Black Metal: The Orc Wars Read Free Page B

as the orcish mace crushed his helmeted head. The guard on the right was given a few moments to react due to the longer climb forced upon the other ambushing orc. He managed to bring his spear into a defensive position and brace for the attack. The orc rushed furiously towards him brandishing a large cleaver with both hands. The oncoming orc leveled a powerful blow at the guardsman, who just managed to duck out of the way, the cleaver making sparks fly as it chipped off a piece of the stone walkway. The guardsman stepped foreword with a counter strike, plunging his spear into the enemy’s guts.
    To his horrifying surprise the orc did not go down, in fact, with an intensified fury it pushed itself down the shaft of the spear. To late the guardsman realized his mistake, as the orc further impaled itself it was drawing closer to the man holding the weapon. The guard tried to let loose of the weapon and flee, but before he could the berserker orc dispatched him with its cleaver.
    The guard’s body crumpled to the ground as the wounded orc bent over, supporting its weight upon its upturned cleaver. Ghalik and the others were making their way up to the gate, they were quickly joined by Ma-Gur and his remaining ambush party.
    “Hold him,” Ghalik commanded as he moved closer to the wounded orc. As the old wizard rummaged in his belt pouch the older warriors moved to support and brace the wounded orc. Many of them had seen what was about to happen and tensed, the younger warriors looked on in wonder.
    Ghalik pulled from his pouch a small sack, which appeared to be full of some kind of powder. The wizard walked up to the wounded orc and drew forth a fistful of a glowing green dust like substance. He held it aloft and spoke in the broken syllables of magic, as he did the glow of the green dust faded. Then he began to smear the powder all around the wound until it was completely covered. He took a quick step back and broke off the shaft of the spear, leaving the point securely embedded in the wound.
    The old wizard quickly stepped back and nodded at the warriors holding the wounded orc, who tightened their grip in anticipation of what they seemed to know was coming. Ghalik gestured towards the rest of his forces.
    “Split into two groups, one on the left and one on the right,” barked Ghalik as he un-shouldered his waraxe, hefting its weight like a familiar friend, “Lorak will take the center.”
    At this the older warriors cast a wary glance towards the wounded orc, Lorak, who was now shaking uncontrollably. Only the brute strength of the others holding him down kept the orc from convulsing so hard he injured himself. The younger warriors hesitated in curiosity of the wounded orc plight, but were quickly jostled into formation by the older warriors.
    The two groups of orcs stood in loose clusters on their respective sides of the gate. While orcs were not known for making uniform or complex battle formations, they did have a grasp of strategy. The primary reason for their seemingly simple organization was that once the fighting began each individual orc would basically do as he pleased, so formations tended to crumble into seething tides of berserkers.
    Ghalik knew this, and he used it to his advantage. Once inside the town everyone would to their own way, each seeking his own glory. Thus, the battle would spread quickly throughout the area as the orcs jockeyed for position. Yet Ghalik also knew that the older orcs now feared Lorak, and that fear would spread to the younger warriors. Fear would keep everyone in formation long enough for his plan to work and bring victory to all.
    Ghalik stopped close to the city gate, its metal hinges and sturdy wooden planks barring the way of the would-be invaders. He began to sway back and forth as if in a trance, his eyes closed as he whispered in the maddening language of orcish magic. He began to flex his arms and heft the axe as if he were going to strike the gate. Then he would let the