'What I don't understand is how you came to be fighters at all.'
'Where we come from, all orcs fight.'
There was another, even louder murmur from the onlookers.
'All?'
'Why be surprised?' Stryke said. 'You fight.'
'I said we were special. Different. The norm in Acurial is that most orcs aren't warlike.'
'It's the other way round with us.' He made an effort not to look Wheam's way. 'But how did you come to this?'
'Who knows? Too soft a life for too long, maybe, before the invaders arrived. Some of us, a few, have a taste for blood. The citizens think of us as freaks because of it. We see ourselves as patriots.' He gave Stryke a hard look. 'So why did your group come south?'
That almost wrong-footed Stryke. He said the first thing that came into his head. 'To recruit fighters.'
'You thought it'd be the same here as in your land? That all orcs fought?'
'We hoped.'
'You must have felt let down.'
'We just arrived. We're still finding out how things are.'
'There's no cheer in what you're saying. If you come from a land where all orcs fight, yet you still can't overcome the oppressors… You haven't beaten them, have you?'
'No.'
'Then what chance have we, with hardly any willing to take up arms?'
'There are far fewer orcs in the north lands.'
The leader sighed. 'That's our problem, too. Not enough of us.'
'Who are you?' Stryke asked.
'I'm Brelan.' He beckoned to someone standing in a shadowy part of the cellar. 'And this is Chillder.'
A female orc strode into the light. Her resemblance to Brelan was remarkable. Except for obvious gender differences, they were identical.
'Never seen twins before?' she asked of Stryke, who was staring intently.
'Rarely.'
'And how are they thought of in your land?'
'As lucky,' he answered truthfully.
'Then that's another difference. Here we're seen as bringers of ill fortune.'
'Let's hope it's to your enemies.'
Chillder allowed herself a fleeting smile. 'We know you're Stryke. But who…?' She waved a hand at the rest of the Wolverines.
'This is Haskeer, Coilla and Dallog,' he replied, 'my seconds-in-command.' He didn't think they were ready to accept the idea of Jup being an officer. Jabbing a thumb at the grunts, he added pointedly, 'The rest you'll get to know later, given a chance.'
'Perhaps,' she returned, her expression inscrutable.
Stryke scanned the watchful faces surrounding them. 'So this is the resistance?'
'Some of it.'
'And you lead them?'
'Along with my brother.'
'We're outsiders,' Coilla said. 'Tell us what happened here.'
'It must have been the same as happened to you,' Chillder replied. 'We had a good life for a long time. Maybe too good, like Brelan said. Then Peczan invaded.'
'Peczan?'
She eyed Coilla suspiciously. 'The human's empire.'
'Oh, right. We tend to think of them as just… filthy, brutal humans.' It sounded lame, even to her.
Chillder let it pass. 'When the invaders came, opposition was weak. They overran us between new moon and full.'
'Didn't anybody organise a proper defence?'
'Sylandya tried. Our Primary.' She saw Coilla's quizzical look. 'Acurial's leader. She was the only one in power who really strived to mount a defence.'
'What happened to her?'
Chillder paused before answering, 'No one really knows. But the upshot is that Taress is under the heel of foreign occupiers. We're a province of Peczan now. They reckon.' There was real venom in her voice. 'And life gets harsher by the day under Iron Hand.'
'Who?'
'His name's Kapple Hacher. Calls himself our governor.'
'And the humans use magic?'
'Too right! Don't say that's different in the north too?'
'Er… no, course not. Just wondered.'
'It works the same as in your parts, I guess. Magic's in the hands of an elite among the humans, the Order of the Helix. Most just call them the Order.'
Coilla nodded knowingly.
'Don't know how it was with you,' Chillder went on, 'but magic was the ploy they used to invade here in the south. Peczan said we had weapons of magical destruction and posed a threat to them. What a joke.'
'Did you?'
'I wish. If we did, and had the ability to use 'em, things might have been different.'
'We want to help fight the humans,' Stryke said.
'We always need recruits,' Brelan told him. 'But… We need to confer.' As he was turning away he noticed the tattoos on Jup's cheeks. 'What's that on his face?'
'I can speak for myself,' Jup informed him.
'So what are those markings?'
'A sign of enslavement.'
Chillder scrutinised the faces of several Wolverines and saw their fading scars. 'You all had them,' she said.
Stryke nodded. He assumed the twins took it for granted that humans were responsible.
Chillder and Brelan exchanged glances, then walked away. When they reached the farthest end of the cellar they were joined by several others. A hushed conversation ensued.
The Wolverines waited, several score pairs of distrustful eyes on them.
'That was some fine bullshit you fed them, Stryke,' Coilla whispered.
'I don't know. I'm not sure I'd have believed it.'
'The bit about coming from the north seemed to go down well.'
'Pure luck.'
'What do you think they'll do?' Haskeer asked.
Stryke shrugged. 'Could go either way.'
Wheam sidled up. 'Are we gonna fight 'em?'
'That's rich coming from you,' Haskeer sneered. 'I'd have thought you'd be right at home here with so many cowards around.'
Wheam was about to mouth a retort when Dallog motioned him to silence.
The twins were coming back, at the head of a small delegation.
'Well?' Stryke demanded.
'We said we could use recruits,' Brelan told him. 'But if you really want to be part of this, you'll have to prove yourselves.'
'You want to set a task, that's all right by us.'
'Let's call it a test. We lost some good orcs tonight helping you out. Nothing can be done about them. But seven of our group were captured, and they face certain death because of you.'
'I could argue with that.'
