21st Century Orc

by Gregory Loui

  “If they don’t let you go, I’ll come get you. By any means necessary. Pinky promise to each other?” asked Gore, raising her hand in front of her brother.

  “The best.”

  So the siblings placed their hearts in the other’s care.

  “Mind if I slither in?” asked Debbie, joining the orcs as they watched the sun peek out from the horizon, red rays spilling out across the morning sky.

  Wrapping an arm around the dwarf, Gore murmured, “Sure. You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.”

  “I will,” whispered Debbie as she panted a soft kiss onto Gore’s cheek. Then she turned to the horizon. “This is nice. We should come here later for a picnic or something.”

  “That sounds nice…”

  Such thoughts would have to wait, however. For it seemed Debbie had a comment to make on the situation.

  “Hey, if you’re gonna be a full-time student again, I wonder how running a criminal empire will impact your studies,” murmured Debbie, eyes twinkling. Though she sniffed and growled, “I’d feel more comfortable knowing you’re in charge that letting a power vacuum rip Tao Ein apart. Still… it’d be for the best if you focus on your curriculum. And…”

  “Oh, so you heard all of tha— wait, what? I’m gonna be allowed back into the college?” demanded Gore, leaping to her feet. “But—uh, what? How? Why? Who? What?”

  “I do believe you left out when, Gore,” deadpanned Debbie.

  “B-But… I… burnt down the ballroom,” muttered Gore, shaking her head and looking to the side. Debbie and Bones placed their hands on her shoulders. “I injured other students.”

  “We don’t know that. For all we know it was a freak accident. Besides, a mysterious donor has said she planned to donate around five million leafs to the school,” chuckled Debbie as Bones coughed and looked to the side. Gore blinked, looking at her brother, unable to believe her ears. Then Debbie’s voice turned hard and she growled, “I don’t know if you can repair what’s done but you can start by donating the money to school and dedicating your work to improving Elvenheim. This is your punishment and your redemption.”

  Gore nodded.

  Debbie continued, “Come on, Gore. We done enough here in the dark. By the Forge Master, we’ve taken down the Warchief. Let’s take the money and go back to school to donate the money. Give up this criminal life. Keep your head down for a while. Be a good student.”

  Gore raised a eyebrow, her eyes burning black. Always a catch. To be with Debbie, to go back to school, she would need to reject being an orc.

  “So… you up for the challenge?” Debbie offered a hand.

  And so the road split in front of Gore once more.

  Two worlds that should not intersect.

  Or did they?

  This time, Gore resolved to stride the barrier between them.

  Gore smiled and took her hand.

  CHAPTER FIFTY

  Epilogue

  In his cell, Bones clutched the picture of his sister close to his chest. He glanced up at the single window in in the box of concrete and steel, at the world waiting outside for him once his time was up. He would do anything to go out there, if only for a moment. To see his sister. To live his life. Maybe even just to sit in the sun and read a good book.

  “Soon,” murmured Bones, turning his gaze down at his sister’s smile. The picture was old, taken over a decade ago. The edges were frayed, turned black from grime while the rest of the photo was a dirty gray. All things considered, the photo was in pretty good condition for something Bones owned. Of all the things he had, this was the only object he cared for.

  Bones smiled, a cracked claw tracing his young face. Before war and drugs scarred him. His claw slid to the left, tapping his little sister’s smile. Before life and the world beat her down. Then, as tears slid down his face, Bones turned his gaze on his mother, that beautiful orc that had taught him everything he knew. Before she sacrificed everything for them.

  In the photo, his family stood in front of their old home, before life had separated them.

  Oh how Bones wished to go back, to slip into the photo and hug his younger self, tell him not to let go of his sister. He knew better, however, and had no patience for idle fantasy.

  The orc closed his eyes for a moment, the flashbacks gnawing at him once more. But now, he had a light at the end of the tunnel. Something to live for.

  He couldn’t go back to the past, for better or worse. So he had to prepare for the future.

  Bones would forge himself anew.

  Knock on the door drew Bones back to the present.

  “Having fun in solitary?” asked Officer Riles as he slid a couple of documents through the door. “Here’s some reading material for your next assignment. Plus some stuff from your little sister. She’s been talking with some lawyers to try and get you free. Not successful but… annoying. Whatever, check your assignment.”

  Leaving his sister’s letters alone with tremendous effort, like tearing his own tusks out, Bones raised an eyebrow and picked up the papers, murmuring, “Another sting operation?”

  “Nah. This one’s not gonna be so easy. I hope you’re ready. The power vacuum with the Warchief gone will cause chaos that we abso-Blight-damn-lutely need to take advantage off. If you pull this one off, we just might let you go. If being the operative word.”

  “Oh boy, time to tip the delicate socio-political pieces that sustain the criminal underground through subtle machinations and half-truths. Again! How fun!” laughed Bones, flipping through the documents, absorbing vast amounts of information in seconds. He would have done it faster on pixie dust. Ah well… there was a trade-off in everything.

  “You know you’re not impressing anyone with those big words,” snarled Officer Riles. The big cop’s paw steps rang down the halls as Officer Riles strode off.

  “Love you too,” called Bones as he cracked his neck. He glanced at his family photo once again. “Love you…”

  Then the orc brought his sister’s letters out into the light. Breathing in the smell of ink, Bones started counting down the seconds to his release. He wouldn’t run anymore.

  It didn’t matter that thick walls of concrete and steel surrounded him. His heart was outside.

  “By the Forge Master, the new ballroom is looking fine!” cried Debbie from the passenger seat as Gore pulled up the Magnum Orcus up the driveway into Elvenheim. First day of the new school year and a new magic fair. “Look! That building’s insane!”

  Gore smiled and glanced out the window at the lush grass and the new ballroom sprouting out of the quad alongside the ancient castle. A building of glass and concrete and wood, melded together into a fusion of old and new. A building made from Gore’s hard work and designed by Agnis Hopper herself in collaboration with the students.

  “Damn, I can’t wait to check it out,” growled Gore as she turned her attention back to the road. She needed to make sure she didn’t run anyone over by accident. Or by intention.

  Then she noticed how many of the other students stared at the Magnum Orcus. Elves and dwarves, carting around their own science projects with gleaming new metal and sophisticated electronics. Compared to the scarred surface of the Magnum Orcus, just hammered back into shape last night, their experiments seemed so… much more refined. For a moment, Gore shied away, blushing and trying to avoid their stares.

  “Um.. Gore?” asked Debbie as Gore gulped and breathed in deep, rubbing her hands together, “You all right?”

  The orc ground her tusks. How had Gore ever allowed Debbie to convince her? Oh wait… Gore glanced at the dwarf’s pouty lips. “I’m still not sure about entering the Magnum Orcus into the magic fair. It’s all beat up and broken and brunt and scarred and—”

  “That means it’s battle tested,” laughed Debbie, slapping Gore’s arm. Gore blushed and acquiesced Debbie had a good point. “Come on, Gore. You ready?”

  Expelling her breath in a long hiss, opening her eyes once more to behold the school, Gore
nodded. She looked Debbie in the eyes and then lunged forward for a kiss. The dwarf yelped before grabbing Gore and pulling her in.

  “Yeah, I’m ready,” murmured Gore, letting go, slapping herself on the cheek. Her foot eased back down onto the accelerator and they resumed their journey.

  Gore wouldn’t hide who she was anymore.

  “Get ready to watch their faces melt,” laughed Debbie as she patted the Magnum Orcus.

  “Well, however awesome that would be, I doubt it would score well with the judges,” murmured Gore as she pulled the Magnum Orcus into one of the loading zones. She paused for a moment and ran her fingers across the wheel, her claws lingering on the flower in the flames.

  “Let’s do this then!” cried Debbie as she hopped out of the Magnum Orcus.

  Gore watched her go, smiling before she closed her green eyes and whispered, “Thank you.”

  The Magnum Orcus rumbled.

  For a long moment, Gore smiled and listened to the car’s growl, letting the vibrations tune to her heartbeat. Gore fingered her wyvern bone earring, her brother’s laughter echoing in the air, her heart aching for a long moment. For once, she couldn’t wait until he came back into her life once more. She just needed to wait another lifetime…

  Then, sighing and turning off the engine, Gore got out of the Magnum Orcus. She winced, clutching her stomach. The scars from the Grand Prix remained, both physical and mental, even after months spent healing. And despite the insistence of her friends, Gore had refused healing spells. It was her punishment. Or at least, one of many. Gore glanced at the new ballroom, grinding her teeth together as she clenched her hands. Hands that once held five million dollar leafs. Now, she had nothing. Back almost entirely to square one. She trembled before the road in front of her. It would be a long road before she could forgive herself.

  Besides… orcs were hardier than most.

  “What are you waiting for, Gore?”

  Straightening her back, taking in a deep breath, Gore collected herself. The world hadn’t changed much but she did, and she had others who could walk with her. That made all the difference.

  Now, her future was waiting.

  Gore strode forward.

  The End