Among the Vay Pt. 01

As they entered the gathering space she regarded the group of villagers with bright yellow eyes the color of candle flame. Contempt was obvious on her face and in her stance. She gestured to the orcs and they herded the captured women forward into a line. She waited impatiently as they jostled and settled, clearly wishing she could be somewhere else. The woman looked up and down the line with her piercing yellow eyes. Her gaze reminded Abby of her sister. She had that same intensity and focus.

The woman walked down the line, looking over each village women in turn. When her eyes settled on Abby she felt a chill wash over her body. She couldn't tell whether it was just fear of those eyes or if the woman was using some sort of magic. When the woman had done a complete circuit she walked back up until she reached the three of them. The woman nodded to Faye, who was then pushed forward by one of the big orcs. Maya was given the same treatment. Then she turned to the biggest of the orcs who had captured them, who had been acting as the leader of the pack.

"Put those two in one of the empty vestel tents," She said. Her voice was brisk and businesslike, "Put the rest in one of the longhouses with the others."

With that she started walking away. An orc grabbed each of the women and began to herd them along.

"Hey!" said Maya

The woman stopped and turned to regard Maya. The orc woman looked faintly annoyed.

The orc holding Maya growled at her and started to pull her away, but Maya actually growled back. The orc stopped pulling her, a baffled look forming on his face.

Maya yanked her arm out of the orc's hand and took a step towards the woman. The orc made to reach for her but the orc woman raised her hand and it stepped back. The orc woman looked mildly amused now.

Maya gestured at Abby, "That's my sister and you're not separating us. You're not!"

The woman's eyes settled on Abby, who shrank away from her gaze. After a moment, the woman strode up to her and grabbed her chin between her fingers, tilting her head up to study her face. Abby gasped, not just at the sudden rough handling, but at the calluses on the woman's fingers. They matched the ones on her own hand. Whatever else this woman was, she was a writer too.

She was aware that every single person in the clearing, orc and human, was staring at her, but all she could see was the orc woman's eyes filling her vision. The reminded her of the few times she had seen an owl, staring at her deep in the night. She wondered if this was how a mouse felt. Maya took another step forward and this time the orc behind her did put a hand on her shoulder.

After a moment of examining her face the orc woman gave a grunt and stepped away from her, "She's pretty enough, I suppose. But she's too small. She's not strong enough."

Abby shrank down. She had always been slight, a little wisp compared to her sisters' larger than life presence and lush figure. It had hounded her for her whole life, making it hard to be noticed, to find a man, forcing her to live in her sister's house.

Abby looked the woman in the eye and didn't flinch. She tried to take some of her sister's courage as her own, "I'm stronger than I look. I can do whatever I need to."

The woman looked at her then grabbed her again. This time she ran her hands over her body. Abby had never been touched so intimately by anyone and the sudden intrusion made her flinch, shame and fear rising in her chest. Maya opened her mouth angrily, but one of the orcs growled at her and the time she swallowed her words. The orc womans hands paused at her belly, and then traced the crease of her thighs. Abby shivered and flushed, deeply disturbed by the casual invasion of her most personal space. The woman's hands moved across her hips and she made a small approving noise. Abby blushed even deeper. She had always been skinny, but she knew her hips were surprisingly wide and full for her small frame. The one time she had caught a man looking at her had been when she wore a dress that was tight across the hips. She had always been too embarrassed to wear it again.

The womans hands fell and she stepped back, "Very well, she can go with you."

Maya nodded seriously, "Thank you."

The woman looked at Maya with a smirk, "I'm curious to see whether you'll be thankful later."

...

Faye looked around the tent the orcs he'd deposited them in. It was just as surprising within as it was without. The floor was covered with tough, well woven carpets. There were pillows scattered everywhere and a pile of neatly folded blankets in the corner, enough to make a little nest for each of them. There was a low table meant to be knelt at and small braziers that gave off a steady orange light with little heat. Everything was decorated with those elaborate, whirling designs. They were stitched into the pillows and blankets with painstaking care and painted into the table and sealed with lacquer so it shone beautifully in the faint orange light.

"This isn't so bad," said Faye.

Maya glared at her, "How can you say that?"

"I meant the tent. Obviously he rest of this is bad."

"So as long as we get a nice bed you won't mind getting eaten later?" Asked Maya.

Faye groaned inwardly. Maya could start a fight about the taste of oatmeal.

"I'm just trying to make the best of things," replied Faye. Trying to sound as tired as possible in hopes Maya would leave her alone.

Maya opened her mouth angrily but Abby interrupted her, "I don't think they're going to eat us."

They both turned to Abby.

"Faye's right," Continued Abby, "They wouldn't give us a tent this nice if they were going to hurt us. They must want us for something else."

They were all quiet as they considered the implications of that, "We need to get out of here," said Maya.

But that proved easier said than done. The sides of the tent were made of cured leather and staked securely to the ground. The room was well appointed but it didn't have anything sharp they could use to cut a way out. There were two orcs outside the entrance to the tent, and no way to sneak past them. After watching Maya pace the walls of the tent for the third time looking for an opening, Faye started making a little nest out of the pillows.

"What are you doing?" Asked Maya

"Trying to get some sleep." Said Faye.

"Now?"

Faye grabbed some of the blankets, using the motion to hide an irritated sigh. Maya was good at getting things done and motivating the people around her but she got annoying when she was dealing with a problem with no solution.

"Look," Said Faye, "I'm exhausted. Even if we could escape I'd collapse after a mile. You can keep scrabbling at the walls, but I'm going to get some shut eye."

"Going to accept your fate meekly?"

Faye didn't respond. She never saw the point in starting an argument. She laid back on the pillows and closed her eyes. She could feel the heat of Maya's gaze on her, but it didn't stop her from dozing off almost instantly.

...

"Wake up."

Faye stirred, grumbled, and rolled over.

"Wake up."

The was a hand shaking her insistently. She turned to give whoever was bothering her a piece of her mind when she saw that it was the orc woman. Her eyes were even more intense up close. The events of the past day came crashing down on her and she scrambled away from her with a squeak.

The women didn't react to Faye's terror at all. She kept her yellow eyed gaze steady on her, "Come with me."

"Wh-where?"

The woman waved her hand impatiently. Her eyes were hard. Faye had the feeling if she didn't move soon the woman would drag her by the hair, "Just get up. You won't be harmed."

"What are you going to do with her?" Demanded Maya, who was standing behind the orc woman with her arms folded.

The woman turned around to glare at Maya, who glared right back.

"You'll all find out soon enough," Said the orc woman, "I ought to take you instead. Maybe it would calm you down."

Maya opened her mouth angrily. Faye really didn't want Maya to say what she was thinking.

"Maya its fine," Said Faye.

Maya turned to her, shocked, "What? But..."

"You need to stay with Abby. It's like Abby said. There's no reason for them to treat us this nicely if they were just going to hurt us."

"Finally some sense from you," Said the orc woman.

Maya ignored the woman and gave Faye a slow nod, "Alright. Just... be careful."

"Of course. I'm always careful," Said Faye.

Maya gave her a skeptical look that she ignored. TO their right Abby actually gave a small laugh.

The orc woman stood and lead her out of the tent. Faye looked back in more time at Abby and Maya's worried faces. She really hoped she'd see them again.

She left the tent and followed the woman through the camp. Two of the big orcs walked behind them, preventing any escape. Not that she would have tried, she wasn't a fast runner. It was evening, and the sun was starting to set. As she passed among the tents she saw big orcs moving around various tasks, mostly fetching and carrying, digging latrines and tightening tent ropes. She also saw more orc women sitting outside the smaller tents, using the last of the dying light to complete chores people did at home. Some were weaving or spinning, She passed a woman honing a blade while one of the big orcs hammered out a new one next to her. One woman sang softly to herself as she kneaded bread, and Faye felt a momentary surge of jealousy.

They passed one woman, little more than a girl really, shelling peas and looking miserable. Faye laughed at the sight. She always had that exact same expression when she had to shell peas. The orc woman looked up at the sound and Faye gave her a sympathetic look. The orc girl sighed and looked grateful for the sympathy. Faye walked on, disturbed by the exchange.

Then they arrived at another tent. It was larger than any of the other women's tents they had passed with the most elaborate murals she had seen so far. Two of the big ape like orcs were standing guard in full well wrought armor. They moved aside for the orc woman and she parted the tent flap for Faye.

"Inside," She said.

Faye bit her lip. She wasn't one for confrontation and had accepted everything that had happened so far meekly. Now that she stood at this threshold she wondered if death was the better option.

"What's in there?" She asked Faye. She heard her voice quavering and thought it was completely justified.

"Just go in and you'll find out," Said the orc woman.

Faye decided she didn't really have a choice one way or the other, and resolved to meet her fate bravely, whatever it might be. Straightening her shoulders, she steeled herself and walked into the tent.

"Hello," said a deep, calm voice.

She looked to its source and found a man sitting at one of those low tables. Like the women he was proportioned just like a human man but was a light green with yellow eyes. Faye gave him a closer look and realized he was proportioned like a very handsome man. He was like a statue of a god cut out of marble. Green marble. Not one of the warrior gods though, one of the more slender ones that always seemed to be sneaking into places or carrying messages. Or causing people to fall in love. He had a strong, sharp jaw, thick, tumbled black hair that would be fun to run her hands through, and high, cut cheekbones. His loose, open robe showed off a slim frame with the muscles of someone used to walking outdoors, but not carrying heavy loads. There was a smell too. It was sort of musky with this strange nutty undertone. Faye breathed it in and got a little lightheaded. She tried to ignore the knot forming in her stomach

"Oh! um, hello..." She stammered. Faye groaned inwardly. She sounded like she was meeting him at the spring dance and she had a crush. She tried to think of what Maya would do.

"Would you like to sit down? I have some dinner here. It's really quite good."

Faye's stomach gave a rumble at the mention of food, "I ... alright."

Faye slowly made her way forward, still not really sure what was going on. The orc man looked up at her steadily, with a small smile. The table was only a little over a foothigh and instead of chairs, there were pillows on the ground. She reached the table, still not quite believing this was happening, and sank to her knees on a pillow across from him.

As she settled the smell of the food hit her. It was pork chops. The spice was different then than when Darren had made it at home. There was a heat to it she had never smelled before, but it still smelled as good as any Darren had ever made. The smell made her aware of the emptiness in her stomach. She had the hunger that comes from a long day of walking with only the occasional bite of trail rations for sustenance. The hollow hunger feeling roiled up, moving taking in that painful, painful edge that was impossible to ignore.

"My name is Glenn," Said the orc man, "I welcome you to my tent."

Faye blinked. An orc named glenn was seemed odd to say the least, but the situation was already so surreal she had a hard time focusing on it. It was just another drop in the ocean of crazy she was floating in.

"I'm Faye. T-thank you for having me as your guest." She realized she wasn't really a guest but she felt like she should try to match his polite formality.

"Faye, It's very nice to meet you," said Glenn. He rolled her name on his tongue like she was part of the meal. Maybe she was but the satisfaction he infused her name gave her a little thrill. He pushed a plate over to her with an encouraging smile.

The plate was the finest porcelain and fit for a lord's manor. He even had silverware made from real silver. Looking at the plate she realized it was from a lord's manor. It was decorated with the crest of a human noble house rather than the designs she had seen on the tents. Faye briefly wondered what had become of the original owner.

She pulled the plate to her and then watched as he cut a piece of the pork from his own plate with knife a fork. His hands moved deftly and precisely and brought a dainty piece to his mouth. He chewed slowly and carefully before swallowing.

He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, clearly transported, "You simply must try this."

She hesitated a second more and then cut her own piece. The meat was perfect, juicy and flavorful. The spice on it burned her tongue but it also played off the taste of the meat, making a delicious interplay between the flavors.

Despite herself, she exclaimed out loud, "Oh my god this is incredible."

"I know!" said Glenn. His calm veneer disappeared. Replaced by an almost boyish enthusiasm, "I acquired the cook when I took Hallow. She may be the greatest prize of my campaign so far."

There was an inner part of Faye that was eyeing her like she was insane. She was chatting about the food like they were on a date at some fancy restaurant and ignoring the fact he was casually discussing a city that used to be one of the jewels of the neighboring kingdom before he had sacked it. But the surface version of her was too caught up by his careful politeness, his dazzling good looks, and his heady scent.

He took another bite, chewing slowly and gave a little sigh.

"Do you cook?" he asked. He had regained the calm poise he had shown when she first entered the tent. She hoped she could bring back out his enthusiasm.

"A little," She replied, "but I mostly bake. I'm a baker."

He leaned forward with interest, "Really? That's wonderful! We don't have a baker yet. I wasn't aware it was a separate Craft from cook."

She straightened, excited at his interest in what she did for a living, "Oh! Yes it is. You need a special oven and and it can be time intensive, so..." she found herself describing her profession. He listened with obvious interest. He seemed particularly fascinated by the idea of leavened bread. Orcs apparently didn't know about yeast and he promised to get some for her as soon as possible.

After a while they moved on from baking and she began describing her whole life. She had always been a chatterbox. She saw it as part of being a baker. Swapping little pieces of gossip and snippets of people's lives as they came for their daily bread was an important part of the job. Glenn remained quiet and attentive the whole time. The rapt look on his face made her excited to tell him everything. She ended up telling him about her town, about Maya and Abby. She moved on to her dreams, her training as a pastry chef, moving to the city, marrying Darren...

She trailed off, realizing that future was all gone now. The whole life she had planned out was gone because of the man in front of her.

He must have read her feelings on her face because he gave her a reassuring smile, "I'd love for you to bake pastries for me."

Hope kindled in her stomach. Excitement at his smile, "R-Really?"

His smile widened and his eyes lit again, "Oh absolutely! We've found so many wonderful things on this campaign. Human inventions we had no idea about! I am absolutely fascinated by sandwiches."

Faye burst into laughter.

"No, really! Meat and bread at the same time? Brilliant! And it's so easy to eat on the move. That's very important when you're in the field. I've been having the girls make sandwiches for the orcs since we found out about them. They're named after one of your nobles, did you know that? A great general. My new goal is to have a dish named after me."

Faye laughed harder. That boyish enthusiasm was back, and Faye loved to see it.

"And the girls have started styling their hair" Continued Glenn, "We picked up this very talented hairstylist when we marched through Thornpeak and the girls have been experimenting. Well some of them anyway. It's amazing how even hair can become an art."

"Oh we didn't actually have a stylist in my town. It was too small. I'd love to get my hair styled," said Faye."

"I'd love you to as well. You have beautiful hair," Said Glenn.

He reached out and brushed her hair away from her head, a finger trailing across her cheek. It left a line of tickling fire lapping at her face. She closed her eyes and straightened, feeling the fabric of her dress sliding across her skin. Her clothes suddenly felt like a terrible burden. She sucked in a deep breath, trying to get a hold of herself, but that musky scent flooded her nostrils and made her head feel light. She rubbed her thighs together. It felt wet down there.

Glenn continued as if he hadn't noticed her reaction to his touch, "And these strawberry tarts of yours sound like another wonderful new thing for us to try. I need you to make something else for me first. But in a month or two, once you're a full fledged member of the sept, you can take up your craft once again."

Faye tried to gather her scattered thoughts but Glenn's low voice was making it hard. He had leaned towards her as he spoke and it made her aware of how close they were, how intimate.

She opened her eyes and he was right in front of her, eyes staring into hers. She felt a lurch in her stomach at his nearness. She wet her lips.

"What do I have to make first?" she asked.

He leaned over and kissed her.

Her entire body stiffened, more in surprise than outrage. His lips pressed gently on hers, and after a moment she softened Her lips and body pressed into his. His arms moved around her back, hands running through the hair he had called beautiful. After another moment her lips started to move against his, pressing and being pressed in turn in the age old dance of lover's mouths. His tongue slid across her lips, then pressed gently between them, asking her to let him in. She hesitated briefly, lips pressing together. His hands tightened on her back, beseeching rather than insisting, and she relented. She opened her mouth to him and his tongue slid between her lips, meeting with hers. She made a small noise into his open mouth that was muffled with their lips locked together. The touch of his tongue on hers sent fire and sparks racing up her tongue, down her throat, across her chest. The sparks played with her nipples, then down across her belly, to that secret place between her legs. His kisses traveled all the way down her body and settled there, pulsing gently.