Inverted Deck

Inverted Deck (Chapter 15)

Chapter 15

"The S-S-Second Horseman of W-War... is your great-grandfather?!" The Orcs chime in fear.

"You heard right." Ja'Krob says calmly as the gold covering his body slowly begins to peel off and turn into golden stem.

"Sc-Screw this!! I'm outta' here!!" The tatted orc takes off running towards the gray orc.

"Th-The Syndicate's not done with ya'!! W-Wait till our bosses hear about th-this!!! The bald orc takes off right behind the tatted orc before both of them pick up the unconscious gray orc and carry him off into the darkness of the alleyway.

"Ja'Krob... you good man?" I ask as the gold on his flesh continues to peel off and turn to stem.

"Huh? Oh, Yes I'm fine. The gold on my skin both absorbs most oncoming damage and heals any damage that it didn't absorb as it peels off. I'll be fine."

I kneel over to the owner of the hut. "Hey, you okay?"

I look at his face and I'm met with the opposite reaction that I was expecting, instead of a facial expression of relief and gratitude, I met with the eyes of a man scared to death and beyond. His bright brown eyes full of fear, his body covered in sweat and grime and his fingers steadily trembling, but instead of his fearful gaze directing itself at me as I would assume because of my class, it's directed at Ja'Krob instead.

The Old man takes a loud gulp.

"Ar-Are y-you really, who y-you say you are?" The old man asks.

"Yes. I am. Meaning you should probably run." Ja'Krob says side eyeing the old man.

The owner quickly pushes himself off the ground and scampers away into the onlooking crowd like a frightened child.

I walk up to Ja'Krob and firmly grab his arm.

"Yo! What's the big-!"

"We gotta' go." Ja'Krob says quickly.

"What?"

"I'll explain later, but right now it's best we leave the area. Grab that hooded cloak over there." Ja'Krob says sternly pointing at a dirtied, ragged brown cloak on the ground beside the hut.

I grab it off the ground and slide it over my head hurriedly, as I watch Ja'Krob pull his hood over his head.

"Come on." Ja'Krob says as he pulls my hood over my head.

I brush my dreadlocks out of my face and tuck them behind my ears and then I begin to see the crowd around us. Humans, male and female, children and adults, all looking at Ja'Krob with a similar look that old man had on his face.

I put my head down to hear some of the murmuring going on around us.

"...did you hear what he said... he's the descendant of the Second horseman of war!!" Some whisper.

"... that means he's a Jötunn too!! Has he come to finish what his great-grandfather started!?"

"What, you mean enslave us all? I mean come on he doesn't even look like a Jotunn, and even if he was you saw what he could do. I'm sure if he wanted to enslave us he would've done so by now."

"But-!"

"And what's one of the strongest destroyers' descendants in history, doing in a place like this!? Wouldn't he be, I don't know, somewhere up north, in Glacies, or at least in the 1st or 2nd district."

"Are you out of your flinking mind!? Why would they let somebody like him anywhere near the queen!? You know what the Jotunn did to her parents..."