<7 - Honesty> The male orc cleared his throat. “Re’ka, I-” “Father, [i]please[/i],” she said dryly. “After dumping all of that family history on me and pretending to sleep while I sucked your dick, tell me with a straight face that you’re not interested. I mean, c’mon! Mom says it’s fine, no one else is around, and if you didn’t want it I don’t think you would’ve been getting hard when we, you know, did stuff.” Blud found himself set back on his heels. “My wants are irrelevant, Chela. What matters is what [i]you[/i]-” “[i]I [b]want[/b][/i] this!” she proclaimed and slammed her fist into the mossy ground. Blud searched his daughter’s eyes and found only fire–a fire of passion that he hadn’t seen, but had hoped existed, before they’d begun their journey. “Dad, I love you, but I can’t dance around this anymore. You’ve always been there for me, and even if the spirits [i]did[/i] lead me to your side at night, they didn’t [i]make[/i] me do it. I realize now that I [i]wanted[/i] it, and I’m not ashamed or afraid to tell you that anymore. Knowing your past with mom, knowing your heart, your honor, it only makes me want you more, and I don’t give a damn about what others might think.” Her bare chest heaved, her breathing ragged. “And you know what? You can tell me ‘no’! That’s fine! You’re my [i]Father[/i], and that won’t ever change. I’ll still love you all the same.” Blud exhaled through his nose. “But I would be lying to myself, right?” Chela’s lower lip trembled beneath her tiny tusks. “I think so. Maybe I just hope so.” Slowly, her father touched her bare shoulder, and an almost sad look appeared in his dark brown eyes. “Chela… I think we both need rest for tonight,” he said with a sorrowful lilt in his voice. “But I promise you, without a doubt, you will have your answer tomorrow.” The female orc felt her throat tighten. All she could do was nod, and without a word she stood and walked out of the encampment. Blud watched his daughter go, but dared not follow as she turned behind a tree some thirty feet from the fire. Chela laid herself down by the roots, pulled her knees to her chest, and sobbed herself to sleep. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Chela couldn’t see herself or her father in her second dream of the night. This time, she took the form of a wisp and soared into the night sky, far above the jungle. The wisp swirled and turned, taking a dive not far north from where they had camped, followed a winding path through the trees, then shot straight up a steep cliff, halting before the water’s edge of a large lake. To her genuine surprise, the wisp circled around the lake until she reached a dark cave that ran into the mountains to the north of the lake, almost exactly how she had described her fake dream to Blud the previous morning. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The shamaness awoke buck naked right where she’d been curled up, however several massive leaves from the trees above covered her from her neck to her feet. They were far too well-placed to have simply fallen upon her. She knew exactly who had done it, but the pain of rejection from the night before still stung no less keenly. Chela approached their camp to find her father polishing off the remainder of his breakfast, and several skewers of meat remained for her. “Morning,” he rumbled. “Morning,” she returned more coldly than she had intended. “We’re heading north from here.” “I’m aware. I was just about to go scout our path.” “No need. My dream last night showed me the way.” Blud’s brow arched. “A second dream?” Chela didn’t respond beyond tearing into her meat. * * * * * The tension remained even as father and daughter picked their path north through the jungle. She made no attempt to speak to him, and any of his prompts were returned with one-word answers. True to Chela’s dream, they didn’t encounter a single hostile creature. The two of them broke through the underbrush to find themselves standing at the base of a jagged cliff. “Hope your fear of heights isn’t-” Blud started. “Just go,” Chela cocked back sharply and began to climb. The shamaness made surprisingly swift progress up the cliffside. It was so rough that it wasn’t difficult to find handholds, nor did she seem to mind the breeze that rushed between her legs. Chela was very much aware of it, however. [i]‘I hope he’s looking. Seeing what he’s missing out on,’[/i] she thought to herself angrily, though she never once looked down long enough to see if he was peeking. Morning was long gone when Chela clambered up over the top of the cliff. The orc fell flat on her back, her long, black braids splayed out beneath her as she worked to catch her breath. A smile of self-satisfaction crossed her tusked lips, and she even dared to chuckle at herself in triumph, almost shocked that she had managed the climb so easily. Blud’s periodic grunting broke her from her reverie. Chela dared to peer over the cliff, finding her father a meager ten feet below her. “I am not as young as I once was!” he called up to her. She had not forgotten the pain, but she couldn’t resist the urge to shoot back. “I’m surprised you even made it this far, old man!” The elder shaman laughed and paused to look up at her… and a look of shock appeared just as suddenly. “MOVE!” Chela looked at him, confused, then turned around. Up in the sky, a massive winged beast made a dive for the shaman. Thanks to her father’s warning, she narrowly rolled to one side as the beast’s talons crashed into the top of the cliff. The creature screeched and took off again, sending chunks of crumbling rock falling over the cliff’s edge.