[Envinyatar]

The Lady's Orcs

‘Hiding again, he is, m’Lady. But I think this time you’ll catch a sight of him for sure.’ Gorgu led the way up the broken stones of the chamber’s east wall. The corncrake that sang its monotonous song in the mornings was at it again. And the Lady wanted to spy out the bird who serenaded her faithfully.

Giledhel followed close behind Gorgu, her hands daintily holding up the long skirt of her dress as if she were ascending some tall staircase. Ashukh and Zlog trailed her, as she had schooled them. They’d shrugged their shoulders at her admonition. ‘Gentlemen always allow a lady to precede them up the stairway. Were she to stumble, then the gentleman would be there to steady her, or catch her, stars forbid, were she to fall.’

‘Now how are we to do that?’ Zlog had whispered as she began her ascent. Ashukh snorted, cutting off a giggle. ‘Don’t know. Like as how she’d tumble right through us or drift to the ground.’ He moved closer to his companion. ‘Sometimes I wonder what goes on in that head of hers. Can’t be seeing the same things as I do. Gentlemen! Pah!!’

Zlog glared at the other Orc. ‘Just shove it and shut your trap! If the Lady wants to call me a gentleman I’ll let her.’ He puffed up his chest and raised one brow at Ashukh. ‘And I think I like it, too.’

Their grumblings at one another halted as they reached the top of the broken chamber. Gorgu reached out a hand to Giledhel to help her onto the rubble strewn wall. ‘Down there, m’Lady, he said, pointing to the clumps of tall iris just peeking above the surrounding taller grasses. Winging lazily westward was a gull, its raucous cry nearly drowning out the corncrake’s crek-crek.

‘Them’s tasty birds!’ Ashukh murmured, his appreciation bent more on the pleasure of eating them than listening to them. His sharp eye followed the bright chestnut wings against the bird’s body as it shifted in the grass.

It was Zlog who had turned his back on the rising sun, a creeping worry that somehow it might still hurt him if he stayed in it too long, that first saw the figures in the far courtyard. He squinted hard at them, then nudged Ashukh. Gorgu noted the other two Orcs looking at something other than the bird.

‘It’s cold up here,’ Gorgu said, trying to draw Giledhel’s attention to himself. ‘And we didn’t bring your cloak. Let’s go back down. We’ve seen what we can of that old bird. And wasn’t it nice of him to sing just for you?’ Not wanting her to be upset by what the others had spied out, he tried to maneuver her back to her chambers.