[Wendigos' Outpost - Courtyard]

​Xanor stood like a statue before the hulking form of an eight-foot Ogre. This was an Ogre Captain—a broker for the grotesque trade—his massive, bowed hand resting on the pommel of a greatsword. Behind him, five Ogre soldiers, encased in dark, elite-class armor, shifted uneasily.

​"So, you're the one brokering the shipment of captives," Xanor stated, his voice a low.

​"That is correct, Commander," the Ogre replied, finally lifting his head. His eyes held a flicker of insolence beneath the enforced respect.

"You know the terms of the alliance. We are here to fulfill our end."

​"Terms are one thing; purpose is another," Xanor pressed, fixing a piercing stare on the Ogre Captain.

"I know the initial destination. I want to know what happens to them next."

​The Ogre, pleased to share the chilling details, puffed out his chest:

"Once they reach the transfer point, the process splits. The weak, the elderly—the ones too damaged or frail for service—are sold off. They enter the Shadow Markets as goods. The healthy, the resilient, and especially the young; they are transported to the First Stronghold, deep within Wendigo territory."

​'The Ogres gain by selling the scraps, while the Wendigos gain fresh stock, both for food and... for breeding the next generation of elite Wendigos,' Xanor thought, a bitter taste rising in his mouth.

​"Good. Then be swift," Xanor commanded, waving a dismissive hand.

"Load them all. Get your vessel off-world. We are expecting an attack, a massive one—any moment now."

​The Ogre Captain, relieved to be dismissed, nodded quickly and lumbered away with his contingent, heading for the prison behind the main structure.

​"Report." Xanor's voice cut the silence.

​The air shimmered, and Shadow Eyes walked out of thin air.

She shook her head: "Nothing. No sign of the God Wolf, no orbital movements. The sector is eerily quiet."

​"Strange," Xanor muttered, his hand unconsciously clenching into a fist.

"The God Wolf I know doesn't delay. He doesn't prevaricate, but why the silence?"

The delay was more unsettling than an open attack to Xanor.

​"Are you certain he will attack this outpost specifically?" Shadow Eyes asked, her gaze fixed on the fortress gates.

​"If he gives a promise or a threat—it will be carried out. It's a matter of when, and how. We move according to the plan. If the shipment clears the atmosphere without incident..." He said, the smile touching his lips:

"We abandon this place. The Stronghold will have served its purpose as a sacrificial lamb."

___

​[Beneath the Outpost - Prison]

​The Ogre Captain and his five men moved through the torch-lit, dank subterranean hallway. The air was heavy, tasting of mildew and despair. The Captain arrived at the massive, heavily locked metal door.

​"Two of you, secure the passage," he grunted, then unlocked the mechanism with a key the size of a man's forearm. He and the remaining three soldiers stepped inside, leaving the two behind.

__

​The prison was a vast, dim chamber lined with cramped, cages. Men, women, children, and elders of all races were chained to the floor.

The Captain's brow furrowed: "The numbers are down again. Those lazy brutes... were they snacking on the stock?" he spat in disgust.

​He stopped before one cage, his attention fixed. Inside, ten young women, Dragonesses; were shackled to the stone wall, their bodies marred by starvation and scars, their eyes dull and defeated.

​"Fools! Dragons, Elves, and Phoenix, they are the main capital! Their hides and genes must be immaculate! Look at this damage!" He grabbed the bars, shaking the cage violently.

"We won't get good prices for damaged goods!"

​"Captain," one Ogre reported, and continued:

"Current count shows 150 captives here, with 49 youngest unconcealed. The detail states the remaining 101 are held behind a powerful cloaking barrier."

​"You."

​The four Ogres turned to the sound. A young Dragoness, barely more than eighteen, had painfully lifted her head. Despite the sunken cheeks and deep scars, her eyes—a blazing amber, were fixed on the Captain.

​"If... if I ever... get the chance..." she choked out, fighting for air:

"I... I will kill... you all."

Hearing her, the Captain threw his head back and laughed, a cruel, rattling sound.

"A threat? Your internal core is destroyed. You can't even take your true form. You are a commodity, and a poor one at that." He turned back to his men, a predatory gleam in his eye.

​"Get moving. We move them all to the ship. But her," he paused, looking over his shoulder at the Dragoness, taking in the sight of her two small, horns and her tail.

"Keep her separate. I want to see her spirit broken in my own quarters. After I have my sport, I will cut her horns off and mount them in my room. Her tail... that will be my personal whip."

"....?!"

​The young Dragoness's last vestige of defiance shattered. Her face went pale, her amber eyes wide with a terror deeper than physical pain.

​"Move! Unlock the cages!"

​The three Ogres snapped to attention, pulling card-keys to begin the grim process of emptying the cells.

_____

​[Outside The Prison - Hallway]

​Tap-tap-tap.

​A rhythmic, light footsteps echoed down the stone corridor, immediately drawing the attention of the two Ogre guards left outside the prison door. They turned their heads, seeing Xanor approaching.

​"Where is the Captain?" he asked, stopping directly before them.

​The Ogres gestured toward the door. As they did, Xanor nodded and snapped his fingers.

​Instantly, the two Ogre guards solidified, their flesh and skin turning to dark grey granite. The transformation was swift and silent. Before the shock could register, the stone forms cracked and crumbled into fine dust, leaving two perfectly Ogre-shaped piles on the floor.

​Xanor's body then shifted, his armor faded into a simple fur coat, and pants, and his features changed into that of Sunny.

​"Time for a little personal inspection," Sunny murmured.

​With a casual wave of his hand, the massive, reinforced metal door—the same door the Ogres had used a key on—shattered into billions of shimmering, metallic motes that dissolved into nothingness.

​"...?!!!"

​Inside, the Ogre Captain and his three men spun around, their eyes widening in shock at the sight of the newly arrived figure standing in the wreckage of the doorway.

​"Who are you?!" the Captain roared, instinctively drawing his razor-sharp greatsword.

​Sunny merely exhaled. He channeled a sliver of his celestial energy, refining it into a glowing, silver needle, which he held delicately between his index finger and thumb.

​"That greatsword... are you truly planning on attacking me with something so... crude?" he asked, a faint, condescending smile playing on his lips as he infused the needle with his spirit energy.

​Sunny flicked his wrist, sending the needle with lethal precision, striking the center of the Ogre Captain's chest armor. It did not penetrate, barely leaving a scratch on the ancient metal.

​The Captain blinked in shock, then let out a roar of fury morphed into a hearty, guttural laugh: "Hahahaha! You called that an attack?! A pinprick?!"

His three men joined in the mockery, their terror momentarily replaced by contempt.

​"Why the laughter?" Sunny's smile widened, lacking any warmth. "That wasn't the attack." He took a single, deliberate step into the room.

​BAM!!!

​An invisible, focused force slammed into the Ogre Captain, originating from the point of impact on his chest, but expanding inward. He gasped, spurting a jet of crimson blood.

​"Wha—?!"

​BAM!!

​Another impact—not a physical blow, but a targeted internal pressure wave—hit him. His knees buckled, and he crashed down.

​"My attack deals continuous internal damage at 30% of my full attack stat." Sunny explained, his voice conversational, a sharp contrast to the horror unfolding.

"The beautiful part is, it affects you from the inside out, shredding your organs while leaving your armor untouched."

​BAM!!!

​"AHHHH!"

The Ogre screamed, a high-pitched sound of pure agony as blood erupted from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth simultaneously. His armor was a cage protecting him from the outside, but utterly useless against the force tearing him apart from within.

​"...?!"

The three remaining Ogres were frozen in petrified disbelief, stumbling backward, dropping their keys and cards.

​BAM!!

​BOOOOM!

​The final force wave was too much. The Ogre Captain's body didn't merely die; it detonated, shattering into a gruesome shower of flesh and pulverized bone, splattering the adjacent cages and painting the walls a visceral red.

"....?!?"

​The silence that followed was broken only by the whimpering of the captives.

​"Now..."

Sunny turned his gaze, which held the cold, detached intensity of a scientist examining a specimen, toward the three horrified, cowering Ogres.

"Who is ready to tell me about the prisoners?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.