Chapter 43

The lone rider dismounted from his warg, patted his mount then saluted towards the chieftain.

"We come with the survivors of the south, chief."

Xiao Chen was deeply puzzled by the rider mentioning the term survivor and curiously proceeded closer towards the scout he had sent out, his wary warrior standing at attention as he signaled them that everything is alright.

"What do you mean by survivors?"

Xiao Chen asked and glanced towards the massive horde at the distance which was made of mixed races.

"I think it's better if you hear it from the dwellers of the south, chief"

The rider bowed his head and look behind him towards the creatures which he said to be the survivors. Fear was deeply etched among the faces of the survivors as they look towards Xiao Chen and the wooden fortification behind him with hope.

For days they have been pursued by the pawns of the demon, sometimes even their own kin who had fallen victim to the demon's spell. The Season of Damnation comes and goes without warning to the occupants of the south, it arrives with no warning at all till it already began.

"Call the representative of each of the races to explain the details to me"

"But the others shall remain outside the walls for the meantime, until I can get a clear vision of what is going on"

Xiao Chen commanded the rider in front of him then turned back and retreated towards the safety of walls.

"Are you sure it is wise to let them within the walls, chief?'

Sakh'arran ushered Blackwind beside the chieftain and questioned him.

"If they make even a single suspicious act, I'll kill them all"

Gur'kan butted in and caressed the sword in his hands, his eyes blazing with loyalty. The loyal orc walked beside their chieftain keeping at the same pace as him.

"We'll need information on what is truly happening. We are not from this part of the Orcish lands and we are basically blind on what is occurring. I need a clear glimpse of this phenomenon to come up with a plan"

Xiao Chen said while walking briskly towards his tent, behind him were some warriors who took the initiative in ensuring his safety.

*****

"Mohrios that's what I'm called, greetings to you chieftain"

A huge minotaur step forward and made a small bow. Mohrios was bigger than the muscle head Galum'nor, he had yellowish brown skin color, with sparse hair covering some of his big body. The horn on top of his head was totally similar to that of a bull.

"My kind are the ones who roamed this part of the lands the longest before our neighbors arrived except for those small underground and cave dwellers"

Mohrios said as he glanced at the leader of the kobolds before moving his gaze towards the representative of the other races.

"The phenomenon that we are experiencing now is the Season of Damnation which happens every now and then here in the south. It begins whenever a demon descends on this plane and putting the creatures that it encounters in a spell."

"Those that fall victim to its spells become no different than a wild beast, preying and slaughtering on anyone that doesn't radiate the same energy as them. We the Taurens are sensitive to this energy and we migrate north whenever it happens but this new demon seemed to know of our routes and ambushed us on our way north, blocking all paths"

Mohrios explained as the leaders of the other races nodded their heads in agreement. Every time that the Season of Damnation arrives, they forego all hatred between them and moved north. They prioritized their survival first before their old hatreds.

"So, you mean to say that the routes to the north are all blocked by the pawns of this, this demon"

Xiao Chen wanted to be sure of the situation.

"Yes, young chief. All the paths to the north are filled with its pawns waiting in ambush, even the hidden paths are filled with them"

Mohrios continued.

"De'cam like plague, mon. De'kil everything on'de path"

The representative of the trolls butted in which made Xiao Chen speechless, 'The fuck with that accent' he thought. Xiao Chen got a clear idea of what was going on but instead of being serious, he couldn't help but laugh because of the way the troll spoke.

"Y u laughinn, mon. Dis ain't funny bisness"

The troll felt offended somehow when the young chieftain laughed towards them. He didn't know why but he felt that he was the one that made the orc laughed.

Xiao Chen tried hard to contain his laugh but some audible chuckles still came out from his mouth and his face started to turn grey as he was having a hard time to breathe trying to prevent himself from outright laughing hard.

"Apologies, mon. Just can't help mi self, just remembered samting mi, mon"

Xiao Chen replied copying the way that the troll spoke. The troll stared at the orc chieftain, his pupils starting to enlarge as his jaw dropped.

"Yu bro'the of the trolls,mon?"

The troll curiously asked since orcs were known to copulate with other humanoid species, especially the males. They breed with any other race as long as they deem it necessary to strengthen their tribe. They had no problems with their offspring since they inherit most of their looks from their orc parents.

"No... I am fully an orc"

Xiao Chen said while shaking his head, cutting the conversation short as he had more things to deal with than explaining to the troll.

One by one the representatives of the other races also told accounts of what they knew about what Mohrios' called the Season of Damnation. They call it in different ways but the thing that is similar is about a demon descending and enslaving the creatures that it sees with a spell and sending them out on a path of destruction and slaughter. The demon disappears after its demonic energy gets depleted since this is not its home or if it gets killed by a brave one.