“I am Bron, son of Ragnulf, a nobleman’s son and former tournament fighter.”

“Quite a resume, not just an improbably large hunter after all. At your size, you’re an acolyte of some kind, aren’t you?”

“The god of Light.”

“Expensive. Your father Ragnulf must have spent some substantial amount of gold to get you admitted to the temple. And it must have been at a very young age.”

“How do you know that?” Rhun asked.

“The younger the acolyte, the stronger the effects. But it can have a powerful effect on the subject’s mind. A young child has not matured yet. The influence of the gods will change who they would have become. But more importantly, after spending so much money on you, why would your father just let you leave?” 

“He didn’t, I joined Hugh’s party on the way out of town. I had told my father I was leaving. I told him I would not change my mind.”

”But he had many ways to bring you back. Besides, why would you leave a comfortable, safe life. A life of luxury and anything you could ever want?”

“As you say, the influence of the gods at a young age changes a person. The God of Light is not a god of excess. He demands personal skill and encourages a spartan existence. The trappings of the nobility always seemed frivolous to me. I joined the tournaments as soon as I was old enough. It was the only time I enjoyed myself. When I came of age, I told my father that I was leaving,” Bron explained.

“Why then?”

“I was getting married off. Once married and with children, they would trap me in that life. I didn’t want it.”

”Where are Hugh and Lovell now?” she asked. You say you joined their party.” It was a question, but from her voice, she expected the answer he was about to give. 

“The crypt was an ambush. The bandits had made an arrangement with a Pyromancer. Hugh fell in the fight against her. Lovell fell in a fight with Taino, the thieves’ leader.”

Her stern expression softened, and she lowered her head at the news. “Taino… I am familiar with him. He was the sort to be clever enough to get a fire witch on his side. Hugh and Lovell’s death is a great loss on top of all we’ve suffered today. So how did you escape this fight?”

“I killed the fire witch with Hugh’s crossbow,” Rhun said, entering the conversation at last. “I killed Taino by wresting control of the enchanted weapon from him.”

“I’m impressed. And what did you accomplish, big man?”

“I killed three during the fight. Taino took my hand with that enchanted poleaxe of his.” Bron lifted his left arm to show her. “He left a pair of his men to finish me. It was then that he killed Lovell and fought Rhun. The fight was a chaotic mess, and I nearly bled out.”

”Alright. Now you miss orc, from his story you are a valiant one. Who are you and why are you so determined to live near human lands? It’s a request I’ve never heard from an orc, if you’d believe it.”

“I believe it. I was raised near human lands. My parents were driven away from the rest of the orc lands. They grew old and died as orcs tend to do, leaving me alone. We visited the city often enough that I was familiar with the Adventurer’s Guild. I joined Hugh’s party and was present for the battle at the old Crypt.”

“I have another question, why do you speak so good?” she asked bluntly.

“I speak well because we were so close to human lands that my parents had a human teach me properly when I was young.” Rhun couldn’t resist a tiny dig at the mayor’s grammar.

Joveta frowned, biting her lip, “A little unusual but alright. But that doesn’t answer the most glaring hole in your history. You and your parents, living alone, and they didn’t teach you how to hunt? Impossible.”

Bron couldn’t help but give Rhunal a worried glance. Her fake history was falling apart.

“Well, of course they taught me. I never took to it well.”

“You figured that you’d brush up on it after they inevitably died of old age? Anyway, it doesn’t matter what stories you tell me. This town was just attacked by monsters, aided by a group of your kind. While we’ve traded with your kind for long enough that we don’t consider you enemies anymore, you still aren’t human. I’ve got too much to deal with right now to add some kind of she-orc refugee to the mix. Considering your demeanor, I will grant you a favor I don’t offer the rest of your kind. You may trade and visit with no guards to watch over you. I assume your pal Bron will be with you. But come nightfall, you must make other plans. Gods know there are a hundred ruined farmsteads you could fix up south of here.”

Rhunal stared at the floor. “So you are saying no.”

“Yes. That is what I am saying. Why would you want to live among humans at all? That throws me off the most. Couldn’t you seek your own people?”

Rhunal shook her head. “I can’t. I’ve never known them.”

“And you trust us more? Amazing.”

“Humans are peaceful, even the ones that mock you or shout, do it from a distance.”

“Maybe if there is only one of them. Still, you are pretty small for your kind. I could understand your hesitation to return. Though there must be some chief out there who wants a nice little wife.”

Rhun scowled. “I’m nobody’s wife. And I’m not that little.” 

“What about our request to join the Adventurer’s Guild?” Bron asked. 

“I can’t answer that. Not until the Guildmaster returns,” Joveta said.

“Did he not disappear in the middle of a melee? Is he even alive?” Bron asked.

“Any other man would be dead after what Kyvril pulled off today. He found his wife’s body, blown clear of his house. She had been standing against the wall that got obliterated. Some saw that party of orcs leave through the breach as the blemmyae were already pouring through. Kyvril suicidally charged through them. He didn’t even stop to fight them, just ran through their swinging blades like he was some kind of ghost.” She shook her head slowly as she recounted the story, as if she didn’t believe it herself.

“Is he a mage?” Rhun asked.

Joveta’s narrowed her eyes. “What would an orc know of magic?”

Rhunal caught her mistake and bit her lip, “I knew one.”

“No, he has no magical ability. His skill is so practiced that he doesn’t make a mistake. Every step is perfect, every movement. Even in the middle of a raging fit, he saw right through their attacks and stepped past them. But his children were already gone. Dead or taken, it doesn’t matter,” Joveta said grimly.

“Why not?” Bron asked.

The mayor grimaced. “They are man-eaters. Even if the children were alive, they wouldn’t last more than a day. And Kyvril knew this too. He became deranged. I feared he would get himself and others near him killed. The blemmyae are meant to be fought at a distance, but he closed on them like a…” She looked to Rhun and paused.

“Like an orc in a Blood Rage,” Rhunal finished.

”Yeah, like a berserker. Anyone else would have been killed instantly, but Kyvril is the best warrior in the frontier. I feared he would drag the others into a close quarters fight against the blemmyae. He charged out the same breach the blemmyae were using to enter. I owe him though. His wild distraction gave me time to organize the defenders. And despite the circumstances, I believe he will return. When he does, he will decide on your admission to the Guild.” 

“Now is when you need new friends more than ever,” Bron argued.

“I said no. Our last new friends were orcish too. And shortly after they left, we got a hole blown in the wall. This town is going to hunker down. But feel free to trade. I’ll put in a good word for you with the merchants. I owe you two that much for helping our blacksmiths out. Now get out of my house. It’s been a very long morning.”