Bulak

I sat in my chambers, sharpening my battle axe and preparing for the inevitable conversation I was to have with my father. “I know the last time we let an outsider into the city he brought an army of elves with superior magic down on it. But I can assure you that these two will not escape. I shall make sure we know about anything they attempt to build. I have already taken precautions against them escaping in the night. The guards are granted to use force in their regard.” Suddenly a knock at my door brought me out of my stupor. “Enter.” I barked. One of the messengers entered my chambers. His name was Yukha if I remember correctly.

He bowed as he relayed his message. “Elder Mother Garahk requests your presence in the Great Hall,” Yukha stated.

I let out a low sigh as I set my sharpening stone down. “Guess I am to have this conversation sooner than I thought.” “Very well,” I said. “I shall be there shortly.” Yukha nodded and scurried out of the room and down the hall. I rose to my feet, strapping the axe to my back. I stretched, musing over what the Garahk would say. I let out another sigh as I resigned myself to the development and departed for the Great Hall. I traveled down the hall towards the stairs that would take me to the Great Hall. My footsteps echoed as I walked. The large animal trophies that decorated the wall gave me a blank expression as I passed. I finally reached the bottom of the stairs and stepped out into the Great Hall. There were a few orcs still eating. The Great Hall was a one-part throne room, one-part communal eating area, and one-part public council chamber. Father’s Throne was to my left, a small monument made of wood and stone with a series of ivory tusks emerging from the sides and pointing upwards. Mother’s throne stood beside it, a softer version of my father’s. Her crown sat idly on its seat, unworn for almost five decades. I almost couldn’t bear to look at it. “It will not be like last time,” I assured myself. I finally saw our Elder Mother, sitting nearby. She was examining a handful of small ivory runestones. “You requested my presence?” I asked her as I approached.

Garahk did not glance up, merely stopped. She hesitated for a moment before speaking calmly. “I have only on one other occasion drawn four runestones using my Destiny spell.” I looked down and saw that she was indeed holding runestones. “When that other outsider made himself at home in Snakhagr.” She suddenly placed the stones on the table.

I looked at the symbols adorning each of them ‘ᚾ ᛣ ᛪ ᛞ’; Control, Death, Spirit, and Fire. “What significance can you draw from these?” I asked her, wary of what she might say. Garahk continued to look at the runes. “If you drew control… then it is not likely this one will escape.”

Garahk let out a huff of air. “You need to study your runes more.” She said, picking up the control rune. “This is freedom, not control.” I examined the stone. Indeed it was Freedom, oft mistaken for control by many. “And it is the order that troubles me.” She continued.

I looked at her curiously. “In what order were they?” I asked, almost afraid of what it was.

Garahk seemed to ponder what she was about to say. “Death, Spirit, Fire, then Freedom.” She finally replied. “With this spell, it is rare to have death, not at the end, but even rarer to have it first.” I stood in silence as I processed what she said for a minute. Then Garahk spoke again. “Do you remember your runes?” She asked me.

I looked at her curiously. “ ‘ᚡ ᛉ ᛏ’; Transform, Life, and Begin,” I replied. No orc forgets the runes that were drawn for them. They were a prophecy for our future, a tapestry of fate that was set before us.

Garahk nodded as she continued. “And do you remember what I drew when He came?” She asked me.

I thought for a moment. “ ‘ᚾ ᚱ ᚸ ᛣ‘; Freedom, Person, The Unknown, and Death, in that order,” I replied. Of course I remembered, how could I not? That was her death. I glanced back at the thrones then gazed back at Garahk. “Why do you bring it up?” I asked her.

Garahk lifted a small sack onto the table. It rattled as she set it down. “I have sixty runestones that belong in that bag,” Garahk said, pointing. “And the two times I used the spell on an outsider I draw these two runestones both times, Freedom and Death, in reverse order.” I looked at the sack. “The order of them is what interests me.” She said, pointing at the stones. “Perhaps this is a sign from the gods. While He sowed only chaos and destruction… perhaps this one will bring us the opposite. . . . Then again, perhaps that is wishful thinking” I considered Garahk’s words for a minute. I certainly hoped this one was different from Him. Garahk suddenly spoke again. “But back to my initial reason for coming here.” She said, turning to me for the first time. “Why did you bring, not one, but two outsiders into the city?” She asked, sounding agitated.

I gestured at her calmingly as I nodded. “I assure you,” I began, snapping back to the issue at hand. “It won’t be like last time.”

Garahk lowered her head into her hand. “How can you be sure?” She asked me. “And how will you handle Chief Dubak? Do you even know what he was asking me for? I am not even certain that he could be trusted with such a substance.” She was starting to sound angry. A few orcs glanced up from their plates.

I motioned for her to remain calm. “Trust me, Elder Mother, the outsiders will be very uncomfortable if they ever think about escaping,” I assured her.

Dexter

I was sitting comfortably in the bathhouse. Relaxing in the water with my eyes closed, shoulders just barely peating out from the top of the water, internally planning potential methods of escape. “The car’s got a quarter tank left. At most, it’ll get us fifty miles. If Gashur is that big that won’t even get us to the border, even if I had a method of getting it and us beyond the walls. Maybe some other form of a vehicle? It would need to be faster than a horse, plus completely gasless. Plus, after that, I’d need to find a way to get back to earth. That’s not something I can easily remedy.” tap tap My internal monologue was suddenly interrupted by a tap on my shoulder. I looked up. One of the entertainment had walked over, carrying a bowl of pleasant-smelling oil. She was bare-chested, like the others, and wearing a loincloth that left the outside of her legs exposed. I felt a twinge of arousal as I saw her exposed form. She was holding a sponge, this one stuck to a stick. Her breasts swayed slightly as she moved. She seemed to jump back as she saw my eyes. She stood still, likely confused at my retinal hues. “Can I help you?” I asked her.

She collected herself, then spoke. “Would you like me to help you scrub off?” She asked, offering the sponge. I thought for a moment, then nodded. I closed my eyes and went back to my internal dilemma as she dipped the sponge in oil and started running the sponge over me. “What about a bike? I’ve got Urog, she could probably make the parts I need.” I heard a splash and a far-off chuckle. I opened my eyes and looked around, I couldn’t see that far without my glasses, but I could tell the few orcs in the bathhouse found something absolutely hilarious. It wasn’t just one group either. Quite a few of them seemed to chuckle to themselves. “That’s . . . odd. What’s different that would cause that?” I started going through the list. “Outsider in the bath: No reaction. New orc?” I looked around, no one looked to have joined. “Not that either. So that leaves…” I looked up at the orc currently scrubbing my shoulders, her face didn’t betray any emotion as she dipped the sponge in the oil. I looked at all her features, her face didn’t appear misshapen or deformed. Her breasts didn’t appear abnormal. They were large enough to rest in my hand. I looked around at the other orcs, they too had female orcs scrubbing them. “So it’s not that either.” I looked at the other orcs being scrubbed down, trying to spot the differences. “One of these things is not like the others. One of these things just doesn’t… the sponge.” I looked at the sponge currently rubbing my left shoulder. “Why is it on a stick?” I started going through the various reasons a sponge would be on a stick. Suddenly an article I’d read a lifetime ago passed through my mind. “Romans often used sponges on sticks as toilet paper.” My fist clenched as I realized the implications of her actions. “Don’t cause a scene, you’ll just antagonize the entire bathhouse.” I calmed myself… and formed a plan.

I looked up at her. She smiled softly. “If you don’t mind,” I began, gently. “Could you get a sponge that hasn’t been used to wipe an orc’s ass?”

She faltered at my words, realizing I found out. “I am certain I do not know what you speak of.” She said quickly, starting to stand. I grabbed her arm, stopping her from fleeing. “Damn, they’re strong.” I pulled myself up slightly so that I could whisper in her ear.

“It would be a shame if Bulak were to find out about this,” I said softly. The orc stopped trying to flee. I let her go, dropping back into the water. She stared at me with wide eyes “I heard she gave the Varbuk brothers twenty runs through the gauntlet… for throwing a bed… and that was without me raising a fuss.” I said as I turned back to relaxing in the pool of water. “I can only imagine what she’d do if I actually made a big deal about it.” I paused, letting my words sink in. I then turned back, she was still kneeling behind me. “My people would look upon your actions and be gravely insulted.” I leaned in slightly and whispered. “And I’m really good at remembering faces.” I turned back to the pool and left her at that. I looked around the room, none of the orcs seemed to hear my warning. I couldn’t imagine they would be able to. The bathhouse was quite spacious, the ceiling towered over the pool. The water was housed in a recess in the floor. It was about fifty feet by a hundred feet, about six feet deep, and equipped with a long seat-like protrusion on the walls. There was a gentle current pushing me to the left, towards the rear of the building. There was a pedestal in the far corner of the room. Some more entertainers were dancing sensually to a lute. “I wonder what entertainment is like on the other side.” I thought. “Probably a bunch of ripped orcs wearing little more than a washcloth on their junk.”

I finally heard a pap pap pap of wet feet leaving me to my thoughts. I don’t like having to use threats, but if it’s how I get treated with some decency then so be it. I closed my eyes again. “Back to the issue at hand. If I build a bike I’ll need a way to get it out of the city, plus I’ll need to prioritize what I can carry… But what about after? What if I get us out of here just to be captured by another tribe? We’ll just have to figure out a safe route… definitely back west. Hopefully, I can find some answers soon.”

This time, I heard her approach. pap pap pap I opened my eyes as she knelt behind me again. A new sponge started massaging my shoulder. I glanced over, this time the sponge was joined by her hand. She scrubbed firmly. “Maybe we could find out more about Him.” I looked up, her face was calm and hardened, but I could feel her apprehension. “Must have been a while since this bathhouse has hosted an outsider,” I remarked. She said nothing. “I’m sure you were much friendlier to Him than what I’ve experienced.”

She seemed to grit her teeth at that statement. “He merely confirmed what the other tribes knew about outsiders.” She said coldly. “So there are others?”

I shrugged as I let her continue. “It still suggests you treated him better than you treated me.” I countered. She remained silent. I looked her up and down. Under normal circumstances, I’d be turned on by a woman exposing her chest to me, but I was too pissed by her actions to get in that mindset. So instead I focused on her face. She seemed young, her face youthful. Her bright green eyes were focused on her task. She was bald save for a small patch of long hair pulled back into a ponytail that fell down her back. “It might be time to take a gentler approach. How do you mean? You saw how Amelia handled the orcs today. Being passive-aggressive isn’t going to get you anywhere. Try being a bit more sympathetic.” I let out a sigh. I’d reached the point of ‘Fuck it’ and tried a different approach. “I don’t blame you.” I suddenly said, turning back to the pool. She stopped briefly, seeming shocked at my words. “Whatever his actions were left a lasting impression on the city. I could only imagine what they could be.”

She didn’t talk for a few minutes. “He escaped and brought about the death of our chieftess.” She whispered angrily.

I glanced up at her, shocked. “I knew it was bad but DAMN.” I let out a calming sigh as I turned back to the pool. “If it’s any consolation I’d be pretty pissed too,” I sighed. She slowed down her scrubbing. “I mean, if a foreigner coming into my home promising positive change, but then leaves suddenly and in the process kills a powerful figure, I’d sure as hell be wary of any other foreigners promising the same thing.” I pondered my own words for a minute. “So why wasn’t Bulak?” I suddenly realized she’d stopped scrubbing. I looked back.

Her teeth were gritted. “How can you know what it was like?” She hissed.

I thought about her question for a second. “I can’t,” I replied simply. She blinked in surprise at my response. I took advantage of her hesitation and continued. “But I can know how I’d react in a similar situation.”

She started to pack up angrily. This time I didn’t stop her. “Your reaction is not an orc’s reaction.” She said before leaving. I watched her leave my range of sight. “That could have played out better.” I thought as I prepared to head back to the barn.

When I got back Amelia was eating more of that grey paste. Hair was pulled back in a ponytail and tied with a rubber band. “Lunchtime.” She said as she gestured at another bowl sitting on one of the tables. I decided to eat it. “I doubt they’d give us anything else… even if we asked.” “So,” Amelia suddenly said. “Should we get back to the to-do list? Or should we talk about this mysterious outsider?”

I pondered her question. “We don’t have enough to go on,” I admitted. “I did find out his actions killed their chieftess.”

Amelia went wide-eyed. “Really?” She gasped.

I nodded, then continued. “Yeah, a brutal way to make an impression. Beyond that, it’s just speculation.”

Amelia thought for a moment then nodded. “It happened around the time Shurkul completed his apprenticeship.”

I looked over at her. “Does that have a number translation?” I asked. She shook her head. “Then it’s a little more to go on, but not enough to make any assumptions,” I remarked, taking another bite. “So, there’s only the to-do list, and sorting the contents of these boxes,” I said, gesturing with my spoon.

Amelia took one last bite and stood up, wiping her hands. “Might as well get started.” I nodded, finished up my food and followed her to one of the tables.

We spent the day sorting one of the boxes of books and going through the books we thought could hold valuable information. Most of the books were fiction so we put them back in the box and placed it in the loft. By the time we’d gone through the box, both of us were getting stir crazy. Amelia sighed heavily as she closed the physics textbook she’d just gone through. “I need a distraction.” She said.

I looked over at her, then checked my watch, 5:45. “What do you suggest?” I asked her.

She looked over at the boxes still on the tables. “Do you have anything that I can use to occupy my hands?” She asks, motioning with her fingers

I thought for a moment then got up and started going through the boxes. I suddenly pulled out a multi-colored puzzle cube and held it up. “Would this work?”

Amelia smiled as she looked at the puzzle. “That is exactly what I need.” She said, holding up her hand. I tossed the puzzle at her, she caught it and began turning the side to match up the colors. “Who stores this unsolved?” She asked as she went through her method of solving it.

I let out a small laugh as I walked over to her and sat down. “Someone that doesn’t know how to solve it.”

She looked at me mockingly with an open mouth. “You, of all people, I’d assume, could solve this.” She teased as her turns got increasingly swift.

I shrugged as I looked at the cube in her hand. “Well, I never learned.” I watched the random placement of colors become neat and organized. I felt a twinge of annoyance at never learning how to complete it. “But you should teach me when we have some free time.”

“Of which you shall have none.” A voice suddenly boomed from the doorway. Amelia and I turned to the source. It was Bulak, holding a tray of bowls. She wasn’t wearing the leather armor we’d met her in. Rather, she was wearing the typical shawl on top of a smaller shirt like cloth. It was embroidered with a strange diamond pattern and just barely peeked out from the top of her shawl. “You shall not be given the luxury of receiving free time.” She seemed to be agitated at something.

I looked at her exasperated. “That’s a little unreasonable,” I remarked as Bulak set the tray down. “We’d get extremely stressed out and irrational if we weren’t allowed to unwind.”

Bulak looked me in the eye. “You can unwind in here,” Bulak countered, gesturing around the barn. “I shall not have you roaming the city after dark.”

I let out an annoyed sigh and stood as I crossed my arms. “I wasn’t suggesting otherwise.”

Bulak gritted her teeth. “In any case, I want a report on your progress.”

I looked at Amelia then back at Bulak, shrugging. “Not much happened. Today, we went out and found everyone we’ll need to build the car. Then we got ourselves cleaned up in the bathhouse. Then we came back here to sort and prioritize the boxes and baggage that were in the car.” I gestured at the hatchback. “So far we’ve gone through one box of books. Nothing overly helpful to our current task.”

Bulak took in what I said for a moment. “And what of your progress with creating this car?” Bulak asked angrily.

I stared at her, annoyed. “Beyond finding your blacksmith and telling him what I’ll need from him? Nothing. Unless Garahk has the fluid I asked her about.”

Bulak pointed at me as I mentioned the fluid. “That is another matter I wish to discuss. What exactly do you plan to do with such a liquid?” Bulak asked heatedly.

I stared at her. “As fuel… for the engine.” I replied, slowly. “I was trying to describe gas… asking her was just a hail Mary attempt at seeing if I had to invent that too.” Bulak seemed unconvinced. “If you have something like that nails a good ten years off my current timeline.”

Bulak let out a sigh then finally shook her head. “We do not have such a liquid.”

I clenched my fist, even more annoyed. “Then why did you ask about it?” I asked angrily. Amelia placed her hand on my side, trying to calm me a bit.

Bulak gritted her teeth and replied firmly. “Because I will not allow outsiders access to anything explosive.”

I sighed, attempting to calm my swelling temper. “Look,” I began. “I know He probably did some questionable things before disappearing and killing your mom.” Amelia slapped my arm. I turned, distracted enough for Bulak to step forward and slap my face. Amelia covered her mouth in shock. “FUCK that hurt.” My glass became skewed on my head.

Bulak let out an angry bellow heard my ear. “Do not DARE talk about my MOTHER,” Bulak screamed. I reset my glasses, turning back to Bulak. “No outsider has the right to talk about my mother.” Tears were starting to well up in her eyes. “And you will stick to your task lest I make you run the gauntlet.” I didn’t know what the gauntlet was, but I didn’t want to run whatever it was. I kept quiet as she stormed out of the barn, closing the door with a loud boom. I let the sound fade into echo before slowly turning to Amelia.

She had her head in her hands. “You really need to learn how to talk to them.” She said, looking up.

I rubbed where Bulak had slapped me. It stung quite a bit. “What I said worked pretty well in the bathhouse.” I countered. “I got some information.”

Amelia jabbed a thumb at herself. “And I got the same amount of information by being nice.”

I held up two fingers in defiance. “You got one piece, I got two.”

Amelia let out an aggravated sigh. “Okay, firstly, this isn’t a competition. Secondly, anyone can tell He escaped.” Amelia countered. I let out an annoyed growl. I knew she was right, but at the same time, I hated being wrong. “Given that a lot of the old rules go out the window here perhaps we should be more open to being wrong. Your bullheadedness did get you bitch-slapped by an orc. I could only imagine what Shurkul would do if you spoke like that to him, Bulak or no Bulak.”

I let out a sigh as I quelled my rising temper. “Fine,” I finally said. “Let’s just get back to the task of building another car. If Bulak wants a report every night, I doubt we’d get away with not doing anything.” Amelia stared at me for a moment then nodded, seeming satisfied. “First priority, steel.”

I woke up the next morning and headed down to Shurkul’s forge. Amelia stayed behind to try and sort through some of the books. As I approached the door I could hear shouts. I entered the forge to what I can only describe as a bear fight. Urog and Shurkul were having a very loud shouting match.

“YOU WOULDN’T EVEN HAVE YOUR TECHNIQUES IF IT WASN’T FOR ME!” Urog shouted at Shurkul.

“I WILL NOT HAVE YOU BARGING IN HERE AND TRY TO CLAIM MY WORK!” Shurkul shouted back.

I stared at the two of them in surprise as I watched them shout over one another. “Can someone explain to me what’s happening?” Urog and Shurkul ignored me. I motioned over one of the nearby apprentices. “Fill me in here, what happened?” I asked him.

He scratched his chan as he turned to Urog and Shurkul. They were still yelling at each other. “Well, Madam Urog came into the forge and claimed you asked her to be here. When Shurkul asked her to leave she started going off about their past.” Shurkul and Urog’s shouting suddenly caused the apprentice to stop.

“WHO HELPED YOU WHEN YOU WERE TOO BUSY SARDING WHORES TO MAKE YOUR METALS PROPERLY?” Urog screamed.

“YOU WERE THE WHORE I WAS SARDING!” Shurkul retaliated.

I let out an annoyed sigh. “Okay, time to end this.” I took in a deep breath before shouting something of my own. “SHURKUL, UROG, THAT’S ENOUGH!!” The entire workshop turned to me. I let out an annoyed sigh as I rubbed my head and remembered my own promise. I quickly switched to a more calming voice. “You two are supposed to be professionals. Can we move past what happened before and focus on now?” Shurkul seemed to be about to say something, but I interpreted. “Before you ask, Yes I did ask her to be here. I need more than the material to make it work.” Urog seemed to smile at my words. “And You,” I said, pointing at Urog. I gripped my fingers as I muffled the boiling rage inside me. “Can you at least try and be civilized when talking to him? He’s not going to change his attitude if you don’t.” Urog pursed her lips, annoyed at bein chastised over her outburst. I let out a sigh as I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling the rage boil down as the atmosphere from their screams finally vacated the forge. I gestured the two of them together annoyedly. “Now shake hands and make up.” I ordered. “You’re going to be seeing a lot of each other from now on.” Shurkul and Urog glared at each other angrily. The silence in the forge was palpable, punctuated by my heel tapping on the floor. Urog was the first to hold out her hand, staring apprehensively at Shurkul. After a moment, Shurkul followed her lead. They shook briefly then let go. I let out a calming sigh as I saw the matter finally resolved itself. “Okay,” I said, rubbing my hands together. “Down to business.”

I spent three hours explaining what steel was and how, at least I thought how, it was made. Shurkul and his apprentices informed me of what they know about iron and how to get it into a moldable shape. We found out the melting was the issue, Shurkul could get his forge hot enough to manipulate iron, but not enough to melt it. I sat on one of the empty tables and rubbed my head. “So, the first step in making steel is making… I think we call it a blast furnace… to melt the iron with some coal so that the carbon and iron bond to make steel.” I was trying desperately to remember the nitty-gritty details of the metal. “From there Shurkul can manipulate it to whatever we need. But it’s going to be a bit… a lot… of trial and error, because the added carbon causes the steel to behave differently based on how fast you reheat and cool it. I think letting it cool slowly causes it to be tough but brittle, and flash cooling it in some water will cause it to be softer but more flexible. We’ll need a place to build the damn thing.”

Shurkul nodded. “We have a courtyard out back that we can use to build this furnace.” He said. “If we need to get it hot enough to melt the metal it would be unwise to do it in a building.”

I nodded. “And we’ll need to make some tools for Urog,” I said motioning at Urog. “She’s in charge of making the interlocking gears that I’ll need for my system.” I turned to her. “I’ll bring down an example of the gears I’ll need. I’d try and draw a schematic, but my artistic skills are atrocious.”

Urog seemed wary of my words. “How different could your gears be?” She asked.

I thought back to the one time I saw the inside of a differential. “Well, I need gears whose teeth are curved in, I need gears whose teeth are curved, and I need gears that have multiple layers and ratios of teeth.” Urog seemed to take in my words for a minute, confused at my description. I gestured dismissively. “I’ll bring you an example tomorrow. For now, just trust me it’s not going to be the basic teeth that you’re used to.” Urog hesitated for another moment before nodding reluctantly. I let out a sigh as I rubbed my head, considering all the things I had to do to get the steel into production. “Okay, all that we can do right now is make the furnace.” I glanced at my watch. “I say we meet back here tomorrow morning. Shurkul can you get us whatever we need for the furnace?” Shurkul nodded. I turned to Urog “And Urog, bring any tools you typically use to make your gears. When we finally get the steel made I want you to be able to make the gears as soon as possible.” Urog nodded. “Alright,” I said, stepping off the table and stretching. “I’ll see everyone tomorrow.” The orcs nodded and went back to their daily tasks. I left the forge.

When I got back to the barn Amelia was with Shel. Amelia was holding the puzzle I gave her yesterday, explaining how it worked and the objective of the puzzle. Shel was looking at it with rapt attention. “Hi, Shel,” I said enthusiastically as I closed the door behind me.

Her face lit up as she turned and saw me. “Dexter!” She cried. She jumped down from her seat and ran over to give my leg a hug. “Did you see the square Amelia was showing me? She asked, looking up.

I let out a laugh as I limped over to Amelia, fighting against the extra weight Shel was adding to my leg. “I did. Was she explaining how to solve it?” I asked as I finally reached a chair next to Amelia.

Shel shook her head. “She was just getting to that when you showed up,” Shel said as she let go, allowing me to sit.

I grinned as I adjusted myself and lifted her onto my lap. “Well, this is a perfect opportunity for both of us to learn,” I remarked as I looked up at Amelia and grinned at her expectantly. Shel did the same. Amelia smiled softly as she started to explain how to solve it. We must have spent two hours learning the various moves and what each of them did. I had to watch Amelia do it a few times, but Shel got them almost right away. “Extremely smart.” I thought as Shel winded through solving the cube. She finished the top face before her memory faltered and she had to go back to square one. “Better progress that what I’m doing.” I’d only managed to solve the middle layer. It wasn’t until later in the day that Shel finally seemed to tire. Amelia noticed and decided it was time for her to go home.

Shel nodded sleepily as she looked at the half-solved cube in her hand. “Can you make another one of these?” She asked, holding up the Rubik’s cube

I considered for a minute then sadly shook my head. “Not using that material,” I admitted. Shel looked disappointed at my pessimistic response. I thought for another minute then suddenly nodded. “But I can try to get Urog to help me make one out of metal.” Shel seemed to light up at that notion. “But you’ll have to be patient. It’s going to take quite a bit to replicate the puzzle.” Shel thought for a minute then nodded, handing the cube back to Amelia and running off. The pulled the door closed behind her with a soft boom.

Amelia smiled as she looked down and finished solving the puzzle. “You were right about the children,” Amelia admitted as she set the cube down. “Even if we finally get out of here it’ll be good to change just one mind.”

I nodded. “But if we teach her all this stuff, I can only imagine how much change she’ll bring to the world.”

Amelia nodded as she watched me stand and stretch. “I just hope we can eventually leave this place. I still hate being held captive here.”

I let out a sigh as I pondered her words. “Me too, Amelia. Me too.” I stood and stretched as I moved to start taking apart the rear differential.

I’d just removed the central component from the differential when Bulak came in with more food and for her nightly report. As I laid the system of gears down on a spare pan to drip away, I told her everything I did; how I’d informed Shurkul and Urog about the furnace we needed, how I was just removing an essential gear set so that I could take it to Urog tomorrow, and how I’d be spending tomorrow building the blast furnace we’d need for the steel. I neglected to inform her about our young visitor. “No point in giving her a reason to set any guards around the barn.” I thought. Bulak seemed satisfied with my report and left me and Amelia to our meal. It let out a sigh as I shoveled a bit of the grey paste into my mouth. “Tomorrow is another day.” I voiced encouragingly.

Amelia nodded as she had some of her own food. “Hopefully it’s better than today.” She countered. I nodded as we slowly worked our way through our dinner.

The next day passed like the previous. I went down to the forge, carrying the differential and the cube puzzle for Urog. Shurkul had the brick and mortar, and we started to plan how we were going to build it. As it turned out they already had the concept of a blast furnace, but they used it to melt and make iron outside the mine, keeping the coal and iron separate. We spent most of the day digging and laying the foundation in the courtyard Shurkul had mentioned yesterday. When we finished Shurkul started working on what he called the chute. Meanwhile, Urog examined the differential and learned what I meant when I described the gears. By the time she’d finished learning how the gears interlocked and worked together to drive the axels, the other orcs were starting to tire from hammering their metal. I looked at them curiously. “Do these guys just have no stamina?” Shurkul decided the work we’d done was enough for today. I, in turn, decided to see if Urog could make a puzzle cube for Shel. I handed it to her and explained the objective of the item. She examined the puzzle as I explained how the faces were designed to rotate. “Why do you want me to make another?” Urog asked.

I rubbed the back of my head as I quickly came up with an excuse. “Amelia and I want to see who can solve it the fastest.” I lied, not wanting her to get suspicious about our visitor.

Urog seemed to consider what I said for a moment then nodded. “I should have something that works within a month,” Urog replied as she handed the puzzle back.

I nodded reassuringly as I clutched the Rubik's cube. “We’re ok with waiting. Go ahead and keep the differential. You might want to get some practice with brass before you start using steel to make the gears.”

Urog looked at the assembly and nodded. “I shall see you tomorrow then.” She said, lifting the assembly and heading for the door. I nodded as I waved goodbye. Shurkul noticed the large piece of metal Urog was carrying and quickly opened the door for Urog as she left. She seemed to smile at his new friendliness. After that, I headed back to the barn to start sorting the books. Shel dropped shortly after I got there, and I taught her some more about the car. Amelia left the two of us to get herself cleaned up again. Shel listened to me speak with rapt attention. I wouldn’t have been surprised if she would eventually be able to describe how to build one of these herself. Shel eventually noticed a book resting the table nearby and decided to open it.

She squealed as she opened the book to an entry on the monarch butterfly. “It’s so pretty!” She exclaimed. She turned the page and found more entries on butterflies. I grinned to myself as I saw her face light up from each new entry. “We only ever get one going through Snakhagr.” She said as she continued to search through the book. “I didn’t know they came in so many colors.” She said gleefully as she flipped through the pages. “This one has your colors!” She said, pointing at a blue and brown butterfly.

I laughed at her remark and nodded as I pointed at the book. “That’s not even all of them,” I said as she smiled at the patterns on the wings. “That’s only a handful of species.”

She looked at me in awe. “There are more?” She asked in amazement.

I nodded enthusiastically. “That one just covers the major families. I’m pretty sure there are others it doesn’t list.” Shel gasped in amazement. “You can borrow that if you want,” I said, pointing at the book.

She smiled even wider. “Really?” She asked, smiling wide. Her tusks were barely bigger than the teeth around her. Her teeth also had a goofy slightly haphazard arrangement that reminded me of those old child actors.

I had to laugh, she looked so innocent and sweet. “Sure,” I giggled. “Here let me take a picture of you.” I moved to grab my phone, which was sitting idly in the car.

Shel looked at me curiously as I reached into my car. “What is a picture?” She asked as I walked back, turning my phone on, 33%.

I smiled as I opened my camera. “This is,” I grinned as I turned the phone and positioned myself to have my head next to hers.

Her eyes went wide as she saw her own face on the screen. “It’s like a mirror.” She remarked.

I nodded as I began to grin. “Except it can do this… smile.” I bared my teeth in a wide smile. She mimicked me as best she could with her tusks. She still looked adorable. I took the picture. The screen froze and saved the image in my gallery. I then brought the phone back and showed her the image now saved in my phone.

Her eyes continued to twinkle in amazement. “Woah… How does it do that?” She asked. I explained how there was a program on the phone that could take what it saw and save instances of it. Shel eventually figured out she could look at the other images by swiping the screen. “Who are these people?” She asked, pointing.

I felt a twinge of sadness as I saw Samantha and Damian in one of the pictures. “They’re my friends and family,” I replied, gazing at the pictures. I watched as Shel continued to swipe through the photos. It was my family singing Karaoke at a reunion. My friends and I on a night out. Shel didn’t ask what they were doing. She was too busy going through the gallery. I’m kind of glad about that. I don’t know if I could have kept smiling having to be reminded that they might as well be dead and gone. Finally, she got tired enough for me to convince her to go home, taking the book with her. Once she left I sat in my car gazing at my phone. The memories it held seemed to taunt me, reminding me of a time when I didn’t have to worry about going home. I pulled myself out of my self-loathing stupor when Amelia finally returned from her bath. I shut my phone off and gathered my stuff for my own trip to the bathhouse.

The next three days passed pretty much like this. I’d head down to the barn, make some progress on the blast furnace, and talk with Urog about her progress with the gears. Then I’d head back to the barn to sort the boxes of books. Shel would sometimes drop by and I’d teach her more about the car. I tried to keep my mind off of what my current state meant, but I found myself musing on the memories I had in my phone on multiple occasions.

We’d finished building the blast furnace the day before when I finally caught a break. I arrived back at the barn after test-firing the furnace down at the forge. We wanted to make sure we had built it right and it wasn’t going to melt the first time we tried to make steel. I began sorting through the last box of books when I picked up the book I probably should have been looking for in the first place. It was an encyclopedia, but its full title was The Encyclopedia of Metallurgy and Materials. Vol. 1 I swore loudly as I remember I’d packed the second volume of the book. I immediately went searching for it. Amelia looked up from the textbook she was skimming the piles. “What happened?” She asked. I showed her the second volume as I pulled it out of the stack of books. “What’s that?” She asked.

I let out an annoyed sigh as I moved over to an open table. “The solution to all our problems,” I said as I opened the first volume, searching for the page that I knew held the information I needed. “Voila,” I said, stopping and pointing at the entry on steel and steel milling. “This book has single-handedly cut down on years of research and work.” I began searching the few binders I’d brought for some paper. I pulled a sheet out and started copying down the relevant information onto the page. The entry was everything you could ever want to know about steel, how to work it, what conditions cause what, but most importantly how it was made on an industrial level. “In the last Fucking box too,” I muttered as I finished writing. I grabbed the page and moved to head back to the forge to inform Shurkul about this development. I took one step out of the sliding door when a pair of spears was lowered in front of my path, blocking my movement. There were now two guards on either side of the main door. I looked at one of the orcs currently blocking my exit from the building. “Is there a problem?” I asked him.

The orc turned to me. “We are under orders by Lady Bulak to prevent any further movement to and from this building.” He said in his gruff voice.

I looked at him curiously. “And why is that?” I asked.

The orc stared ahead. “We have also been ordered to not inform you of the situation.” The orc replied.

I quelled my swelling anger as I held up the page. “Order shmorders I have to get this information down to the forge,” I said, waving the piece of paper in his direction.

The orc ignored the page and continued to stare ahead. “No one is permitted to leave.” The orc said, shoving me back into the barn and closing the door. I stood there in shock as I took in their audacity. I thought for a minute then made my way to the door leading to the edge of the hill.

Amelia stood up slightly as she saw me walk past. “Where are you going?” Amelia asked. “You have no idea what they’ll do if you go against Bulak’s orders.”

I opened the door slowly. “Frankly, I don’t care,” I said as I gazed out the crack. There were two more guards meant to guard this door, but currently, they were gazing down at the city wall, trying to spot something. I could see the gate was wide open but not much else. I slipped out and silently closed the door behind me. I quickly drifted to the ledge and sliding down it.

I moved swiftly but silently through the city towards the forge. A few orcs glanced my way but none of them raised the alarm. I figured Bulak just wanted to show she had power over me. I arrived at the forge and quietly entered through the door. I don’t know if I have words to describe what I saw inside. Bins of metal and weapons were knocked over and scattered about the workshop. None of the apprentices were there, but I did hear a commotion in the back; it was where Shurkul kept the damaged weapons and armor. I moved to investigate. When I enter the door I immediately saw what had caused all this mess. Shurkul and Urog were holding each other in an intimate embrace, eyes closed, lips locked. Shurkul towered over Urog so he was leaning down while Urog craned her neck upwards. Their shawls were at my feet. Luckily, I arrived before they got any more off. I cleared my throat loudly, putting my hand over my face as I did. I couldn’t see them now, but I could hear their panicked gasps. “I didn’t see anything,” I said simply, waving my hand with the paper, and left them to get dressed. I lent on the wall as I let out a long breath. I kind of felt bad interrupting them. They definitely seemed like they needed the release. I waited in the forge for a minute before they finally joined me. Their hair was disheveled. Shurkul seemed about to say something but I held up my free hand and simply handed him the page I’d brought.

He took it and examined it curiously. “What’s this?” He asked. He seemed unsure about my reaction to having caught them in the act.

I pointed at the paper as I responded. “That is the cheat sheet to steel making.” I used my finger to outline my attempt at an illustration of the necessary process.

Shurkul’s eyes squinted as he looked at the paper. “This looks like a drawing of a rat or some scribbles.”

I grimaced as I looked at my hasty chicken scratched. “Yeah, well that’s why I didn’t try to become an artist,” I said shrugging. “But anyway, these are the equations and a summary of the process for steelmaking.”

Shurkul looked closely at the sheet. “What are these symbols?” He asked, pointing at the equations.

I pointed at them as I replied. “They’re the alphabetical representation of elements. Fe for iron. C for carbon, O for oxygen, so on and so forth.”

Shurkul shook his head. “I am aware of what the letters are, I speak of these.” He said, pointing at the numbers next to them.

I looked at him curiously. “They’re … numbers… do you guys not have numbers?” I asked slowly. Shurkul shook his head. I let out a sigh as I glanced at my watch. Bulak might check in on me soon. “I’d ask what you’d use for numbers, but I don’t have time. Just send up a scribe so that he can copy the page and I’ll explain the numbers later.” “I got the basic information to Shurkul. Now I just need to get back to the barn before Bulak realizes I’m gone.”

Shurkul looked at the page and nodded. He seemed to hesitate for a second before pressing something. “What about… what happened… here?” He asked, gesturing with the page.

I let out a sigh and put my finger to my lips. “As I said before, I didn’t see anything,” I said as I moved to the door. “But I suggest you be more careful when you two start… going at it.” I said as I gestured around the workshop. “And lock the door.” With that, I left them in the forge and immediately walked into an orc caravan. I stood in shock for a moment as I took in the caravan. In front of me was the same type of cart that had carried my car into the city, but it was packed with a variety of large furry animals. Behind it, there was a caged version of the cart, metal bands crisscrossing over one another to contain the creatures within. The animals in these cages I can only describe as two large hairless gorillas. They stood at least eight feet tall, with large noses and wide-set eyes. They each grunted angrily as they tried the strength of the cage they were in, to no avail. The only word that came to my mind when I saw them was “Trolls.” I banished my shock and moved to try to go around one of the carts, keeping an eye on them as I went. As soon as I took a step I immediately ran into someone. I turned to try and apologize. “Sorry about tha-” I stopped as I saw who I ran into. The orc in front of me seemed to tower over me. He wore a bright red shawl over a shiny chest plate. His face seemed more brutish than the others, a stark contrast to the bright purple eyes in his sockets. A thick beard covered his chin. His head carried a crown of bones with tusk-like protrusions jutting from all sides and pointing upwards. He did not seem happy. I had about two seconds to realize that this was why Bulak had confined me to the barn before the orc started swinging an axe at me. I quickly jumped back, barely missing the blade.

Chief Dubak glared at me. “WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY CITY OUTSIDER?” Dubak shouted.

I held up my palm as I tried to gesture calmingly. “Sir, if you’ll just calm down for a minute I’m sure we can ha-” Dubak brought the axe above his head and swung again. I dodged, his axe sank into the ground. “If you’ll just talk to your daughter I’m sure-”

“YOU SHALL NOT LIVE TO HARM HER!!” Dubak shouted. He abandoned his axe and started to charge.

I barely dodged his swinging fists. “Dude, let me explain. I’m not here to hurt anyone.”

“FATHER, STOP!!” A voice rang out. Dubak ignored it. I ducked as Dubak swung again. “FATHER!” This time Bulak was close enough to grab Dubak’s arm. “I MADE A DEAL WITH HIM!” She shouted. That got his attention.

Dubak turned to glare at Bulak. “You did WHAT?” He shouted. Bulak appeared to swallow nervously. This was the first time I had seen her without her aggressive expression.

I gestured calmingly again as I spoke. “We made a deal.” Dubak turned back to me. “I avoid the mine, and in exchange, I build you guys some outsider technology… a motorized carriage.”

Dubak stared at me, then turned to Bulak, pulling his arm from her grasp. “Do you not remember what happened LAST TIME?” He roared at her.

Bulak started to tremble slightly as she stood there. “It will not be like last time. Just… come with me to the Great Hall and we can discuss this” Dubak stared at her.

I stepped forward. “Sir,” Dubak turned to me “I know your experience with outsiders says you shouldn’t trust me, but I assure you I’m nothing like Him. Please, just give me a chance”

Dubak seemed to consider my words for a moment, gritting his teeth angrily. “Very well,” Dubak growled. I let out a sigh of relief and felt my guard drop. Dubak took advantage of that and his hand immediately came up and clamped itself around my throat. Dubak started to squeeze. My head started to feel swollen. “But know this, outsider.” He started to lift me slightly. My feet barely touched the ground. “If your actions bring harm to my people you shall be spending the rest of your very short life in utmost agony.” He let me go and I fell to the ground, coughing. “And I want a word with you,” Dubak said, pointing at Bulak.

Bulak looked down sheepishly. “Yes, Father,” Bulak said. She motioned over another orc as she reached down and dragged me to my feet. “Make sure this one finds his way home,” Bulak said, shoving me at the orc. The orc nodded and escorted me back to the barn. I followed along as I felt a twinge of anger well up inside. I stifled it as I forced myself to remain calm and go along with their orders. The guards were surprised when I turned up outside the barn. I felt the daggers they were staring at me as I was shoved in roughly. I stumbled inside as I let out a sigh of relief.

Amelia came running to my side. “What did you do?” She asked me.

I scratched my head as I let out a sigh. “I met her father. And I’m pretty sure he wants to kill us.”