Amukelo looked down at Eliss, her face was pale. Yet, despite her condition, a faint smirk crept onto her lips. She glanced at him, "Next time, try to catch me a little more gracefully, will you?"
Amukelo's face contorted into a mix of disbelief and irritation. "Gracefully?" he snapped. "You're lucky I caught you at all."
Eliss grinned weakly, clearly enjoying his reaction despite her exhaustion. Amukelo's scowl deepened, and with deliberate annoyance, he dropped her onto the wet ground. She landed with a yelp, glaring up at him as he stood over her.
"What did I even do it for?" he muttered, crossing his arms. "Can't you show a little gratitude?"
Eliss propped herself up on her elbows, brushing mud from her sleeves. "Hey! That's no way to treat a noble! Do you know how much my cloak costs?"
Amukelo sighed heavily, running a hand through his wet hair. "Unbelievable," he muttered under his breath before turning his attention back to the stage, where the remaining orcs were regrouping.
Eliss, despite her aching body, smirked as she pulled herself to her feet. She swayed slightly, but steadied herself, brushing the mud off her clothes. "You'll owe me an apology later," she said, loud enough for him to hear as she followed him.
Amukelo didn't respond, he sighed and then walked back to the stage. They unchained everyone expect Ghak. Her expression was twisted with regret and fear.
As Amukelo and Eliss climbed back onto the stage, Naguk turned to them. "You've done us a great favor this time," he said. "Not only did you save me, but you saved our people. Without you, this would've been the end for us."
Naguk stepped forward, bowing slightly. "I have to thank you for that."
Amukelo froze, caught off guard. He raised his hands defensively. "That's not necessary," he said awkwardly. "We're part of the team after all. Just doing our job."
Eliss, however, puffed up with pride. She tilted her chin up with a wide grin. "Haha! I just did my job," she said smugly. "There's no need to thank me."
Naguk chuckled. But then Amukelo pointed toward Ghak, who remained bound in chains. "What about her?" he asked, his tone turning serious.
Eliss glanced at Ghak as well, frowning. "Exactly. Why is she still in chains?"
Naguk's smile faded, and his jaw clenched as he turned toward Ghak. "She betrayed us," he said, his voice heavy with anger and disappointment. "Because of her, we were ambushed. We lost two people, and many are injured, including me." He then turned to the remaining orcs from his tribe as he said. "She is responsible for this. What should we do with her?"
The orcs exchanged uneasy glances. None of them spoke at first, but their expressions made their feelings clear. Resentment and anger simmered in the air. And then one of them said, "We will follow your choice."
Naguk stepped to the edge of the stage as he addressed the crowd. "What should I do with her?" he demanded.
Ghak's head snapped up, her face pale as fear began to settle in. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Her eyes darted across the crowd, searching for a shred of mercy, but she found none.
"Slay her!" someone shouted from the crowd, breaking the tense silence.
Another voice quickly followed. "Execute that traitor!"
"Make her pay!" a third yelled, their voice full of venom.
More cries erupted calling for blood. Ghak's face twisted in despair as she looked at Naguk.
Naguk walked up before Ghak. He gazed down at Ghak with a mixture of disappointment and sorrow. The rain soaked them both, streaking Naguk's face with lines of water that might as well have been tears.
"I don't know why you did this," he began with a low voice. "I thought you were a loyal companion. A warrior I could trust with my life. Through all our battles, I never doubted you, Ghak." He paused. "But it looks like I was mistaken."
Ghak's head remained bowed. Her lips quivered, but no words escaped them. She glanced up briefly, meeting Naguk's eyes.
Naguk exhaled deeply, lifting his axe. The crowd held its collective breath, watching with rapt attention as the axe hung in the air. Ghak's expression didn't change; she didn't plead, didn't beg. She simply closed her eyes waiting for the end.
But then, a sharp cry broke through the silence. "Wait!" Naguk stopped mid-swing, turning toward the source. It was Eliss.
She pushed through the gathered orcs weakly. "Don't do it!" she yelled. "You don't even know why she did this!"
Naguk lowered his axe slightly, frowning. "She betrayed us," he said firmly. "What more do I need to know?"
Eliss stepped forward. "Let her explain herself! Maybe she had a reason!"
"A reason?" Naguk's voice rose, incredulous. "What reason could possibly justify the death of two of my people? So many of us injured? Do you think anything she says could make up for that?"
Eliss hesitated, searching for the right words. "I—I don't know," she admitted, her voice faltering. "But you're about to execute someone who fought by your side, someone who was part of your tribe. You owe it to yourself to at least hear her out. What harm could it do?"
Naguk's frown deepened, but after a moment, he lowered the axe fully. The crowd murmured, and some shouted protests, but he silenced them with a sharp gesture.
Turning back to Ghak, he fixed her with a cold glare. "You heard her," he said. "So, tell me. Why did you do this? Why did you betray your brothers? Why did you sentence two of us to death? Why!?"
Ghak lifted her head slowly, her face a mask of pain and regret. Her lips parted, and for a moment, it seemed like she might speak. But then she shook her head, her teeth clenched tightly. She looked away from Naguk and the crowd. "I have nothing to say," she said finally with a trembling voice. "My reasons don't justify what I did."
The crowd erupted into angry shouts, demanding blood. Naguk silenced them again with a wave of his hand, his face darkening further. He raised the axe once more, stepping closer to Ghak.
"Very well," he said grimly. "Then you will be remembered as a traitor."
Ghak's shoulders sagged, and she squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for the blow. Her face twisted into a grimace of pain—not from the axe, but from the weight of Naguk's words.
But just as Naguk adjusted his grip, preparing to swing, Eliss shouted again. "Wait!"
This time, Naguk didn't lower the axe. He turned his head toward her with an irritated expression. "You heard her," he said. "She doesn't want to speak. There's nothing left to say, and nothing that could change this. Why are you stopping me again?"
Eliss clenched her fists, stepping forward until she was almost at Naguk's side. She was drenched and trembling. "You've spent this entire campaign preaching about being better than your opponents," she said, her voice rising to be heard over the crowd. "About not giving in to cowardice. Isn't this exactly what they would do? Execute someone without understanding?"
Naguk hesitated, his grip tightening on the axe as he glanced between Eliss and Ghak. The crowd's shouts grew louder, demanding action. Naguk's face twisted in frustration, caught between his anger, crowd's demands, and the logic in Eliss's words.
"It's different. It's clear that she is a traitor. Why do you even try to hear from her? Didn't she hate you?" he asked, his voice a low growl.
Naguk's eyes flicked back to Ghak, whose head hung low. The crowd's chants for blood grew louder, and the tension in the air became almost suffocating.