Link: https://www.sylestia.com/forums/?thread=51293&page=13#121 Author: Creativity Time Posted: 9/16/2017 at 10:03 PM The man smiled. "Of course, kind traveler," he answered, and then handed you a piece of paper and a pencil.

(Unfortunately, this must be my last post before going to bed ^.^ It's been fun, though, and I look forward to continuing tomorrow :D)

"Thank you, sir!" Julien took the objects and hurried back to Ruk. "If it's not too much trouble, could you explain why it is that you can't talk?" he asked the orc a little shyly.

d) approach slowly

Emily signals to Ellitt to stay back while she walks slowly towards the noise. With one hand near her bow and the other reaching for an arrow she takes a few steps forward

Link: https://www.sylestia.com/forums/?thread=51293&page=13#123 Author: Creativity Time Posted: 9/16/2017 at 10:20 PM Ruk nodded and grabbed the utensil and paper. He wrote for what seemed like forever. When he finally finished, he handed the paper to you. You began to read it, noticing that several times, incorrect words were crossed out and spelled correctly. I must apologize in advance that I do not know your language as well as my own. This will take me longer to write. I do not know if you know about orcish lives. Basically, female orcs wander about until they are impregnated by a male. Then, they birth their baby and raise it. If it is a son, she kicks him off into the wilderness on his own at age ten. If it is a daughter, age twelve. If she births a weak cub, she kills it before it can even live to the age of one. This is how we live. We are not a social people. That being said, I was abandoned at age ten, as is customary. At age ten, a male orc is of age. We are strong enough to defend ourselves. I was quick to fight and challenge, as customary, but I had a problem. I chose to many battles I could not fight. When I was eleven years old, after one year on my own, I had taken on a full-grown bull. I took a hard hit to the head, and when I woke up next, I was in a scientist's lab. There were body parts of every species I could imagine in there. I was strapped to a table, and I had to watch as an elven scientist, an outcast from his tribe, cut my own tongue out of my mouth. I escaped the very next day. Unable to declare challenges anymore, I felt like I was no longer an orc. I could not do as my brethren do. So, I chose to wander. When I was twelve, I happened upon this human village. Having nowhere else to go, I stayed here. I never stopped practicing my fighting, though. I rid people of pests and beasts for a price. I am a sad excuse for an orc, but I cannot deny what has happened to me. It would be an insult to the great lineage of orcs for me to procreate as this monstrosity. Instead, I decided to live out my days as a Hagket, or, a half-orc. A orc who is, but does not do as an orc does.

Julien took the paper gently and read it, taking a few minutes to decipher some of the words in the orc's unusual handwriting.

"That's horrible!" he declared upon reading the bit about the scientist. "I can't believe there's a jerk out there who would do something like that!" He quickly finished reading the rest of the paper, feeling his blood start to boil. "No wonder you came to a place like this!" He glanced up at Ruk. "I'm sorry. My memories of bad experiences with aggressive orcs colored my opinion of you before I ever even talked to you. But had I known that you were...." He waved the paper around, shaking his head, at a loss for words.