Geoff sprinted through the darkness, darting from tree to tree, sweat dripping down his cheeks. Branches snagged at his clothes and hair, yet he endured it. He knew he ought to tread lightly in order to hide his tracks, but it was impossible at the pace he was keeping.

The orcs would be on his trail by daybreak. Gods forbid they pursued him through the night!

No, that was impossible. Pelas was by no means an established city, but the town had more than enough men to keep those barbarians distracted. At least until Geoff had made his escape.

Unless the orcs killed too many of them during the fighting.

Geoff fought back tears. Life had been so peaceful before the orcs had arrived. It was outrageous, unfair! How had things gone so wrong?

The messengers from the capital had brought word that the orcish horde was moving west, but no one had expected them to actually arrive, and certainly not so soon. Pelas was a town in a rural part of the kingdom, and villagers had been all but prepared. What use were wooden walls against those seven foot tall warriors? His fellow city guardsmen had scrambled to their positions at the first sign of torch fire from the trees. But by the time the orcs had began scaling the walls, the rest of the city militia had barely been stirred from their beds.

The poor bastards never stood a chance.

Geoff had often boasted to his friends that he would stand and fight at the sight of danger. That his slight (and somewhat effeminate) build and short frame didn't mean he couldn't wield a sword.

Tonight he learned the hard way that there were few things more effective at changing a young man's opinions than the sight of orcish warrior.

Only these weren't the sort of orcs he had imagined. They were as tall and muscular, but female. They wore heavy armor over shabby rags, but left most of their green skin exposed. Those massive arms, twice as muscular as the knights who sought accommodations at Pelas during their travels. Those unbelievably dense and rippling midsections. Those huge, meaty legs that looked larger than his own torso.

Most terrifying of all were the ungodly slabs of meat that swung freely between their thighs. As if the prospect of raiding humans was a form of deep arousal to them. Or were these orcesses always so large and hung? Even from afar, he could see the details of their members. Some members were studded or pierced. Others had purple-tinged cockheads. Plenty of them were a darker shade of green than the rest of their bodies, like their womanhood had seen their fair share of use.

The sight of those veiny members had nearly hypnotized Geoff at first. Now the memory sickened him. Praise the Gods he'd never see them up close. If things went to plan, he would never lay eyes on an orc again.

He slowed his pace and leaned against the nearest tree, heaving for breath. The screams of the town were distant now. The pulsing light from the burning buildings was no longer visible.

He was safe. At least for the moment.

He knew he should keep moving, but where was there to go? At this hour, the darkness of night was complete. He hadn't exactly planned to escape. While the other guards armed with dull iron swords and flimsy wooden pikes, he had slipped away in the panic, crawling on his chest through a secret exit to the town he and his friends had dug as boys.

Pathetic? Sure. Cowardly? Fine, he'd accept that label. But better to be craven than dead. Or worse.

Who could blame him? His mother always said he wasn't suited to be a guard. He doubted she would have approved him fighting orcish invaders. The sheer absurdity of the situation almost made Geoff laugh, and he would have, had he not been so damn tired.

If he was being completely honest, joining the town guard was merely an excuse to make easy coin, and spend nights drinking with his friends. And, more importantly, to earn the respect of Lucia, his childhood friend and the love of his life. Her wholesome smile was the reason he woke up in the morning. He spent his shifts at work yearning for how she scolded him sweetly whenever he teased her in his juvenile way. How she'd twirl her braided pigtails while he spoke.

That tantalizing, heart-shaped posterior of hers didn't hurt, either.

The farthest they had gotten was holding hands, but that was soon to change. It was no secret that there was a deep and unexplored sexual tension between them. He had planned to propose to her within the season. To declare his love for everyone to hear and see, to the jealousy of his friends. With the way their relationship had been going, she was guaranteed to say yes.

His lower lip trembled at the thought of what those brutish orc women would do with her.

Don't think about that now. Don't think about anything. Just keep running.

Only there wasn't anywhere to run to. The forest canopy was too thick to see the stars, making navigation impossible. It would be easier in the morning, and so long as he found a water source, he would survive. The king's road ran all the way to the capital. There he would find proper soldiers and tall stone walls to put between himself and those ****s he saw emerge from the forest. And he'd beg the army to rescue Lucia, and family and friends as well, of course!

Or what remained of them.

Legs faltering, he felt around in the dark and found an opening between two large trees. Doing his best to ignore his hunger, he tucked himself inside and pulled his legs to his chest. He was safe. He was alive. He wouldn't let those orcs catch him.

It only took Geoff a few short minutes to sob himself to sleep.