Penetrate that hole! (l-lewd...)

You move in front of the tall, dark hole on the ancient tree. Now you just have to close your eyes and walk through it... You take a deep breath and look back at Evie.

The crestfallen dryad keeps her arms crossed and looks down at her bare feet as she softly kicks some dirt off the ground. You feel bad for the poor girl, she just wants a friend, she saved your life and you owe her... but... what can you do? Her mother seems pretty intense, you don't want to make her angry. "...Are you going to be okay, Evie?"

"Y-yeah, yeah. Don't worry about me." She forces herself to smile. "I'll be fine."

You sigh, taking a quick glance around to see if the dryad matriarch is listening before walking towards the girl again. "...You know... I lost a very important ring in this forest. I don't think your mother would be angry if you simply help me find it, right? After all, a deer could eat it and **** to ****, and that would be awful... Dryads have to protect nature, don't they?"

The expression of the girl softens as she looks up at your face, a true smile beginning to reappear on her lips. "Y-yeah! You are right. I can't allow that to happen! I'm totally **** to help you find that ring." She giggles.

"Of course. Just doing your duty..." You laugh, placing your hand over her shoulder and grinning down at her. "Take care, Evie."

"You too, Theo!" She splurts, quickly hugging your torso and pressing her face against your chest. You softly pat her back with an amused smirk.

You move towards the huge tree again, covering your eyes with one hand and slowly starting to walk through the dark hole in its middle. The creepy sounds get louder and louder, you feel your body itchy for a few seconds but the sensation quickly dissipates and the ambiance around you suddenly changes into a more pleasant one. You feel the soft breeze hit against you, the rays of the sun squeezing through the fingers blocking your vision, the previous ominous sounds replaced by the soothing song of nature. You remove your hand from your eyes, you find yourself in the woods you already know, right in front of the river you first found Lola on.

You just... went through a portal...? You look behind you, nothing there except more trees, grass, and a lonely curious rabbit looking at you from the distance.

You shake the weird feeling off, starting to walk towards the direction where your town was. You feel the scar on the side of your body slightly ache as you stroll, but you can handle it.

You reach your destroyed hometown, walking through the main road, burnt remains and rubble all around you. The corpses that were rotting on the ground last time you were here are now long gone, seems like someone had the decency to pick them up...

You march to the Guild's building. In front of it, Gina and her dad talk. The girl stands barefoot, her hair disheveled and her dress dirty and ragged on some parts. Her dad doesn't look much better, his imposing armor is gone, he looks more skinny than before, grown stubble all over his lower face.

Around them, a group of seven lesser orcs goof around, one throws a pebble at another and snorts dumbly. "STOP IT!" The orc hit by the rock groans in annoyance. These are the only ones remaining? Probably...

You move closer, Gina and her father seem to hear your footsteps. They stop their conversation and look in your direction with confused expressions. Gina loudly gasps, her eyes widening like plates as she sees you still alive and kicking, starting to hurriedly sprint towards you. A small smile appears on Forius' face, he places his hands on his hips and stays still in place.

"Y-you are...! You are alive...!" The teen pants and mumbles in disbelief, stopping right in front of you, big eyes looking up at your face. "How?!"

"It's a long story." You smile at her, your hand going to the top of her head, giving her tousled hair a soft stroke. "I'm happy to see you are okay, Gina."

Her cheeks slightly blush, she softly smiles. "I'm... I'm happy to see you too..." She shyly mutters.

You gaze at the girl's father in the distance. You wave your hand at him, he replies with a nod. "Is he...?"

"He is back to normal!" The orc girl happily says, grabbing your hand and starting to drag you towards his direction. "He is still a bit... shaken. B-but he is himself again. He would love to meet you!"

You hesitantly let the girl drag you to her father, the big, still scary-looking orc towering over the both of you. "Theo, right? I'm glad to see you alive." He softly speaks, looking down at you with an awkward melancholic smile. "I'm... I'm really sorry for everything that happened. I was weak, she tricked me... she got inside my head and... s-she **** me to do those terrible things... I..."

"She is gone, daddy, we talked about this already. It's over... It's not your fault." The teen orc hurries to comfort Forius, firmly hugging his thick arm. "Everything is going to be okay now."

"...Gina is right. Delilah did this, not you." You give the remorseful chief a small, sympathetic smile. He sighs deeply, resting his huge hand on top of his daughter's shoulder.

You scratch the back of your neck and take a look around the area while the girl keeps trying to calm her father... besides the group of dumb little orcs, there is no one here... fuck, that's not a good sign. "...Gina, I'm sorry to interrupt, but... Where are the girls?"

The teen and her father gaze at each other for a few seconds before looking at you again. "They... They left some time ago. I'm sorry." She says.

Of course... great... You take a deep breath, closing your eyes and rubbing your forehead in frustration. "...Where did they go?"

"Uhm... a place called: 'The Capital', I think. A pair of merchants that passed through here on a wagon gave them a lift."

You feel the sudden need to scream a loud, hearty 'fuck' and kick the shit out of some inanimate object. But you drown those animalistic instincts by clenching your fists and taking another deep breath. It can never be easy, huh? The Capital is the capital city of Midorn, if it wasn't obvious enough by the very clever name... You never visited it, but you know it is far, far away from this little town of yours. "Okay... I will have to go there, then. It might take me a few days of walking... it's a shame the horses... you know."

"Sorry..." Forius grunts, Gina hugs him closer.

Sighing, you pat the empty scabbard on the side of your hip. "I need a sword. And some food and water for the trip."

The orc father nods, gently separating his daughter from his arm. "...Gina, could you please fetch that?"

"Sure. A-are you going to be okay on your own?"

"I will. You go, honey."

"Yes, daddy." She nods her head, hurriedly walking into the Guild's building, leaving you and Forius alone.

"...Thanks for protecting her..." He starts talking again after a few seconds of silence. "...She seems very fond of you."

"Yeah?" You lift an eyebrow, crossing your arms with a half-smile on your face. "It's funny. I actually kidnapped her the first time we met."

"You saved her life. If she had been with me while that monster was fully in control... I don't even want to think about what could have happened."

"...Samuel practically gifted her to me. You think he knew about Delilah?"

"Probably." Forius simply sighs, his gaze moving upwards to watch the spongy clouds strolling on the sky. "...He was always smart... I failed him too..."

Another silence forms, you two just stand in place listening to the sounds of nature and the weird noises the lesser orcs make as they walk around the area.

"...I'm going to make her the chieftain." The orc suddenly says, looking at you again.

"Huh?"

"Gina. I will make her the leader of the tribe... I can't trust myself as a leader anymore."

"...I... I don't think this qualifies as a tribe anymore, Forius." You softly say, pointing towards the seven remaining orcs.

"Oh, there are more in Peejahk. Many more."

"...Well, but... do you think she is ready for it? That's a lot of pressure for a young girl."

The orc father scratches his unkempt stubble. "Yeah. I think she is." He softly smiles to himself. "She seems different lately, she is not the same immature girl she was back home... I just wish she wouldn't worry that much about me... it's not healthy for a girl her age to spend so much time worrying about her dumb father..."

You can avoid snorting, you can't believe you are discussing family issues with the huge scary orc that tried to slice you in pieces the last time you saw him. But anyway, he actually seems like a nice guy. He is not the one you blame for what happened to your home, that's for sure...

"Theo? I got a question."

"Sure. Let's hear it."

"Are you... uhm... When you find your companions, are you planning on returning here?"

"...I... Maybe. This is our home, after all. No matter how destroyed it is... Why?"

Forius clears his throat, looking to his sides to check that his daughter isn't listening. He fidgets with his fingers as he looks down at you. "Gina and you... you two are almost the same age, right? ...And Gina is very pretty, don't you think? She inherited her mother's looks, thankfully."

"Whu- W-what are you trying to say?" You raise an eyebrow.

"Just trying to say that I absolutely approve if you want to... ask her out? ...That's what young people call it these days, right?"

"...Ask her out...?"

"I think she could use a partner by her side when she turns into a chief, it might also distract her from being worried about me all the time... and... her personality is usually abrasive, but she actually lets her guard down with you... y-you might be the only chance I got of having grandkids..."

"G-grandkids?! You... I-i don't know if this is really the right time to talk about this!" Your skin colour turns a bit paler, a bewildered expression on your face.

"I don't want my bloodline to end, Theo. Just think about it, okay? ...I think she is coming back, act natural."

You try to compose yourself as the door to the Guild's building opens and the orc teen appears awkwardly holding a sword on one hand and a dark brown satchel on the other. "...Something happened while I was gone?" She asks, noticing your weird expression.

"N-no." You clear your throat. "That's a... that's a very nice sword, looks like the one I had."

The girl hands you the weapon. You grip the handle, feeling its texture under your palm. your gaze travelling through the lenght of its sharp greyish blade. A fine weapon indeed. You slide it into the scabbard at your side.

"I've packed you a few days of food and water, I've also threw in some candy i found on a drawer in the kitchen..." Gina speaks, sliding the strap of the satchel over your shoulder, the bag dangling on your lower back, not as heavy as you expected it would be.

"Great. Thanks a lot, Gina." You smile down at her, she mimics your smile, the green skin around her cheeks and nose pinkening a bit again.

"You are welcome, Theo..."

"I-i'll give you two some privacy. Good luck on your journey, son." Forius says, nodding his head at you with a not-so-subtle wink before heading into the building.

Gina looks back at her escaping father and then at you, a confused look on her pretty face. "...What was that?"

You shrug your shoulders with a little smile.

"Anyways... You be careful, okay?" She softly says, gently pressing a hand to your chest. "...And... you are going to come back, right?"

"Yeah, you aren't getting rid of me that easily." You grin, the girl rolls her eyes.

"With the rest of the girls?"

"That's the plan, yes."

"...That elf bitch too?"

"Agis, not 'elf bitch'... She is way nicer when you get to know her, I know she feels terrible for acting the way she did."

"Hmph." The orc girl huffs, crossing her arms. "I don't like her... You deserve someone better than her..."

"Oh, is that so?" You smile teasingly. "Like who?"

Gina's eyes open wide, cheeks turning crimson yet again. Seems like she accidentally said those last words... "W-what?"

"I deserve someone better? Who?"

"...I didn't said that. D-don't put words in my mouth, stupid human."

You laugh loudly, giving the teen a pat on the shoulder. "Heh. Sorry, it seems I've heard you wrong."

"Y-you did... Now, come on, what are you waiting for? Go find your friends... and good luck, Theo."

"Yes, ma'am." You playfully answer. Gina bites her lower lip, anxiously shifting her weight from side to side before quickly placing a kiss on your cheek and exclaiming a rapid 'thankyouforeverything.', skipping into the Guild's building with her face burning red. Heh.

Alright... now the fun part. Hiking isn't really a good activity to do after nearly dying, but you don't have any choice... You look around, where are those lesser orcs anyways?

You continue along the main path, you see them circling something on the distance... is that...? N-no, you can't be this lucky... is that a horse?!

You quickly make your way towards it, surprise all over your face... There is a woman over that horse... No, wait. There is a horse on that woman... No... that is a half-woman, half-horse... a centaur?

"Hmm, let's try again. I'm a missionary from the church of Aurora." She says with a polite smile on her face, looking down at the confused group of orcs around her. "mih-shuh-nuh-ree, any of you know what that word means? Don't be shy, it's perfectly okay if you don't!" She calmly speaks in a serene, soothing tone of voice.

One of the lesser orcs slowly raises his arm.

"Great! Tell me, what does missionary mean?"

"IT'S WHEN MALE ORC GETS BETWEEN LEGS OF FEMALE ORC AND-"

"N-no, no! that's not... Uhm... do you guys know what religion is...?"

The centaur sports a height of almost 7 feet tall. The lower part of her body is the one of a slim mare with light-skinned fur, with four hooves and a long tail swaying behind. The upper part, instead, is the one of a beautiful woman. Her skin pale, and her huge jugs barely contained by the semi-transparent white cloths she is dressed in. The centaur has a fixed motherly smile on her face, light blonde hair styled in a hime cut with two cute equine ears on top of it, her baby blue eyes moving from orc to orc as they spurt ridiculous answer after answer...