Page 8 of My Fated Orc Hero

"That's not my problem," he growls, but I see a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes.

"So, it’s mine?” My face flushes with anger and I scowl right back at him before my eyes trail down to his club again.

“You ask too many questions,” he barks, though I swear I detect curiosity on his part as well.

“Look, do you see any doors in here?" I look all around the room I seem to have magically appeared in. “I just showed up, I told you!”

“Your appearance is... puzzling,” he admits.

"I promise I’m not here to cause trouble. I just... I don’t… I need to understand what's happening. And this place – your place. It’s incredible. Maybe I could just take a little look around. I mean I have always dreamed of visiting a place like this. It’s amazing. A dream come true. I’m completely overwhelmed in the best way possible. Maybe you could do a girl a solid and show me around?"

His face softens almost imperceptibly. "You've dreamed of this?"

"Well, yeah," I admit. "Ever since I was a little girl. But I never actually thought... I mean…”

How is this happening? I’m talking to an orc for god’s sake!

A stunningly hot orc.

Focus, Zoe. Not the time.Besides, it can't be real.

But it is, isn't it? Well for the sake of argument, let’s say it is.

It’s not though.

Shh, you!

Hot orc or not, I’m in trouble, and the full weight of the situation is starting to crash down on me. My body starts to tremble. Is this what shock feels like?

The orc - I still don't know his name - seems torn himself. "Listen, human—"

"Zoe," I correct him.

He grunts and stares for a long moment before conceding. "Fine. Zoe. Only one thing matters—you going back wherever you came from. Now."

"I thought we covered that?” I say gesturing around the tower room. “I don’t know how. One minute I was in the sub-basement at work, the next..." I wave my hands in the air. "Poof. Here I am."

His eyes narrow. "What do you mean, 'poof'?"

"You know, like magic—abra cadabra, hocus pocus, poof!" I wiggle my fingers for emphasis. "I mean, where I come from, we don’t have… uh… well..." I gesture vaguely at him. I also notice he has not offered his own name.

He grunts, looking increasingly agitated. "This isn't a joke, human.”

My initial shock must be wearing off little by little because I suddenly remember a few more details. The writing. The arch. “Maybe it was some kind of secret door?”

“Door? I see no door hum—er, Zoe,” he corrects himself, and I’m oddly touched that rather than calling me human, he used my name like I asked.

“Neither do I! Okay? I just spit balling here!”

“Enough!” His nasty scowl reappears. “You're in danger here. One way or another I need to get you out of town before—"

"Town? I perk up instantly. "There's a whole town of orcs? That’s what you mean by ‘us’, right? A whole town of your kind?” I ask as I point excitedly out the window.

"Of course there’s a town," he snaps, clearly annoyed.

“Well, can I see it?”

“No!” he barks. “You have no idea what you'd be walking into. Humans are not welcome in Fablewood"

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