Night fell upon the forest at the base of the Rancor mountains, and with it a cold breeze from the north sent shivers down their backs as Gnak led Jen towards the pass. The ground grew more steep now, and with the rocky surfaces and loose rubble, Gnak knew that it was unsafe conditions for such a small human. She slipped multiple times, tripping altogether on more than one occasion. Even so, he told himself that it was because she was slowing him down that he came to the decision.
Stopping upon a particularly treacherous slope, he turned and without warning he snatched her off her feet, lifting her high into the air. Spinning her within his hands he placed her upon his shoulders behind his head, her legs running down each side of his chest. Holding her feet, he again turned and began the climb up the mountainous slope.
“No piss?” Gnak grunted.
“No piss. I promise,” she giggled in reply.
They continued on for several hours in silence, making the difficult climb up to the pass entrance. It was near midnight, judging by the stars, when Gnak stopped suddenly, leaning down to the ground. Before him lay the track of an Orc, which might have been one of his own from days before, except that it faced the wrong direction. This Orc was moving in the same direction as they were. Another hundred yards further up the trail Gnak followed the prints and realized that the Orc was two Orcs, and they did not travel alone. With them a small, adult human-sized print and a thick, almost round print traveled as well. All four sets of tracks moved in the same direction and all were fairly fresh, likely passing earlier this same day.
“What is it, Gnak?” Jen asked.
“More Orcs go here. Have prisoners.”
“Will I get to meet them?” she asked excitedly.
“No. You meet, I have kill you.”
“Oh.” Her body sagged on his shoulders.
“We no talk. We hear.”
Jen did not answer his last words, and Gnak knew she understood his meaning. Quietly, they crept ahead the remaining mile to the mouth of the mountain pass. Gnak strained his ears listening, but could hear no sounds ahead. Peering ahead into the gorge through the mountain, he could see no movement either. Assured that his kin had passed hours before, he carried Jen into the pass, carefully avoiding stones, discarded implements, and bones alike.
Little more than a hundred yards into the pass, Gnak stood with Jen upon his shoulders, her tiny, still body, barely noticeable as far as weight was concerned. Together they listened and Gnak peered into the darkest places, searching for what could be hidden beneath them. Naught but a pair of rats scurried about the piles of dead mounded along the sides of the pass.
Lifting the girl off of his shoulders, he lowered her to the ground and led her to the nearest pile of bones. Shock showed plainly in her face at the discovery, her own vision not nearly as keen as his in the darkness. But he then carefully picked through the pile, removing a small leather belt with a pouch attached to it. Opening the pouch he poured its contents into her small hand. He watched as the small metal disks poured into her hand, her eyes widening in excitement. Then the unthinkable happened.
Along with the valued disks that poured from the small pouch into her waiting palm were a collection of small cockroaches, one of which scurried up Jen’s arm, causing her to scream suddenly. From miles away, after nearly a minute, a giant roar echoed back at them. In the still silence of the night Gnak could already detect the faint vibration of the stone around him. Jen had awoken the giants, and they were coming to find the intruder.
Knowing time was limited, Gnak locked his eyes on the girl.
“Work fast, get many. We hurry, we go.”
“You got it,” she replied, her hands already digging through the pile, her face just inches from it, trying to see in the darkness what lay before her.
Gnak turned to the next pile of bones and discarded items with a collection of purposes. First he sought a large bag or pack to collect all the disks and stones they found. Next he sought the small pouches used to hold the human and goblin wealth. But so too did he seek for himself. Digging through the piles, he sought armor and weapons that would fit, or could be altered to fit.
Tossing small pouch after small pouch in Jen’s direction, he dug through the pile quickly before moving on to the next. Various weapons and armor he pulled free from the piles, discarding the vast majority of them. It was several minutes before he found a large leather pack that, although stiff and old, was sturdily made. Inspecting it for holes, he quickly took it to his companion and, scooping up the growing collection of small pouches, he dumped them all in as Jen moved on to yet another mound.
The vibrations grew stronger and stronger as Gnak selected a large mound, nearly as tall as he, to begin digging through. With no further need for silence he thrashed through the pile, spreading it out and looking it over, pulling from it every pouch he saw, but so common were the pouches that they were not what caught his eye. Instead, near the bottom of the pile were the remains of a being clad from head to toe in armor. Though the pieces were all in a jumbled pile, the suit appeared to be complete. It was only blackened iron, and most was coated entirely in rust, but Gnak knew he could clean the armor with animal fat. The man who had worn it was large, but obviously not an Orc. A discovery he made when dumping the skull out of the horned helmet. Nonetheless, trying it on, every single piece fit him. Some pieces of the armor were not tightly securable enough to make them practical, the straps having mostly rotted away, or been eaten by rodents, but he knew he could repair them.
With no means to carry the armor, he simply put it all on. Using discarded belts and thongs of leather, he tied the pieces in place the best he was able. The giants grew nearer and nearer still, roaring again as they came. The ground began to shake as the piles of bones clattered and small flakes of stone rained down from the chasm’s walls.
Selecting yet another pile, he watched as the tiny healer dragged the pack she filled onto a new pile of her own choosing. It was already too heavy for her to handle. He grinned. Digging, he tossed pouch after pouch in her direction, the feel of his newly acquired armor alien and yet comforting. He supposed he looked quite the warrior in it, but now was not the time for Orcish pride. On and on the giants came, but together he and Jen continued to collect, with time growing ever shorter. He would wait another few minutes before collecting the girl and her wealth and fleeing back towards her home.
Knowing his sword alone was insufficient to fight or hunt with, Gnak rummaged through the discarded items left by the dead, hoping to find a spear, but was having no luck. It was not until those final moments that he made an unusual discovery. Uncovering the edge of a blade, he grasped it and pulled it free of a pile. It was unlike anything he had ever seen, and another of its kind slid down the pile as he inspected the first. It was peculiar because it was longer than a sword, but was nearly all blade. Both ends were tapered to points, the handle intersecting the blade at the middle, where a long section was not honed sharp.
Holding the blade this way and that, he established that it was meant to be held along the outside of the arm, turning the forearm into a weapon, as well as the blade that extended away from him. He could slash or jab an enemy from the front, slash with his forearm and elbow, or even jab to the rear with the blade that ran back along his forearm. It was a smart design, and Gnak could see the advantages it held over his sword.
Removing his crude Orc blade from his belt, he discarded it among the piles of bones. Picking up the pair of odd blades he shoved them into his belt, one on each hip. If he had not been wearing his newly acquired armor, it would not have been possible to carry them in such a manner, as even in his belt one blade from each weapon faced up and impeded movement of his arms. There was no help for it, and with the new weapons in his possession and the giants growing nearer by the second, he decided it was time for them to leave. Except his decision came too late.
Around the bend in the pass ahead ran a pair of Orcs, leading their prisoners, directly towards him. Immediately Gnak recognized Korx,
and was not surprised the Orc had come this far to find a sacrifice. The Orc with him was the other twin, either Kunk or Burl, whichever one he hadn’t kill just little more than a week ago. The pair led one of the armor-clad human warriors and a Troll, each upon a leash. Both parties spotted each other at the same time, and in his armor his fellow Orcs did not recognize him. He watched as Korx raised his spear, still running towards him to evade the giants that followed. Stepping between Korx and Jen, Gnak did the only thing he could.
“Gathos!” he grunted loudly, raising a hand to his chest, announcing them as members of the same tribe.
Watching as Korx lowered his spear, growing nearer with each step, he could not look back to Jen lest he betray his secret. He could not back up to her side, lest he be seen as backing down from Korx, pride demanded he hold his ground. The approaching Orcs and their prisoners slowed.
“Is you, Gnak?” Korx grunted, his head cocking to one side.
“Is me,” Gnak replied.
“Good. Now we three. We kill giant,” Korx said.
Gnak’s heart sank. Once the words were spoken, the decision was made. To offer another option would be seen as cowardly.
“Giant?” Gnak asked. “Was more.”
“Korx kill big female. While sleep,” Korx grunted proudly, banging his fist on his chest.
“Kank kill youngling giant,” the other Orc replied.
Gnak was somewhat relieved that the young giant and its creepy songs were silenced. It answered his question, two actually, now that he knew which of the twins he had killed. But now there was no more time to discuss the matter as a great sucking sound issued from ahead and the giant rounded the corner, eyeing the trespassers.
“You armor, you charge first!” Korx shouted again, binding him to a duty by pride.
Gnak realized that perhaps Korx was not as dumb as he seemed, using pride and tradition to his advantage. It was something he would have to keep in mind if they survived.
With no other options available, he stole a glance towards Jen as he turned to face the giant. His clan-mates shoved their bound and gagged prisoners to the ground, issuing them orders before turning to watch his charge. Ahead of him the giant came to a stop, a cloud of dust trailing it from around the corner of the pass. With a trumpeting roar that showed its rage plainly, the giant thrashed its four immense arms, swinging the large club he had seen days before in one of its massive hands. Gnak pulled his new blades from his belt and tested the feel of them for only a fraction of a second, before he leaned forward and charged the giant beast. The giant charged as well.
Racing ahead, the ground seemingly bouncing beneath him as the giant came, Gnak could feel the makeshift bindings on his armor begin to loosen. His breastplate and backplate began to bounce with every stride. His pauldrons began to shift uncomfortably as well, but it was one of his shin guards that failed him.
Twisting to one side, the shin guard slipped down from the inside of his calf, its metal edge catching upon the stone of the chasm’s floor. Over Gnak went. He knew he would not recover from the trip. All he could do it try his best to make it look graceful, purposeful, and spare himself later ridicule.
Tucking his shoulder, he met the stone with a jarring clang as his ill-fitting armor clattered with him across the stone. Using his momentum to roll off of his shoulder, he watched as the great club of the giant passed by him, only inches to spare. The fall had saved his life. Rolling back to his feet, amazed he had managed to retain both of his blades, he leapt towards the feet of the rushing giant.
Stabbing one blade into the enormous ankle of the beast as it passed and holding fast, he was whipped around the creature by momentum and carried up into the air as it continued in its stride. Holding on for life and limb, as his weight carried him around the heel of the great creature, he lashed out with his other blade, all but severing the main tendon at the back of the beast’s leg. Dismayed, his blade had not been long enough to cut through the beast’s thick flesh and sever the tendon in entirety. Then down he came with the foot, and Gnak swung away from it as he smashed bodily to the ground, his blades coming free of the giant’s flesh.
A great roar erupted from the giant and Gnak watched as the remaining strands of the creature’s tendon gave way beneath its weight, its calf muscles visibly snapping up into its leg as blood sprayed out of the wound. Over the giant went, its ability to remain upright destroyed. Smashing to the stone floor of the chasm the giant roared, trashing its limbs as a great cloud of dust rose from the impact.
Scrambling to his feet, Gnak watched as the Orc he now knew as Burl leapt into the fray, thrusting his spear into the giant neck of the beast, to little effect. The giant thrashed and kicked, attempting to raise itself off the ground, while trying to swat the two Orcs now near its face. Rounding the creature, Gnak lashed out with his blade, slicing through the unprotected wrist of the giant that it was using in an attempt to rise. The flesh split open, revealing ligaments and more. The giant roared out in anger. Stabbing the point of his blade into the open wound, blood sprayed him from head to toe like a geyser as he punctured the blood vessel within the creature’s wrist, but still the giant did not relent.
With a movement that was as much crawling as sliding on its belly, the giant ignored the Orcs and turned its attention to the other beings in its domain. Gnak watched as the prisoners tried to flee when one of the giant’s hands shot out towards them, but none of the trio reacted fast enough to escape. Gnak’s heart dropped in his stomach as he watched the great hand swing out towards his small human ally. One smack of the hand would crush her tiny body, and there was nothing he could do but watch. But the blow was never landed.
Just as it seemed all hope was lost, the giant’s arm crashed to the ground, sliding to a stop just feet away from the Orc’s prisoners. Turning, he watched as Korx thrust his hand deep into the oozing eye of the giant, twisting his arm this way and that, as if searching for something. Grinning, the Orc pulled his arm free, dragging his spear out from the wound. As the giant twitched in its death throes, the prisoners moved away from its hands to avoid being killed by the dead giant. Korx strutted around the dead giant, obviously pleased with himself.
Though it was Gnak who had brought the giant down, it was Korx who would be heralded as its slayer. He was beginning to see a trend in Orc logic that made him uncomfortable. Even so, he had bigger things, even than dead giants, to worry about.