Xa'Gun felt the fires of his dreamscape consume him... It was that dream... THAT dream again... Always again... Ashes... Always again... Charred bones... Always again... She's gone...

"RAAAAH!" Xa'Gun howled, as he rose from his laying position, and in doing so, knocked a number of items over on the bedside table.

"...Can't you wake up a tad more peaceful?" Midka asked in a playful voice, uncharacteristic of her usual speech.

Xa'Gun blinked a few times... This wasn't his burrow, and this wasn't his couch. He was lying in a bed. A very comfy bed. It felt foreign to him. He looked up at Midka's face and saw traces of Hellie and Demze... After all, they were exact triplets, though their paths in life caused some seeable differences.

Xa'Gun let out a questioning grunt.

Midka thought for a moment, while pouring some hot water into a cup, and passing it to Xa'Gun.

Xa'Gun took it, sniffed, and seeing as it didn't give off any kind of smell but water he then drank the hot water.

[Good to the throat.] Xa'Gun thought, and grunted in satisfaction, as he lowered the cup.

Midka nodded and began.

"Yesterday, it seems there were some issues with your cultivation." Midka started to explain.

"Wait? Is everything okay?!" Xa'Gun crushed the cup in his hand, sending broken pieces across the bedsheets, and wetting his lap.

Midka frowned, but laughed, "Don't worry. You're more than able to continue to cultivate. It was just that the Elders didn't expect you to have such an affinity."

Midka reached over from her seated position on the edge of the bed, and began picking up the broken pieces of the cup, while using a small cloth to soak up some of the leftover water, as she continued, "It seems you are one of the more rare orcs, as you now have to adjust to your new strength."

"New? New Strength?" Xa'Gun looked at both his hands, one wet with water.

Midka reached over with the cloth and took hold of Xa'Gun's hand. She carefully and meticulously wiped it dry.

Xa'Gun couldn't help but notice how soft her hands were... More than Hellie, which was expected, but more so than Demze... He held still, so as not to scare this orcess away.

Midka nodded, "Yes, Elder Jukzuk has kindly allowed me to tell you the news…"

Xa'Gun grunted to urge Midka to continue.

She laughed, "The Elders have confirmed that you are now a Fighter-ranked cultivator, of which you are level eight." Midka smiled over her tusks.

Startled Xa'Gun hurriedly asked, "just like that?! What's a level eight?"

Midka put the broken cup to the side, along with the cleaning cloth, "Well, this is the part where Master Gorzoc would explain the ranks and levels, proper."

"I know some of the ranks from Juk-Father... But What's wrong with Gorzoc?" Xa'Gun asked in concern.

Midka furrowed her sharp brows, "That's your master! You should address him as such…" Midka folded her arms under her ample chest.

Xa'Gun swallowed and corrected himself, "Master Gorzoc…"

Midka nodded, feeling that this orc could be taught.

"He has gone to seek answers on your behalf… This is more of a Bloodletter tribe issue. I do not know how their shamanism works."

Xa'Gun nodded.

"Did you want to wait for Master Gorzoc to return to explain?"

Xa'Gun then shook his head and grunted to indicate for her to continue. He then took a moment to look around the room.

He had seen rooms like this during his visits to his former Lord's estate… It was just that the decor was more… Brutal and tribal. On the walls were weapons of various kinds, a fire pit in the center of the room with what appeared to be a pot of water steaming.

"In that case, how much do you already know?" Midka watched as Xa'Gun looked around curiously.

Xa'Gun let out a depressed grunt, indicating that besides the ranks told by Jukzuk, he didn't know more than that.

Midka laughed again, which sounded like sweet bells in his ears.

"You don't have to be too hard on yourself. "

Xa'Gun nodded, again.

"So, from the top, there are eight ranks and nine levels in each rank, with each level increasing in difficulty as you progress. The part that most cultivators hang up at is the bottlenecks between each rank." Midka explained slowly.

Xa'Gun nodded, showing his understanding.

"Just to make sure, there are these ranks in order, Fighter, which is what you are, Warrior, which is Hellie, Champion, Lord, Warlord, which is Pit Champion Ragnath that big fellow under the arena, and your Master Gorzoc, then there is our adopted father..." Midka paused and rubbed the skull on her waist.

Xa'Gun noticed this action, but remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

"He is a warlord and the strongest in the Blacktongue clan."

"Does the leader of the clan have to be the strongest in the clan?" Xa'Gun asked when Midka took a breath.

She thought for a moment, and then responded, "Not necessarily, but it is hard to defend your position if someone challenges you that is more powerful."

Xa'Gun rubbed his chin slightly feeling the stubble, as he spoke aloud, "So anyone can be chieftain of the clan, so long as they challenge the current chieftain, and win?"

"Yes. That is one of the clan rules. A good chieftain is strong and wise. It might be that a wise chieftain would never be challenged, or so it was told that way... I wouldn't know." Midka again rubbed the skull on her waist.

"but that's off topic... Beyond Warlord rank, clan records only show that there is the WarHeart rank." Midka finished.

"Is... Is that the rank of the Orc Calamity???" Xa'Gun asked quickly.

"The Orc Calamity... I see that uncle has taught you much. No, the Orc Calamity is an entity all on its own. You could even say he would be the god of all orcs like the former human god was to the wretched humans."

"So the Orc Calamity is actually a god? Can god die?" Xa'Gun asked confusedly. He knew the humans always said the human god was alive and watching over them all...

"Yes and No... The Orc Calamity was an existence on par with gods. Honestly, I don't know if the human god is really a god or not, but I can tell you clan history says that both of them died in battle. First, the Orc Calamity dropped the human god, and then died later to his wounds."

Xa'Gun grunted in understanding.

"We went a bit off-topic, but do you have any questions?"

Xa'Gun thought for a few moments, while Midka waited patiently.

Finally, Xa'Gun spoke, "Is there any differences between ranks and levels, besides just an increase of strength?"

Midka raised both of her brows in surprise, though the way he asked was slightly stupid, the question was good... Very good. It indicated that this thrall was smarter than she first thought.

Xa'Gun gave a questioning grunt.

"To answer your question, yes. Each rank focuses on the next step of cultivation, with each rank providing additional boons based on the rank. Each Level within the rank boosts those boons until you break through to the next rank to start the next set of boons."

"Wot..."

Midka sighed, and then explained it simpler, "Yes. Each rank has different boons."

Xa'Gun grunted again in understanding.

There was a knock on the door, which drew the attention of both Xa'Gun and Midka. The door opened, and a head poked in to see.

"I see that Xa'Gun is awake. Father has returned and requested for him to join him... I'm here to escort him to the Bloodletter training grounds." Glasha sounded shy...

Midka furrowed both of her brows, "Why must he use the Bloodletter training grounds... The Blacktongue training grounds would suit him better."

Glasha opened the door fully and lowered her head to Midka, though she clenched her teeth. This was Midka she was talking to... The brightest and youngest shaman in recent years, the favored daughter under the Blacktongue Chieftain, and princess of the Clan. The fact that she was a shaman already gave her a tower of authority, added the aforementioned, and Glasha and her sister always felt suppressed by Midka when they met. Even if Demze was a bitch, she wasn't stuck up like Midka, in her opinion.

"I apologize, Princess Midka, but father's pupil; father's training," Glasha responded.

Midka's brows relaxed, and nodded while sighing, "That does indeed make sense. lead Xa'Gun, and I will follow."

Glasha nodded knowing she had fallen to Midka's wordplay... She had invited herself in... And only her father could send Midka away...

Midka smiled over her petite tusks.

Xa'Gun got out of bed, only for Glasha to gasp, and quickly leave out the door.

Midka turned her head to see that Xa'Gun was without clothing, as she turned a darker hue of green blushing from ear to ear.

"Xa'Gun! Cloth yourself!" Midka turned her head.

Xa'Gun, of course, looked down to see that he was swinging in the breeze. He shrugged his shoulders. It wasn't his loss. He didn't give a shit who saw him nude. He had been stripped and beaten naked before... What was being seen by one lone orcess when compared to being seen naked and beaten by your schoolmates?

Midka heard a series of rustlings before a grunt was heard. Looking up, she saw that Xa'Gun had put on a brawler's harness and a loin cloth.

Midka seeing that Xa'Gun had put on the minimal amount of clothing possible, rose to stand.

Xa'Gun walked out the door to see Glasha waiting, who was also blushing from ear to ear.

Glasha without speaking started walking, as Xa'Gun trailed behind her.

Midka extinguished the fire within the center of the room, and shut the door on her way out, as she then caught up to Xa'Gun.