Chapter 17.1 Hero vs. General

Told you guys it wouldn’t be long.

Bash’s memories of General Baraben were still as vivid as the day he lived them.

The now undead Orc was one of the most memorable figures in the Hero’s life.

From the day he was born, he had stood head and shoulders above his peers.

He was a childhood friend and trusted confidant of the current Orc King Nemesis, and served as the de facto leader of all Orc clans that previously lived within Siwanasi Forest.

A warrior whose name was known far and wide in Orc Country.

He fought like a maniac on the battlefield; a humongous berserker who swung a massive war hammer with otherworldly dexterity and strength.

All Orcs admired the way he expressed the core tenets of Orcish philosophy through his sheer savagery and courage.

Bash was no exception.

The first time Bash met General Baraben was shortly after he had begun actively going out to battle.

He had faced death many times, and now counted among those considered fully-fledged warriors, but at the time, he was no better than any other ordinary Orc that had lived through similar experiences.

Back then, Bash’s unit had been assigned to Baranben’s army.

It was following a fierce battle.

The Orcs managed to eek out a victory in the end, but most of Bash’s comrades were killed in action.

It was then that the General appeared before the now Hero, who was eating in front of a bonfire, tending to his wounds.

As soon as he saw him, he said:

“You! You’re truly a sight to behold!”

He let out a hearty, cheerful laugh, roughly patted Bash on his back, and left.

The latter felt rather awkward, being put in the spot like that, but he was also overjoyed.

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Gereral Baraben – the General Baraben had just told him he was impressed by his actions. How could he possibly not be happy?

The second time they met was when Bash was beginning to make a name for himself among the Orcs.

He had cemented his reputation as an exceptional warrior, but he was nowhere near the top just yet.

Even so, he was selected as one of the General’s direct bodyguards.

Though a lofty sounding position, his actions and orders did not differ much from what he usually did as a regular foot soldier.

Just like he always had, Bash took part in the battle and rampaged near the also rampaging Baraben.

Right before that fight, the General had gathered his men to give them a speech.

It was a compilation of tales from his life that he often told to get his troops and himself pumped up before battle.

Yet, it was also a summary of Orcish warfare history.

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He recounted how he had been fighting alongside Nemesis ever since they were children.

Sometimes he had helped, and others he had been helped. As the King’s companion, he had always been there, fighting to protect the Orcs’ pride.

So went the story.

That was the day Bash decided.

He wanted to be just like Baraben.

The third and final time the two met was during the final defense of Siwanasi Forest.

That day, the General did not cheerfully smile the way he usually did.

All the signs pointed towards the Orcs losing this confrontation.

But nonetheless, he was ready and willing to fight until the end, no matter the outcome.

Elves bearing down from the West.

Humans sieging from the East.

Pincered between two major forces and with a sparse few troops remaining, the situation looked dire.

Yet he did not lose his will to fight.

Bash did not speak to General Baraben on that night.

He just gave him a silent look, nodded, and calmly went to the front.

There, he encountered the Elven Archmage Thunder Sonia, and the two fought.

Although having won, the Orc Hero had sustained grievous wounds and would have to flee for several days, holing up in the depths of the forest in an anemic daze.

Had Zell not found the cave he was hiding in, he might not be alive today.

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By the time Bash managed to get back to headquarters, the battle had already concluded.

It was a moonless night, and the Elven army had exploited the darkness to take the Orcs by surprise.

Were this a straightforward battle, considering each parties respective manpower, the conflict should have not been this one-sided.

However, the Elves were thorough in their deception, entirely robbing the Orc army of their vision.

All light sources were extinguished. Darkness magic was employed, alongside black clothes to better help them blend into the shadows. The whole thing was topped off with a heavy layer of illusion magic.

Normally, General Baraben would not have fallen for these tactics alone.

Orcs had a many thousand-year long history of combat and warfare.

The had extensive experience in dealing with all kinds of magics and tricks, and had countermeasures prepared for all of them.

There was no way the Elves’ strategy could have been the decisive factor on its own.

The reason behind their defeat…

Bash later heard it was due to the General discriminating against Orc mages.

His second-in-command, Gunda Guza, an Orc mage himself, had preemptive intel indicating that the Elves were planning a nighttime strike.

He had suggested the Orcs do as the Elves did and lay in ambush underground.

However, Baraben would not have any of it.

Stubborn and hardheaded, he retorted that as true Orc warriors, his men would not stoop down to the level of those puny Elves – even less so when the plan involved trickery and was proposed by an Orc mage of all people.

So determined was he to fight a straightforward battle, in fact, that he went through the trouble of installing extra torches around the area, even knowing that it was futile.

And thus, General Baraben and his second-in-command Gunda Guza were soundly defeated.

The main force led by Nemesis himself immediately rushed over to Siwanasi as soon as they received news of the defense falling, but it was too late. Though the territory hadn’t been completely conquered, the King, seeing the writing on the wall after having lost his best Orcish General, agreed to the Alliance’s demand of surrender.

As for Bash himself, he had neither regret nor grudges against the Elves.

He was the Orc Hero, and he had done as the Hero should.

He had taken a powerful enemy out of the picture and had returned alive.

If the battle was lost despite his best efforts, then so be it.

But he couldn’t help but think…

What if he had come back in time to support General Baraben during his last stand?

What if the relationship between the commander-in-chief and his second-in-command had been better?

Would the battle of Siwanasi Forest ended differently?

Then today, his idol had reappeared in front of his very eyes.

General Baraben, standing next to his second-in-command Gunda Guza.

The man that had publicly stated he would never fight alongside an Orc mage was now actively cooperating with one.

And he had said to Bash.

“With you here, we are a hundred strong! Let us fight together as we once did! Let us destroy these hateful Elves once and for all and reclaim what is ours! Let us take back Siwanasi!”

The Hero would be lying if he said this didn’t make him happy.

Ever since that loss, the events that transpired during the defense of Siwanasi had from time to time resurfaced in Bash’s mind.

He couldn’t help but think that this might be his chance to obtain a glorious victory for his people.

The circumstances were different. The Elves were on the back foot now, and it was prime time to strike.

But Bash was an Orc.

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And Orcs are warriors.

As a warrior, he must be graceful in both victory and defeat.

There was an old saying among Orcs.

A curt sentence meant to keep them from veering off the righteous path in times like these.

It was short and simple, and went like so:

“Zombies are not Orcs.”

Those who were not able to let go of their lingering regrets.

Those that could not admit defeat.

Those that would crawl out from the depths of the earth to seek revenge.

They were not true Orcs.

The Orcs had been defeated. That was a fact.

They had lost the war, brokered for peace, and were now heading down the path towards a different future than the one they had envisioned during the war.

Their progress had been slow and tedious.

But still, Bash followed the decision of the Orc King Nemesis.

It was his duty as the Hero of the Orcs.

A bunch of former Orcs, now zombies, were fighting with the Elves with whom the real Orcs were trying to establish friendly relations.

It was obvious that the right choice would be to side with the Elves, no matter the reason behind their conflict.

Moreover, the female Elf he was gunning for was in trouble.

There was no need to hesitate any longer.

(Mister! Mister! Now’s your chance! You saw that Elf that was hugging Breeze just a few moments ago! Wouldn’t you like that? She liked him because he was cool! If you can show this girl right here how cool and reliable you are, she’ll definitely fall for you! This is your time to shine! This is your shot!)

Is what Zell was whispering into the Hero’s ear.