《Reddunz Hit 'Arder》


 Enter - God

    God is an interesting topic; some create the world and its people, some embody ideas, and some are manifestations of concepts. However, one thing that is common between all gods is power. Power is a constant in the universe and has many interpretations; electrical, physical, potential, and, most humanly, social. Cicero, a Roman philosopher, believes that we all carry a spark of divinity, rationality and, in a way, that is power. So does that make us Gods? Since we have power, are we all in our own right a God, so why should we bow down to such beings? I, a pragmatist and believer of rationality, say we should not. We are Gods of our own destiny and control our own fate, and yet, how the fuck did I end up in this ungodly situation¡­


    FEBRUARY 25, AD 20XX, EARTH, SOL SYSTEM


    "What, Why?" Well, it is rather obvious why your performance is abysmal! Furthermore, your attendance is terrible, and you''ve taken several advance payment loans from the company and refuse to adequately meet with HR to discuss your less than adequate fulfilments. In conclusion, you''re turning out to be a poor investment. "You have refused to complete your Pip on several occasions and have refused to take on any form of pip completion training. On top of this, you have been absent more than what is acceptable without reasonable excuse." This company isn''t a daycare centre for those lacking social skills, it''s a for-profit organisation, and you''re costing us money. "That said, since you''ve served us for many years, I believe a voluntary resignation rather than a disciplinary dismissal would better serve both our interests." This usually works, but it seems this¡­ Unsavoury individual is resolute to go down fighting. If only he had this determination in any of his work. "But¡­ I''ve never had to even do any client visits before! How is that even considered as training!"


    "It prevents your work from deteriorating by helping supervisors understand sales representatives and find ways for them to improve their managerial practices. With that in mind, we believe that you should have undergone such training. However, you have refused to take that on board, which lands you here." All in a day''s work, they say. However, this does start to get tiring. The endless horde of weeping and wailing ex-employees who try to cling to us like a mutt to its master really does begin to wear down the soul. Oh, ho ho, out with the crocodile tears already? Sure, it''s a valid tactic in the business world, but if you think it''ll work, guess again. I''ve been called many things; "Heartless Monster", "Boss''s Pet", and "Soulless Machine", but once you''ve heard it once, you''ve heard it a million times. One may think being jaded to such things makes you a psychopath, but all it is, is a resilience to modern-day manipulation. I have a job to do, and if you want to make it harder by pretending to be sad and defenceless, then go ahead, it just further proves your weakness. I swear if these simpletons put as much creative passion into their insults as they do into their actual work, then they might still be working with us.


    I''ve always known I wasn''t the best myself. Unable to compete with geniuses and unable to match the gifted with heart and determination alone, my personality has warped quite considerably to keep up with these so-called ''successful''. It is true, though, that I do find those who are truly benevolent to be awe-inspiring, but they are few and far between. Most of them are so heavily rooted in their own hypocrisy that it makes me scoff. Heh, even by today''s standards, I am considered to be a healthy level of sincere, but even knowing that makes me scoff. Maybe modern-day Russians do have a point, with being so faithful to themselves making them come off as rude; however, it is admirable to have a whole society dedicated to cutting out the bullshit and carrying on with their lives.


    Despite being self-aware about this, about how ghastly of a human I am, I still look down upon this bumbling fool wailing before me and proclaim in my heart of hearts that I am superior to him. Well, at least when measuring up to his performance, I am indeed superior. So even though restructuring departments assigned for consolidation in lay-offs is a pain, I still take it seriously as if to throw a middle finger at those that are gifted and maybe even myself. With all this in mind, my rise up the corporate ladder should have been extremely smooth sailing, and I would comfortably sit at the chair as Director of Human Resources by the end of my career. Well, should have been.


    After several minutes of attempting to get the worthless reprobate out of my office and on his merry way home I simply had enough. The bag of meat and bones simply would not leave my office, anger began to well inside and a singular vein that sat upon my temple began to bulge, threatening to pop out from the side of my head. Tapping the table impatiently with an index finger I spoke up "Look, the day isn''t getting any younger. Either you take this in stride or I''ll call security." This seemed to startle the man who at first gave a look of surprise and then one of despair. With a quick nod the man meekly picked up his belongings and scuttled out of my office.


    Today was an exhausting one, three lay-offs in one day was tiring even for me... Pinching the bridge of my nose I let out a deep rooted sigh letting all the tension and frustration leave me body. It was time to head home... Thankfully I didn''t live far, only a couple of stops away on the subway and a couple of minutes to walk and I''d be right back at my bachelor pad of dreams. Heading out of the office block I felt a sense of unease the entire way to the subways station as if something or someone was watching me. Looking around a couple of times and finding nothing, I shook my head and decided to ignore the illogical feeling and locked it down, placing it in a box much like I did with most unpleasant emotions.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    It is said that we humans are political and social by nature, that we are supposed to abide by logic and follow the laws of this world. However, it is known to be untrue. Genocide, murder, r***, thievery and assault all happen hourly in any country in this world. It doesn''t seem to make sense. These inhuman inconsistencies manifest as primal urges and behaviours that only the weak-willed seem to fall prey to. Yet, even the so-called academic elite and gifted often act out on their impulses. Perhaps this is why the Director specifically warned me to watch my back at the st-- WHAM!


    The world seems to slow as my senses begin to work in overdrive. Something slams into me, and I''m set off falling onto tracks. I hear several screams, the panting of an enraged man and, most importantly, the screeching of a train. My head involuntarily turns to the left as a large train takes up the entirety of my vision, and in the corner of my eye, the man I gave the pink slip smiling contently as everything goes dark. The world is void, no senses, no feeling, only thought. Thought and rationality, the realm of the so-called ''Gods'', if God truly existed, then there would be no need for a man- no beast to push me in front of a moving trai-


    "You disgusting uncompassionate disbeliever, you''re all the same." an old voice coming straight out of a classic Christmas movie bellows in my non-existent ears.


    "What the hell?" What is that? The devil, perhaps?


    "What a twisted personality, coming to the most baseless of conclusions." Did it just read my mind? What kind of being breaks the most basic of privacy and etiquette, no God would have the need for such petty tricks.


    "I certainly did, but I gain no pleasure from reading the minds of deranged souls such as yourself."


    Deranged as in plural? Well, I guess I can take solace in the fact that I''m not alone in being hated by a devil, being berated by a ''God'' that''s supposed to be benevolent, caring and forgiving sounds like a rather large juxtaposition.


    "Pah, are you trying to send your creator to an early grave? The whole world is full of people like you, what happened to being broken from your earthly bonds and being delivered from eternal damnation?"


    I mean, I don''t really see an issue with how I live, nothing quite to the level of damnation anyway. Am I being tricked and scammed by the devil to pursue something that I don''t even desire. Pushing one''s ideals onto another is simply another set of words for brainwashing and manipulation. "So do tell almighty one, what is to come next of me? Are my sins going to be washed away as I join you in eternal heaven." While I could have made that a lot less condescending, it''s not like this devil is going to punish me anymore than it seems as I already am.


    "Well little one, souls as deranged as yours will be put back into the cycle of life and death until you atone and come to understand the gift that I have given you." The gift of life? How fitting, punishing me with this so called gift¡­ Doesn''t seem very smart, well on the brightside he is doing a job so to say so I can at the very least respect his dedication to his job.


    "Very well in that case, go ahead and do your thing oh mighty devil." At least in this next life I will make sure to watch my back..


    "I''ve had it!" the voice both whispered and bellowed in a strange oxymoron that left my very soul paralysed.


    "Huh?" the rage of people in management are often unpredictable, those with power lashing out with no regards to logic and reason are the scariest of all.


    "Can''t you souls get your acts together? You humans have strayed so far from the universal laws that I have given you, is it not so simple to follow Ten basic Commandments?!"


    Thou shalt have no other gods before me.


    Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.


    Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.


    Honour thy father and thy mother.


    Thou shalt not kill.


    Thou shalt not commit adultery.


    Thou shalt not steal.


    Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.


    Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour''s wife.


    Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour''s property.


    The Commandments berate my soul as if a tsunami ground against its walls, despite not being raised in particularly religious household I pretty much knew most of them and what they were trying to convey. "Wait a minute, although I wouldn''t say I''m the most moral I can safely say that I have for the most part followed them, no intentionally but still."


    "Have you not derived pleasure from the thoughts of any of these? Just because you haven''t committed them does not mean you aren''t free of doubt." Hey, hey, hey it''s not my fault I was programmed a certain way, just because I am partial to an FPS game and garner a certain amount of enjoyment from doesn''t mean that I actively go out of my way to kill, I''m definitely no more bloodthirsty than the next guy.


    "That is my greatest regret." Your greatest regret is that we have free will and rationality? Doesn''t that seem unfair for you to put expectations upon us when you have a flaw in the foundation of your business model. I guess even a God can''t help but push blame from himself onto something else.


    "If you won''t repent then I''ll have no choice but to impose a fitting punishment upon you."


    "Hold on a second, please just wait a moment!" While no adrenaline flowed through my non-existent body my rational mind screamed out in panic.


    "Shut it!" wait, isn''t a God supposed to be more mature than this? If you''re claiming to be the supreme being, even if you''re not doing a very good job at it, aren''t you at the very least supposed to be at least more rational about it?


    "I''m overworked by an untold Billions of souls and hear this exact same drivel on a secondly basis. You''re driven by lust, lack faith and yet you try and turn this on me? It was your kind who wanted enlightenment and when I give it to you on a silver platter you throw it back in my face. It seems like animals you must experience such strife first-hand. If it is rationality that you so covet then I shall banish you to a place without rationality.


    "Wait please, can we just talk about this some mo¡ª"


    Light.

 Enter - Orkgrub

    A pervasive feeling of pure light washed over me as it burnt at the very edges of what I''d call my soul. The feeling it gave was not warm but rather that of cold unfeeling justice, the type that will damn those to death for even the most minor of infraction. Heh, that suits the bastard perfectly, rigid zealousness that has damned many a righteous soul.


    As the light began to fade the searing pain of unholy light began to ease as darkness set in, which strangely was rather comforting. You would think that light would calm you or reassure you; however, it laid my most human traits bare to be scrutinised by someone who had no right to do so.


    The darkness seemed like it was going to stay as nothing changed for what felt like hours. Slowly, however, sensations besides sight and consciousness slowly came to be. My sense of smell came first as an overwhelming scent of earthiness entered my ''nostrils'', and it seemed to hint that I was underground. What was strange, though, was that I didn''t breathe in the air to smell the earthiness which set in panic as I tried to inhale, yet no air came. Almost choking on myself, I tried to thrash around to reach the air, to breathe, but the stark realisation that I didn''t need to was unnerving. Am I even human anymore?


    Many more hours seemed to pass as I continued my subterranean adventure, well, more of an internal monologue really. Eventually, however, I came to three conclusions;


    1.I am dead, and my hell is never to experience again.


    2.I have been buried alive and have to somehow crawl out to regain my freedom.


    3.I am now a plant.


    Option One seemed to be unlikely as the being was to send me to a place without rationale and to torture me. I quite enjoy the peace and quiet and will be happy to contemplate and consider until my tenure here is up. Option Two seems more likely and perhaps wants me to repent and admit my wrongdoings so that I may once again be free, fat chance asshole. Option Three seems to be the most likely, unable to move, live or do anything until I die and reincarnate with a new appreciation of what ''God'' has bestowed me with.


    With those three options, I do hope that Option Two is the correct one, as it would mean that I''m not doomed to reside in my earthy tomb until I die once more. It definitely seems the most inline with what he said before he sent me here; however, I have no idea how long I will be down here.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


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    I no longer know how much time has taken place here; it feels as though I am in a state of torpor. My mind sometimes drifts off into unconsciousness only to regain mindfulness after an undisclosed amount of time, and I feel more and more unnerved about the whole situation. What has given me at least a modicum amount of reassurance is that, for a lack of a better term, I feel myself ''growing''? Despite not being able to properly move my body, I am beginning to feel pressure surrounding me as if I am pushing against a container underground. What the hell is happening to me?


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    Once more, there has been a large change. I can actually move myself to a considerable degree; while I still can''t see anything, at least I can feel around a little bit. It feels as though I''m in an egg of sorts. I really can''t describe it any better. A hardened shell-like construct surrounds me, and I can get a good feel for it. However, my movement is rather limited. I can feel several tendrils surrounding me that are attached to my body in a strange lattice-like formation that pumps in a strange liquid. So that pretty much crosses out Option One and Three. Although Option Three would answer a few questions such as; Why I am underground, I can''t properly move and why I have these strange tentacle-like constructs that are ''feeding'' me like a root system. Although I can now hear thumping above me and what sounds like war cries and yelling, my previous reassurance is quickly vanishing.


    The amount of nutrients I''m getting is slowly lowering over a considerable amount of time. Perhaps there are more like me growing around me, taking up energy from the soil too. That just further begs the question, though, what kind of growing in the ground in an egg li¡ª- wait, what if this isn''t an egg and more like a plant pod used to create beings? Warlike beings is what I''m leaning towards if the sound above me is any inclination¡­ Oh crap¡­ A place without rationality? A place with never-ending war? It''s starting to add up. That damned Devil! My consciousness slowly drifts away as emotion takes hold. I once more lay dormant.


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    As I once more regain my consciousness, I feel the tendrils that were connected to me snap, and a feeling of both emptiness and tension fills my entire body. It was quite relieving as I flexed my once dormant muscles. A strange herculean strength is given in response as my whole body feels immensely powerful as if I was created for one purpose, War. The bulb itself began to slowly open up as it pulled earth aside with it, and sunlight once again graced my skin.

 Enter - World

    There was nothing... Well not nothing, but definitely a distinct lack of true feeling. Where I would expect of feel warmth or cold there was a numbness that pervaded his very existence. Slowly my eyes opened and light invaded my senses, it was overwhelming. I spent an unknowable amount of time in pure darkness and here was the freedom that I had desired so much. Shielding my eyes with an arm they slowly began to adjust to the light and focused. My arm... "ITZ GREEN?!" I spoke with a deep guttural voice that was alien to me, it sounded as though I''d been smoking three packs of cigarettes a day for the past thirty years. What had I become?


    Where a sense of panic should have overtaken me, I felt the twinge of adrenaline but none of the adverse effects that came with it and no accelerated heartbeat... In fact my mind became sharper and my body shivered in ecstasy, it enjoyed the panic. Quickly I smashed this feeling deep down into my emotionless box attempting to regain control of my emotions and body. Thankfully years of practice allowed me to do so, I once more calmed down and decided to examine myself more thoroughly.


    Raising up my arms to my eyes so that I could see them more clearly revealed several things. They were in fact green, I am definitely no longer Human. They were now thick and muscular, covered in green, leathery skin. The sheer size of them was overwhelming, each muscle bulging with raw power. My hands, now massive and clawed, they felt alien yet strangely familiar.


    "Wot in da world?" I muttered, flexing my fingers and watching the sinews shift beneath the skin. The strength I felt was intoxicating, but the realization of what I had become hit me like a freight train. The rational part of me screamed that this was impossible, that I was still human somewhere deep inside. But this bodies instincts were strong, urging me to embrace the power, to revel in the chaos.


    How the hell am I going to fix this? The questions echoed in my mind, but there were no easy answers. All I knew was that I had to survive, to adapt, and to find a way to turn this curse into a weapon.


    After a few moments of self contemplation I decided that enough was enough and that I should pry myself from my confines. Stretching out an oversized limb I grabbed the edged of the pod and subsequently the ground that surrounded me and hoisted myself upwards. It was exceedingly easy, as numerous muscles rippled and contracted in response. In a matter of moments I had pulled himself up and out of the pod out into the world. Sucking in a cool breath of fresh air I revelled in it all.


    With a few momentary glances around I found myself in some sort of camp... Roughly constructed huts and shacks made from metal sheets, wooden planks, and other debris were scattered haphazardly around me. Each structure was adorned with crude symbols. The noise was overwhelming¡ªgruff voices shouting, laughter, the clanging of metal, and the occasional explosion. It was a cacophony that was entirely alien to me, nothing like the soft sounds of an office.


    To my left was a strange building made of scrap metal, inside were hulking green figures tinkering and playing around with strange contraptions, they looked like weapons and even some rudimentary bikes that looked like they would explode at any moment. The figures had no finesse and it seemed like they were simply just banging scrap[ onto the weapons or bikes with no real intent, similar to someone that banged on a TV in hopes that it would start working again. To my right was a circular fence with small red creatures inside, they ran around snarling with a primal intensity snapping at each other and even the green figures that seemed to be trying to corral the beasts. However, directly Infront of me stood a large ''building''.


    The structure looked like a chaotic assembly of salvaged materials; rusted metal sheets, wooden planks, and chunks of concrete all haphazardly welded and bolted together. Above the entrance, the words "DA PITZ" are painted in bold, blood-red letters, each one dripping with fresh paint. The letters are large and uneven, scrawled with a crude brushstroke.


    Flanking the entrance are two massive totems made from scrap metal and adorned with a symbol reminiscent of the faces of the hulking green figures and what seemed like trophies from past battles; skulls, bones, and bits of humanlike armour. In the centre of it all was an entrance that looked like the maw of one of the green creatures, its jaws made from jagged metal scraps heavily rusted in many parts. This was not a race of artisans it seems.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ''I wonder wha--'' my thoughts were interrupted by an overbearing clawed hand that grabbed my shoulder. Turning towards the green figure that had done so my vision was filled with a singular enlarged green fist. In a split moment I had been punched with the full force of a brutish creature with muscles bigger than my head in my old life. My neck snapped back as I stumbled back and regained my footing. Raising my hand to my face in pure instinct I braced for searing pain to begin wreaking havoc across my face but yet again I felt nothing but a bit of pressure.


    As I came back to my senses I heard the guffawing laughter of several large green figures, the loudest of which came from one multiple heads taller than me, the one who had just struck me. Rage began to bubble up in my stomach, stronger than I had ever felt before. It was maddening and before I could even form a thought my body lurched forwards as I too threw out a punch directly towards the largest of the aliens. With a THUD my fist collided with the jaw of the beast, his head barely moved which was astounding. Even with all my newfound strength I was unable to even make the brute flinch. What was worse the group had seemed to stop laughing entirely, the largest of the group stared directly into my eyes as if peering into my very soul.


    My rational mind began to work overtime, I''d never struck out at anyone in anger before... What in the world was that?! Why had I done that? He''s huge! As a million thoughts a minute passed through my mind as the possibilities of his already short life ending right here and now the big one began to laugh even harder than before. As he did so it bellowed "GAHAHAHA DIS''UN HAS GOT SOME FIGHT IN ''EM. I LIKE ''EM." It was loud and offensive to the ears of any who would dare listen. Once he finished the rest of the green beings too began to laugh and echo and chimed in with the likes of "Dis Yoof''s got some teef!" and "He''z gunna do well in Da Pitz!". Standing there awkwardly I retreated my fist from the face of the alien letting it sit by my side. All anger dissipated I waited confused.


    "ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT THAT''S ENUFF!" The big one bellowed. "LETZ GET A GUD LOOK AT YA''." The beast raised an oversized hand to his chin as he began stroking it in thought. After a moment and in a strangely human fashion he slammed his fist into the palm of his other hand as if coming to a revelation. "YOUZ IS A BIT SMALLER THAN NORMAL, I''LL CALL YOU ORKGRUB!" after a moment the rest of the hulking creatures began to chant out the name he was just given. "ORKGRUB! ORKGRUB! ORKGRUB!" As if baptised by the community I''d gotten a name... Not a good one, but it was a start at least.


    After a few moments as I contemplated over the situation the biggest one spoke up again. "I''m Gorblitz, leader of dis ''ere group of Boyz and dis is da Ork Clan DA REDSKULLZ!" As Gorblitz spoke the ''Boyz'' around him had been worked up into a small frenzy, jumping up and down and slamming their heads into each other. This was a group of hooligans that strangely sounded British... Why did they sound like that? It was detestable, a bunch of brutes without a hint of decorum between them. But Orks? Is that what they call themselves? Like the green creatures from Dukes of The Rings? The ones birthed and bred only for war? Or was it more like those from that Sci-fi tabletop game Battlemace 40m, I never really did take a look into it, it was never my thing. I preferred none-fiction to this rabble, yet it seems as though I was missing out hugely here. Cursing inwardly I looked back up to Gorblitz and his group of merry men.


    "Datz Rukkfang." Gorblitz pointed towards one of the larger Orks who had a particularly large pair of canine teeth that protruded from his maw. "Datz Mugruk." his hand moved along the group as he pointed towards one of the smaller ones that had a particularly large scar that was stapled across his entire face. "Datz Zogbash." he pointed towards the widest of the orks, strangely his right arm was orders of magnitude larger than this left, it looked quite odd. "Datz Grimskab" the final ork was almost as small as I was, but upon his head sat a pair of goggles that seemed to have a strange level of magnification through them, something that should be impossible to see through. With a proud nod to himself Gorblitz looked expectantly at me, unsure of what to do I pointed towards myself and spoke out "I''m Orkgrub." With a nod of satisfaction Gorblitz patted me on the shoulder once more.


    "For now, youz is just a yoof, you hafta'' prove yourself to join us. An'' you do that in Da Pitz!" as soon as the words Da Pitz was spoken, the group of hooligans began cheering once more smashing their skulls into each other with fervour. Waiting for the boyz to settle down Glorbitz once more spoke up. "Youz gotz ta fight and ifs you win. You become a Boy! Let''s get you there!" without another word Glorbitz grabbed my muscular green shoulder and began hauling me off against my will straight towards the scrap like structure in the middle of the camp. ''What the hell is going on?! What have you threw me into YOU DAMN DEVIL!'' those were my la

 Da Pitz

    I was continually dragged along Gorblitz, his hand griping me like a vice. The other Orks followed, their heavy footsteps thudding against the ground. I stumbled along, trying to keep up, my new body still feeling alien and unwieldy.


    As we approached ''Da Pitz'', the camp''s cacophony seemed to grow louder. The clanging of metal, the roars of the crowd, and deep guttural screams filled the air. The entrance loomed ahead, a massive structure cobbled together from scrap and debris. The words "DA PITZ" were scrawled in red above the entrance, each letter uneven and dripping.


    As I was dragged through the cobbled makeshift entrance, I could finally put a face to the loud chaos. Orks of all sizes were engaged in brutal combat, their movements raw and powerful. The ground was littered with debris; broken weapons, discarded armour, and the occasional carcass of the strange red creatures. The air was thick with the smell of dirt and rust.


    Gorblitz shoved me forward, and I found myself on the stands just outside the arena. The other Orks that followed stood just behind me, their eyes gleaming with anticipation. I could feel their gaze on my back, as they watched my every move.


    I took a deep breath, feeling the raw energy of the place seep into my bones. This was my new reality, a world of chaos and brutality. I had to survive, adapt, and find a way to turn this curse into a weapon.


    The carnage in front of me was like nothing I had ever seen, I was never a big fan of sports either way but this was beyond anything in my old world. Even movies balked in comparison to this slaughter. Huge hulking figures tearing into each other... What was strange was that there was no real method to the madness, it was just madness. Orks that were helping each other out just moments before were stabbing each other in the back, and Orks that were just ripping into one another teamed up to take down bigger Orks before turning back against one another. There was truly no rationality whatsoever, and the real kicker was... They all seemed to be enjoying it.


    This was the biggest display of pure vulgarity that I had ever seen and I had one person to blame for it. The self-proclaimed ''God''. There was no God here, that was for sure, there could be no grand creator that played any sort of hand in this. Well no benevolent one that was for sure. With my head on a swivel I looked around hoping to gain a better understanding of the situation, along with hoping to draw a relevant idea of the size and spectacle of the arena. One thing amongst the chaos stood out, to my right and multiple stories up within the arena''s seating was a throne of sorts. It seemed empty, but someone must sit there. ''Usually thrones like that in colosseums were reserved for the ruling class'' I thought to myself.


    With a few other sweeping gazes I didn''t find anything of particular note. It was just a very large arena with a bunch of rambunctious hooligans bashing into each other, and it would soon be my turn. But these brand of Orks seemed much larger than myself, I assumed I''d be fighting one on one with another ''Yoof''. I wasn''t exactly sure what a ''Yoof'' was but I was pretty sure it was their version of an unbloodied fighter. These Orks seemed to live an extreme martial society favouring fighting above all else. I suppose that''s why I was as soon as I emerged from my pod. Turning around back towards the entrance I peered through and saw a similar sight. Smaller Orks emerging from the ground only to get smacked around by a larger Ork then for them to get dragged towards an entrance of ''Da Pitz''.


    Turning back towards the arena I began to look out for fellow Orks around my size and saw quite a few around the edge with a similar sized Ork to Gorblitz presiding over them. I now understood, it was a true proving ground and the larger ones seemed to be in charge of the smaller Orks. With what Gorblitz mentioned earlier it seemed as though I would have to fight one of these smaller Orks in combat, I was still clumsy in this body and that posed a distinct disadvantage. I hoped that these new-borns like me were just as clumsy and unaware of the situation as they was in. Hoping to get a better look at them I spotted the Ork that had just been plucked from the ground like a potato enter into the outskirts. Where I expected to see a confused and bumbling beefcake I instead saw an excited and energetic beast. Like a toddler getting ready to be unleashed into a ball pit.


    It was then that the current fight began to reach its fever pitch. Two Orks remained as they eyed each other covered in either their own blood or the blood of the Orks that lay around them. I noticed that the defeated Orks were still breathing despite hideous wounds, none of them seemed to whimper either, they simply accepted their defeat and lay around in either a stupor or were genuinely unconscious. It was then that the two began to charge at each other letting out a guttural yell that had the entire arena yelling along with them, it came to a resounding "WAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" that caused my blood to boil and ripped something out of me that I didn''t even know existed. Before I even realised it, I too was screaming out in delight along with my fellow Ork Brethren. What was happening to me... Whatever it was, I was starting to... Enjoy it?


    Muscles clashed against muscle and rusted iron against flesh, the two Orks battle ferociously and with an intensity that I had never seen. There was no real strategy employed whatsoever, it was pure brute force against brute force. This caused me to frown, there was so much potential being missed here if they were to just strategize for a moment before rushing in. While I was no expert on fighting by any stretch of the imagination I could think of a good few ways in which using their immense strength and leverage would massively increase their capability in battle.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    After another clash there was a lull in the fighting the two Orks circled each other, their breaths coming in heavy, ragged gasps. The crowd''s roars grew louder, urging them on. The larger one charged again, his club raised high, but the smaller one was ready. He sidestepped the attack and brought two axes down in a brutal overhead strike.


    The larger Ork bellowed in anger as the axes bit deep into his back, but he didn''t fall. The endurance of these beasts were immense, it just took two huge axes to the body and barely flinched, retaliating in anger rather than pain. With a wide arc the larger Ork swung a club horizontally at the torso, the overcommitted Ork was swatted aside several meters as their chest appeared to have caved in. With a none-committal grunt it rose back to its feet and snarled at the larger beast two axes in hand.


    They both charged screaming as they did so. The larger ork fired another large arcing strike towards the smaller ork who in return raised their axe hoping to block it and swung with their off-hand axe. Unfortunately it did not work out well for the smaller Ork. The club smashed into the haft breaking it in half and continuing into the side of the Ork, collapsing the other side of its chest. fortunately the axe did fall upon its suspecting target and struck the large Ork directly in the skull. Yet, it didn''t crack the Orks skull, instead leaving a mean looking gash that reached from the top of his head to his oversized nose.


    The crowd erupted in a frenzy of cheers and shouts as the Ork stood victorious, blood dripping from his wounds. He raised his club high, roaring in triumph, while the other Orks pounded their chests and bellowed their approval. It was a brutal display of pure strength and it both excited and sickened me to my very core. The time was almost upon me, the larger Ork showboated around the arena proclaiming its superiority. For a moment I could have sworn the Ork was slightly larger than before, ever so slightly. It''s muscles bulged harder and he swung the club with more ferocity, this caused my brow to furrow... This required more experimentation and observation.


    The crowd went wild with obscenities as the large Ork screamed outwards, they loved the show it seemed. However, in just a moment the entire arena went silent. Even the large Ork in the centre stopped his show-boating as he turned to look upwards, a look of pure veneration had overtaken his previous fervour. Following the gaze of the Ork I found exactly what it was looking at and why the entire crowd went silent.


    Passing through the elaborate entrance by the Throne was an Ork larger than anything I''d seen so far and any person he''d ever seen. This beast was the size of a car, almost nine feet tall it carried a hammer larger than me. By its side was one of the red creatures wearing a hat reminiscent to that Napoleon wore in paintings. His jaw hung open and slack as a loud beating began to be heard from the entire arena. The Orks were slamming their legs against the ground, creating a rhythmic thunder that echoed across the whole camp.


    After a couple of minutes the large Ork held up a single clawed fist, it was strange and mechanical as if he had mechanical claws for fingers. It looked immensely powerful and dangerous, and it silenced the entire crowd. After a few moments of revelling in it all the largest of all Orks finally spoke. "G''DAY LADZ! LOOKS LIKE WE''VE GOT SOME YOOFS READY TO BE TESTED!" he spoke with such cadence that it rumbled the entire arena as he spoke. It even began to rumble my very being, I was being swept up in the ork fever. With a deep breath I shook my head trying to reign my mind back to rationality. The orks around him had no inclination and instead bellowed their approval to the Boss. "WELL THEN, WHOSE FIRST?!"


    A few of the larger Orks pushed their newbloods into the arena, thankfully Gorblitz hadn''t done so yet. Turning back to meet his eyes he shook his head and let out a grunt, taking that as the reprieve it was I smiled inwardly. Turning back to the arena he watched as two Orks moved towards the centre of the arena, snarling at one another. They had no weapons in hand and seemed too dumb to pick up any of the ones that lay strewn across the arena. "START!" The largest Ork scream out, the voice was so loud that it almost deafened me. If not for my enhanced physiology I wouldn''t be surprised if it would have burst my ear drums.


    The first Ork, slightly greener and more muscular, had a wild look in his eyes. He bared his teeth and let out a guttural growl, flexing his newly formed muscles. The second Ork, though smaller, had a fierce determination in his gaze. He clenched his fists, ready to fight.


    Without any warning, the larger Ork lunged forward, swinging a heavy fist at his opponent. The smaller Ork ducked just in time, the punch whistling past his head. He retaliated with a quick jab to the larger Ork''s midsection, causing him to grunt in pain.


    The fight quickly escalated into a flurry of punches and kicks. The larger Ork used his size and strength to his advantage, trying to overpower his opponent with brute force. The smaller Ork, however, was faster and more agile, dodging blows and landing quick strikes.


    The crowd''s roars grew louder with each hit, the air thick with the smell of sweat and the sound of flesh hitting flesh. The larger Ork managed to grab the smaller one by the arm, lifting him off the ground and slamming him down with a bone-rattling thud.


    I was wrong, these Orks weren''t the bumbling newbies that I thought they would be, they fought with just as much ferocity as the other Orks. It was as if these creatures had battle and war directly baked into their DNA, so much so that they are ready to fight as soon as they were born. How am I supposed to compete with this?


    The larger Ork continually pounded the smaller one into the dirt, over and over again until eventually the larger Ork ripped the arm of the smaller one clean from its Torso. For the first time I heard a cry of pain from an Ork, it did truly look agonising and even then, the cry was barely noticeable from where he stood. However, the smaller Ork did not give in and continued the fight. Climbing back to its knees he leaped forwards, the larger Ork wielding the arm of the smaller one back

 Big Scrappin

    The crowd roared, a cacophony of guttural cheers and jeers echoing off the crude metal walls of ''Da Pitz''. I could feel the vibrations through my boots as each stomp and shout fed a strange energy that coursed through me. Across the arena, the big Ork snarled, his tusks glinting under the harsh sun as he pounded his chest in a display of raw power meant to intimidate. But I wasn''t here to be scared; I was here to survive.


    Gorblitz''s toothy grin was a landmark of inspiration; he believed in me, or at least in my potential. The Boss sat on his throne, bloodlust shining bright in his eyes, he wanted a show, it was obvious who he was rooting for. I wouldn''t give him the opportunity to relish in it.


    The signal to start was a deafening scream from the boss as per usual, its sheer power that was directed at myself and the large Ork almost disoriented me. Without much time to recover my opponent charged. His massive frame barreled towards me like a freight train. I tried to stand my ground, but my legs felt awkward and unsteady, like they didn''t quite belong to me. Bending them at the knees I slid into a lower position hoping to steady myself on my now massive legs.


    Just as he was about to reach me, I awkwardly sidestepped and almost fell over my feet. He stumbled slightly but quickly regained his balance, turning to face me with a growl of frustration. I looked around the arena for something I could use as a weapon. Unfortunately there was nothing in my immediate vicinity, there were a few weapons strewn across the arena but they were few and far between.


    The large Ork began to slow as he missed his initial charge, a look of pure confusion on his face. I''m sure he was thinking something along the lines of ''What kind of Ork dodges?'' or ''What? How did I miss?'' Either way it seemed as though he wanted to repeat the exact same move again. Nodding to myself I began to reposition myself towards a particularly large blade, hoping to move closer and closer. My opponent began moving again, it was a wild brutish movement reminiscent of the charge he had just performed. It was becoming increasingly obvious I was not going to reach it in time. I had to bide my time, surprisingly I seemed to grow less and less clumsy. I was getting used to this hulking body much quicker than I anticipated.


    The dodge this time was much more fluid, with an almost precise movement I managed to twist myself out of the way as I used the momentum of the dodge to begin my sprint towards the weapon. As I did so I heard a bellowing roar behind me "STOP DODGIN'' YA GIT!", it was filled with pure anger. I was starting to get on the creatures nerves, usually I would think this could be a good thing, emotional creatures when filled with emotions made mistakes and failed to strategize correctly. However, the natural state of this Ork seemed to be straightforward brutality, I feared all I did was just make his blustering even worse.


    I managed to draw close enough to the blade to pick it up, it was an old rusting heap of garbage but at the very least it was sharp. Spinning to take a look at where my enemy was I was surprised to see that he was almost upon me. This time, I was ready. I stabbed out, my movements clumsy but driven by a strange, instinctual force. I slashed at his arm, drawing a line of dark green blood. He roared in pain and fury, swinging wildly at me. One of the fists collided with my chest, pushing out a heaving breath. The crowd went wild with excitement, they were finally getting the scrap that they so desired. Close quarter brutality.


    Once more with an almost instinctual movement pushed through the numbed pain and struck out with my blade, it planted itself into the chest of the beast where my lungs would have been as a human. With a grin of satisfaction I awaited the beast to fall, however, that did not come to pass. The Ork merely screamed out in anger, backhanding me with an oversized claw. The Ork was larger than I was, much stronger too as it sent me sprawling.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    I collided with the ground creating a sickening THUD, dust flew up in the air as the crowd once more let out a resounding cheer that vibrated my very bones. Looking back up towards my opponent it was clear that he was pissed, he grabbed the blade that impaled his chest and ripped it out tossing it aside. A savage grin planted itself on its face, it was barely phased... This had to be cheating, what kind of durability do these green bastards possess?!


    Sucking in a cool breath of air I tried to strategize, what was there to do? He was bigger, stronger and faster than me. The only advantage I had was that I was infinitely smarter than this oaf, Tsun Zu always said the first step to defeating your enemy was to understand them. Well I certainly understood that it was bigger, stronger and faster than me! Gritting my teeth I hurried to my feet, the larger Ork was almost done gloating and when he was it would be my head on the chopping block.


    As soon as I managed back to my feet I retreated hoping to get some more distance between me and the beast, a quick scan of the area gave me a few more weapons that I could utilise. The closest was an axe, it wasn''t the best weapon in this situation but it''d have to do. Quickly I backstepped towards the weapon, once I was about half way there the large Ork reared up for yet another charge. He was faster, like an unstoppable bull he charged directly for me. Without much time to think I kicked at the ground, it pushed up dirt and dust obscuring myself from view. I had a hunch that the large Ork wouldn''t care and would charge right on through. In a moment of brilliance and inspiration I quickly dropped my posture, straightening out my back I lowered myself to around the height of his knees. If he couldn''t see me then a solid tackle here could put me on top.


    As I put myself in a perfect position I had only a few moments before it would be upon me, sucking in a breath I braced myself...


    XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX


    Grimgutz POV


    Grimgutz lounged on his throne, a twisted smile on his face as he contemplated the mayhem below him. The crowd roared, a cacophony of guttural cheers and jeers echoing off Da Pitz''s walls. This was his domain, and he was relishing every moment.


    "Dis is gonna be good," he muttered to himself, eyes gleaming with bloodlust. The big Ork across the arena snarled, his tusks glinting under the harsh sun as he pounded his chest in a display of raw power meant to intimidate. Grimgutz''s eyes narrowed with satisfaction. "Show ''em wot ya got, ya big brute."


    "Gorblitz always picks da weird ones," he thought, chuckling. It was all the same for him, just blood and violence. Sucking in a huge breath he prepared to start the fight. The starting signal was a deafening scream from Grimgutz himself, the sheer power directed downward at the combatants. "GO!"


    The big Ork charged immediately, his huge frame barrelling towards Orkgrub. Grimgutz leaned forward, anticipation building. "Crush ''im!" he growled. But then, something quite unexpected happened. Orkgrub, looking ungainly and unsteady, managed to sidestep the charge. He all but fell over his own feet, but he dodged nonetheless.


    "Wot da zog?" Grimgutz''s eyes narrowed. This was good. The big Ork stumbled, nearly fell, but righted himself and turned toward Orkgrub with an angry growl. Orkgrub looked around the arena, unmistakably searching for a weapon. Grimgutz snorted. "Dis runt''s got some moves."


    The fight became a blur of movement. Orkgrub''s clumsy but instinct-driven strikes drew blood, and the crowd went wild. Grimgutz watched with rapt attention as Orkgrub planted the blade into the big Ork''s chest. The big Ork screamed in anger, backhanding Orkgrub and sending him sprawling.


    "Git up, ya git!" Grimgutz growled, irritated that his the larger Ork had been struck true and came out much worse in the exchange. Orkgrub collided with the ground, dust flying up in the air as the crowd cheered. The big Ork ripped the blade from his chest and tossed it aside, a savage grin on his face. He was barely phased.


    Grimgutz leaned back, satisfied but intrigued. "Dis runt''s got more fight in ''im than I thought," he mused. Grimgutz''s smile spread. "Dis gonna be a fight to remember," he thought.

 Yooficide

    I had mimicked the typical stance of a rugby player, while I used to play the sport as a much younger teenager I was decades out of practice. I wasn''t entirely sure the ''Tower of Power'' was going to be of much help against a walking tank of an animal, yet this was the best idea I could muster in such a short time. With a wince I prepared myself and so it came, the brute smashed into my shoulder, I''d managed to get just low enough to clip the creatures knees as they let out a sickening POP.


    One thing I''ve learnt is just how dense Ork bones were, they were nigh impossible to break. Even with my enhanced physiology I''m pretty sure I''d have a difficult time cracking into them. I''d gotten lucky this time around, the full force of the charge coming to an abrupt end right at the site of the joint. Orks were already quite top heavy meaning less reinforcement around the legs. As such while I wasn''t specifically aiming for this glaring weakness I had a general idea of exactly where I wanted to hit.


    My legs dug into the dirt as the full weight of the creature pressed into my shoulder, thankfully I now had an abundance of muscle on my trapezoids. I had just managed to hold my ground However, this wasn''t quite the end of my plan. Driving upwards and outwards I grabbed a hold of the thighs of the Ork and pushed as hard as I could. The brute was actually lighter than I imagined, now that he had no leverage I''d managed to take the brutes legs out from underneath him. The crowd held their cheers with bated breath, they were unable to see the battle unfolding before them. The sheer amount of dirt and debris that had been kicked up had obscured them all from view.


    With the large Ork in my clutches I drove the beast down putting my full force and weight into the manoeuvre, within a split second the large Ork was on its back all air driven from its lungs. I gave a second hand wince, I''d been victim to a few dump tackles when I was younger, it was not a fun thing to happen to you, especially not right on your back.


    The larger Ork let out a grunt, I''d managed to cause damage to its knees, arms and now it should be breathless. My minute amount of experience had given me the knowledge to not stop now, this body of mine and subsequently the others were immensely durable and as such I decided to make use of this leverage. Swinging downwards with my arms I aimed my blows towards the face of the creature. Time and time again I laid into the beast and as as the dust began to settle the crowd had erupted into cheers. This is what they were here for, the pure brutality of it and I found myself revelling in it all. Disgusting...


    With each slam the Ork below him seemed to only piss the creature off more, I''d managed to get in a good position but it was starting to fight back and push me off. This was absurd... I''d done everything right, how in the world was this creature managing to push me back?! Was bigger always better in cases of these green bastards? Where''s the sense? Where''s the rationality?


    I increased my intensity, smashing down in a frantic pace hoping to put the damn creature down in anyway possible, but it just wasn''t happening. In a show of freakish strength the larger Ork had managed to completely shove me off of it sending me sprawling several meters. After just a few moments it had gotten to its feet, the leg I''d managed to damage obviously hindering the beast. However, what happened next left my jaw swinging. IT POPPED IT BACK INTO PLACE! How the hell should that beast know to do that? What in the world... Wasn''t this just too unfair?The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    Cursing the being that had put me into this situation I noticed in all of this I''d had a stroke of good luck, I''d been sent hurdling towards the axe I had been hoping to grab earlier. Scrambling towards it the larger Ork began walking towards me, something straight out of a movie. Slow, methodical and deadly. The bastard had a savage grin plastered across its face, as if it was enjoying every moment. With an outstretched claw I grasped the shoddy axe and held it, getting a feel for the weighting of the weapon I frowned. It was terrible and was somehow, bottom heavy... How does that even work. With a shake of my head the beast was already upon me.


    Tensing up my large forearms I dragged the axe backwards ready to end it in one last swing, surely my opponent had tired by now. Multiple consecutive charges, received several beatings and was bleeding profusely. Yet it didn''t even seem phased, its breathing barely laboured and still-- that smile... Right.


    With a grunt I swung the axe out in a wide arc aiming for the beasts neck, maybe I could chop it clean off. Like lightning the Ork raised their hand blocking the strike with their bad arm by intercepting the haft with their forearm. Cursing to myself I threw out a quick jab hoping to disorientate my opponent, when my blow did little more than glance off the creatures cheek I once more cursed to myself. Another shell shattering strike came from my opponent as a fist collided with my forehead sending me reeling, I held onto the axe with dear life. The crowd rallied once more sending vibrations throughout the entire arena, this had been the most interesting fight so far. The winner of the fight hadn''t been clear, but it seemed as though the one constant of Ork culture reigned supreme, "bigga'' is betta''".


    Several more blows landed across my body in quick succession, I''d have been wracked with pain if I could feel any to a respectable degree. This had possibly been the best addition of my new body. Gritting my teeth I tried to pull backwards to gain some distance, to try and strategize. Anything... But my opponent pursued me with dogged intensity. Strike after strike, blow after blow, I was nearing my limit. Coughing up a globule of blood along with spitting out some broke teeth I had to come up with something... Anything.


    "Uhh look ova'' there! There''s somethin''!" I blurted out, it was a stupid trick I know. Something that wouldn''t even work on toddlers. Yet to my never ceasing amazement my opponent looked behind them, in fact the entire arena did. Every Ork present seemed to look at where I''d pointed out to, obviously there was nothing there. Silence and confusion reigned across the entire arena, I had but a moment to take advantage of the situation. Grasping the axe tighter, I swung towards the neck of the Ork. My opponent was too concerned with my made up callout than to bother continue with the fight and as such I had clinched victory from the jaws of defeat.


    My axe struck true and dug into the flesh of the creature, the hide at first was tough but once I''d gotten through the first part of it the rest was like a knife through butter. The axe dug deep into the neck of the beast before I''d lopped it off entirely. With a sigh of relief I dropped the axe only to hear something strange, coming from the head I lopped off came a string of words. "Wot? Wot''s ova'' there?" The head spoke despite not even being connected to the body and had seemed to barely notice it had been decapitated. WHAT?!


    After a few moments of looking confused the Ork''s eyes glossed over white as the main body of the Ork slumped and fell to the ground, it seemed as though I''d yet again underestimated the sheer durability of these Orks. But a win was a win, I''d managed it, even if just barely.


    As I stood still the entire crowd exploded once more into a rowdy cheer, it took them a moment to realise what was going on and what had happened, most of them were still looking at the spot he''d pointed to after all. Just as I thought the crowd couldn''t get any louder the largest Ork of them all let out a bellowing laugh that seldom seemed to drown out the entire crowd. With a deep guttural yell it spoke "GOOD WORK RUNTZ! THOSE WERE SOME GUD SCRAPS!"

 Growf and Livin

    I stood there, my ears ringing I''d managed it. I beat the damned beast of an Ork, while it was smaller compared to the average Ork that sat dotted around the arena, compared to me the Ork was a beast. It was like comparing a light-weight fighter to that of a middle-weight one. An almost insurmountable level to cross, but I had managed it with a little bit of cunning...


    The crowd continued their rowdiness long after the big Ork had made his announcement, although something strange was happening inside me. I felt a mysterious energy pass through me, it felt similar to that of adrenaline, pumping through my body, invigorating me-- daring me to go faster, to go harder.


    The sheer amount of it had almost drowned out the very crowd around me and it took a serious amount of willpower to not simply go berserk and expend all this newfound energy. As I stood there and took it all in, this strange power seemed to begin to sink into my very bones, invigorating my very being and even my physical form. My muscles seemed to bulge a little larger, my mind became a little clearer and the world around me a little smaller. Was I growing?


    As I tried grasping onto this energy it seemed to have stopped as quickly as it came on, this had left me dumbfounded. It made no sense whatsoever, what were the exact conditions for me to grow in such an exaggerated manner. Surely there had to be a method to the madness, while these creatures were stupid there were reasonings as to why they acted in such a manner. There had to be a reason for this, and so I began to map out a few possibilities.


    1.  This world had a strange game like mechanic in which defeating enemies allowed me to ''Level up''.


    2. I was simply growing incrementally at certain times of day.


    3. This arena had some secret hidden mechanism that allowed for the Orks to grow at an exponential rate in accordance with winning.


    4. The Orks watching the fight were the ones responsible for creating the energy that invigorated me.


    5. ORKS ARE BULLSHIT!


    In this scenario I didn''t really know which one I should put credence into, every part of my being screamed that option five seemed to be the most correct. Everything I had experienced up till now was simply just too absurd. I''d have to experiment further; observe, hypothesize and declare a conclusion. I had to stick to what I knew, and what I knew was rationality. At the very least I could apply a scientific method, everything that was absurd or made no sense was simply something that wasn''t understood enough. Although the way things were going I wasn''t exactly sure I''d have enough time alive to be able to live through and see the fruits of my labour.


    Shaking my head I decided to anchor myself back to reality rather than simple thought experiments, the crowd had began to lull in their intensity. Out of pure instinct I raised my axe to the sky and the crowd went wild with their typical hooliganisms, after basking in it all for a few more moments I spat. What the hell was I doing? Why did I care what such brutes thought of me? Cursing inwardly I lowered my arm, spun on my heels and walked with purpose back to Gorblitz and his band of merry men.


    As I came closer and closer, I noticed the large Ork had his signature shit-eating grin. This asshole...  With a few more steps I was up close enough to actively interact with the group. "That wuz a good show!" Gorblitz spoke which incurred the hollering of his boys. "You showed ''em who''z da'' boss of da pitz. I''z knew dat you had it in yaz." I let out a grunt in response, it was this asshole who''d threw me straight into the meat grinder and I was less than impressed with his methods.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "Roight, I''z sure youz be wantin'' anova crack at it. But we''z gots to show ya'' around. Boss''z orda''s." With a pat on my shoulder that almost sent me sprawling I grunted in acknowledgement. It would be a good idea to get a layout of the camp. To find out where we were and what life would be like around here was of paramount importance. With a nod I decided to follow Glorblitz who had begun walking away back towards the main entrance of ''Da Pitz.


    Exiting through the entrance the familiar smell of sweat, blood, and the acrid tang of metal and oil filled my alien nostrils. It was both disgusting and oddly familiar to my new body. As I walked I noticed that I had already become much more adept at controlling my body, did that energy from earlier have something to do with? Hmm, more experiments for later.


    The birthing fields... or whatever they called it was still creating new Orks. It was strange to think that such muscular beings came from the ground. Although I wasn''t exactly familiar with the process in which Orks came into being I was fairly confident that they were grown from the pods that I emerged from. That makes me some kind of plant? Well they did say that fungus was closer to animal matter than that of plant matter, that made more sense to why the Orks were such beefcakes. Maybe it was a fungus rather than strictly a plant... Anyway, more things to take a look into at a later time.


    As soon as we left the entrance Gorblitz stopped, turned and pointed back to the arena. "Dat''s Da Pitz, it''z where da Boss is found. You saw da Boss'' throne, behinds dat is his quarterz." Nodding with satisfaction to himself Gorblitz turned back around and started off again, quickly I followed like a lost puppy.


    Being led through the camp was eye opening, the place was a dump with little care for cleanliness or organisation. Frankly it was embarrassing and it was making me sick, so much efficiency lost... The difference from my old world was night and day, I would say this place was making me green but well... If I were to get a position of leadership in this camp I''d be making some radical changes. I could get this ragtag group of hooligans into a working and well oiled machine in no time, or so I thought...


    After a short walk a massive amount set of tents made out of animal skins, rusted metal and other none-distinct fabric formed to create what I assumed to be barracks. It was a sprawl of the tents and huts, so many orks in close proximity was sure to cause problems. The bastards loved to fight that much was true, I too felt the need for violence in my core. Just as the thought came a small scuffle between two Orks had broken out. Over what, I had no idea, Gorblitz just ignored the fight as if it was business as usual. With a shake of my head I continued.


    "Dis here is da barracks, it''z where da boyz sleep and keep their gubbinz." Gorblitz spoke and pointed out to the vast array of living quarters, on the inside of the tents were strange fabrics, animal hides and strangely even some human-like mattresses. Inside there were also several weapons strewn about, seemingly available for the taking, although I imagined that any attempt at such an act would lead to a fight. Grunting in response to Gorblitz he continued on down the almost endless rows of tents and huts right to the end where there was a singular large tent. Well it was less of a tent and more of a single tarp over a pit filled with smaller strange creatures, that resembled that of goblins.


    They were much smaller, scrawnier and even had a hint of intelligence behind their eyes that many of the other Orks simply did not possess. These crafty little buggers seemed useful, but their conditions and squaller made the situation all the more clear to me. This really was a ''might makes right'' race, where physical might directly correlated with physical size. "Dis ''ere is the Gretchen Hovels. If ya'' needz a job doin'' one of these grotz will do it for ya''. Be careful though, thez'' gits might stab ya''." With a guffaw Gorblitz looked down at the hovel with a look of amusement until one of them crawled from the pit and prostrated itself directly before Gorblitz.


    "Haz youz'' got any scrap fo-" the small creature was cut off. Before it could finish its sentence Gorblitz stomped on the creature crushing it into a bloody pulp. All that remained was a stain. It was clear that he held no sympathy or empathy for the smaller creatures. With a ruthless grunt Gorblitz turned back around and began marching back out of the barracks with a purpose. "Neva'' trust those grotz, theyz'' as likely to stabz ya'' as they are to help."

 Gubbinz

    As we meandered out of the barracks area Gorblitz led me to the next few locations, the first being on the outskirts of the camp. It was a secluded eery shack with strange iconography that I''ve never seen before. I could''ve even swore I saw the odd arc of electrical energy emanating from the hut. "That''z where da Weirdboy lives, steer clear of ''em if you like your ''ead where it iz." Glorbitz''s explanation did little to satiate my curiosity, what the hell was a weirdboy? "Uhh Glorbitz whatz a weirdboy?" I attempted at asking but only received a none-committal grunt in response. Either he didn''t know either or didn''t care enough to respond to my question, shrugging we continued on our path of campsite enlightenment.


    The larger Ork led me back towards the centre of camp directly towards where I''d seen a few Orks haphazardly slap a few pieces of metal before whacking it on the back of what looked like a bike. As I got closer they were still at their strange antics. It was a chaotic workshop filled with half-built contraptions, piles of scrap, and the constant sound of hammering and welding. At the centre of it all was a particularly large ork standing around eight feet tall, it was almost as large as the ''Boss'' that had sat as the lord of these Orks in the arena.


    Stranger more- was that this Ork seemed to be half a cybernetic mish-mash of technology that looked like it belonged in a junkyard and half monster. There was no real finesse to it or any sleekness, it was quite reminiscent of something straight out of the steampunk genre, if instead of steam it was oil and scrap. It was a wonder the creature was at all moving, while I didn''t have much inclination towards tech or engineering, there was no possible way that the scrap heap was at all functional. For example the beasts right arm was entirely cybernetic, a complex assembly of pistons, gears, and metal plates. The hand looked like a messed up swiss army knife, capable of wielding various implements such as a wrench, a saw and a welding torch. Yet none of it was attached to a power source of any kind. It all just kind of stuck into the Orks body with reckless abandon.


    My conclusions of Orks just being bullshit and devoid of any rationality was becoming more and more likely. Was this that shitty ''God''s'' plan? To wow me with such inane bullshit that I''d become a devout believer? It was a poor plan and one that I would not fall for. After all there had to be a meaningful explanation for all of this. As I was caught in my own musings Gorblitz spoke up. "Dis ''ere is da Mek''s Workshop. Dis is where youz will repair your bitz and where youz will get your fighty bitz." Gorblitz continued directly towards the workshop and I followed closely behind.


    As I came closer I came to see these ''Fighty Bitz'' that Gorblitz was talking about, they just seemed like scraps of junk thrown together. There were a few firearms there too which surprised me but they didn''t exactly look like they were going to work very well. In fact they looked like they were just as likely to shoot back into me as they did look like they would shoot forwards. It was essentially a metal pipe, a handgrip and a trigger all ''welded'' into a package of death and scrap. There did seem to be a magazine slotted onto the pipe too, but it was welded on and wouldn''t be able to be taken off the weapon.


    So these Orks while primitive looking seemed to have a basic grasp on firearms and even cybernetics, it was exceedingly surprising. How in the world did they manage to come up with this level of equipment, some of it even surpassed that of my old world in terms of technology level alone. We hadn''t managed to create cybernetic limbs that acted like an actual limb yet, and here these dumb brutes had managed it, in an albeit primitive way which was even more surprising. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Now that I was closer the eight foot tall Ork had several more ''augmentations'',  his left eye was replaced with a strange glowing red implant that darted from left to right taking in the entire workshop. Both of its legs were also reinforced with what seemed to be a hydraulic system, giving the Ork a sort of exoskeleton that was bolted into its flesh haphazardly. As I was engrossed in what I saw I felt a distinct THUMP on the back of my skull, Gorblitz had smacked me. "Don''t stare, he might krump ye''." thoroughly warned I averted my gaze from the strange Ork and back to the pile of weapons.


    After a few moments Gorblitz walked up to one of the several Orks also hammering away at the scrap metal. "Oi, one of me ladz needsa'' shoota and a choppa''." One of the Orks nodded before stopping and looking up at Gorblitz. They extended a hand towards my squad lead seemingly expecting payment. With a nod Gorblitz walked back over to me, I gave a confused look as I had no money to give. For the second time today Gorblitz struck me directly in my face, I felt a sharp pain as a few of my teeth broke from my gums and jaw.


    As my head and ears rang Gorblitz simply plucked the broken teeth that now lay strewn across the floor. With the teeth now in hand he gave them to the mechanic Ork who in turn passed over one of the shoddy pipe guns along with a particularly large knife. Still reeling in surprise and mild pain I stared at the exchange. Gorblitz seemed confused for a moment too before he spoke up "Teef is what you buy gubbinz with. They''ll grow back. They alwayz do." Shaking my head in slight disbelief at this, it gave me a few ideas. Was this one of the reasons the Ork''s fought so much? They were quite literally gambling with their money by fighting each other. If the teeth grew back as Gorblitz said then wouldn''t this actually make a pretty stable economy? The more Orks the more ''money'' that was flowing through the local tribe. There could never be too much over inflation as teeth would only grow so fast, but it also meant that wealth would sit neatly in the hands of the more powerful. Damn... This is actually kind of smart for the brutes.


    With my new weapons in hand I gave them a good look over, much like the rest the pistol like weapon was made out of scrap. I had honest reservations to whether or not this thing would work, would I need to get another one once I ran out of ammunition? There was no way to take out the magazine or any way to put new bullets into the weapon. With a sigh we were off again, heading towards another particularly large tent with an open front.


    The tent had a red cross painted on the front of it signifying its presence as a place of medicine. It definitely did not give the vibe of something clean or a place where you''d want to have surgery. It was dirty, squalled and quite cramped. As we drew closer there was a familiar Ork laid across a table, its head half stitched back on. With a closer look it was the Ork that I had decapitated not too long ago in the arena. Why were they stitching it back together? Did the Orks have some superstition about being whole after death, was there an Ork religion of sorts? An afterlife? With a few more stitches the head was once more attached to the oversized body.


    What happened next truly shook me to my core, the body started to twitch and move as the previously glossy eyes filled once more with meaning and self-awareness. Did that Ork just get revived by having its head stitched back on? WHAT?! JUST HOW HARD WAS IT TO KILL AN ORK?! Gorblitz gave a grunt of approval before speaking "Gud, he''z a biggun'', he''z gunna grow big one day." The fuck?


    Ok, this was starting to get absurd. I knew the Ork''s were strange and almost defied nature itself but this was a blatant insult to the way the world worked. What kind of insane biology did these creatures have if they could cheat death so easily. This is just getting to be too much.

 Vortigaunt Prime

    M41 963, HIVE CITY VORTIGAUNT, VORTIGAUNT PRIME, ULTIMA SEGMENTUM.


    The air was thick with the acrid stench of industry as Colonel Marcus Voss surveyed the bustling streets of Hive Vortigaunt from his vantage point atop the fortress walls. Below, the hive city teemed with life, a chaotic blend of workers, merchants, and soldiers moving through the smog-choked streets. It wasn''t a pretty city by any means, but it was home. Heavily fortified and almost perfectly designed to hold against siege for literal decades, Hive City Vortigaunt was the last bastion of the hive world.


    Colonel Marcus Voss, a staunch member of the PDF forces upon Vortiguant Prime had seen assaults come and go. He was a grizzled war veteran that had seen centuries of combat, yet no foe had been as a persistent threat to the security of Vortigaunt Prime as the Orks had. Yet, time and time again Marcus Voss had been apart of the forces that held the greentide at bay. However, this was his first time as acting commander of the forces of Hive City Vortigaunt. This was a privilege only a few held, and was usually first in line to take command over the entire PDF forces in case of catastrophe.


    Across his desk were several reports and graphs all monitoring Ork movements planetwide, fighting the Orks was a lifelong profession, once they appeared on a planet you knew that the planet was doomed. It was never a matter of if it will fall, only when... Whether it be decades, centuries or millennia. Sure there were stalwart defenders out there, but it was an inevitability. It rested on Colonel Marcus Voss'' shoulders to protect the Imperium to the oncoming threat One More Time.


    As he watched over the bustling Hive City a precise knock echoed out through his chambers, and so he spoke up. "Enter." As he did a young looking lieutenant marched through the door with purpose. He entered about halfway into the room before snapping a crisp salute, turning to meet the young lad Marcus gave a quick nod. "At ease soldier." with the quick command the young man lowered his hand to his side. In his opposite hand he carried a data-slate.


    "There''s been an increase in activity in the badlands, auspex scans have shown a mass of greenskin converging. Further scans have shown presence of possible leadership." The young Lieutenant voice almost cracked as they spoke, he was nervous. Marcus furrowed his brow at the news. "Already? It''s only been a few years since the last battle for Vortigaunt prime." holding his hand out he motioned for the young lieutenant to pass him the pad. The Lieutenant quickly marched forwards before handing him the pad.


    +-------------------+ | | | VORTIGAUNT PRIME AUSPEX SCAN | | | +-----------------------+ | | | Date: M41.963 | | Time: 14:32 Standard Imperial Time | | Operator: Lt. Adrian Kellar | | | -


    SCAN SUMMARY


    Ork Presence Detected: | | | - Sector 7-12: High Activity | - Estimated Numbers: 50k+ | | - Leader: Unkown | | | | - Sector 52: Moderate Activity | | - Raiding Tribes Detected | | - | | - Sector 3: Low Activity | | - Scouting Parties Detected | | - Estimated Numbers: 50-100 | | |


    | -----------| | RECOMMENDATIONS | | ---------- |The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    | | Reinforce defences in Sector 7-12 | - Increase patrols in Sectors | - Monitor Sector 3 for potential build-up. Strike hard and fast before they have time to truly build up their force. | |


    +-------------------------------+| | | | END OF REPORT | | | +-------------------------------+


    Marcus'' eyes flittered quickly over the report, taking in the information. It was short and to the point, just how he liked it. Making a mental note of the Lieutenants name he gave a succinct nod. Sucking in a cool breath of air Marcus looked back up to Adrian, "Good work Lieutenant. You may be dismissed." There was a look of uncertainty on the young officer''s face. Marcus picked up on this and took initiative "Anything on your mind Lieutenant?"


    Lt. Adrian Kellar swallowed down his anxiety as he spoke up, "There has been rumours of an increased amount of citizenry disappearing surrounding the underhive. The PDF are starting to get antsy, some are saying that the mutant gangs are getting out of hand." Wincing Marcus pinched the bridge of his nose. Everything seemed to be piling on at just the wrong time, the majority of the Imperial Guard forces usually stationed on Vortigaunt Prime were off planet, the Administratum had called for reinforcements a few systems over to deal with some Xenos threat that was starting to snowball out of control.


    The amount of threats were mounting, the only reason the governor and the PDF Commander allowed for them to take so many soldiers was due to optimistic projections of Ork activity. There had been a recent huge battle across the Badlands of Vortigaunt Prime, the battle had gotten so intense that even Astartes had gotten involved. It was believed that they had managed to cleanse a large amount of the residual Ork spores. It seems as though they had missed a few. Marcus couldn''t fault them, it was impossible to burn every last Ork spore. It seemed even the Emperor''s Angels weren''t infallible.


    Unfortunately this time, the forces of Vortiguant Prime were on their own. With a few mental calculations and a few thoughts the Colonel spoke up. "Alright, get in contact with the Adeptus Arbites and provide them some equipment, if the mutants are starting to get bold they''ll need it. Also schedule an appointment with the Ministorum for me. I''ll see if they''re keen on taking action." With a nod Lt. Kellar gave one last crisp salute before exiting the office.


    Marcus'' once straight shoulders slumped, the previous commanding energy leaving his body. He seemingly aged another decade as he looked over the reports. It was looking grim. Vortigaunt Prime had suffered heavy losses in the last Ork Waaaagh!, they were barely able to build back up several battle groups. This was further exacerbated by their best trained forces being deployed off-world. Would they be able to return in time? Would the Administratum even allow for them to do so? With a sigh the Colonel sat at his desk and pulled over his cogitator. Plugging in a few commands he set up several meetings and even sent a message off to the Astra Telepathika for an Astropath for a recall request for several regiments of the Vortigaunt Dragoons to return.


    He turned his gaze to the manufactorum district, where the forges burned day and night, churning out weapons and vehicles for the war effort. The workers toiled tirelessly, their faces grimy with soot and sweat. It was a harsh life, but one they bore with stoic determination.


    This world was stalwart and it would not fall under his purview, with a few more commands he fired over several messages to the Governor. He too had to be made aware, and would likely have to delve into his political influence if they were to make it out of this situation alive. Thankfully, Governor Lucius Vortigaunt was a competent leader, rare within the Imperium and the Colonel held no doubt that he would do everything in his power to keep the gears of industry churning.


    Marcus was aware that he held the numbers advantage, but with Orks this was not to last long. The Lieutenant was right, they needed to strike first and put an end to it. The planet could not weather another war on the scale of the last. The next few weeks would decide whether or not this would be a quick decisive strike or a long blown war of attrition. "The Emperor Protects." he muttered to himself.

 Orkish Secrets?

    Seeing an Ork being resurrected with something as simple as a stitch shook me to my very core, the Orks were becoming stranger and stranger by the day. I had no real idea how this was happening, they were seemingly defying the laws of nature on a daily basis. Was this the work of evolution or creation? It seemed too fantastical to be evolutionary but I vehemently reject the concept of a ''God'' creating anything. Perhaps it wasn''t a God that created these beings, they did seem to follow one purpose. That was war-- but right now we have no enemies to fight. I wonder who the enemy of this tribe is? I wouldn''t be surprised if it was just more Orks, they were just as happy to fight amongst themselves as anything after all.


    Squeezing my eyes shut and back open I refocused on reality, I''d been spending a lot of time introspecting recently. I wonder what the rest of the Orks would think if I had something other than fighting on my mind, I think I''d blow their minds. With a hop and a skip we were off on our way once more, Gorblitz leading me off to several more locations.


    The rest of the day was filled with me being led around and shown the various different points. Varying from training grounds that were simply just a few metal dummies strung up for target practice, they were pretty much pristine, the Orks far more happy with the fact that they were shooting rather than actually hitting their targets. To watchtowers with various Orks, Grots and others not really watching, more concerned with bullying each other and acting like drunken fools.


    A few places did actually catch my eye though, the so called ''Squig Pens'' as an example. It was an area fenced off with these strange red like creatures, they were about the size of a large dog but with the attitude of a feisty chihuahua. Biting at the ankles of the Orks and eating Gretchen in one chomp if they were starting to get riled up. I did feel bad for the little green boogers, they seemed to be much smarter than their larger counterparts. I would have to recruit a few of the little suckers to my entourage I''m sure I could make much better use of them than their current masters.


    The Squigs seemed just as useful, they ranged greatly in size and function. Some of them having bombs strapped to them, seemingly to be used as mobile and living bombs. Others were used like ammunition carriers, which was strange because I still haven''t figured out HOW TO RELOAD MY DAMN WEAPON!


    The day was beginning to come to a close when we passed by the final area, it was closed off and hidden behind particularly large piles of scrap that rose into the air like towers. It was a miracle tha--- there it is... One of the giant scrap piles began to sway in the wind before crumbling down crushing a couple of Orks that meandered around the bottom. No one seemed to care or move but the moving of the scrap heap revealed a few things. Mainly far too many signs that read "Keap Out!" "NO ORTHORISASHUN!" all in terribly spelt English...


    That did raise a question, I had been speaking to them in English. Well it wasn''t exactly the same, more of a terrible rendition of it but it was still strange. How did these beasts know to speak the language? More questions without answers... Just as I was caught up once more in my own thoughts Gorblitz spoke up in a severe tone "Don''t go in der, Boss''z orda''s. If they findz you in der, youz iz gonna get krumped!" I nodded in acknowledgement.


    The day was coming to an end, the sun beginning to set. Unsure of what to do with myself for the rest of the evening Gorblitz continued leading me somewhere. As it was getting darker a large fire nearby the centre of the camp was becoming more and more pronounced. Surrounding the fire was quite literally hundreds of Orks in a large procession as they danced around the campfire in a circular motion. It was all quite surreal and stereotypical for tribal life, shrugging I was led closer and closer.


    Once I was in complete eyeshot of the entire fire there were the so called ''Squigs'' being slowly roasted atop of the fire. It was about time too I was starting to get hungry, what was strange though is that I didn''t quite feel the pangs of hunger throughout the day, and it was only now that I was starting to feel voracious. Perhaps the green skin had something to do with it, I guess I was also technically a plant of sorts so it wouldn''t be too farfetched to think that I could also photosynthesize... These Orks really were bred for war, being able to remove a large part needed for supply chains and logistics truly made them a force to be reckoned with.


    Gorblitz continued to lead the small group of Orks to a spot just outside of the main crowd, he watched over the huge ceremony before nodding his head. "Get stuck in ladz." as he spoke the rest of the group began to whoop as they charged off into the crowd, joining in. Gorblitz himself had his signature grin as he watched over the group, it was a pleasant surprise. I thought he was just a brute as well but there was a hint of intelligence in his eyes as he watched and observed, that was until he got antsy and joined in too. Charging up and forwards into the crowd he left me all alone watching the large fire. Yeah, alone...


    I was the only one of my kind in this entire group of Orks, while I did have some sort of connection to this group of aliens there was still a large part of me that denied any sort of correlation. It was becoming difficult to see myself as entirely human anymore, and I certainly didn''t want to become any more Orkish, but where did that leave me? Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    ''Pssh, I''m starting to get all emotional. Now isn''t the time for this.'' I thought to myself, shaking my head I prepared to wander off back to the barracks and find myself a quiet spot to figure out a few things. That was when I felt the ground rumble, it wasn''t entirely dark so I looked around hoping to find where it was coming from. Off in the distance I eventually caught sight of large plumes of dust rising up in the air, a few other Orks seemed to notice it too.


    Was there an attack on the camp incoming? What was going on? After a few panicked moments my fears were allayed as the Orks around me starting whooping and hollering in excitement. As the dust clouds got closer and closer I saw exactly what they were so excited about. On the horizon were a set of half a dozen open trucks with Orks hanging off the sides like a bunch of madmen. Inside the trucks was piles and piles of junk, shiny things and weapons that looked quite strange.


    The convoy of trucks came in quickly and shakily, much like most things with the Orks they appeared to be made out of literal garbage. It being a miracle that they actually worked, wiry frames and a set of four tires that were almost square. As they came closer the whole crowd around the fire only grew more and more intense and in a few brief minutes the trucks had came to a skidding halt around twenty meters away from the actual fire. The largest Ork from the leading truck clambered down from his vehicle sauntering up to the front of the crowd. "Raid wuz a success! Lotsa shiny gubbinz! Dem oomiez didn''t even see it comin''!"


    The hell was an ''Oomie''? As I got a closer look at the junk that came there were pieces of armour that looked like it could fit around the average person, perhaps it was an alien on this planet that the Orks liked to fight in particular. There seemed to be a few rifles too, but they were quite blocky and entirely strange, they looked almost like a strange Terf gun. Like a toy that couldn''t really do anything. On the side of it was a strange eagle looking symbol, definitely an organised group. There were a few others that were essentially the exact same, so they must be mass-produced. It was likely that this enemy was heavily industrialised and spanned the planet, leaving the Orks heavily outnumbered.


    If this was all that we had, it was no wonder that the Orks were resorting to simple raiding. I''d have to try and get myself on one of these raiding parties to try and figure some things out. I wouldn''t be able to find much out here...


    The celebrations continued on for what felt like hours, a lot of the loot that had been gained from the recent success was carted off to the large scrap heaps next to the Boss''s ''no entry'' area. If a lot of scrap and tech was being carted over there I had a suspicion something was being built. Something much larger than the trucks and bikes that I had seen so far.


    As the crowd was reaching its apex the large squigs was taken from the fire and tossed down to the crowds with reckless abandon. Large amounts of Orks surged forwards to try and get a bite of the food tossed down, it was like a free-for-all. Naturally the largest of the Orks got their first pickings of the meat, the smaller Orks hanging back in hopes of not getting trampled to death. It seems they were at least smart enough not to pick a fight with the larger ones if they could help it.


    Thankfully, smaller squigs were then thrown onto the fire to roast. The biggest and the tastiest it seemed went to the larger Orks to feast on with the smaller ones being chucked on for the less brutish Orks. At least there seemed to be enough food to go around.


    The larger Orks had finished their voracious feasting in record time leaving only the carcasses and bones of the squigs left. They had sucked the poor creatures dry leaving nothing for the rest of the Orks to eat. As more and more food was tossed out I even managed to get my own fill, I had to work my way in and shove off a few similar sized and smaller Orks to get to the food, but in the end it was worth it. My stomach no longer growling I was left satisfied. The food itself wasn''t bad at all, the squig itself was quite gamey similar to that of a wild boar. Strangely though it did have an ever so slight fishy taste that was barely noticeable but was definitely there. Overall, not the worst thing I''d ever tasted, although it could have done with some seasoning.


    With the entire Ork group fed the party had slowed down quite considerably, the once loud and belligerent Orks had began to slowly feed away from the fire and towards the barracks. What was strange though is that I didn''t feel the least bit tired, in fact I was just as awake as when I was fighting in the arena. Maybe I''d feel a bit more tired once I got my head down, it''s not like I had anything to do anyway.


    Wandering off to the barracks I followed a large amount of Orks that were doing the same, a few did walk back over to the watchtowers which I found to be quite responsible for the fiends. To be fair, maybe they were ordered to, with the threat of ''getting krumped'' if they didn''t comply. And so I wandered off to find an empty spot or bed. Unfortunately I didn''t find much in the way of a bed, but I did find a nice rock to put my head down upon and my lack of pain sensors made it so that it wasn''t particularly uncomfortable either.


    With my weapons close by I attempted to close my eyes and drift off to sleep, unfortunately I was wide awake without a hint of fatigue in my body. I was about to start shuffling around when my body began to naturally slow. My thinking laboured and so did my breathing. I wasn''t exactly asleep but I wasn''t awake either, I had entered this state almost the second I willed myself to sleep. It was as if I had entered an animalistic torpor, similar to the sensation I had inside my pod.


    The night drifted by quickly as my thoughts drifted of my new life, the fight that I had fought and the group of hillbillies that I had been forced to join. Introspection had taken over me as the sun had entirely set...

 Reuinion

    The night passed as I lay in a state of half consciousness, it was almost like a state of sleep paralysis. You can see the world around you but you can''t move, your mind drifts as reality seems just a little less real. While I was no astronomer, I was familiar with the classics. Orion''s  Belt, Big Dipper and Cassiopeia to name a few. However, I couldn''t identify any one of these constellations.


    My slightly numbed mind slowly came to the conclusion that this was in fact a different world, possibly a different galaxy. I''d really left my old life, a small part of me hung onto the unrational ideal that I was still able to find my way home. This place was just too alien for my liking. As the stars past across the sky like a timelapse there was one familiar constellation, but it seemed to be upside down? Four stars in the formation of an elongated diamond, it was the Crux, a religious symbol within Christianity. Why did it have to be this one...


    This had some strange implications, as I continued to watch the stars I saw familiar patterns but they were either in the wrong place or they were flipped or rotated at strange angles. What the...


    Just as the realisation hit me, time once more began to slow. The night wasn''t getting any brighter, maybe I was waking up... Even in an alien body I was still a light sleeper. After a few moments passed I assumed that I would have woken up from this dulled mental state and yet I didn''t. The world just slowed and slowed till all stopped, this was a familiar sensation. One that I''d experienced before. ''Oh God dammit.'' I thought to myself.


    "Exodus 20:7: ¡°You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.¡± The familiar voice of an elder man rung out through my soul. It was HIM again... I tried moving my body from stupor but failed once more, I''d be unable to ring this bastards neck.


    "You have been here now for half a year, are you ready to admit your falsehoods and return to the light of the Lord?" I mentally spat at the notion. Also what about half a year? I''d been here a day at most. Then it hit me, I''d been in that damn pod in the ground for half a year now? It only takes half a year for an Ork to fully mature from conception? That was absurd.


    "All you have done is reaffirm my deep set belief that you are no ''God''. There is no grand work of benevolent creation here. You wish for me to bend my will and suckle upon your ''divine'' teat and thank you for all the complications that comes with that?" while I was unable to speak I screamed out in my mind with every ounce of venom I''ve had. Silence ensued for a few moments before the voice sang a heavenly chorus.


    "It seems that you have not learned anything yet, perhaps rationality is not enough. I suppose you require more strife. You shall learn to fear the wroth of the Lord, for he is just. But remember, he is also merciful. All you must do is seek forgiveness and in the name of the Lord and I shall forgive you." The last part sounded rehearsed, overused and tired. This being- This entity-- had no real care. All it cared to do was demand upmost obedience, was he so arrogant as to truly believe that all sentient beings will worship such a deranged being just from being powerful. Strangely human of it...


    "That is quite enough from you, Ork-grub. If you do not come around soon, more extreme measures will have to be taken. Repent and fear the moment. The kingdom of heaven awaits." just as quickly as time stopped, the cogs of the universe began to churn once more. The stars began their rapid acceleration across the night sky. It was over. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    M41 963, HIVE CITY VORTIGAUNT, VORTIGAUNT PRIME, ULTIMA SEGMENTUM.


    Lieutenant Adrian Kellar tossed and turned, they struggled to fall asleep. The Ork menace on the horizon was an ever looming shadow that cast its darkness across the whole planet. There were very few alive upon Vortigaunt Prime that did not know what an Ork presence meant, it was a ticking time bomb awaiting detonation.


    As he finally drifted off to sleep, he had the strangest of dreams. A pure sense of otherworldliness overtook him, all he knew was war and its preparations. The air around him shimmered with an ethereal glow and an omnipresence of pure gold. Before him stood a cloaked figure in golden armour more magnificent than anything that he had seen before. An overwhelming sense of reverence and inferiority spread out through his entire being and almost out of pure instinct he found himself to be kneeling.


    Almost shaking in religious awe Kellar watched as the figure unclipped its golden cloak from its back and held it within its oversized hands. With a flick the cloak expanded, encompassing his entire world. Slowly things distorted as the ethereal glow began to dissipate, revealing true earthly surrounding.


    A battlefield began to pry itself free from his blurry vision, it comprised that of the Orks facing off against Imperium forces. It was clear who was winning, the Orks, they were pushing forward like an ocean of green, quickly overwhelming the stalwart defences that the Imperium had manufactured.


    At the centre of it all, a strangely calm Ork that pierced through the chaos of it all. It''s eyes rested solely on Kellar and glared with an intensity that sent shivers down his spine. The golden clad figure nodded his head. It was clear what he wanted.


    "Lieutenant Adrian Kellar, you are chosen to defend the Imperium. The green tide rises, and with it, a great threat. You must stand firm, for the fate of Vortigaunt Prime rests upon your shoulders." The vision shifted, showing scenes of destruction and despair. Hive cities burning, soldiers falling, and this strange Ork leading his horde with ruthless efficiency. But amidst the chaos, Kellar saw glimpses of hope¡ªhis own forces standing strong, pushing back the Ork invaders, and reclaiming their world.


    The golden figure stepped closer, and Kellar felt a surge of strength and determination. "You have the Emperor''s blessing. Go forth and protect your people. Do not falter, for the light of the Emperor guides you." The vision twisted once more to a location he recognised, it as one of the many outposts that were dotted across the landscape but this one specifically had identifiable markings. Sector-Nine, Outpost-sixty three.


    It was clear what his mission was and what he had to do, he had to reinforce this location and defend it against the oncoming threat. Failure here could mean doom for Vortigaunt Prime and he would succeed, as the Emperor himself had given him this mission.


    As morning came, Lt. Kellar had managed to retain his memory of his dream as if the contents were burned into his very soul. Rising quickly from his slumber and bunk his quarters he moved with purpose. Pushing through his morning routine with ruthless efficiency he eventually presented himself as the distinguished Officer that he truly was. Pressed uniform and spotless quarters he was ready to begin his preparations. Being a Lieutenant he had a small amount of freedom with what he was able to accomplish, thankfully the Colonel had already sanctioned patrols and reinforcements to be sent out to sectors 7-12.


    Taking out his Vox-Caster he tuned into the command frequency of his Company Captain. "This is Lieutenant Adrian Kellar requesting permission to take Platoon-Four out to reinforce Sector-Nine patrol routes, over." After a few moments of static a rough voice echoed out. "Received, Lieutenant Kellar, passing on order request to the Captain and relevant authority. The Emperor protects, Out."

 Reunion

    It only felt like a few minutes had passed until the sun began to rise, as it came I felt the sun''s warmth tickle my leathery hide. Almost instantly I felt my cells begin to invigorate themselves, the lethargy that had slowly crept up on me dissipating quickly. It seemed my theory regarding a rudimentary level of photosynthesis was correct, which was rather surprising. I wonder how far this could be pushed, and how long I would be able to go without food in general.


    What was also pretty surprising was that the minor battle damage I had suffered the day before was already beginning to fade. It seems the regenerative factor of these Orks was much higher than that of humans, while it was not visible it was still quite remarkable just how fast I already felt better.


    On top of everything, there was no early morning fatigue, I did not need a morning coffee to get off to a strong start for the day. Pushing myself from my comfortable rock I picked up my only possessions stowing them away in a makeshift bandolier that looked as though it was going to fall apart. With a quick look around I noticed a few more Orks stirring, hoping to get out of the way of the boisterous Orks this early in the morning I made my way off to the training ground.


    There were a few things that I wanted to test out there, I''d not seen any of the Orks around exercising in any other way than simply fighting. This was quite surprising as every single Ork was for lack of a better word, jacked. Even I had a substantial amount of muscle mass attributed to my body. I wondered how much larger I could get through exercising and learning the ins and outs of my new physical form.


    The training ground was in sight, as I saw before it was only barebones. A couple of training dummies with strange armour strapped up to them, there were no additional weapons to be seen and no additional ammunition. Strange... ''Well, I suppose I should try out this firearm and see how it performs.'' I thought to myself.


    While I''d fired weapons when I was in high school with the cadets I hadn''t really continued this as a hobby into my adulthood. In fact, I hadn''t fired a weapon since I was sixteen which was almost twenty years ago now. Pulling out my ''shoota'' from the bandolier, I held the strange pipe-like device in my hand and inspected the weapon. Turning it over in my hands I got a good look at the firearm.


    It really was just a hunk of junk, I honestly had no idea whether or not it would work in the first place. With an exasperated sigh, I held the weapon in two hands aiming it down towards the dummy. Slowing my breathing I remembered a technique back from my old cadet days, it was best to shoot when you had no air in your lungs at all, the complete opposite of what movies would have you believe.


    When I had entered the perfect state that I had wanted, my arms had stopped moving and my breath all exhaled I aimed the barrel towards the centre mass. The shoota had no iron sights to speak of making it that much harder to actually aim the weapon. After a moment of deliberation, I pulled the trigger and sure enough a projectile fired out of the weapon and flew forwards. The weapon had a noticeable kick-back and despite new well-developed muscles the muzzle flew upwards and a CLANG followed.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    The projectile had actually managed to hit the intended target but not at all where he had aimed, the bullet had only just landed a glancing blow as a small chip on the side of the armour had formed. This weapon was not at all accurate, well maybe it wasn''t the fault of the weapon.


    I repeated the previous steps from before and fired a few similar rounds and even tried compensating for what I believed to be the fault of the zeroing. Unfortunately, that wasn''t the case, the weapon was just extremely inaccurate. Letting out a sigh I decided to have a look at the barrel to see if there were any deformities. To my surprise, the barrel itself despite a lot of wear and tear looked to be fairly intact.


    Tilting the barrel away from me I attempted to look inside to see if I could find any obstructions or issues inside. It only took me a few moments to realise what was wrong with the weapon. There was no rifling... The projectiles on the inside wouldn''t spin and as such created an unstable round that was unpredictable at the best of times.


    How was it that these creatures had managed to create cybernetic limbs and prosthetics that worked better than the human modern-day equivalent, yet they hadn''t even invented rifling... Shaking my head a thought popped into my mind. ''I could raise through the ranks through a few tricks like this. If I can hit everything much more accurately than my companions, I should be able to distinguish myself.''


    Firing off a few more shots I tried to figure out what was going on with my ammunition situation. Eventually, the weapon gave a CLICK and no more bullets came out. Giving it a good shake testing to see if there was a jam I pulled the trigger a few more times before conceding that the weapon was actually out of ammo.


    ''Alright, it''s time to pay those workshop Orks a visit.'' I thought to myself as I slung the shoota back into its spot in the bandolier. With a purpose, I began to walk towards the Ork workshop. I had a few things that I wanted sorted, the most important being whether or not I could actually reload this weapon.


    After a few short minutes, I reached the large tent, and a few more Orks were surrounding it. Now that I looked around there seemed to be an even larger number of Orks surrounding the area than yesterday. It wasn''t by too much but it was certainly noticeable. As I approached the workshop I unslung my weapon and held it out in front of me. With a grunt I spoke up "Howz do I reloadz my shoota?" I mimicked the way these beasts spoke to not raise suspicion in the Orks around me. If I was different in a significant way I was sure to be singled out in a less than savoury way. The Ork that I asked looked surprised as if I had even asked such a stupid question, in just a moment he retorted "Stupid runt, youz just gotta pour some scrap in da end."


    I gave a look of surprise that the other Ork seemed to pick up on, with a gutter laugh he snatched my weapon from my hands, turned it so the barrel was pointing upwards and began to pour small bits of scrap down the barrel. With a shake, the scrap seemed to fall into place at the magazine. With a satisfied grunt, he handed it back to me and got back to hammering away at a piece of metal, shaping it into a pipe.


    ''What the hell? There''s no way that would work would it?'' I thought to myself in utter disbelief. Raising the weapon I pointed it towards the sky and pulled the trigger, sure enough, a metal projectile flew out the other end with a loud BANG. "See, youz got it." The Mech Boy spoke out.


    This was completely and utterly absurd and made no sense. I was struggling to find any sort of paradigm that these beasts followed. How in the world was I supposed to test out my hypothesis when there was no rationality to the variables. With an inward sigh, I prepared my next question.