The World of Layonara  Forums

Author Topic: (noname)  (Read 184 times)

SteveMaurer

(noname)
« on: April 01, 2010, 03:20:23 am »
The orc threw herself a birthday party.    No one was around.   It was safer that way.

She was sixteen years old.   That was two whole years since she killed Nezzak, and she had not been killed yet!   Or, she had, but the stone brought her back.

The world liked her.   She sang softly, remembering.

She remembered her first time in human lands.  She met Frak, who was a goblin.   She thought he was going to hurt her, but he didn't.  And a human named Ragnar.  She thought he was going to try to take her as his slave, but he did not.    She showed him her blade, "@#*^$& YOU", just to be sure.

Smiling, she remembered how it took her so long to understand how humans lived.   They did not just take slaves.   Well, they had girlslaves, but the girlslaves weren't always slaves!   They could wear clothes!   They could own things!

It took months, but when she finally understood, it was a revelation.

She snuck into the city called Vehl.   There was a half-orc at the gate, which made her scared, but the city itself was a wonder!   It was the biggest and best place she had ever seen.   Much cleaner than any orc camp!    And the girlslaves, were free to sell their own bodies for money instead of being owned!

She thought to sell her own body for money too, but didn't know if any human would want her, so she decided to pretend to be a warrior instead.   She met a elf magic-warrior named Tralek traded her some old armor for a box of corn.   She didn't tell him she had stolen the corn from the fields without paying the farmer, because he might not have taken it then.   She then met another warrior named Flynn who had a voice like her father.   He told her it might be better for her to hide that she was an orc.  Even with the orc guard at the gate, people might not like her.   So she did.

She spent time smashing skeletons, and getting money, and bought tickets.   She went on trips on boats and saw things no orc had ever seen, she thought.   Certainly not a girlslave like her.  

One night, she felt the city's death-stone call her.   She was scared, but it seemed to want her, so she sang to it.   Then she prayed.   Then she touched.   It felt safe and warm.    Others stared at her.   She felt the stone sing to her in her spirit.

She knew she was different then.   That she would fit into these strange human lands with many not humans.   No matter how strange it ever got.

It was then she met the girl-slave warriors.    They did not pretend to be warriors.   They were openly girl-slaves with weapons.    These were slave-warriors!      It was such an alien concept, the words themselves made no sense in orcish.

But there they were: Zarianna, Annwyl, Laaren, Lili, these were slaves with names!   Their fathers had given them names.   And let them fight.   And they fought well!   She met other enemies of Orcs, knights, and paladins, and a singer, who sung to the world like she did.   Andrew, he knew about orcs, and figured her out right away.   It was he who told the knight to not hurt her.  He told her she was a "Milady", not a slave.

But her biggest change was with two little halflings, Cherry, and Charm.   She had followed them and Annwyl into the Red Goblin caves and they were all ambushed by hundreds of goblins.   Somehow, through it all, she'd managed to live.  They all did.   It was the first time in her life she saw anyone fight for her.   The first time anyone cared.

After they'd returned, Charm decided to give her a calling.   Cherry wanted to call her Iris.  Charm wanted to call her Lily.   Ragnar called her HeyYou.

She knew she had no real name.  Her father had not given her one, because he did not want her sisters to be jealous.    And since he is now dead, he will never give her one.

But she likes her callings, like the ones slaves give each other in camp.  She finds she does not even miss her old life.

Humming a birthday song to herself, the orc eats a piece of pie.   It had been given to her as a gift.  She feels like a leaf now, being blown about to strange and different places.   Where will she land next?  She does not know.   But it will be good.   Or, at least, better from where she came.
 

 

anything