On her left and on her right, two sides argued around Oga. Both tried to persuade the 10-year-old child of the rights and wrongs of the world, and all she could do was open her ears and listen.

“Oga,” Van called out. “Please don’t listen to her. She just wants to do the world harm!”

“Future beauty,” Antonio added. “Not all humans are like that!”

Oga could feel the tears form in the corners of her eyes. She yelled back at them, and for the first time in a while, she didn’t make her voice growly and raspy. It was the voice of an upset child. “But a human still did this to me and my mom!”

Queen Ayne hovered in front of Oga and a sneer crept across her chalk-white face. “You are correct Oga. Not all humans are evil, but some--like Prince Coates--when consumed with greed and power are capable of catastrophe like no other species.”

She reached her clawed hand and placed it on Oga’s head, beginning to scratch it. Oga would have normally swatted it away but she was so enraptured by Queen Ayne’s words she paid it no mind. “Why take the chance of this happening again when together we can eliminate them all. Allow me that power…Aya.”

Oga remained silent, but her eyes focused on the one person who remained curiously quiet. At first, Cyrus’ refused to meet Oga’s eyes as she stared at him, but at last, he looked up with determination shining in his eyes.

“Oga,” he said with his hands folded. “I just want to say one last thing before you make your choice.”

“What is it Big Orc Prince?” Oga asked, a raspy bitterness forming in her voice. “What do you have to say to me…?”

Cyrus looked down. “I may be related to that horrible man and I am deeply sorry…but…”

“But what?” Oga cried, her voice full of anguish.

“I am…not human…”

Suddenly, Oga’s eyes widened. Cyrus gave a goofy smile and bit his top teeth over his lips. “I am an Orc…and together we are Orc-magedon!”

Tears rushed down Oga’s face. She watched as Cyrus began to bounce up and down. Soon, Van and even Antonio joined in his chant. “Ooga chugga, ooga chugga! Ugly bumps and smelly lumps, any orc without them is a chump!”

Oga thought back to the prince’s kindness. He was the first person willing to play her game even if she captured him and tied him up. He helped her come to terms with her mother and always believed her even when Severa was trying to frame her. Cyrus (and everyone else for that matter) were humans, but they weren’t the evil sort. They were her friends and that mattered more than them being human.

Oga shook Ayne’s hand off her head and quickly drew her bow. Ayne flew backwards as Oga shouted with a fanged smile. “Sorry Queen Lady, but I’m no elf. And those are my people, my smelly foul Orc clan.”

Everyone cheered as Oga shot two silver arrows with swift precision. One flew right at Ayne’s heart and the other, two inches from her shoulder. Ayne lifted her staff and the first arrow was absorbed into thin air two inches away from her chest. “Perhaps you are not an elf. Your marksmen skills are terrible,” Ayne said referring to the other arrow.

“Oh I wasn’t aiming for you…directly,” Oga said wtih a sly smile. She blew into her fingers and the arrow behind Ayne did a 180 degree turn and zoomed towards Ayne’s back.

With a crack of her shoulder and wrist bones, Ayne reached behind her without turning around and snatched the arrow with her mangled arm. With a sickening crack forward, Ayne’s arm returned forward but the bones were completely broken and seemed to move through the power of magic alone.

Oga winced and screamed, “Why are you hurting yourself?”

The queen lifted her hand and Oga cringed as she begun to spin her hand in a complete circle, tearing the wrist bone apart. “Because, this is not the body I crave. It is a mere tool to get what I need.”

Oga chuckled quietly. “I may have an IQ of 4 but Queen Lady, ou really do have snot for brains. You just admitted you need my body.”

Queen Ayne snarled and her eyes bugged out as Oga stuck out her tongue. “No can do,” the little elf said. “I’ll never give it to you!”

“Then I will take it by force!” Ayne howled and flew head first at Oga.

Unflinching, Oga fired a succession of arrows as she dashed around Ayne but each arrow she fired was absorbed into an invisible barrier. Oga quickly folded her bow together and pulled a concealed silver machete from it. Swinging downward, Oga aimed her knife at Ayne’s head, but the wicked elven queen trust her staff upward blocking it. Ayne rose upright and swung her staff directly at Oga. The young elf parried and swung back harder, but the two were evenly matched in hand to hand combat.

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Ayne let out a cackle as the ruby in her staff glistened and a red laser began to burn throught the floor straight at Oga. The young elf jumped back and carefully stepped backwards as the lazer got closer and closer. Before it backed her into a corner, Oga looked to the left and the right. There were large fish tanks embedded into the walls. Oga flipped her bow upwards, loaded two magic arrows into it and released it. They flew left and right into the sides of the aquariums.

“Child,” Ayne screamed as the glass shattered. “What have you done?”

“What does it look like Queen Lady? I’m evening out the battle field.”

Water spilled out onto the stone floors, quickly flooding them with fish and water. The ruby’s laser beam was absorbed by the water. Oga giggled as the water gathered around her to protect her. Then with a push of her hands, an enormous tidal wave filled the room and mowed down Queen Ayne, smashing her against the wall.

With a cry, she fell face first into the water and floated on her stomach.

”Now that’s what I call a belly flop!” Oga said and her friend’s cheered.

Oga heard muffled cackling and turned around. Around Queen Ayne’s body, red blood seeped out into the water tainting it a dark red sheen. The Queen rose and with a harsh laugh and white fanged smile concluded, “Don’t worry, that is not my blood. It is the power of the bloodstone. It has already tainted rivers and valleys and it will taint this water too… and very soon, your soul!”

Oga noticed floating purple rocks in the water and quickly jumped upon them so the toxic red water wouldn’t corrupt her. She wobbled carefully on two purple rocks as she looked nervously back at her friends. The force field fortunately protected them, but she knew she had to be very careful. She positioned her bow carefully at Ayne, but Ayne simply laughed. “I wouldn’t stand on those if I were you.”

Oga looked at her feet and saw two hideous eyeballs staring up at her. Oga leaped to other purple rocks but they opened their eyes too. Large black tentacles emerged from the water and wrapped themselves around Oga’s arms and legs. Oga’s bow tumbled into the red water as she struggled against the foul tentacles holding her in place.

Ayne flew close to Oga and placed her fingers on her cheek. “Don’t feel bad, young one. Your body will be going to a very good cause. One that will make elf-kind the leading race on the planet and everyone will bow to me.”

Oga closed her eyes. She knew it was over…unless she could reach deep inside her and make a connection with what she loathed most.

Like her father had taught her to do, she fell deep into meditation. She saw the astral plane of white stars on purple skies and slowly, her brain converged with it. She reached even deeper inside of it to a place she dared not go before. Three white water drops with tails spun together in a triangle. Her father had told her that this was her very life force, but what he had not said, was this was the energy of the Spirit.

“Spirit,” she said. “I call upon your power.”

A deep watery voice echoed in her mind. “Oga, this is my full power that you can tap into when you have an elevated consciousness.”

“Gee, Spirit Lady, I figured that one out a long time ago. How about just letting me use it?”

“Of course,” the Spirit said. “But while your soul may slowly erode from my presence, when you use my full power, it will erode a lot quicker.”

“Yes, yes, I know,” the impatient young elf said. “I’m about to die anyway. It’s better I use your power now and ask questions later. That is the Orc credo…”

“Ok…” the Spirit said. “But remember with great power comes…”

“Come on! If I want to read cheesy morals, I’ll read some fairy tales! Just give me the power.”

The Spirit gave a watery sigh and one of the spinning droplets of water dissipated into thin air. Oga felt her whole consciousness become numb as white water blurred her vision. A tingling sensation coursed through her body and Oga awakened with full silver eyes. She spit into the contaminated water and the silver spit spread quickly, turning the water to pure white ice.

“What’s going on?” Ayne exclaimed as the eyeball fish froze over, dropping Oga to the ground.

Walls of ice reached the ceiling and covered it. Oga punched upwards and a large fist of ice emerged from the floor sending Ayne flying towards the ceiling. Oga punched down and a fist shot out of the ceiling and punched Ayne diagonally towards the wall of ice. She punched to the side and a fist flew out of the wall. Soon, Oga was ricocheting the wicked queen with numerous fists of ice. Oga charged up a final haymaker as Ayne flew towards the ceiling and a fist smashed her to the ground where she lay bruised and beaten.

Hearing the defeated queen moan, Oga released the energy from her body. For some odd reason, all she could taste in her mouth was ice. Oga quickly ran over to the broken husk where her magnificent clothes were torn and tattered. The elven queen with two black eyes rose her hand up slowly and her mouth opened. Along with a few fangs falling out of her mouth, a bright purple spirit with long pointed ears and wicked black eyes escaped. Oga quickly realized it was Ayne’s spirit fleeing the body. She raised her hands and closed her eyes as it flew laughing towards her body, but suddenly, the laughing stopped. Oga opened her eyes and saw a beautiful elven spirit holding its tail.

“Severa!” Oga exclaimed.

“Aya,” she said softly. “I’m sorry for everything I’ve done. I was jealous of the attention you got, and I hated you because of it. I just wanted your power so everyone would look at me the way they all did you-with respect.”

“But Severa,” Oga said softly. “I never wanted the power. All I’ve wanted is to be free like an Orc.”

“I can see that now,” Severa said and bowed her head. “I was a victim to these stupid elf laws too. Now I see that they’ve led me to this.”

Slowly Severa tugged at the wicked spirit’s tail, dragging it back into her broken body. “I’m going to make up for it though. This evil spirit will die with me.”

Tears ran from Oga’s eyes. “Severa…I love you.”

Severa’s eyes, no longer bitter but gentle and crystaline closed softly. “I think in the end. That’s all I wanted to hear.”

The two spirits returned to the body. The body convulsed and attempted to rise again, but it slumped down. Oga let out a loud sob as her friends carefully ran across the ice. All three hugged Oga tightly as she cried.

“Is there a such thing as big Orc hugs?” Cyrus asked.

“There is now…” Oga sniffed.