[ WP ] On the day of the King 's tournament , an Orc shows up wanting to enter the joust .

My name is Avin Actrost, First Class Wizard of the Eastern Forest, and Bearer of the Oak Leaf of Bravery. 
 
 I am here to honor the memory of my fondest companion and most loyal friend, long since passed in a battle for peace. 
 
 Rouk. An Orc. 
 
 A simple name, yes. 
 
 But he was always a person of few words, simple pleasures. I believe he would prefer me to leave off his titles and medals, half of which I could hardly pronounce anyway. He wanted people to know him, not what heroics he has accomplished. 
 
 Yet, I would like to retell his final tale, if not for him, then for me. 
 
 -- -- -- 
 
 Rouk and I had met from a simple bodyguard job. Our client wished both for magical and physical support, and I remember being slightly annoyed that he didn ’ t think my prowess enough. But I am glad for his choice today, or I never would have met my friend. 
 
 At first, I regarded him with condescending, thinking him simple and dumb, all brawn and no brains. He didn ’ t mention it to me, and I can only assume he had become used to it. I was tempted to try and read his mind, to see just what lurked between his tiny ears, but magic is largely ineffectual against orcs and trolls, so I didn ’ t deem it worth the drain on my energy. 
 
 So we left each other alone, for the most part. He only talked to answer questions, or request another bowl of stew at dinner. I found much better conversation with the duke that had hired us, talking about many of the political controversies that were rising up in the day. The king was getting old, and it sounded like several of the princes were becoming rather agitated. 
 
 Rouk never participated, of course. He would stay up later than any of the rest of us, finishing the pot of stew, but I was never interested in remaining awake with him. Most of the rest of the party would go to bed early, as the sun set, and we would rise the next morning to find him snoring under the open air. 
 
 That changed, on the day we were attacked.I was taking a nap in my tent, as the afternoon wore on. We had marched all morning, and set up camp in a clearing. It was a lazy feeling day, and no one was ready for the war cries that burst from the underbrush. No one except Rouk. 
 
 By the time I had found my staff and rushed outside, the enemy was already upon us. A dozen goblins were screeching and rummaging through tents, and a massive troll bellowed at me as I emerged. But the worst part was the two orcs in the background, who oversaw the goblins as they rushed about, remarkably well organized. 
 
 Rouk was already fighting the troll, his glaive, a large blade mounted on the end of a hardwood staff, spinning like a whirlwind. The troll held a club that was larger than me, but any time he attempted to use it, he got a blow to the gut, or had to dodge from a swing of the blade. He roared in frustration, but was quickly cut off by a blow of the staff to his temple. The massive creature stumbled for a moment, then fell to the ground, unconscious. 
 
 I heard a shriek, and glanced over to see that our client was hiding behind a log, hands over his head. That was fine, as he ’ d hired us to be the brave ones. 
 
 It was at this moment that I realized the goblins were still ransacking the camp. I searched through my bag until I found a single golden coin, then whispered a quick spell before tossing it out into the ground. 
 
 Every goblin ’ s head jerked around like they were on ropes, and they all rushed the enchanted gold. I stepped away as they piled over it, each one fighting to get their hands on it. When they stopped squirming, I knew it was because they ’ d all found that their fingers were glued to the bit of metal. 
 
 But even with the goblins and the troll out of the way, there were still two orcs left. A little bit desperate, a little bit as an experiment, I aimed my staff at one of them and let loose with a blast of pure energy. 
 
 It hit the orc in the chest, leaving a small burn mark on his clothes, and he stumbled backwards a step. But instead of falling, he straightened up and glared at me. As I said, magic doesn ’ t work all that well against orcs or trolls. 
 
 The other orc glanced at me and Rouk, and seemed to realize which one of us was the real threat. He turned away from me, facing Rouk, and lifted his own club. “ Brother! Join us! We can have the money, together! ” 
 
 My heart sank in my chest as I remembered something about orc culture. Hurting other orcs was forbidden, as a loyalty to themselves above all else. Even if Rouk didn ’ t abandon us and join them, I couldn ’ t defend the duke without his help. As much as I hated to admit it, my magic wouldn ’ t help in this situation. 
 
 So imagine my surprise with Rouk totally ignored their words and toppled the pair with a series of quick, accurate blows. 
 
 -- - 
 
 A few hours later, after I contacted the nearest knights to come pick up the would-be-bandits, we were all gathered around the fire for dinner again. The duke had decided that our victory against the bandits was worth a big celebration dinner, so the fire was extra large, and the pot extra full, along with some savory breads and meats to eat as well. 
 
 I ’ d been confused about what exactly had happened back there with the other orcs. Had I simply been wrong about the culture and laws? I doubted that, though it may have simply been the fact that I tended to act even more arrogant back then. 
 
 And, being the young and curious wizard I was, I figured the best way to find out was to ask. 
 
 Near the end of the meal, when some people were just starting to excuse themselves to retire, I abandoned my spot and made my way around the fire to sit next to Rouk. He didn ’ t seem to notice, still digging into his large bowl of stew, probably the fifth or sixth one of the night. 
 
 I cleared my throat, and he glanced down at me. Slurping up another spoonful, he swallowed, then spoke in a rough voice. “ Avin. ” It wasn ’ t a question, more of a statement, but I was just surprised he had remembered my name. 
 
 I asked my question. “ So, back there with the other orcs, Rouk. Why did you attack them? ” 
 
 He gave me a look that could only be described as bewilderment. “ They were bad orc. I told Duke I would keep him safe. ” 
 
 “ But, ” I continued, confident that I ’ d caught him in a big blunder. “ Isn ’ t it totally forbidden to hurt other orc? I thought your king outlawed it years and years ago, during that big war against the elves or whatnot? ” 
 
 He stared at me for a second, and I could almost see him trying to think through it. But when he opened his mouth, he was confident. “ Is true. Orc not supposed to hurt other Orc. But bad orc… they hurt many orc. ” 
 
 I frowned. “ As in, they robbed their own kind? I suppose I can see why you would try and stop that. But they were robbing the duke, not other orcs. ” 
 
 Rouk shook his head vehemently. “ No. Bad orc rob humans, and that hurts other orc. If all humans see are bad orc, they think all orc are bad orc, and they hurt good orc as well. ” He stood, probably to grab another bowl of soup. “ Better to hurt one orc, than let one orc hurt many. ” With that, he lumbered back toward the pot. 
 
 As for me, I was genuinely dumbfounded. That was a complicated, deep thought process! And he didn ’ t struggle through, or have it explained to him. He *knew* that was true. Maybe there was more to Rouk than I gave him credit for. 
 
 He plopped down next to me again, stew slopping in his bowl, and immedialty started eating. I watched him for a moment. Around us, almost everyone else had gone to bed, and the fire was dying down. The sky was red, slowly turning a dark blue. 
 
 “ So what do you think about the current state of affairs in the kingdom? ” I asked. I half wanted to see if he even understood what I meant, but the other half was actually curious to hear what he thought. 
 
 He seemed surprised that I was still talking to him. But he put his spoon down for a moment, and stared at the sky. A sprinkling of stars had appeared above us, and the light from the sun was almost gone. 
 
 “ I think human king is being foolish, allowing his sons to fight and argue about who will be next king. When he dies, the princes will fight until many, many die. It would be better to give it to who he trusts most. ” He stared into his bowl for a moment, pondering that, then resumed spooning chunks of meat and vegetables into his maw. 
 
 So he did know. And he didn ’ t like it when people died, it sounded like. I ’ d have to think about that. 
 
 So, I stood with a flourish, and offered my hand. “ Avin Actrost, Second Class Wizard of the Eastern Forest. ( I was only Second Class, back then ) It was a pleasure to fight by your side today. ” 
 
 Tentatively, he took my hand. His was large and rough, but still gentle. When he realized that I meant it, a broad grin split across his face, and he shook my whole arm. “ Rouk. Good Meeting, Avin. ” 
 
 With that, I went to bed, and left the orc to stare at the sky full of stars. 
 
 After the job was over and the duke delivered, we both went back to our agency. But from then on, I requested to work with Rouk, and after almost two years of jobs together, we became official partners in our line of work. We never failed a single job.
