Roderick and Gorlana Pt. 07

Roderick and Gorlana

Part 7. (Epilogue)

One Year Later,

...

The Rechlinger's teeth bit in and tasted human flesh, and sneered a smile of fevered excitement as he tore off a morsel of his prey. The soldier screamed and pulled back his arm, the chunk of tissue tearing off and dropping to spatter red across the snow-peppered dirt.

The warrior scrambled with his claws to lunge forward and bite again, but a spear was all his mouth tasted along with his own blood for the split-second before the spear tore through his spine, forcing his muzzle back behind the shield line again. The sweating determined human retracted the spear quickly to defend against the rest as his injured comrade was replaced in the tight line.

They retreated from the Rechlinger hoard as its flailing axes, swords, claws and teeth, struck true fear into the eyes of this human army.

They retreated, as they had been told. Slowly, maintaining their shield line, and stabbing incessantly, and effectively into the unrelenting mass. The orcs saw themselves gaining ground, and honour no doubt, with every pace of it, and laughed with a roaring thirst for more human blood. They attacked, with singular intent and singular focus.

A singular focus, with none of them bothering to consider their flank, or their rear. The controlled withdrawal stopped against the edge of the trees, the forest behind somewhat sparse by southern standards, but thick enough to cover for their purposes. As their heels reached the first tree trunks the signal was sent.

Two stone's throws to the left along it, their green orcish allies suddenly burst forth, some yelling out their battle cries despite their orders not to. As their attention turned to it though, perhaps it helped fewer of the Rechlingers to look to the right.

A quarter mile in that direction, the Andralian cavalry broke forth in perfect formation, riding somewhat slower and more carefully by their standards due to the slip of the snow, but faster than any orc or human could run. Even so, only the back and flank of the Rechlinger hoard bothered to notice in their attacking frenzy.

The shield-line, mostly Rampartian spears, but mixed between the three allied countries, dug in their heels, and wiped the fear, genuine or no, from their faces to yell out in camaraderie with their allies and hold against the attack truly now. Some Rechlinger's leaps were lucky enough to bring them past the deadly fence of spears and a handful of men were taken out by their flailing death throes as they were executed quickly by the surrounding men. They switched out shields and men from the front lines as they needed, with organized precision to maintain their strength against the mass of brown snarling flesh.

As some Rechlingers on the flanks turned to stand ready to face the Orthalians and Andralians approaching, the archers hidden in the trees behind stepped forward to volley their arrows, reaching the most distant of the brown enemy and breaking their ready stance before the cavalry and the others reached them.

The Orthalians met the Rechlingers in a locked clash from the side, in contrast to the cavalry brushing their attack along the side to gallop away again in a wide turn with some of the Rechlingers giving futile chase. The archers aimed to the right after the cavalry retreated, and away from the engaged Orthalians to disrupt the Rechlingers even more. The cavalry completed their circle and attacked in another deadly swath through the edge of the thinning Rechlinger army.

Even the ones at the front now realized their folly. Confusion and offence caused them to scatter their attack in almost all directions, most not even realizing where the other parts of the army had come from. The entire army seemed to flail in aimless frustration. The shield line was able to push forward now, slowly and steadily. The archers and reinforcements picked off any that tried to outflank it. But after only a few minutes they were not picking off warriors attacking from the sides but retreating to it.

After the cavalry completed another galloping assault, the bulk of the Rechlingers realized that their sure victory had turned into a sure defeat.

They ran. Their retreat scattered away from the Orthalian hoard and human shield line, towards the slowly circling cavalry who adjusted to stay on the flank of the fleeing mass and still take out many of them but allow their retreat nonetheless. The archers took out several more, and they gave chase to eliminate some of the slower Rechlingers, but some ultimately escaped, as expected. With only a fraction of what they had attacked with though, it was as utter a defeat as any army not willing to fight to the death could expect.

Roderick watched the retreat from his horse as they walked them passed the edge of the tree line amongst the archers. They had taken casualties enough, especially the Orthalians, given their choice of style of attack, but less than he might have expected.

"How far do you think they'll retreat?" he asked.

Iringoll grunted along with her horse, as she walked up along side them, determined to get used to riding but still uncomfortable with it, "Far enough," she said. "The nearest standing hold is a half day's march north of here. They'll go at least that far but it's poorly stocked. If they're smart they'll retreat further but it doesn't matter in the end, we've established the ground we intended to."

Roderick shook his head, "IF they're smart. You know I really thought this might be the one where they start to figure us out... but no, they still won't treat a battle as anything more than a shoving match."

The new Orthalian Queen snorted, "I'm loathe to stand up for these northern dogs but to be fair, they had little time to prepare and they're a mix of smaller clans now with likely no chief still among them. We've scattered their southernmost ranks into a husk of what they were. These were just the most stubborn that wouldn't retreat back north with the rest of them without a fight first."

"Will they persist, or do you think this will be enough?"

Iringoll shrugged, "Perhaps it depends what your wife can accomplish here," she said.

Roderick frowned and looked behind him, "Where is she? I thought sh-..." he followed Iringoll's gaze and squinted his eyes, kicking his horse to trot forward.

Iringoll gave a broken laugh as she jostled on her horse to catch up to him, "She respected your request to stay off the front lines, but you should know by now you won't keep her out of the action completely."

Roderick smirked and sighed as he slowed his horse, taking in the scene in front of him. A lone Rechlinger stood glancing around the circle of spears surrounding him, shifting his feet like a trapped animal and finally crouching in ready stillness, sneering but with an uncertain fear in his eyes.

Gorlana sauntered up to the edge of the spear circle. Roderick couldn't help admire the curve of her hips even in the thick armour she wore. He brought his horse to a stop within earshot and decided to trust her not to put herself in too much danger, so he simply watched and listened as she approached the brown orc.

"What is your name?" Gorlana asked as she stepped between two of the spear-men.

The Rechlinger spit, "I will not speak with the traitor Queen!"

Her face didn't react, but she replied, "It's so surprising to see Rechlingers suddenly have such reverence for our honour codes when it happens to suit them."

The wounded warrior simply snarled, "Betrayer."

Gorlana stood firm and said, "I DID betray your former high-chieftain. I will admit. Though is it not a common Rechlinger boast to say that you will make another's mate Rutt for you? Traulch's rival did just that, and out-competed him for my devotion."

The Rechlinger's eyes narrowed with an off-put frown, but he stayed silent.

"Still, I expected no less than this. I knew there was no way we could remain allies. Thus, we will cut all ties to each other. We wish to simply return you to the territories you had prior to the war. No more, and no less. The north edge of the Spearpine forests to the west, and the Greyback ridge to the east. Had your chieftains been less stubborn and agreed to meet with us, we might have been able to tell them this and avoid bloodshed, but now it is up to you to bring this message to them. Respect these boundaries, or suffer more."

The warrior, realizing his life would be spared, softened the severe hatred in his face just slightly, and spoke back, "Since we spread south, the ice-goblins have moved into our most northern holds, and fight to keep their new richer homes."

Gorlana scoffed at the description of the primitive icy settlements at the Rechlinger's northernmost treeless reaches and replied, "Then you best focus your efforts on them. We will spill no Rechlinger blood that does not cross these southern borders. Go. Tell your kin this, and be done with us."

The spear-circle opened away from her and the Rechlinger warrior hesitated only for a moment, with a reluctant stooping nod to the Queen of Rampartia, who stood tall and victorious watching him run off.

Roderick felt a tingling in his body as he proudly watched his beautiful green wife walk back to him and meet his eyes.

"The horns on his breastplate indicated a higher rank, so hopefully that one will get the message through to them. One of them has to eventually, right?" Gorlana said with a wry smirk.

Roderick chuckled, "In the end we'd be fools not to leave forces and sentries enough to reinforce the boundary, regardless of what they openly agree to, I suppose."

Iringoll nodded in agreement, "I expect the others will agree. Let's finish cleaning up and get the wounded back to the camp, and we'll discuss it there.

...

"Here here!" They all spoke together in a formal cheers.

They clinked their goblets together and all sipped the warm spiced wine, with the steam from the drink mixing with their condensing breaths to rise up to the ceiling of the command tent. Valessa, in her billowy but elegant fur coat had been the one to make the toast. Even though her demeanour was more tight and guarded than the others, her words seemed to have the most confidence and optimism about their victory. Perhaps it was simply because she knew the Rechlingers the least of all of them, to trust their adherence to rationality, and Iringoll had even stated as much outright. Valessa had received it with a smirk and a shrug. She and the new Orthalian Queen had gotten along surprisingly well on this month-long campaign which had been their first meeting in person since Gorlana's abdication.

Roderick wondered if Valessa's optimistic outlook was also to ensure she could justify leaving these northern outreaches to finally return to Andrapolis. Gorlana had said she sniffed discomfort enough on the Andralian Queen but whether it was from the weather, the food, their company or anything else was impossible to say. In the end he was still impressed and grateful Valessa had come herself to oversee the campaign, even if from a distance, and glad for the good political will that their meetings here continued to help solidify.

Gorlana cleared her throat, "So we are in agreement then, that we will each leave a quarter of our troops to fortify along this border, and a quarter to work on constructing the northern trade road?" she pointed to the map and their pencilled in lines indicating their plans for the east-west road connecting the northern portions of their three countries.

"With the rest heading home, yes," Valessa agreed. "And, I along with them." She paused and looked at their reactions which were only unsurprised nods.

She continued, "You all are of course free to do as you see best for your armies and your countries, but I just received word this morning of the death of my father, and I plan to hold his funeral as soon as I return."

"We're sorry to hear that Valessa," Roderick said softly.

"You have my sorrow as well," Iringoll intoned lowly.

Valessa only met Iringoll's eyes in a nod, but replied, "Thank you all, but I truly am relieved that his suffering is finally ended. He had been bed bound and unable to talk since long before I left. You are all of course invited to attend his funeral and my official coronation shortly after."

Roderick looked to Gorlana for a nod but he was confident of their answer, "We will absolutely pay our respects. It will not be too far out of the way on our return trip south."

Valessa replied, "I appreciate it nonetheless, I know how hard it must be to be away from your children."

"I too would be honoured to attend. I would not miss such for my most valuable new ally," Iringoll said with a proud nod.

Valessa nodded back with the slightest of smirks. Roderick took no offence, though he glanced at Gorlana's stoic face and wondered if he sensed a hint of annoyance.

"I'm glad to hear it," Valessa continued, "This will give us one more opportunity to finalize some of the trade practicalities with all three of us there, and better to do it where my stewards can verify numbers and have proper documentation arranged at the palace."

"And, I will finally get a chance to try some of this food and hear some of this music that Zurgana keeps raving about," Iringoll said with a chuckle and a wide smile.

"Of course," Valessa said with a coy smile, "Only the best for my most important allies."

Valessa looked around at them all, but seemed to keep her eyes on Roderick's face only for a second, with a subtle but longer glance at the side of his head before moving her gaze across the room. He had deliberately kept his smile tight-lipped for her sake, but even if she couldn't see his newly growing, un-filed fangs, the point of his unfolded ears was now obvious enough, worked back into their natural shape over the past year. She would have to get used to it, he thought. He certainly had.

They gave another cheers and slowly departed the tent, beginning to make their preparations to head south again.

...

In the pitch-dark of the moonless night, the winter wind intruded on spring's slow thaw in the northern forests where their armies camped. It iced over the few puddles in the grass and leaves between the trees while it whistled between the tents where most of the soldiers and warriors slept soundly. It was nearly enough to drown out the sound of a very different air, hot and humid, blowing forcefully between snarling fangs. Gusting across the sweat on embattled flesh, two powerful bodies locked and viciously struggling.

Roderick and Gorlana's soaked naked skin slid with no resistance against their toiling muscles. Only the thick pressure of her insides against his raging cock, and her strong wide hips resisted his mad upward driving thrusts trying to break through her into the heavens. Only the dense earth beneath his ass resisted the unrelenting mashing press of her body trying to crush him into the deepest hells below the earth.

Silent and wordless but for the gusts of their breath, the sweat started to squelch and squish in wet noises between them as it built, trickling down her flexing abs to mix among the hair of their loins flattened between the hard pressure of their hips. Her heavy jostling breasts flung droplets from her hard nipples and then poured their soft width across his pecs as she lowered down to grind her fangs against his and sloppily kiss him again.

She suddenly stopped and looked to the side with a frown. Roderick winced and dug his fingers into the sturdy meat of her buttocks, trying to thrust up against her as she pinned him down motionlessly, so close to his climax. He screwed his eyes shut and drooled through gritting teeth as his body whipped and arched under her green fleshy trap of agonizing edging pleasure.

He finally wheezed out a frustrated breath and looked up at her with a pleading whisper, "Come on! Please, I know you like your fun, making me-"

"Shhh! I heard something," she hissed back, then slowly moved the covers off of their upper bodies and sat up, shuddering from the sudden cold air, but perhaps the sense of sudden danger as well.

He opened his eyes wide in understanding and propped himself up on his shoulders, still panting in hair-raising desire within her. Gorlana reached out quickly to grab a long knife, and looked at the tent wall to her right with a squint of suspicion.

Roderick heard the sound as well now, a slight crack of a twig and a rustle. Very close. He looked around and wriggled to free a short-sword from its scabbard above them along the tent's edge.

"Shh," Gorlana's barely audible whisper scolded him for his louder movements and he stifled a grunt of suspenseful knife-edge pleasure as she twisted her torso still impaled on his twitching hard cock.

He moved the short-sword into a ready position and tried to shift again but she mashed her hips down on to him harder to stop him from moving and held a finger up in warning. He took the hint and let her take the lead, while he focused on maintaining his self control as his nearly-cumming cock spasmed in anticipation of its final trigger.

Something grazed the edge of the tent. Roderick flexed his body, either in preparation for a possible assassins blade to tear through the tent, or for his orgasm to tear through his body, or both. Gorlana's nose and eyes seemed to delve into the dark and then something poked through the gap of the tent near the dirt. She let out a scoff of disgust and then suddenly stabbed with her knife.

Roderick bugged his eyes out at the sound of strange animal-screeching, and at the sudden jolting of his lover's hips as she reached down to where she had impaled its muzzle into the dirt and then pulled the animal through the tent-gap. A scrambling blur of fur and claws was short-lived as Gorlana grunted and snapped its neck backwards with her strong yet deft hands spurting blood over her forearms.

He wasn't sure if it was the sight of his wife protecting their abode with her deadly bare-hands, the sudden movement of her body levering itself on him, or if it was simply too long for his cock to hold out, but at that moment he finally started cumming.

He contorted his body upwards, dropping the sword, flexing his abs, smacking his gasping teeth against her naked green bosom, and slapping his hands on to her wide thighs as he exploded inside her.

"Fuck!" he blurted out before he could stop himself. Gorlana's hands, soaked in a mixture of sweat and blood, grasped his biceps and slammed him down on to the dense sleeping mat and then she pressed her lips on to his mouth to muffle her own exclamation of pleasure. His cum spilling inside her always triggered her animalistic reaction and she snarled and whimpered in turn as she lost herself in the physical taste of his seed within her. Their bodies contorted in their mindless bliss as their fluids mixed and boiled within their tightly locked hips.

Finally, their panting mouths were able to come apart and their eyes open again to bring them back to sanity, just in time to answer a voice that had called out, cautiously.

"Everything okay over there?"

It was thankfully human, Roderick knew an orcish guard would have no doubt as to the smell of what they were doing in the tent, being that close, and be even more confused at the animal's shrieking death sound.

"Yes it's fine," Gorlana replied, and looked at the long-body of the animal intruder. "It was a pine-marten, sneaking into our tent."

"Oh. I see. You're not injured, my Queen?"

She scoffed, "No, just a scratch or two." then cleared her throat and said more formally, "You are dismissed."

"Thank you, soldier," Roderick added in a more friendly tone, "Stay sharp out there." Gorlana rolled her eyes, but giggled silently at him and wiggled her soaked and satisfied hips on him. He shrugged and whispered, "He's just doing his job." Then exhaled with a smile and gave in to one last slow final thrust in their aftershocks.