Ghruz woke up, buried half in the ground, unable to hear anything but the rain hitting mud. Carefully, they sat themselves up, grunting in pain. Around them littered corpses of orcs and humans, not a single living thing in sight.

They heaved themselves off the ground, pain shooting throughout their body, burns coiled over their torso. Ahead of them lay their ruined village, reduced to embers hissing in the downpour. They trudged forward, alone in a corpse-ridden battlefield, heading straight for the destroyed home.

Ghruz blinked several times, the intricately carved ceiling detailing some elven hero staring back at them. Their hands were gripping the silken sheets tight enough to rip them, before they realised they were in their assigned room in the elven palace. The orc sat up with a grunt, their rib still broken. Ghruz got up with a sigh, and started to wander the dark halls of the palace.

As their footsteps echoed along the gilded halls, Ghruz felt for the first time in days that they were alone, and for once, they didn’t want to be. Ghruz heard a door open and shut in the distance, the sound of heels clicking on marble coming their way. A small orb of light came around the corner followed by a familiar face.

Silviana yelped in fright, dropping the clipboard in her hand, before offering a relaxed smile.

“S-sorry Ghruz, I didn’t expect anyone to be up at this hour.”

Ghruz nodded sleepily.

“Yeah, I couldn’t sleep. Thought I’d walk around to think,” they said, scratching the back of their head.

Silviana gave a confused look, her brow furled.

“You don’t look well, are you okay?” Concern written all over her face. Ghruz paused for a moment, shifting their gaze to the side.

“Y-yeah. Just some dreams. Nothing to worry about.”

Silviana nodded, unconvinced.

“Okay, well if you need anything, ask for it. You are part of the palace court now.”

Ghruz stifled a giggle and crouched down to pick up the scattered documents.

“Yeah sure. Do you need help with anything?” they asked. Silviana nodded enthusiastically.

“Yes actually! I think it would be productive to have you meet the Governess.” She paused. “Well, other than that, do you think you could arrange the schedule of the queen’s trip and the palace’s affairs in her absence?” She spoke with a jesting tone. Ghruz gave her a serious look, nodded.

“Yes, I was born for it.”

The pair stared at each other for a moment before grinning.

“Perhaps you can do such things if I fall ill. In the meantime, shall we?” Silviana flicked a lock of silver hair out bright green eyes with a finger. Ghruz realised they had stared a moment too long, and cleared their throat.

“Uh, yeah. Let’s go see her.” Ghruz handed over the documents, and followed Silviana out of the palace. The sky glowed a soft pink, the sun peeking over the horizon. Below them, Ghruz could see people were already leaving their homes, moving to and fro to their jobs.

They walked in silence for a while, before the orc spoke up. “Why do you need a governor if you have a queen?” They spoke with curiosity.

Silviana continued walking forward, tilting their head back to look at Ghruz.

“Govern-ess. Men aren’t fit for ruling positions outside of the military, but they answer to the queen, or failing that, the Governess. The governess is an elected position, chosen by the people to lead while the queen is absent.”

Ghruz looked up at the sky, a pensive look on their face.

“I’ve heard those words before. What's a man? Is it like a woman? Is it a job?”

Silviana laughed out loud, before realising that the orc was completely serious.

“Wait, do you not have names for men and women in orc society?” Silviana stopped to look Ghruz dead in the eye.

“Uh, no, we have orcs.” They spoke as if it were a blatant fact.

“So who, umm, how would I ask this...” Silviana frowned so intensely, Ghruz was worried steam would start pouring from their ears. “Okay, who gives birth to children?”

The orc sighed, feeling like they had this conversation before.

“Well, orcs usually pick another orc, if they think they would be an appropriate progenitor, and the two duel to see who gets the honour of birthing the child.”

Silviana’s eyes went wide, beginning to get flustered.

“Wait, so when we had a duel….” She quivered, almost dropping her papers once more. The orc patted her shoulder and laughed.

“No, orcs duel over a lot of things: grudges, greetings, and yes, potential mates. We fought ‘cause of a grudge, ‘cause you were being a dumbass.” The orc’s lips spread into a wide grin. “Well, unless you were testing me as a potential mate…”

Silviana became more flustered, her mouth hanging agape. Ghruz giggled and shook their head.

“Let’s get going before you turn into a tomato.”

Silviana cleared her throat, and kept her mouth shut the rest of the way.

Ghruz stood in the corner while Silviana discussed matters that went way over their head, secretly intimidated by the governess. She was a short and stout woman, her hair tied up in a tight bun, with a small pair of glasses resting on her pointed nose. She spoke softly, but almost every sentence felt like a command.

After a while, Silviana and the Governess nodded to each other, and bowed. The stringent woman looked over to Ghruz, and walked over to the intimidated orc. She stood before Ghruz, and grabbed their hand, as if to inspect it. Ghruz could see her forearms were covered in a rough bark, raising more questions.

“Ghruz, I’ve heard much about you. I hope your stay hasn’t been too unpleasant?” She spoke, no trace of emotion in her voice. Ghruz hesitated for a moment, before clasping her wrist in a handshake.

“It’s not too bad. Don’t think many folks round here like me much,” they murmured.

“I’ve dealt with orcs before. Don’t worry, as long as the queen and I are here, you’ll be safe.” She let go of Ghruz’s wrist and returned to her desk.

“I have too much work to do. Leave now, Silviana, I’ll see you when you get back from your trip.” The governess nodded before immersing herself in the scattered papers on her desk.

Ghruz was completely silent until they left the building, exhaling audibly. “They are terrifying!”

Silviana cracked into laughter. “The giant orc, scared of a little old lady?” She mocked, punching the orc in the arm. Ghruz offered a look of mock fight.

“Shh! If she hears you say that, she might get you too!” Ghruz said as they struggled to contain a smile. Silviana snorted, making both of them laugh harder, to the point where the odd passerby would throw them an odd look.

Silviana straightened up and pulled hair over her pointed ear.

“Okay, well I need to make more trips around the city, but first I need to eat something. Would you like to join me?”

As if on cue, Ghruz’s stomach rumbled audibly, and they gave Silviana a hopeless look.

“Yeah. Thanks. Let’s go.”