Chapter 5 #2
Alwyn could feel only the tiny spark of magic in the orc’s inner core, the same spark any living thing had.
Most orcs had no deep well of magic inside them, but he had been surprised a few times and was not eager to repeat the experience.
Once he knew the orc couldn’t resist with any magic of his own, though, he glanced at the rest of his group.
Galred looked similarly focused, while Fionia’s brow furrowed with effort.
He had to stifle a small, self-satisfied grin.
“We can hold them for some time, but I would still recommend more traditional methods sooner rather than later,” Galred said, addressing Gorza, while keeping his eyes on the bald orc.
“Way ahead of you,” Gorza said. She galloped toward them, Krujha following; and soon all three were sitting on the ground with their weapons removed.
Their hands were bound behind their backs, and their feet tied together.
At Gorza’s nod, the three elves released their magical hold on the orcs; one struggled in vain, snarling, but the other two silently relaxed their tense bodies with sullen expressions.
“Yes,” Krujha breathed, pulling a rolled-up parchment from the bald orc’s saddlebags. “Look. A map.”
Gorza took the parchment. Alwyn craned his neck to try to see it, but to no avail.
“Well, fuck,” Gorza sighed, giving the map back to Krujha, so she could scrub a hand across her face. “This complicates things.”
For a long moment, no one responded. The struggling orc eventually grew still, eyeing his partners with a baleful expression, but all three remained silent. Alwyn glanced at the other elves, who all seemed to wait for a proper explanation. Krujha’s eyes lingered on the parchment, still scanning.
“We’ve got to figure out what we’re going to do about this,” Gorza finally broke the uncertain silence, turning away from their captives to scan the horizon. “And I need someone to go find G’mol and Myrra. They’ll be wondering where we are.”
“You stay here,” Krujha said, finally rolling the map back up and handing it to Gorza, who tucked it into her own rucksack. “I’ll track them down.”
“Be cautious,” Gorza said, but did nothing further to dissuade him. Krujha only nodded, mounting his horse again and galloping off in the direction the scouts had gone earlier.
Gorza stood looking out on the horizon with a pensive expression for a long moment after Krujha left. Alwyn looked askance at Galred, who seemed just as unsure of how to proceed. They had subdued the orcs, as she had asked, but now she seemed unsure.
When she finally moved, it was to step closer to the group of three captive orcs. She dropped into a low squat, so she was at eye level with them where they sat huddled in the dirt.
“You saw how easily these elves captured you,” she said, her voice quiet but clear. “You can tell me what I want to know, or you can find out what else their magic is capable of.”
The two silent orcs remained staring at her impassively, but the one who had been struggling spat with disgust.
“You think those elves are on your side?” he said, his lips curled into a snarl around his tusks.
“Already they come to plunder our lands, to sap the resources that keep us alive. They might dress it up in pretty words and call it unification. And maybe they’ve convinced you with their song and dance, sister. But not me. Not us.”
“Bringing an end to an endless war can only help our people,” Gorza said blandly. “What are you doing out here? Did you come from Zesh’s camp?”
“Fuck you, fuck all these little pointy-eared bastards, and fuck every traitorous orc like you,” the orc snapped, turning away from her. “Kill me if that’s what you’re going to do. You won’t get another word out of me, or any of us.”
“Where is the camp?” Gorza pressed.
“Fuck you.”
“Who’s supplying his information?”
“Fuck. You.”
The two orcs stared each other down for a moment, then Gorza finally rose back up to her feet with a sigh, dusting off her trousers.
“As useless as I expected,” she said in elvish, stepping toward Galred and the elves again. Alwyn’s eyes flickered between her and the three orcs on the ground, considering the exchange. She seemed entirely unfazed by what they had said to her, but he wondered what to make of their conviction.
Most elves—at least, most elves he knew—had no problem with the unification, if that was what it took to end the war.
It had been shocking when the former warlord had accepted the marriage proposal between Prince Taegan and his son, and there would always be those who resisted change.
For the most part, however, the elves of Aefraya had generally been in favor of an alliance with their neighboring orcs.
The vehemence of the orc’s words made him realize he truly knew very little about the overall orcish sentiment about the peace treaty and subsequent union between their nations.
Zesh started this rebellion because of his belief that he was owed the crown his younger brother now wore, surely; but there had to be more to it than that for him to have amassed enough support that it threatened the new peace.
But it wasn’t his place to think about these things.
He would let the kings and nobles and advisors worry about the politics of it all.
He could hear his master’s wisdom clearly when he considered it: “People may live with uncertainty and weakness, but a weapon has its imperfections beaten out, existing for a singular purpose.”
Galred’s voice shook him from his thoughts. “We have other means of extracting information, if you would so prefer...”
The elves not in the Order seemed to shift uncomfortably at Galred’s implication, which made Alwyn wonder what they thought of all this. They were trained as fighters—spies as well, to some extent—but the torture that Galred was hinting at was certainly not part of their curriculum.
Gorza appeared uncomfortable with the prospect, too. Her brow furrowed, and after a beat, she shook her head. “I don’t want to make a rash decision. We have them secure for now. Let’s wait until we have everyone before we decide how to proceed.”
Galred only nodded. “Then we shall wait.”
It was over an hour before Krujha and the scouts returned.
In that time, the elves had meticulously gone through each of the captive orc’s saddlebags for anything magical or mundane that might be useful, or else give a hint to their intentions; but the map that Krujha found seemed to be the most valuable item.
The best that Alwyn could figure, the three of them had not come from whatever host Zesh had gathered, but were part of an offshoot supporting camp.
The purpose of such a camp, or the reason they were in such a remote place, was unclear; but from their gear and supplies, Alwyn suspected they had, in fact, been out here to hunt.
Like him and Krujha, they were probably tasked with supplementing food for a larger force.
When his thoughts circled back to the orc, he found himself once again unsettled at how quickly and easily Krujha’s entire persona had changed.
It was an impressive skill for any spy, of course, but it did make Alwyn wonder how real the friendly, chatty version of Krujha was.
The thought made him feel strangely relieved that he never had to remain under cover in the field for long.
He could pretend to be someone else for a short time, but never had to lose sight of who and what he really was.
Living day in and day out, all while wearing the mask of someone else, seemed like a surefire way to slowly lose one’s convictions—or even one’s whole personality.
But perhaps his imagination was getting the best of him.
Krujha was clearly a good actor, but Alwyn was likely overthinking.
Maybe he’d been living in his own thoughts a little too much lately; after all, it had only taken him a handful of nights to finish the adventure book he’d brought.
He had, in fact, re-read it and wondered what the next installment might hold.
When Krujha, G’mol, and Myrra returned, Krujha’s jovial personality seemed to have returned too, but the other two looked visibly concerned about what had transpired.
“It worries me that they recognized me so quickly,” Gorza said after she’d explained the situation to the two scouts.
They were all gathered together, and the captive orcs remained tied up, sitting a few paces away.
By now they were confident that the trio did not understand a word of elvish, so Gorza stuck to that tongue.
“I had hoped I wouldn’t be as much of a target, but I suppose anyone allied with Zesh would have been told to look out for me—for any of his siblings. ”
No one replied, instead waiting for her to continue. Finally, she sighed and spoke again.
“I don’t want to risk this happening again, and my presence here is not critical. I’ll take G’mol with me to bring these three to Drol Kuggradh, so the king himself can decide what to do with them. The rest of you will continue on without me.”
Surprise rippled through the group. Krujha was the first to speak, stepping closer to Gorza with his brow furrowed.
“Are you sure that’s the best move?” he asked, frowning. “Truth be told, I don’t think you should leave.”
But Gorza waved a dismissive hand. Alwyn’s eyes lingered on Krujha, though, as the prospect of Gorza splitting off seemed to disturb him more than the rest. Whatever that might mean was beyond him.
“I wouldn’t be able to go into the camp with you, anyway.
Our group would always have to split at some point.
It’s just happening a little sooner than I hoped,” she said.
“No, I trust you. I trust that King Ruven sent his best for this, too. I’ll try to send word from Drol Kuggradh, but I believe in you all to see this mission through, even without my oversight. ”
Krujha’s frown remained, but he nodded once in acquiescence and didn’t protest again. Galred glanced at the other elves, considering, before saying stiffly,
“We have appreciated your leadership. But I am confident in our ability to continue with a smaller group.”
Gorza laughed. “I think that’s the nicest thing an elf has ever said to me.”
With their path forward decided, they helped Gorza and G’mol sort through their supplies to ensure that they could safely arrive at Drol Kuggradh with their captives in tow.
Once everything had been divided, they then helped the three orcs up onto their horses, where they remained bound at the wrist with the reins looped through their restraints.
It was mid-afternoon when the groups were finally ready to go their separate ways.
Gorza and G’mol headed east toward Drol Kuggradh—while the elves, Torlag, and Krujha would continue their northwestern route.
“Keep an eye out for my messengers,” Gorza said to the remaining two orcs, then turned to the elves. “I’m sorry I won’t be able to see your work done first hand. Hopefully, we’ll meet again in better circumstances.”
“Travel safely,” Galred replied.
With no further ceremony, Gorza and her group headed out, leaving the rest behind.
As they set back out on their original route, Alwyn couldn’t help but feel a bit relieved at her departure. She would have the most vested interest in keeping Zesh alive. Without her oversight, his mission would become much easier.