Hollow

Socio walked back home. She knew Shar'tok was there already, but she didn't hurry. She didn't know how to tell him about her desicion. She wasn't good at explaining, and she was too stubborn to have a peaceful conversation about this kind of matters. She knew Shar'tok wouldn't be pleased because she hadn't ask his opinion about this desicion. But it was her soul, her safety, her desicion.
Socio slowed down when she saw Shar'tok in the spot they called home. She was wondering if Shar'tok could see any difference in her.
Shar'tok lifted his head up and looked to her, when she was close enough. Staff on her back made a wide radius of light around her feet. Shar'tok smiled and walked to her, he kissed her both cheeks. Socio tried to smile back, but the impression wasn't so impressive.
"Shar'tok.." Socio started and took the staff from her back. She looked to the ground because she couldn't stand Shar'toks eyes. "I want you to take this" That's all she could say before handing the staff over to Shar'tok.
Without saying a word Shar'tok took the staff and rolled it in his hands. "What's 'is? Socio?" He finally asked. Socio wasn't sure how to read the tone of his voice. "That's my soul" She answered straight away, bit annoyed and nervous.
To her suprise Shar'tok seemed to somehow understand the situation. He nodded firmly and looked the staff admiring, before putting it into his back. Socio felt like explaining, but she wasn't sure about the words. "Ye' bein' only one me trustin', Shar'tok. Me trust ye keepin' it safe" she finally mumbled. Shar'tok smiled warmly and took Socio into his arms "Me will, me promise".

Mind and soul

Wounds were closed and Socio was back in Vale. Shar'tok wanted her to rest, but something bothered her too much. She couldn't stand still. She couldn't focus on anything.
Shar'tok was handling some offical bussiness with council of the Empire, so Socio was alone first time for a few weeks. Vale seemed to be calm, but she felt it was just temporary. These days she didn't feel good being alone, even whens he sometimes felt she needed her own privat time.
There was already rumours about alliance army to be gathered. Socio was ofcourse ready to stand up and defend her home, no matter how weak she felt inside. But this feeling inside of her head, she had to get rid of it. How could she fight properly if she couldn't focus enough to make a clean kills on the random trespassers she met in Vale?
Socio had some time to think in The Hinterlands and she was sure the feeling had something to do with Zul'Gurub, if not even Blood God himself. She noticed when she was closer to Zul'Gurub, she felt like her sould was ripped in two different ways. Dark cloud inside of her head somehow told her to go inside. Her senses told her to get away, run as far as possible. Socio was scared and she didn't know how long she could fight back. She was afraid she'd wake up again in Zul'Gurub, like she did earlier.
Socio didn't want to offically ask help from Empire. She didn't know how they would have taken it. Maybe they'd rather kill her, than free her from this curse, this madness. Empire didn't like the weak. Ofcourse she needed some help to prepare some other rituals, but she hadn't told everything about it to the others. She was studying ancient tablets in the Vale, about powerful ritual wich could help her, but she needed to walk alone to the end. It was the final solution she tought.
She had been studying about rituals to pull her own soul away from his head. She knew it was risky, but at least she could be free from crawling claws of Hakkar that scratched inside of her head. If she'd fail, she wouldn't fight back anymore. She was so tired.
As part of the ritual Socio had prepared a cage to her soul. It was a staff made out from darkest iron ever seen. It looked very simple, almost useless. Before the ritual Socio added some protective talismans to it. She also tied her own red hair to staff's handle, like she had stuided from the tablets.
Socio's hands were shaky when she was ready to start the ritual. Sun was setting down and she was alone, only animals made some noices around her in the jungle. She had drained and collected some blood from the trespassers after she had come back to Vale, now she poured it around her, making a circle where she was standing still. She took some bone dust and threw it to the air above her head, while chanting some old trollish spells and calls. Socio kneeled down and kissed the ground. She was summoning a totem, that would grab her soul to itself.
Then, suddenly like intented, Socio felt some powerful force striking to the top of her head. She dropped down to the Vale floor, leaning her palms to the ground. She swallowed the moan of suprise, accidentally biting her tongue. Bright light was flashing on her eyes and her ears just picked up loud sound of electrical humming.
Socio looked up. It was dark, sun had gone down, but her soul lightened small area around the totem. It was floating just above it, bright, yellow and white. She was suprised to see someones soul looked so simple. Carefully Socio moved her hands towards it and took floating ball of light between her palms. She gazed it for a second, almost hypnotized, before locking it up to the ring at the head of the iron staff. She did that without any feelings.
The totem had disappeared, leaving a burning mark inside the bloody ring. Socio put the staff to her back and made her way back home. She felt much better, but also somehow emptier. But she knew there was no other choises.

Stabbing

The Hinterlands seemed to be a good place to stay, tho it didn't keep all the problems away.
When Socio started to feel pretty much normal, Shar'tok was waiting answers from her. What has happened? Why? How could he help? Socio was thinking really hard but she couldn't give much for him. Partly she was ashamed and kept her mouth shut because of that. Weakness, it shouldn't be showed more than this, she tought. Partly she didn't really remember, everything was kind of fuzzy inside of her head.
Again Shar'tok got frustrated. If the situation wouldn't have been so bad, Socio was sure he would have disappeared again for days. But Shar'tok couldn't leave Socio to a strange place like The Hinterlands, even when he knew Socio could take care of herself most of the time. Now it wasn't sure. Now she felt so weak and fragile, lost. Shar'tok was already blaming himself about recent happenings. But why didn't Socio give the answers for him? He couldn't understand.
Shar'tok started to walk around, mumble to himself and breaking his fingers. Snap. And Shar'tok kept on walking restlessly. Socio felt the ache in her own bones every time when she heard new snapping sound. Snap after another, and Socio's nerves started to go wild. She couldn't take it, and she couldn't understand why Shar'tok still kept on doing it. Socio had asked him so many times earlier to stop, but Shar'tok just kept on talking about some promise he had made. Once he already promised to stop it, but the promise was broken long time ago. But this time, it went way over the limit for her.
Socio took her ceremonial dagger from her belt and took a good grip of its hilt. She played with the tip of it, drawing lines to the skin of her ties. Next snap and Socio shank the dagger to her tie, deep. She watched the blood staining her robe and tabard. She slowly pulled the blade up and licked its side. Shar'tok didn't react. Socio followed him with her eyes, sitting on the ground very still. She knew the next snap was to come. She wondered, to how many pieces he was snapping the fingers. Shar'tok had already all his left hand fingers hanging from the palm livelessly. Snap. Socio rised her hand up and stabbed her tie again, hearing joints and flesh getting cutted. Another bloody stream ran down to the ground and Socio grinned widely.
Now Shar'tok turned his head to Socio. For a second he seemed just emotioneless, his eyes were empty, before kneeling down for her. "Socio, Socio why ye' doin' 'is? Ye' already been loosin' blood" Socio looked him as emotioneless as Shar'tok was when he walked around. "Ye' snap finger, me bleed" Socio said, hissing and revealing her teeth. The dagger was still sticking from her tie. "Ye' understan'?" Socio asked. Shar'tok nodded and hanged his head. He looked like a troll who had lost a fight. Lost at least now. Socio knew he wasn't giving up this easily. He was just holding his rage back because of the situation they were in. "Ye withou' fingers no helpin' me" Socio said before laying down and pulling the dagger out. She turned to her side and started to sleep.
Shar'tok shrugged helpless and sat down next to her. Things were loosing their sense.

Beneath the waterfall

When Socio and Shar'tok arrived to The Hinterlands, Socio started to already feel better. Her blurry mind started to feel more clear, tho the pain in her wounds kept on gnawing her, but she tried not to show it. She always kept her pain inside as long as she could. It wasn't allowed to show weakness in this sort of matters.
Shar'tok stopped at the sea shore and helped Socio down from Shade's back, wiping sweat from his face and neck. When the two trolls and their raptors entered The Hinterlands things got bit heaten up, since some pack of dwarfs spotted them, but it seemed safe on the shore. Shar'tok looked around carefully before leading Socio towards the water. "Me be helpin' ye', Socio.." Shar'tok mumbled, and held Socio up from her armpits. "Me help ye.." he repeated, Socio wasn't sure was he trying to calm down her or himself. She noticed Shar'tok's voice was a bit shaky.
Shar'tok watched Socio with worried eyes before taking her hands and leading her under the waterfall. "We needin' to was ye wounds, Socio.." Socio nodded to him slowly and walked to the water.
Socio felt the cold water running on her skin when she stepped under the waterfall. She shivered, loss of the blood already had turned her lips and skin pale. When Socio turned her back to Shar'tok and stripped off her bloody robe, she heard a deep gasp from behind her. Socio let the robe drop to the water and float away. Socio didn't seem to be aware of all injuries she had. When Shar'tok touched her back gently, she shivered from pain. Shar'tok started to wash the blood off from Socio's skin, it dyed the water red and brown. She covered her chest with her arms, freezing.
Under the confusion and tiredness, Socio felt still happy. There was someone who took care of her, someone who she could show also her weaker sides.
"Ye' hurt bad.." Shar'tok said and moved his palms lightly on her back. Socio felt warm waves inside of her muscles, under her skin. She felt like falling into a soft sleep. Shar'tok kissed her cheek from behind, "me be fixin' ye'" he said. "Ye shoul' be restin' now.."
They made a campfire to the shore, near abandoned temple ruins. Socio started to have her mind clear. She didn't still remember much about her escape, but this feeling about someone lurking in her mind was gone.

Reuniting

Shar'tok finds Socio from the Arena floor. Covered in blood, arrows sticking from her back and ties. Big open wound on her back, sliced open.
Shar'tok doesn't explain how he is there, alive. Not yet. He tells Socio she has been away for days, Empire has been looking for him. He doesn't tell her, he has seen Socio from distance, sitting alone in middle of jungle, on back of Hakkar's raptor.
Shar'tok takes Socio away from the Arena, but Socio seems to be shocked. She isn't talking, she just stares into the distance and sometimes mumbles words of ancient troll language. Shar'tok feels helpless and doesn't know what to do. Socio gets fever. Her wounds get infected.
Finally Socio seems to get back a piece of her sanity, and she asks Shar'tok to take her away from the Vale. She has gone thinner already, and she looks pale and sick. Skin and bones, that's not her strong Socio. Socio's request is very unusual. Most of the members in the Empire don't tend to leave from the Vale unless they have to, and if they do they rarely go alone. But something in her voice, in her eyes tells Shar'tok he needs to act fast.
Shar'tok decides to take Socio to The Hinterlands. Forest trolls there have strong herbs wich can be used to care Socio's wounds. It's peaceful place, away from only human controlled areas. The trip will be long and exhausting, but what Shar'tok wouldn't do for his chosen one? He takes Sade and nessecary belongings, before carrying them to the goblin zeppelin wich flies them to the north.

Blood God

After shooting the arrow to Shar'tok's heart, Socio didn't get far to the jungle. She was tired and didn't pay attention to her surroundings. She had set Sade free just moment ago and Shadow was sleeping in her backbag.
Suddenly army of trolls on green and black raptors appeared. They weren't Empire, they were someting else. Socio didn't have time to react before she was violently pulled up to one of the raptors. Troll behind her knocked her out and after that everything went black.
Socio wake up inside some sort of temple. She was locked up into a cage, hands tied. It was dark, but she heard something or someone moving around the cage. Her head was aching and she was hungry. After listening a while she knew what shared the room with her. Cats, big cats, panthers or maybe tigers. The moistness and scent of the air told her she was still in Vale or at least she wasn't far from there. She tried the walls of the cage, but she was too weak to try anything to break free.
She had lost the track of time, when someone finally came, walking slowly with a flaming torch. The cage was opened and she was again pulled up violently. "Don't you try anything stupid" troll said, almost hissing. Socio didn't answer, just followed him. When they reached the doorway of the temple, troll pushed her to the path following right. "Hakkar himself wants to see you" the troll said and pushed her again to her back, this time more roughly. Socio felt her heart taking some extra beats, she felt sweat falling down on her skin. Hakkar, Blood God, she was in Zul'gurub, city that Empire has been trying to retake so long. She felt angry again, enraged. She knew what Hakkar wanted. He wanted her head, no doubt.
Now Socio didn't have Shar'tok on her mind. She had to get free. She seriously had to. But she had no weapons. She was wearing some silly ceremonial dress, wich wasn't hers. She was tied up and beaten up. She saw dried wounds on her hands and feet, and her body was aching. And there was guards. Lots of guards, emotioneless trolls who were carrying big axes. But did she want to give up without a fight?
All went blurry again. Socio remembers running, and falling to the ground, small rocks stratching her knees and hands. She remembers shouting around her, arrows passing from left and right. Pain in her back and legs, feeling of warm blood on her skin. She doesn't remember how she got out, she doesn't remember where she ran after that.

Reborn of Shar'tok

Socio and Shar'tok lived in furious, yet somehow balanced relationship in their own trollish way. They loved and fighted, even some blood was spilled time after time. They explored the Vale and surrounding areas together, or with the Empire. Fighted against trespassers and helped Emperor to get his slaves from nearby human-populated towns.
Suddenly Shar'tok started to be worried, wich ofcourse worried Socio too. Silence made her frustrated since Shar'tok didn't want to tell about the feelings he had inside. She tried to get Shar'tok to talk with her, but long he remained silent, just breaking his fingers while being in his toughts. Socio cried and begged, bited and hitted him with her wists.
After days, or even weeks pushing, Shar'tok finally was ready to talk with Socio. They were sitting at the small waterfall wich fell to the Great Sea. "Socio.." Shar'tok started, lowering his head. "Me been thinkin'.." he continued. Socio wanted to hit him, hit him hard. Like she wouldn't had noticed his absent mind, like she wouldn't have suffered. But she bited her tongue, and just nodded slowly. "I'm ol', Socio, me be dead soon. Me be many times yer age." Shar'tok sighed deeply. "But me no wantin' 'o die, Socio, me wantin' to be with 'ye". He took Socio's hands between of his and first time looked to her eyes in days. "Me been' thinkin'. Bu' me needin' ye help". Socio looked back to Shar'tok, not knowing what to say or think, not knowing what to wait from this conversation. Somehow she didn't feel good about it. She felt her stomach squeezing and twisting.
For a while they just stared the sea, Socio's hands in Shar'tok's. Finally Shar'tok took a deep breath and said "Me needin' ye to kill me". Great anger rised inside of Socio, she jumped up and shouted "What?! Why?! No, I won't be killin' da man me love!" Shar'tok hanged his head down again "Bu Socio.." Enraged Socio whistled to Sade and jumped to her back. "Socio 'ere no other way." Socio still didn't understand, why she'd need to kill Shar'tok. She was upset, afraid of loosing him. While she was confused and trying to figure the situation out, Shar'tok disappeared to the jungle with his raptor, disappointed and angry.
Socio paniced. Was Shar'tok going to kill himself now anyways? Socio ran around in the Vale with Sade, trying to find Shar'tok. Now she was crying, and unable to yell because the flow of tears. She doesn't know how long she had been running in moist air of Vale, when she finally saw Shar'tok from the northern river of the Vale. Border between trolls and humans.
Shar'tok was sitting on surface of the water, looking still angry. Socio took her form of ghost wolf and sneaked around the river, trying to think what she should do? How should she act? Suddenly Shar'tok yelld "I see ye' Socio, ye coward! I see ye'!!!" Socio just stood still, still not sure how she'd manage her way through the situation. "No, Shar'tok.." she cried silently. Shar'tok didn't seem to care, he just kept on yelling to Socio "ye' no good if ye can no kill me, take yer bow and shoot me, shoot me right 'ere!" Shar'tok ripped the upper part of his robe open and pointed his chest. "Shoot me!" He tried to enforce Socio. At this point Socio felt almost blind because of her tears. Breeze of wind blowing from the sea felt so cold. She didn't know if she could stand much longer, she felt so weak, and Shar'tok keept on yelling and mocking her.
After the situation went on and on without chaning Socio finally felt like giving up. She didn't want to fight anymore. She didn't want to loose Shar'tok. Tired and given in, Socio finally took her bow from her back and placed arrow carefully to its string. She didn't anymore recgonize the words Shar'tok was shouting, tho she noticed his voice started to be full of victory when he saw Socio taking her bow. With her blurry vision Socio stretched the string and aimed, her hands were shaky but she did her best to stabilize them. Socio aimed and set the arrow free. It seemed to fly forever towards Shar'tok, slowly, how can it fly without dropping to the ground? Finally Socio heard the arrow puncturing skin and flesh and saw Shar'tok falling to the water.
Instead of running to him, Socio just turned slowly around and headed to the jungle. She didn't know what was going to happen, she was too tired to think.

Shadow

Even when Socio studied hard to call elements, she spent more and more time with Shar'tok. Tho Shar'tok wasn't teaching her in shamanism, and Socio didn't know lot about his powers. She felt good, happy and safe with this troll. Noone had loved her before just because of her, and it was amazing. She had never loved anyone.
Today Socio woke up alone, wich wasn't that unusual. Sometimes Shar'tok was gone for days. Usually Socio didn't know where he was and what he was doing, but Socio always trusted him to come back. She didn't even want to think about the posibility, him disappearing.
When Socio was cleaning bones to her talismans in depths of jungle, Shar'tok suddenly ran to her, rushing through the bushes with his raptor. When Shar'tok appeared after his travels, it usually felt like he wouldn't been away more than hour or two. He smiled widely and gave a deep bow after jumping down from the back of his raptor. Socio smiled back and stood up to give him a hug. "Socio, I missed ya.. me have somethin' for ye'" Shar'tok whispered to her, sounding somehow shy, before pulling himself away from Socio. "Me know me been' away, so me gettin' ye 'is" Shar'tok continued and pulled another cat from insides of his pockets. The cat was black as night and hat bright yellow eyes, it was so tiny it easily fitted on to her palm. Socio grinned widely, clearly happy. "Shar'tok.." She started without knowing what to say. She gave a tight hug to her beloved one. "Me be callin' it Shadow".
After this day Shadow was always following Socio. He was hiding in bushes looking for food or shadow from burning sun of the Vale, but he always close. If he noticed Socio was planning to leave somewhere, it jumped to the back of Sade and travelled with them. It slept in Socio's backbag, sometimes gnawing the ears of cutted heads. If Socio was sleeping alone, he slept on her stomach, purring...

Two wolfs

Socio was exploring the Vale. She noticed jungle was much larger than she tought. There was lots of islands, hidden caves, small valleys and almost unnoticeable paths. Good places to hide things or be alone.
She was exploring mountain walls near Zul'Gurub when she noticed another ghost wolf. Socio looked around carefully, trying to decide should she hide herself from the stranger. While Socio tried to decide what to do, the other wolf already had noticed her and walked slowly towards. From close range Socio was able to see who the other shaman was, Kibo.
Socio was bit scared and reliefd at the same time. "What you doing here, recruit?" Kibo asked. "Just exploring.." Socio mumbled, not wanting to give any closer details since she wanted to keep the hiding spots on herself. The shaman nodded. After a some uncomfortable silence Kibo emoted Socio to follow him. "I'll show you something" he said with lazy voice.
Unaware, what was yet to come, Socio started to follow the shaman. Ofcourse she could trust to a fellow member of Empire? Soon Socio noticed Kibo was leading her towards Zul'Gurub. Socio shivered a bit, she didn't like the place. She didn't know much about it, just about Blood God and Empires plan to retrieve the city from Hakkar. Socio always avoided the walls of it, she didn't feel good near it.
Kibo seemed to notice Socio was nervous. "Just come.." he said with more calming voice this time. Socio and followed him through a small hole in the wall. She had a feeling Kibo didn't use the path in first time. Tho she didn't know if the hole was made on purpose, or was it just something that flow of time causes to buildings and such.
They sat down just inside, staying next to wall. Socio started to feel curious. She wasn't sure why Kibo brought her there, but she didn't ask. "Stay quiet and they won't notice you" Kibo almost whispered, then he pointed towards huge altar wich seemed to be almost on middle of the city. Socio didn't need to ask what or who lived inside.

The element: Fire

As a shaman Socio mastered the power of elements. She learned to communicate with the spirits and even call them to her side. She learned to call them when she needed something fight with her, called them to heal and cure, she called when she wanted rain. Sometimes she just layed herself down to the Vale floor, or climbed to the tree, listening the spirits.
The rituals involved heavy voodoo and even cannibalism. Sometimes she performed the rituals alone, sometimes with other shamans of Empire. She also sacrificed parts from trespassers of the Vale, to keep the spirits calm and friendly towards her. So Socio was often seen in Vale crafting talismans and jewels, or collecting and preparing materials for them.
Especially Socio was curious about fire. It was powerful, destroying and granted visions when used with powerful rituals. Calling the spirit was a challenge. Sometimes she amazed fresh recruits of the empre by playing with it. When they sat around fire, Socio drew tiny scraps of fire from bonfire towards her before blowing them off. She was able to call a hurling ball of fire to float over her hand and blast it towards an enemy or just throw it to the air when it blew up.
The feeling of love Socio had inside of her, love towards Shar'tok made her feel even more powerful, she wasn't afraid that much anymore. And the spirit of fire seemed to be more gracious towards her while she grew stronger and more selfconfident.