Dawn came slow and gray. Orbigod rose before the sun and began preparing a simple breakfast — fresh fruit, a small jug of juice, and a few roots he'd dug the day before.
He moved quietly so as not to wake Ruka roughly. When she was still asleep, he leaned over and shook her shoulder.
"Wake up. Morning's here. Wash and eat. Don't try to run," he warned softly. "If my father Chucky finds out you're alive, he'll kill you without a second thought."
Ruka opened her eyes, the edges raw with sleep. She spat out anger like a blade. "I won't die quietly. I'll tear your family apart first — then I'll die in peace." She dragged a twig through her teeth in the coarse way she'd learned to survive.
Orbigod handed her a bowl of blueberries and watched as she ate. "How long have you been hiding?" she asked between bites.
"Not long," Orbigod lied, though the lie came from a good place. "Just long enough. You won't tell them everything. When it's safe, I'll free you. Do whatever you want then. I
promise no one will harm you."
Ruka's laugh was hollow. "I don't need your promises. I want Chucky's head. He ordered my baby killed. He didn't deserve to be a father. I hoped my Zaid would come back for us." Tears slipped down her cheek.
"I know," Orbigod said. "My father wouldn't order that for a child. If he did, I'd stop him." He couldn't meet her eyes. "If you want revenge, draw your sword and cut off my head. But the moment you do, you lose everything. You'll never be satisfied."
She took the sword in trembling hands, held it up — then dropped it. "Why is the maker of this world so cruel?" she whispered.
At that moment, a messenger eagle arrived, dropping a leather scroll at Orbigod's feet. It was from Leio: the Ooka tribe had betrayed him. Stones and spears had rained down on his lab people; he was injured and trapped in the narrow pass near his research site. He begged for help.
Orbigod's blood ran cold. "What?" he snarled. "I left for five days and this
happened? Ooka? Betrayal from them?"
He quickly tied Ruka inside the tent — rough cloth and knots, not to hurt her but to keep
her safe — and rode hard for Leio's location.
Three days later Orbigod rode into the chaos.
Ooka raiders had surrounded the lab. Leio's guards lay lifeless on the ground; one man had a sword at his throat, ready to strike.
Orbigod loosed his arrows without pity. They struck fast and true. In minutes he'd cut down twenty attackers. His voice echoed:
"You think we remade you for treason? You were given life — now you spill your own blood? Die for it!"
Four men surrendered. "Sorry, brother," Leio choked as Orbigod helped him up. "You came late."
"You're alive," Orbigod said simply. "That's what matters." He led Leio away. The path home was heavy with silence.
When they reached the camp, their mother — Euka — saw Leio and gasped.
His clothes were torn, his body marked, blood on his temples and hands. "Who did this to you?" she cried, half-broken. "I told you to forget the past. But you never listen. Look at him."
Orbigod explained: "The Ooka tribe has started a rebellion. Orgondo caught their leader — the one who made the soke alien fluid. We arrested him and brought him to Leio's lab, but the tribe attacked. They came with stones and weapons.
Leio sent a messenger; his eagle got to me. I arrived in time — I saved him and broke the rebellion."
Leio's eyes focused. "They will pay," he said, voice low. "No children, no old women
harmed — only those who chose treason."
Orbigod rode into the Ooka encampment and found them gathered.
"Who wants to fight?" he shouted. The slog of battle followed. He struck down seventy men in a brutal rush; the rest dropped their weapons and surrendered. The traitors were bound and jailed, their heads collected as proof.
When Orbigod returned, he handed the prisoner case to Leio. "It's done," he said.
Leio breathed for the first time in days. "You saved me," he said, weak but steady.
Orbigod bowed his head. "Forgive me for not being there sooner," he murmured.
Euka pulled Leio into an embrace, tears of relief soaking his bloodied shoulders.
"Thank God you survived," she kept whispering.
Leio blinked, opening his eyes fully at last. Around him, the camp exhaled — a fragile peace, stitched together with steel and vows of vengeance.