From the position of the sun in the sky, he guessed it had only been around an hour, so he had some time before the elf would return. To pass the time, Korik went back over everything he’d seen of the camp, making a mental list of as many details as he could recall, and thinking about what Varen might suggest they do. From what Varen had said, the plan was to approach the elves under the cover of night; overpower the guard before they had a chance to wake the other orcs; then flee back the way they’d come to guide the freed elves back to Aefraya with them.
But it would depend heavily on being able to take out the guard without drawing attention to themselves, which Korik felt uncertain about. Varen was a soldier, of course, but Korik was not much of a fighter. He was tall, but lanky for an orc—paired against the orc who had been standing guard, it would be no contest. Even his magic would only give him an advantage if they could surprise the guard. That part of the plan would be entirely on Varen’s shoulders.
But what was the alternative? They would never manage sneaking all the elves out without the guard eventually noticing. Korik could probably incapacitate him temporarily with his magic, but he couldn’t guarantee how long it might last.
He needed to know more about what Varen could do with his own magic, too. He had only seen Varen silence himself and augment his movement; while useful, if that was the extent of his magical ability, their options would be more limited. If he had more combat-oriented abilities, though, that could turn the odds more in their favor. And if some of the captured elves could do the same...
Korik considered his own magic and what he could do with it that might help in a fight. Since he had shown magical aptitude from a young age, he had trained very little in combat compared to the average orc born into a wandering clan; instead, he had spent his time studying under his father. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d even held a blade larger than a knife, much less fought with one.
Could he control an animal well enough to compel it to attack? He had never tried, but he doubted it—generally, the bigger the creature, the more difficult it was to contain its instincts. Even the little bird he’d just used to perch on Varen’s shoulder for so long had felt palpable fear the whole time. He’d been able to ignore and suppress it easily enough; but if it were coming from a more intelligent animal, something that was a true predator? He might be able to see through its eyes, but would have little to no control over it. Plus, it would leave his own body open and vulnerable—and it would hinge entirely on such a creature being close enough to be useful.
His healing magic could be manipulated to harm someone easily enough, but he needed to have skin contact for it to work, so it was all but useless in a fight. If he were close enough to put his hand on an enemy, he was close enough to have the hand cleaved off or a sword stuck through his belly.
Korik thought of how he spread his magic through the ground to feel the latent power of the earth, wondering if he could manipulate its shape. He could maybe lift stones out of the soil and send them firing off like arrows, or maybe create walls of earth to protect or hide himself... He hadn’t tried something like that before, but he experimentally placed his hands on the ground.
The soil beneath shifted slightly at his uncertain nudging, which was a good sign. In his mind, he could see himself raising a wall of stone, shielding himself from arrows; he pulled his magic up through the earth, and the soil and stone came with it. It was more like a wave rising up, and it sent dirt and torn roots showering around him—but itworked. He stifled a grin, imagining using the same trick to trip up an attacker charging at them, or even using it to create a distraction.
Maybe he could be of some use after all.
Chapter Six
Korik
WhenVarenreturned,silentand unseen until he was right beside Korik, the orc was still practicing his newfound skill. He heard a faint laugh from behind him and turned around to find the elf smirking at him, arms folded across his chest.
“Not too bored while you were waiting for me, then?” he said. Korik looked away, flushing with embarrassment, and didn’t respond. After a beat, Varen sighed and sat down cross-legged in the grass, still eying Korik with an unreadable expression.
“Well?” Korik finally prompted him. “Did your visit help you make a plan?”
Varen laughed again. He hadn’t been in such high spirits since before Enriel was taken, which seemed like a good sign.
“I think so,” he said. “I managed to speak to Enriel for a moment before I headed back, which was very helpful, too.”
Alarm leapt up Korik’s throat. “You got that close?”
But Varen waved a dismissive hand. “I was very careful. No one saw me. Their one guard is rather lax. Enriel learned a little bit about the other elves there. None have been at this camp longer than a week. One of them speaks orcish and has overheard them talking about leaving to rejoin a larger camp soon, but they’re not sure how soon. Most of the elves are merchants and traders, but three of them were guards for a trade caravan, so they have decent fighting prowess. They think one is a mage as he’s been kept drugged somehow by a shaman with the group—do you know anything about that?”
The influx of new information made Korik’s pulse quicken with stress; but he latched on to Varen’s question and closed his eyes, sorting through his mental encyclopedia of herbs and medicines, trying to think of any concoctions that might have the effect of suppressing magic. To his knowledge, there was nothing that could accomplish something so specific.
“Drugged how?” Korik finally asked, and Varen shrugged.
“I don’t know. I didn’t see him, and I only risked a moment to speak to her,” he replied.
“They may just be keeping him too disoriented to use magic,” Korik offered, unsure of what else could prevent anyone from using their magic. “They could be keeping him docile or incapacitated entirely.”
“Do you think that’s something you could fix? Another mage would be very useful.”
Korik thought it over. He had helped with his fair share of warriors and workers—orcs and elves alike, now—who had come to him to sober up quickly before reporting for duty, usually from alcohol, but occasionally from other substances. In those instances, it had been a matter of finding the toxin within the body and removing it, or else speeding up the body’s natural processes to have it filtered through the liver or kidneys. It was hard to say without knowing exactly what the mage was being dosed with, but if nothing else, he could attempt the latter.
“Most likely, yes,” he offered. “It may not be immediate, but with most things, I could at least help clear the system sooner.”
Varen rubbed his chin thoughtfully, still looking at Korik. His expression made Korik feel flushed again, this time not with embarrassment, but something else. Korik pushed the feeling away and waited for Varen to respond.
“Alright,” the elf finally said. “I think I’ve got the beginnings of a plan. We need to do this tonight, though.”
Korik winced. While time was certainly of the essence, he knew neither of them had rested well in days. Varen must have shared his thought, though, as he added quickly,
“We’ll wait until it’s the middle of the night. I feel fine, but it’ll give you the chance to get at least a bit of sleep. We need your magic, as much of it as you can give, so I need you as rested as you can be.”
