The remaining two humans stood frozen for a moment, their eyes darting between the lifeless body of their comrade and Ghak, whose bloodied blade dripped onto the dusty ground. One of them stepped back cautiously. His breath hitched as he hissed, "Watch out! She must've killed Foco."
Before the man could fully process what had happened, Ghak let out a guttural yell, her voice a raw blend of pain and rage. She lunged at him, her blade glinting in the dim light. The man steadied himself, his instincts taking over as he drew his daggers in a defensive stance.
"Come on, then!" he barked, his voice tense but steady.
As Ghak closed the distance, the man swung his daggers aiming to slash at her arms and legs to disable her. Ghak ducked and sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the twin blades. She twisted her body mid-step, countering with a swift thrust toward his chest. The man pivoted but his balance faltered slightly. Seeing an opening, Ghak used this opportunity to press forward.
But then, an arrow struck her thigh. Ghak stumbled, her momentum breaking as her leg buckled slightly under the force of the impact. She let out a sharp gasp but forced herself to stay upright. The pain was excruciating, but her rage kept her moving.
The man with the daggers didn't waste the opportunity. He kneed her hard in the stomach. Ghak doubled over, her breath escaping her in a painful gasp. As she tried to recover, the man raised his daggers for a finishing slash. But Ghak gritted her teeth and thrust her blade upward with all her remaining strength, sinking it into his stomach.
The man staggered back, blood pooling around the wound. He clutched his abdomen, his daggers falling uselessly to his sides. His comrade, the archer, shouted, "Stay with me!" as he loosed another arrow in Ghak's direction.
Ghak twisted her body to avoid the shot, but the arrow still grazed her shoulder. Without hesitation, she darted toward the nearest ruins, her movements uneven but desperate. The archer continued firing, his arrows striking the ground and broken walls around her, but none found their mark.
"She's getting away!" the archer growled, lowering his bow and rushing to his injured comrade. "Are you okay?" he asked urgently.
The man with the daggers nodded weakly. "I'll manage. It's not deadly, but we can't let her walk around freely. She's already killed two of our people. If others see her as just a child, they'll drop their guard and end up like us."
The archer clenched his jaw, and he nodded. "You're right. Let's move." He helped his comrade pull the blade from his stomach, wincing as the man let out a sharp grunt of pain. They both steadied themselves before advancing cautiously in the direction Ghak had disappeared.
Ghak's breathing was ragged as she stumbled through the ruins. She pressed her back against a crumbling wall. Her mind raced, desperately searching for an escape plan. The ruins offered little in terms of hiding places—most of the buildings were completely destroyed, their walls shattered, leaving her exposed if she tried to move.
She glanced down at the arrow embedded in her thigh, her hands trembling as she gripped it. With a sharp intake of breath, she yanked it out, stifling a scream as a wave of pain washed over her. Blood trickled from the wound, but she couldn't afford to stop.
As she scanned the area, she spotted a loose rock near her feet. Carefully, she nudged it aside, but it slipped and fell with a faint thud, dislodging a few more pebbles. The noise echoed faintly through the ruins.
"There!" a voice called out. "In that direction. Be careful."
Ghak's heart raced as she heard their footsteps drawing closer. She gritted her teeth, her breathing shallow and rapid.
Her eyes darted around the ruins, searching for anything she could use. Then an idea struck her. She reached for another rock, this one larger than the first, and hurled it in the opposite direction of where she planned to go. The rock clattered noisily against a pile of debris, drawing the humans' attention.
"Wait," the archer said sharply. "She's moving! Over there!"
The footsteps shifted, heading toward the sound of the thrown rock. Ghak pressed herself further against the wall, her body trembling as she listened to them move away from her. She swallowed hard, forcing herself to remain still despite the unbearable pain in her leg.
Ghak peered cautiously around the corner. She saw the two humans moving further into the ruins, heading in the wrong direction. Taking a deep breath, she picked up another rock, larger than the last, and hurled it into the opposite direction of the last rock. The clatter echoed off the broken walls, making it difficult to pinpoint the sound's origin.
The two humans froze mid-step. The man with the daggers squinted into the distance, his bow partially raised. "Wasn't she just over there?" he asked, his voice uncertain.
The archer hesitated only for a moment before shaking his head. "It was a mislead. She must've been trying to escape in that direction all along. If we lose her, who knows what'll happen? Let's move."
He sprinted ahead without waiting for a response, determination etched into his face. The man with the daggers sighed, not convinced. "Be careful! We don't know that for sure," he called after his companion, reluctantly following him.
Ghak pressed herself tighter against the crumbling wall. The first man passed through the corridor she was hiding behind without paying much attention to the surroundings. She waited, she grabbed the biggest rock she could lift. Then, as the second man rounded the corner, Ghak's voice erupted in a primal yell. The man flinched and turned sharply to face the noise, but he wasn't fast enough.
Ghak swung the rock with all her strength. The jagged edge struck the man's face with a sickening crunch, sending him sprawling onto the ground. His dagger slipped from his grasp as he cried out in pain, clutching his shattered face. Wasting no time, Ghak snatched the dagger, and with a grim determination, she slashed his throat. Blood sprayed across the dusty ground, and his cries faded into gurgling silence.
The archer froze momentarily, his eyes wide with disbelief. "What's wrong with that child?" he muttered, his voice trembling. The sight of the young orc covered in blood and standing over his companion's lifeless body was a grotesque image that sent chills down his spine.
Regaining his composure, the archer raised his bow and nocked an arrow, aiming directly at her. "You're not getting away this time," he growled.
Ghak charged at him. The archer released his arrow, but she ducked at the last moment, avoiding a fatal hit. The arrow grazed her shoulder. She gritted her teeth against the pain, refusing to stop. Her vision blurred momentarily from the impact, but her steps didn't falter.
The archer, now trembling, fumbled to nock another arrow, his movements clumsy in his panic. As Ghak closed the distance, his fingers slipped, sending the arrow clattering to the ground. He cursed under his breath, reaching for the dagger at his belt, but it was too late. Ghak was upon him. With a fierce cry, she slashed his throat in a single, swift motion. His body crumpled to the ground, joining his fallen comrades in the ruins.
The silence that followed was deafening. Ghak stood amidst the wreckage, her breaths ragged and shallow. Her shoulder throbbed, and blood trickled down her arm, but she didn't acknowledge the pain. Her eyes darted toward the direction where she had left Thorkan. Slowly, she retraced her steps, her legs heavy as if weighed down by the gravity of what had just transpired.
When she reached Thorkan, she knelt beside his lifeless body. His small arms still clutched the plush bear tightly to his chest, his expression frozen in an innocent, almost peaceful repose. Ghak's trembling hands reached out, brushing the dirt from his face. She pulled him into her arms, cradling him against her chest as fresh tears streamed down her bloodied cheeks.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I'm so sorry, Thorkan."
Her sobs echoed through the empty ruins, her grief reverberating in the stillness. Time seemed to stand still as she held him, her mind consumed by the weight of her failure.
As the hours passed, Ghak's tears dried, and a numbness began to settle over her. A memory surfaced, unbidden, of her parents' final words to her and Thorkan. It had been during the chaos of a battle when they had hidden the siblings in the cellar of a crumbling house. Her mother had cupped her face, her eyes filled with fear and determination.
"You have to live," her mother had whispered fiercely. "No matter what happens, you have to survive. It's unfair that you have to endure this because of someone else's choices, but you must stay alive. For yourself. For each other."
Her father had added, his voice steady despite the danger outside, "You'll face things you shouldn't have to, Ghak. But you're strong. Stronger than you know."
The memory lingered as Ghak gently laid Thorkan back onto the ground, brushing the hair from his face one last time. Her hand rested on the plush bear, her fingers tightening around it before she placed it beside him.
Her expression hardened as she stood. She wiped her tears away, smearing blood and dirt across her face. She glanced around at the ruined streets, at the chaos left behind by the war that had stolen everything from her.
With slow, deliberate steps, Ghak turned and began walking through the rubble, her blade clutched tightly in her hand. Her small figure disappeared into the ruins. Her heart burned with anger, grief, and an unrelenting will to endure.