It was the new norm for the Orcs, Imps, and Batty. The twins were cooking and singing. Rose and Batty were making coffee. Richard and Bob sat at the table, taking orders and money. Greg and Doug walked in after a quick patrol of the longer line. Bob and Richard waved as they got breakfast.

An hour into breakfast, Richard signaled to Batty. “Switch places with me,” he said, offering his seat. Batty took over taking orders and money handling. Richard was happy. Rotating shifts was an excellent way to keep everyone fresh.

“Vanilla latte for Kathy,” Batty shouted over to Richard.

This was the first time Richard had made coffee. He had watched Rose and Batty and felt he could do it. He confidently poured coffee into a cup, then muttered a curse upon realizing he had forgotten the milk.

Frustrated, Richard filled another cup with milk and cursed again, realizing his mistake.

"You okay, chief?" Rose inquired.

"Yeah," Richard mumbled in response.

Richard, determined, took a third cup, mixing half coffee and half milk. He felt a sense of pride despite having two incomplete attempts.

“Vanilla latte for Kathy,” Richard shouted.

After taking a sip, Kathy paused and turned to Richard, “Excuse me, there's no vanilla in this.”

Richard muttered another curse, took the cup back from Kathy, and turned to Rose. He was at a loss.

"Here you go, Kathy," said Rose, handing her a new drink. She disposed of Richard's attempt in a bucket.

"Why did you pour that out?" asked Richard, annoyed.

"She drank from it," Rose explained. "Would you drink it now?"

"Maybe," Richard retorted.

“What if Mick had drunk from it?” Rose asked.

Richard looked at the imp in question and shuddered. “Okay, good point.”

"Black coffee for Terry," announced Bob.

"I've got this," Richard declared. Grabbing another cup and forgetting his previous one, he spilled hot coffee on his hand and yelped.

"Careful, it's hot," Rose teased.

Annoyed, Richard called out, "Black coffee for Terry!"

A human walked up and took the coffee, giving Richard a nod. The human took a drink and grimaced, “Hey, that’s not what I ordered. I wanted a vanilla latte. This is black coffee.”

“What?” Richard looked confused.

“Hey, I ordered a back coffee,” said another human.

“Here you go,” Rose handed the first human a drink. “And here you go.” She gave a second to the last human.

“Thanks,” they said together.

"Wait," Richard said, perplexed. "How did I mess that up?"

"You mixed up the orders, chief. It's alright, you'll get it," Rose reassured him.

After five missed orders, Batty relieved Richard. He went back to the table dejected.

“You okay, chief?” Bob asked.

“That’s harder than it looks,” Richard said.

“Yeah, they are good at being, what did they call it, barista,” Bob said. “You sit here, and I’ll switch with Rose.”

“Good luck,” Richard said as Bob left. He smiled to himself. No way Bob was going to be able to do that job.

Rose sat at the table and began taking orders. “Business is booming today,” Rose said, “I’m glad to be off my feet for a few minutes. This rotating shift was a great idea.”

Richard grunted a response. “Double vanilla latte for Peggy,” he shouted to the baristas. He grinned at the thought of Bob messing this up.

“Double vanilla latte for Peggy!” Bob shouted in return.

Richard glanced over to the coffee station. Bob was smiling as he poured and mixed drinks. Occasionally, Batty would laugh at something Bob said.

“Black coffee for Darren!” Richard shouted out.

A moment passed, and Bob shouted, ”Black coffee for Darren.”

After some time, Rose rose and said, “Thanks for the break, Chief.” She returned to the coffee station.

A smiling Bob sat down beside Richard, “Hey, chief, that was kinda fun.”

“Have I told you to shut up today?” Richard sneered.

Confused, Bob replied, “Uh, no, chief.”

“Shut up, Bob,” Richard snarled.

Bob shrugged off Richard's comment, taking the next customer's order. They resumed their routine, and Richard eventually stopped scowling.

Betty approached the table. "Hey, Chief, can I swap with you?"

"I've got this, Chief," Bob offered.

Richard replied, "No, stay. I'll take over," allowing Betty to have his seat.

Richard entered the kitchen, immediately struck by the tantalizing aroma and the intense heat.

"BLT!" Betty called out a tad too loudly. Richard could hear Betty and Bob's laughter.

Richard reached for the bacon, but Ben intervened. “Uh, hi, Chief. Thanks for the help. Uh, you need to wash your hands.”

Puzzled, Richard asked, “I what?”

Ben gestured to a bucket of water. "Please wash with soap."

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Why?” Richard inquired.

“Uh, Rose and Batty said it was stationary or some big word. We be clean the food be clean.” Ben said, giving the chief an embarrassed smile.

"Fine," Richard grumbled, washing his hands. Impulsively, he grabbed a slice of bacon and tossed it into the pan. It folded over. When he reached to adjust it, he recoiled, exclaiming, "Shit!"

Ben quickly stopped Richard from putting his fingers in his mouth. "Wash your hands now!" She ordered.

“Again!” Richard shouted back.

“Yes, then use this.” Ben handed Richard a lotion. “It’ll help with the burn.”

Richard did as he was ordered. He wasn’t happy. He was supposed to be the one ordering orcs around. He begrudgingly admitted the lotion soothed the burn.

“Okay, chief, grab the picker-upper thing.” Ben held up tongs. “Use this to pick up the bacon.”

Richard copied Ben’s movements. He placed a new slice of bacon in the pan. Another, another, another, and another.

“Okay, that’s enough bacon.” Ben said, “Now, when it’s done, flip it.”

Puzzled, Richard asked, "How do I know?"

“I don’t know. It’s just done.” Ben said, flipping and placing more bacon and stirring the eggs. Richard saw she was doing at least four orders at once. He had one order. “It’s burning, chief,” Ben said, snapping Richard back to the fact he was attempting to cook.

Startled, Richard exclaimed, "What!" He tried to flip the bacon with the picker-upper-thing. “This flipper thing doesn’t work!” He finally flipped his bacon, but it was too late. He tossed the burned bacon. Before he could try again, Ben stopped him.

“How about mixing the eggs for me,” Ben said.

“Okay, how?” Richard asked.

“Crack four eggs into the bowl, pour a little milk in, dash herbs, then mix until it’s all the same color,” Ben instructed.

Richard picked up an egg and crushed it. He picked up a second and almost got it cracked before he crushed it. Before he reached for a third, Ben stopped him.

“Hey, uh, Chief, I got this. It’s kinda slow right now.” Ben fibbed.

“Slow?” He looked out of the kitchen. The double line was well outside the tent. He glared at the embarrassed Ben.

“Hey, Chief, my turn,” Bob said, walking into the kitchen and washing his hands. “Betty needs some help out there. He’s not good at taking orders. He keeps suggesting things.”

“Fine,” Richard mumbled as Bob took over cooking. He watched Bob skillfully crack four eggs, mix them, and use the infernal grabby thing like a weapon.

“Uh, chief,” Ben looked down. “Wash your hands.”

Exasperated, Richard exclaimed, “What is it with washing? I’m an orc! I don’t wash!”

“Rose and Batty said it has to do with contamination,” Ben said proudly.

“Good word, what’s it mean?” Bob asked.

“Shut up, Bob!” Richard said as he washed his hands and stormed out of the kitchen.

To Richard's dismay, the day progressed smoothly, with everyone rotating shifts except him.

Hours later, Richard noticed Ben signaling a shift to lunch.

Richard stood and shouted, “Lunchtime! One hot dog and fried potato strips, one gold!” The line cheered in response.

The next human stepped up. “I’ll have a hot dog and fried potato strips. Wow, that’s a mouthful.”

“Yes, I have tusks,” Richard said.

“No, I mean fried potato strips. Like you could just call it fried, no, uh, fries!” the human said zealously.

“No, it’s fried potato strips,” Richard glared at the human.

“Yeah, fries. I’ll have a hot dog and fries.”

“No, it’s fried potato strips,” Richard wasn’t happy.

“Hey! I’ll take a hot dog and fries too!” Another human shouted.

“Me too! Hot dog and fries sound good!”

Richard glared at the smiling human. Robbing them was still an option. He sighed, “Fine, hot dog and fries.” Stupid humans were all he could think of.

Hot dogs and fries quickly became a hit. Greg introduced various sauces, sparking a trend of mixing and matching. Mustard, ketchup, and relish rose in popularity, and soon, onions were added for extra flavor.

“You nasty little beast!” Richard's attention snapped to a woman yelling at Mick. The imp looked down, clutching his water jug. “Who’s in charge here?” she demanded.

Richard gestured to Rose to cover for him and approached the woman and Mick. “I’m Chief Richard,” Richard stated, standing beside the downcast Mick. “I’m in charge. What can I do for you?”

“That nasty thing spilled water all over my hot dog and fries.” The woman sneered.

Richar looked down at the table and saw that the hot dog and fries were wet. Richard looked down at the embarrassed imp.

Turning to Mick, he asked, "What happened?

Mick explained, “I was trying to fill her cup, and I bumped the table, and it spilled all over the table.”

Richard looked around at the rest of the table. There were two human men and a human woman. They seemed embarrassed as well. Their food was dry.

“Mick, run to the kitchen and get a new hot dog and fries,” Richard said. Mick jumped to attention and grabbed the soggy food. He ran as quickly as he could. “We’ll give you new food for free.”

“That all?” the woman demanded.

“Yes, it was an accident,” Richard said.

“That nasty thing…” The woman started to insult Mick.

“Enough!” Richard barked, “His name is Mick, and he’s one of the best here. You’ll not call him names.”

Surprised, the woman raised her hand, asking, "Excuse me?"

“Dee,” whispered one of the men, “it’s an accident. Don’t make a scene. They’re giving you free food. Take it.”

“No!” The woman demanded. Mick arrived with the new food and sat it down before the woman. “I want that beast fired.”

“What?” Squeaked Mick, “You want to cook me? Please, Great Orc Chief Richard, don’t cook me.”

Richard looked down at Mick, “No, little cousin, no one is going to cook you.” He sternly glared at the woman, “No, it was an accident.”

“Dee,” hissed the other woman, “Don’t make a scene.”

“I demand…” The woman started to shout.

“Nothing!” Richard shouted back. “You will demand nothing!” He saw Doug and Greg walking towards them. He waved them away. Richard lowered his voice, “You can take the food and enjoy it, or I can ban you.”

“What?” Shouted the other three humans at the table.

“How dare you?” Dee sneered.

“Shut up, Dee!” One of the humans hissed.

Before Dee could say anything else, Richard leaned close, “I hear humans bounce. I’ve always wanted to see how far I could throw one.”

The woman’s audacity turned to fear, “You wouldn’t!”

“I would. If you are rude to Mick again, I’ll throw you. I’d like to see if I could beat Greg’s distance.” Richard sneered down at the woman.

The woman started to say something but was interrupted by one of the humans at her table, “Shut up, Dee! You do this all the time. We aren’t going to be thrown out and banned for you.”

Dee glared at her companions, who were all angry at her. She grumbled and began to eat her new food. Richard gave her a smile. He patted Mick on the head and returned to his seat to take orders.

“Proud of you, chief,” Rose said as she left.

“Me too, chief, you’re the best,” Bob said.

Later that evening, all of the staff sat around to eat dinner. They were enjoying their own hot dogs and fries.

“I can’t believe that Mick thought we were going to cook him,” Bob said, laughing.

“What?” Mick squeaked, “She wanted to fry me like the potato.”

Richard laughed, “No, she wanted you not to work here anymore.”

“No! I like being here,” Mick squeaked.

“You aren’t going anywhere,” Richard said.

Mick sighed with relief. “Well, I bet I would taste good,” he laughed. Everyone laughed with him.

“Blah!” Bob said, “No, you wouldn’t. I’d bet you'd get lost before you reached my stomach!”

Everyone was laughing and having a good time. Mick and Bob debated the best sauce for Mick to be served with. Richard liked this. It was a good life. They made more than enough gold and were good at what they all did. He couldn’t cook or mix coffee but could lead and defend his family.

The comradery and jovial mood were silenced when a lone Orc entered the tent. The silence overwhelmed everyone. The imps and the humans could sense the dread seeping from the Orcs.

“Richard!” Thorn shouted, “I’m going to kill you!” The shaman had arrived.