The reaction was instantaneous.
"WHAT?!" an Orc shouted, his jaw practically hitting the ground.
"Elves?!" a female Orc gasped, her eyes wide with disbelief. "Those dainty, skinny things?!"
"No way!" another Orc yelled, shaking his head violently. "That can't be right! Warchief, are you joking?!"
The Ogres, slower to process the information, tilted their heads in confusion.
"ELVES… WIVES?" one rumbled, scratching his head. Find exclusive stories on empire
"SKINNY PEOPLE?" another asked, his massive brow furrowed.
The female Ogres snorted, their reactions ranging from disbelief to outright disgust.
"NO WANT SKINNY WIFE!" one declared, folding her massive arms.
"OGRE NO NEED POINTY-EAR WOMAN!" another added, her nose wrinkling.
The Orcs continued to mutter among themselves, their reactions varied and chaotic.
"But how? Elves and Orcs are so… different!"
"I thought elves hated us!"
"Does that an we have elf blood in us?!"
"Eww, I don't want elf blood!"
"Wait, does that an the Ogres do too?!"
The female Orcs, in particular, seed to take the news personally.
"Are you telling our ancestors couldn't find proper Orc won?" one demanded, her hands on her hips. "They had to go for elves?"
"Why would anyone choose an elf over an Orc?!" another snapped, glaring at the male Orcs as if the decision had been theirs personally.
A younger female Orc crossed her arms, pouting. "I don't care if they're our ancestors; they had bad taste."
The male Orcs, anwhile, were equally split.
"Maybe it makes sense," one mused. "Elves are magical, right? Maybe they made our ancestors stronger."
"Stronger? Or weaker?" another countered, his voice skeptical. "Look at us. We're nothing like elves!"
"Do you think elves would still marry Orcs now?" one young Orc asked, his face red.
"Shut up!" an older Orc barked, smacking him on the back of the head. "Don't embarrass yourself!"
Volk raised his hand again, silencing the uproar. His golden eyes glinted as he surveyed the horde, their shocked and outraged faces reflecting their inner turmoil.
"I understand your reactions," Volk said, his voice calm yet firm. "But this is the truth. The elves were not just our ancestors' wives—they were their partners in battle.
"Their strength and magic combined with the raw power of Orcs and Ogres. Together, they were unstoppable. Together, they built a legacy we now carry."
The horde fell into a tense silence, digesting his words. Even the most vocal dissenters seed to reconsider, their expressions softening as they thought about the possibility.
Finally, an older female Orc spoke, her voice steady. "If they fought with us… if they shared our struggles… then maybe they weren't so bad."
The Ogres grunted in agreent, their earlier skepticism fading.
"SKINNY PEOPLE… STRONG?" one mused, tilting his head.
"IF FIGHT TOGETHER… THEN OKAY," another rumbled.
Volk smirked, satisfied with their reactions. "Good," he said. "Because this story isn't over. And if you think this revelation was surprising, just wait until you hear what cos next."
The horde leaned in closer, their curiosity reignited, as Volk prepared to continue.
Volk took a deep breath, preparing to drop the next bombshell. The horde, leaning forward in rapt attention, was not prepared for what ca next.
"Whenever elves and Orcs mated," Volk began, his voice steady, "their offspring were… unique."
The crowd stiffened, hanging onto his every word.
"If the child was male," Volk said, "it would be an Orc."
There was a beat of silence.
"And if the child was female," Volk continued, his voice cutting through the tension, "it would be an elf."
The reaction was imdiate and explosive.
"WHAT?!" a younger Orc shouted, nearly dropping his weapon.
"FEMALE ELF?!" an older Ogre roared, his voice shaking the trees.
"THAT MAKE NO SENSE!" another bellowed, pounding his fist into the ground.
But none reacted more intensely than the female Orcs.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" one scread, her eyes blazing with fury.
"MALE ORCS ONLY?!" another snapped, shoving the male Orc nearest to her.
"This is outrageous!" one snarled, stomping her foot with enough force to crack the ground beneath her. "Do you an to tell that our ancestors—OUR ancestors—favored elves over us?!"
The chaos was absolute.
"I don't believe it!"
"This is ridiculous!"
"Elves stealing our n?! Our legacy?!"
"Warchief, are you sure this isn't so lie made up by the Warlocks to ss with us?"
"WHY ONLY MALE?!" a female Orc yelled, stepping forward to glare at Volk. "ARE WE NOT GOOD ENOUGH?!"
Another growled low in her throat. "Our ancestors were fools! Elves couldn't survive without magic, and yet they're considered better than us?"
"They probably didn't have a choice," one male Orc muttered, shrinking back under the glares of the females around him.
"Don't make excuses!" a particularly burly female snarled, jabbing a finger at him. "They should have fought harder!"
The male Orcs, anwhile, looked caught between confusion and fear, trying not to et the seething glares of their female counterparts.
"I-I an… maybe it wasn't so bad?" one stamred, his voice faltering. "The elves did help us—"
"HELP?!" a female barked, cutting him off. "Do you think birthing their skinny daughters was helping us?! We're the backbone of this horde!"
Another male Orc timidly raised a hand. "But Warchief, if the males were Orcs, didn't that an the elves contributed sothing useful?"
This only earned him a smack upside the head from a nearby female. "You're lucky we don't contribute your skull to the pile, you idiot!"
Even the Ogres were getting riled up.
"SKINNY GIRL BETTER THAN ORC WOMAN?" one grunted, looking genuinely perplexed.
"NO MAKE SENSE!" another agreed, crossing his massive arms. "ORC WOMAN STRONG. WHY CHOOSE SKINNY GIRL?"
A female Ogre snorted. "SKINNY GIRL USELESS. NO CARRY CLUB, NO SMASH ENEMY."
"SKINNY GIRL NO COOK GOOD FOOD!" another added, glaring at the male Ogres as if they personally had made the decision.
The tension in the air was thick enough to cut with a blade, and Volk could see that the female Orcs' jealousy was reaching a dangerous boiling point. He raised a hand to calm the storm, his golden eyes scanning the furious crowd.
"ENOUGH!" Volk's voice thundered, silencing the chaos instantly.
The horde turned to him, their faces still twisted with anger and frustration.
"Listen to ," Volk said, his tone firm but calm. "I understand your anger. I understand your frustration. But let remind you of sothing." He gestured to the female Orcs, his gaze sweeping across them.
"You are rare. You are strong. You are irreplaceable."
The female Orcs blinked, their anger montarily giving way to confusion.
Volk continued, his voice softer now but no less commanding.
"The elves may have been our ancestors' wives, but look around you. Who stands by your side now? Who fights with you? Who bleeds with you?" He pointed at the male Orcs. "It's them. Your brothers. Your mates. Your comrades."
He shifted his gaze to the male Orcs, his expression hardening. "And you—treasure these won. They are the lifeblood of our horde. Without them, we are nothing. They are warriors, just like you, and they deserve your respect."
The male Orcs nodded quickly, their expressions sheepish but determined.
"Yes, Warchief!"
"They're strong, Warchief!"
"We'll treat them better!"
The female Orcs softened slightly, their pride bolstered by Volk's words, though a few still muttered under their breath.
Satisfied, Volk took a step back. "Good. Now that we've cleared that up, we don't have much to discuss anymore."
The horde, though still buzzing with residual energy, fell silent, so it ends here huh?
Reviews
All reviews (0)