“Are you sure you don’t want anything else before you leave?” Lydia asked, casually opening her thighs and stroking her fingers invitingly along their inner nks.


    “No can do! He’s been put on a strict no-vagina diet this morning, I’m afraid.” Jte gave him a dutiful shove to get him moving again after seeing him eyeing Lydia like a hungry wolf might regard a steak dinner.


    “Spoilsport.” Gregined as he allowed himself to be shoved, but not before looking longingly back at Lydia.


    She gave him a yful wiggle of her fingers to say goodbye.


    “If the women around here keep this up I’m going to be going into the provings carrying my baton, my shield, and sporting one hell of ance.”


    “I promise I’ll be good.” Jte’s voice carried a note ofughter.


    She simply locked one of her arms with his and started the walk to the proving grounds, taking the long way around.Content ? provided by N?velDrama.Org.


    “I really do think you’re going to win today, you know. I mean, if you keep up what you’ve been doing with the others in training.” Jte said in a more serious tone soon after they departed Bolut’s camp.


    “That’s the n.” He took a deep breath and despite everything he couldn’t help but feel a little like a man making his way to the gallows.


    “It’s too bad U couldn’t get her head out of her butt to join in with you guys.”


    “Yeah, I’d been hoping she’d show up to one of the training sessions with us. I always see Ulf looking hopeful whenever he hears someoneing into the clearing. I guess it’s toote for that now.”


    “Better The Runts have you than her. You know I heard none of the other packs would take her? She’s way too much of a hothead, and has a chip on her shoulder the size of the fucking Grand Canyon.”


    “She fights better than any of us though.” He was hesitant toy out judgment. Truth was that he’d have liked all the help he could get.


    “Maybe so, but she can’t fight with anyone to save her life. You know what went down with her and Algra?”


    “Stuff went down?” He turned to look at Jte, the mention of his mate prying his thoughts away from the battle ahead.


    “Oh yeah. Big stuff. U’s full name is U Strongblood. She’s part of the Strongblood n, and they’re apparently a huge deal around here. Lots of big heroes in their history. And you know about Rowun, right?”


    “I do.” He nodded sadly. “Algra’s mate before me, and the reason she went to live in istion. Couldn’t handle everyone’s attention and move on after he died in the northern wars. Or just didn’t want to.”


    “Right, well U wasn’t just part of Rowun’s n. He was her big brother. After he died, she med it all on Algra. She hates her. I’m guessing that’s part of the reason why she wasn’t too chirpy about the idea of Algra’s new mate running her pack.”


    “Great, that’s something else I better watch out for then,” he grumbled.


    “No. I think she didn’t want you there because she knew you’d bring Algra with you to help train them. Orcs don’t usually let grudges carry over from one to another. They might lose their temper, or speak a little too much of their mind, but they don’t let their anger seep out too much from where they’ve nted it. At the heart of it, it’s Algra she’s pissed at. Not you.”


    “And how do you know that? In fact, how did you get to know all this?” he said; casting an impressed nce in her direction.


    “Uh? Oh, well, I learned a lot of it from Talina. Rudd also swings by the camp once a day to try and check up on you. So, I’ve been talking with him about orcs, elves, humans, and all the other crazy shit that goes on around here. And I’ve been going to the provings with Talina whilst you guys have been training. I guess if you keep your ears open long enough you pick up stuff.”


    “I guess you do.” He nodded. “So, why has Rudd beening by the camp?”


    “He thinks you could be the saviour of mankind. Although, he is pissed off his face about three quarters of the time, so I wouldn’t take anything he says too seriously.”


    “I’ll make a note of that.” He couldn’t help but smile at Jte’s summation of the man. “Did you see anything interesting at the provings?”


    “Oh yeah, lots of crazy shit. They’re freakin’ brutal!”


    “Right, I picked up that part already.” He ran his fingertips down over the thin scar that now ran across his chest. “Anything else?”


    “I dunno, I guess…” She paused a moment, trying to figure out how to put it. “I guess the more I watch them, the less I think of them like some diatorial fight from the dark ages.”


    “Really? What do they remind you of then?”


    She blinked apprehensively before peeking at him out of the corner of her eye.


    “Well,” she started slowly. “If you really must know they kind of remind me of football matches.”


    That stopped Gregory in his tracks as he almost doubled over withughter.


    “I’m being serious, ok!?” Jte protested.


    “No… no…” He managed to heave the words out between bouts ofughter. “I just… I got this mental image of premiership footballers in the provings. Can you just fucking imagine?”


    That got a blurt ofughter from her when the picture quickly formed of a number of ridiculously overpaid humans falling over before the orcs could touch them; rolling around on the floor holding their shins and trying to im a foul.


    “So how do they remind you of football matches then?” Gregory asked when he’d finally managed to stop snickering.


    “It’s kind of what orcs do for sport for one thing. When we first went there, I thought they were just bloodthirsty. But they don’t really care about that as much as they care about the fighting styles and the tactics used. Honour’s also a big deal to them. They don’t have the same rules for fighting dirty that we would, but if an orc ever did cross that line then I would not like to be in their shoes at the end of the match.”


    “Right, so where’s that line then?”


    “It’s for stuff like hurting an enemy that can’t defend themselves. There are also certain situations when attacking from the rear is a big no-no. Like if your opponents are outnumbered or clearly injured. Believe it or not, The Berserkers have been getting some k for what they did to you. It’s just whispers because no one wants to get on their bad side, and it would be worse if you were an orc rather than a human, but Rolk isn’t nearly as popr as he thinks he is these days.”


    “Right, well that’s good to know. I don’t suppose they have any rules against low blows?”


    “Sorry, the attitude toward that is that if you’re stupid enough to give your enemy a chance at hitting you in the pills then you deserve whatever you get.” She shrugged.


    “Great, I’ll try not to be stupid then.”


    “You’d better damn well not be, buddy. I expect that whole area toe back tonight in full working order… or else!” She gave his arm a determined poke with her finger.