Working for Grimmor wasn't something I had planned, but I didn't have many options. Life in this new world seemed to revolve around powers I still didn't understand, and Grimmor was somehow at the center of it all. I decided to play along, at least for now.
I woke up early the next day in a dark room, barely lit by the faint light filtering through a small, dust-covered window. The place was as gloomy as it had been when I arrived. The stone walls and the low ceiling made me feel trapped, as if I were in a cell rather than a resting room.
There was no furniture, just a thin mattress on the floor and a rough blanket that barely kept me warm through the night. I stood up slowly, feeling my muscles tense from the fight the day before.
The injuries weren't serious, but they still hurt. As I stretched, I tried to clear my mind, knowing I would have to face whatever Grimmor had in store for me.
Not really knowing what to expect, I headed to the bar where I had met him the day before. The place was empty, save for a couple of hooded figures in the corner, whispering and avoiding eye contact. I didn't pay them much attention; my mind was focused on what was coming.
Grimmor didn't take long to appear, but this time he wasn't alone. He entered the bar with his usual two lizards, as imposing as ever, and a third creature that immediately caught my attention. It had the same bulky build as the lizards accompanying him, but its skin was a grayish tone, and its features were rough.
It was an ogre… or at least that's what I thought, though I wasn't sure. I had never seen anything like it up close, and its presence was even more intimidating in person.
The arrival of this new creature only reinforced the impression I already had of Grimmor: a man who surrounded himself with powerful beings but treated them as mere tools. In his eyes, none of them had names or identities. To him, they were just "things" to be used and discarded at his convenience.
Grimmor sat at a table in front of me with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Ready to work, kid?" he asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
I nodded, trying to hide any trace of doubt on my face. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing me unsure, even though inside, uncertainty was building in my chest.
"Good," he continued, resting his elbows on the table and interlacing his fingers in front of him. "Today will be a test. I need to know what you're made of before I trust you with something important."
I remained silent, waiting for him to explain what this test was.
"There's a delivery I need you to pick up," he finally said, his tone more serious. "It's on the outskirts of the city, inside the forest. The path there shouldn't be too difficult, but be careful. There are things out there that even I can't control."
The challenge in his words was clear. This wasn't just a simple errand. There was more behind this delivery, and I knew it. But what choice did I have? I accepted. "Alright," I said, my voice slightly worried.
Grimmor handed me a rudimentary map, hand-drawn on a piece of parchment with directions I barely recognized. I tucked it into my cloak and prepared to leave, but his voice stopped me in my tracks.
"And kid," he added in a tone that almost sounded like a warning, "you won't be going alone. This one will go with you." He pointed to the ogre, who had remained silent until that moment, his face expressionless.
My disgust for Grimmor grew even more at that moment as I heard the evident contempt in his voice…
With that final warning ringing in my mind, I left the bar with the ogre trailing behind me. We headed toward the outskirts of the city, where the forest awaited.
As we walked through the deserted streets, the ogre's figure beside me was intimidating. His size and strength were obvious, and there was something in the way he looked at me that made me feel increasingly uncomfortable. I decided to try some casual conversation to ease the tension.
"Nice weather we're having, wouldn't you say?" I blurted out, trying to sound relaxed. The ogre didn't even look at me; he just let out a low grunt, as if my comment was an unnecessary bother. Perfect.
I tried again. "I mean, it's odd that it hasn't rained yet, given how cloudy the sky is."
The ogre glanced at me out of the corner of his eye, his gaze judging whether it was even worth responding. That grunt of his made me wonder if I was annoying him or if he simply hated me.
His steps were heavy, and the sound of his boots on the ground echoed in the silence of the city outskirts.
Once we were outside, with the dark and menacing forest stretching out before us, I saw the entrance clearly. The arch, covered in vines and moss, seemed like part of the forest itself, as if it had been there for centuries.
This wasn't a normal forest; everything about it felt like it was watching us, as if we were crossing into a place where the rules were different. Something wasn't right, and I felt it in every fiber of my being.
"Well, I hope we don't run into any danger," my voice sounded more uncertain than I intended.
The ogre stopped for a second and threw me a quick glance before gesturing toward the forest with his head, indicating I should keep walking.
"Well, I guess that answers how he feels about me," I muttered more to myself than to him.
I decided to try again, this time more directly. "Tell me, what kind of monsters live here? Any advice on how not to die?"
The ogre finally turned toward me, stepping closer with an irritated look. He grabbed me by the shirt forcefully and said firmly, "Listen, scum. I'm here for one reason and one reason only, and that's to do what Grimmor ordered to get my damn pay. I didn't come here to make friends! Got that, shorty?"
I looked at him with fear, barely managing to say, "Alright… no more chatting… understood."
The ogre let me go roughly and kept walking through the forest. My thoughts darkened even more after what had just happened.
With the tension still lingering, I realized I didn't have any weapon, not even a simple knife. The ogre, meanwhile, seemed to walk without a care, as if danger was just part of his daily routine.
"Great, and what if something or someone attacks us?" I thought aloud. "At least you could warn me if something's stalking us, right?" I muttered under my breath, hoping he wouldn't hear me.
The ogre kept walking, emitting constant grunts, as if being irritated was his natural state—or maybe my presence just made his mood worse.
The forest closed in around us the further we ventured. The trees were so thick they barely let any sunlight through. It was like walking through an eternal twilight, as if the day had already ended. The atmosphere was suffocating, and now and then, the sounds of animals echoed through the darkness.
I walked alongside the ogre, trying to orient myself with the rudimentary map in my hands, though every creak of branches or flap of wings made my heart race.
Despite everything, his presence gave me a strange sense of comfort, even though he clearly hated me. Maybe deep down, I knew that his strength was the only thing keeping me from a swift death.
Finally, after walking for a while, I saw something I recognized from the map: a small lake. "Ah! Look, we're going in the right direction," I said with relief, though I didn't expect any response.
But that calm didn't last long, because as we rounded a bend in the path, we found ourselves facing a cave with a tall, dark entrance. I stopped dead in my tracks.
"Is this the place?" I asked the ogre, hoping for some confirmation. He just let out a small grunt, leaving me just as clueless as before.
"Perfect. Of course, more grunting," I crossed my arms and stared at him. "Tell me, is everyone from your race like this, or do you just have a natural charm?"
I didn't think about what I was saying, and the moment I finished the sentence, I regretted my reckless words. I blamed the stress and exhaustion.
The ogre roared with fury, baring his yellow teeth, and his shout sprayed saliva into the air. He lunged toward me, clearly intending to hurt me, but stopped abruptly when we both heard heavy footsteps coming from within the cave. Each one shook the ground, and the echo carried through the forest.
The steps saved me, but at the same time, they froze me in place. I stepped back slightly, my mind filling with terrifying possibilities about what could emerge from that darkness. The ogre beside me didn't move, as if none of it mattered to him at all, but his hand instinctively brushed the axe strapped to his back.
Time seemed to stretch as we waited, until finally, a huge figure began to emerge from the cave. At first, I couldn't make out its features, but with each step it took toward the light, its enormous size became clearer. When it finally stood fully outside, its height took my breath away.
It had to be at least 20 feet tall. Its long, gray beard and simple clothes, along with a leather apron, gave it the appearance of an old craftsman—though one of colossal proportions. In its hand, it held a rectangular box sealed with leather straps. Its face, lined with wrinkles, showed no emotion.
The ogre, with his usual intolerance, barked at me:
"Come on, useless! Take Grimmor's order already," he said in his irritable voice, snapping me out of my daze.
The giant extended his arm, offering me the box. I didn't know what to expect from him, but I had no choice but to step forward. Carefully, I approached and took the box from his hands. As I did, I looked up and saw the giant watching me with a strange expression.
"Hmm… I think I've seen you before…" he murmured, his voice so deep I almost felt it more than I heard it.
I clutched the box tightly and stepped back a couple of paces. "This is my first time here," I replied, trying to keep calm. "You must be confusing me with someone else, sir."
The giant, with a doubtful expression, brought a hand to his chin in a thoughtful gesture. "Hmm… I never forget a face… could you be…?"
Before he could finish his sentence, strange noises began to resonate from the forest. They were indistinct sounds, but they came from all directions. My body went on high alert as I whipped my head around, trying to pinpoint where the noises were coming from.
The giant let out a grunt, turning back toward the cave, but not without first warning us: "You'd better leave this place. It can become dangerous for outsiders."
The tension in the air returned. For the first time on this whole journey, the ogre showed a flicker of concern. His hand moved quickly to the axe, and he unsheathed it, gripping it with both hands as if ready for whatever was coming. The tension in his jaw told me he was prepared to fight.
I, on the other hand, had nothing to defend myself with except the box I held—completely useless in this situation. Desperation set in, and without thinking, I blurted out to the ogre:
"Come on, lend me the dagger you've got on your belt!"
"I won't share my weapon with a worthless being like you," the ogre growled, looking at me with disdain.
"What do you think Grimmor will say if he finds out you didn't help me, huh? If by some miracle I survive this, I'll make sure to tell him!" I snapped back, feeling the panic rise within me.
The ogre roared again, filled with fury, but there was no time for arguing. He quickly pulled out his dagger and threw it to the ground in front of me.
I rushed to grab it as my nerves were consuming me.
The sounds were getting closer. Something—or someone—was about to appear, and there was no way to escape. We were in its territory now, and all we could do was face whatever the forest had in store for us.