“What about HER?” The orc that had pawed at Elen’s ankles earlier in the day yelled out above the noise. Hundreds of eyes turned and fixed Lurgak and Elen with hostile stares. Lurgak stepped in front of Elen, baring his teeth. His eyes turned black, and his fists clenched.
“She’s mine.” He growled. Orcs began laughing, but the Whipmaster strode over to Lurguk and looked him up and down, noting the colour of his eyes, the sweat on his skin.
“Well, lads.” He said, and turned to face the rest of the orcs. “Looks like Lurgak’s got some belly for the fight after all. Who else claims this woman?” Half a dozen voices from the younger orcs rang out. The whipmaster grinned, then turned back to Lurgak. “To the breeding pits!”
Orcs grabbed hold of Elen and pushed her forwards. Lurgak snarled at them and they backed off laughing. Lurgak turned to Elen. She was startled to see the change in him. His eyes, that had been so warm and liquid brown, were entirely black. His skin was studded with beads of sweat, he was trembling, and when he spoke, it was with a great effort. “Elen. Stay to the back wall. I’ll protect you. Trust me.”
Elen had turned white at the thought of the breeding pits. She had heard tales of those. Orcs fighting each other to the death to be the first to rape a poor woman. And the sight of Lurgak frightened her - she had almost grown accustomed to his steady, calming presence, and now, he was something feral, wild. But something in his words steadied her. With those words, ‘trust me’, she laid her hand on his chest, and replied, “I do.” Lurgak blinked, and for a fraction of a second, his eyes lightened to their previous colour, before darkening again.
The orcs parted, and she saw them. The breeding pits. Orcs, with black eyes, in the same state as Lurgak, were jumping down into the first pit, tearing their clothes off as they jumped, green flesh shimmering with sweat and moonlight. Already fights were breaking out among them. An orc behind Elen gave her a shove, and she slipped over the edge of the pit, landing with a squelch at the bottom, her foot trapped under her. Another round of raucous laughter came from the orcs as Lurgak threw himself in, landing in front of Elen, facing the other orcs. They snarled at each other, pacing back and forth, like wild dogs scenting their prey. Lurgak hunched onto all fours, defensive. One orc broke from the pack, flying and Lurgak. With a leap, Lurgak met him halfway, and buried his teeth in the other orc’s throat. With an animalistic roar, he pulled back, tearing and ripping with his teeth. Blood spurted from the orc’s throat and again, Lurgak pulled and ripped, until, with a gurgle, the light faded from the other orc’s eyes. Lurgak dropped the body on the ground and sized up the next attack. They all came at once. With yells and screams two orcs fell on Lurgak, trying to bring him down. One slipped past him and made straight for Elen. She screamed, unable to move, and Lurgak immediately found a sudden burst of strength. Throwing off his attackers, he slammed against the orc who was about to thrust himself into Elen, a maelstrom of teeth and nails, leaving the shredded husk of the orc behind. The remaining two orcs circled him, then attacked at the same time, trying to bring him down. One went for his front, and was met with Lurgak’s teeth. The other threw himself onto Lurgak’s back bringing his hands around the blacksmith’s throat, trying to choke him. Lurgak slammed him into the wall, impaling him on one of the iron spikes that stood around the edge of the pit. The crowd roared their approval. Lurgak turned his attention back to the final orc, wiping blood from his eye after Lurgak’s teeth had turned him blind. The last orc snarled and ran at Lurgak, who met him head on. The two grappled and wrestled in the dust of the pit, back and forth, one on top and then the other, churning the dust until it was impossible to see who was who. Suddenly, finally, there was a sound, one that Elen wished she would never hear again, a popping, followed by a ripping and tearing, and a horrible, horrible squelching. Elen held her breath as the dust cleared, and a single orc loomed out of it, holding the head of another. In the dark of the night and the dust of the pit, she couldn’t make out whose head it was. The orc dropped the head, and it rolled towards her, coming to a rest at her feet. With a shudder, she steeled herself, and forced her to look at the severed head. It wasn’t Lurgak… which could only mean…. She almost fainted with relief as he came closer. But the relief was momentary. As he stood over her, covered in blood, every inch of him erect and pulsing, she shrank back in renewed fear. He snarled at her, possessively, lowering himself onto all fours, pushing himself on top of her. As he came closer, the smell of blood, death, and his own sweet scent mingled in her nostrils. Instinctively, she reached out her hand, touching his chest. He blinked, and stopped. “Lurgak…it’s me…. It’s Elen.” she whispered, in fear.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“Elen…” His voice was husky and gruff, but something seemed to spark in his eyes. He sat back. And whispered her name again. “Elen….”
“Yes. It’s me.” She put her other hand on his chest and looked into his eyes. The darkness still swirled in them, but she could see flashes of brown every time he spoke her name. “Lurgak. Come back to me.”
“Elen…. My star. Elen.” The darkness in his eyes began to clear. He was no longer erect, but his whole body trembled. The orcs around the pit were booing, feeling robbed of their sport, yet for both Lurgak and Elen, nothing in the world existed apart from each other. The orcs, growing bored and knowing their sport was over, wandered off.
To those few still remaining, the whipmaster cracked his whip and yelled “Show’s over, lads. Lurgak’s shown his belly for once. He’s won her.” He sneered down at Elen before stalking off. Elen wrapped Lurgak in a warm embrace and he buried his head in her hair. And still, Elen and Lurgak stayed, kneeling together, bringing Lurgak back from the brink, until the first hints of dawn crept over the horizon.