Safe Harbor's Price (Orcess x Human Son Story) (Excerpt - Opening Scene)

Jana looked despairingly in all directions as the snow continued to fall around them at an alarming rate. The human woman was regretting her poor judgment having led them right into the heart of this hellish blizzard. She was a priestess of the Divine Covenant, and her teen son Everett had accompanied her to the monastery in the hopes that may he be trained and become a paladin like his father before him. 

Foolishly, she had taken the long way when they’d come to a fork in the road once the snow started coming down. This only resulted in her and her boy being stranded in the worst of the blizzard right in the middle of the wilderness. And judging by her best assessment of the region, they were miles away from any village. 

Looking over her shoulder at Edmond, she could see that he was starting to tire. The red-haired boy looked up at her from beneath his cloak as he managed the ever-deepening snow while carrying his heavy pack. Though he was tired and starting to worry just as she was, he did not complain. Her blessed boy never complained. 

“How are you doing, Edmond?” She asked with concern. 

He forced a small on his freckled face as he trudged along after her. “I am…managing, mother.”

“Remain strong, my darling,” she said sympathetically. “Keep reciting the mantra I taught you, and the blessed light will give you strength and warmth. We just need to keep our eyes open for shelter a little while longer.”

He nodded, murmuring the mantra of the Thirteen, the Covenant’s tenants. Despite their less-than-ideal circumstances, Jana had to concede that her boy would make quite the paladin one day. Though he was skinny and short for his age, he had spirit and perseverance, and these qualities mattered more than anything else. And faith, naturally. 

Still, while the priestess in her was proud of him, the mother in her lamented the sight of her sweet boy shivering beneath his cloak with his hands tucked under his armpits. They needed to find shelter, and fast.

The snow was almost knee-deep by now, and with no shelter in sight nearly thirty minutes later, Jana herself was nearly ready to abandon hope. 

“Mother, look!” Edmond exclaimed. She looked ahead through the gust of wind and the pounding snow and saw a light. It was faint at first, but upon looking more closely she could finally make out what appeared to be a light creeping out of the window of a cabin of some kind.

Emboldened and joyous, Jana smiled, hugging Edmond to her side. “Good eye, my son!” With newfound vigor, she soldiered on, and she could see that Edmond had more pep in his step upon seeing potential shelter as well. “Let us go. But tread lightly. We do not wish to alarm whoever lives in this dwelling.”

Jana and Edmond trudged their way up the small snow-capped hill to the cabin. Looking at the building, it looked to be a very rugged and simple wooden home. Jana doubted that this house would be all that warm on the inside. But it had a roof, which was more than she and her son had at the moment, so it would have to do. 

Ambling up to the front door, Jana and Edmond huddled under as much of the wooden roof as they could to avoid being pelted with the freezing snow. She rapped her knuckles on the door three times. “Hello? Is anyone there?” she called out. After several moments, there was no answer. Jana looked back at Edmond who shrugged. She tried knocking again and got the same result.

She slowly reached for the door knob and gave it a twist. It was unlocked, much to her relief. Stepping inside, Jana and Edmond shut the door behind them and removed their hoods, breathing a sigh of relief to finally be indoors. As she suspected, the interior of the cabin was not much to look at. There was a small hearth where a fire was currently lit - the source of the light that they had seen earlier, a couple small windows, a stone stove, a chest for the inhabitant’s belongings and a doorway that Jana had to assume was a bedroom. That was the entirety of the cabin. She was not all that surprised by this; whoever lived here clearly preferred nature to the company of others and no doubt lived off the land as a result. 

Given that a fire was still fresh, Jana knew that the person who lived in this cabin - a hunter perhaps - would be returning soon. “Come, Edmond,” she said to her son. “Let us sit near the fire so as not to frighten the cabin’s owner when they return. You and I may practice your lessons while we wait.” 

Edmond looked a tad disappointed, but he dutifully sighed and nodded. They removed their cloaks which had grown cold and damp, setting them near the fire to dry. Both red-haired mother and son sat close to the hearth, reaching their hands out to bask in its warmth. Already, she was starting to feel better, as was Edmond from the looks of it. 

“So…” Jana began now that her teeth were chattering less. “The third tenant by Father Ambrose the Pious.”

“Uh…” Edmond began, thinking for several moments. “With holy matrimony comes both passion, joy and procreation between man and wife, but with debauchery comes sin and savagery. The former is what separates humanity from beast-kind.” 

“Very good,” Jana said, her eyes light up. “Now the fourth-

They were interrupted by the door to the cabin opening.