest Elves to ever live.
Dura and the rest of the Horde joined me soon enough, their armor and weapons stained with blood and covered in damage.
With their War Chief and War Maiden at the front, the Horde roared as we stormed the palace, killing any who raised a weapon against us.
Leading Dura through the halls, I brought us to the throne room and kicked open the door, where I saw the woman responsible for my wrongful imprisonment snarling on her throne, her normally perfectly trimmed nails cracked as she clutched the armrests, all while two dozen of the Royal Guard formed a protective ring around her.
"Dura! What traitorous bitch did you bring into your fold, hmm? You damnable Orcs just have to ruin EVERYTHING! I finally steal away the throne from my dear old mom and now THIS?!"
A loud crash echoed through the throne room as Dura let her axe slam against the ground, her lips pulled into a thin line as she said "Kilkreatha, you brought this amongst yourself. Removing the Generals that held me at bay, weakening the army that I could never crack... Your thirst for power is your undoing. There were reasons for the Queen's actions, and yet... you forgo them for rapid gains."
"SHUT UP! I know better than that old bitch! 'We must strive for peace.' What a load of horse shit! You damn Orcs will never be fine with 'peace'. You're little more than animals given the ability to walk and talk! An inferior race that is little more than a blight on this world! So I guess it's good thing you're here, Dura... I can start with you. I kill you, kill the traitorous little whore of an Elf beside you, and then begin my assault on your home! HAHA~! Thank you so much you stupid brute!"
Kilkreatha leaned forwards, her eyes crazed as she raised one of her hands, her potent blue aura spilling from her palm.
"Kill the rest of them! Kill them all so that we may take our place atop this world! As is our RIGHT AS ELVES!"
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Probably do like two or three more chapters of this I think; that'll give me enough time to wrap it all up rather nicely...
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