Were Death Knights Interested in Women, Too?

"Sir, you still haven't answered my question..." Kaldara said. Seeing Malone lost in thought, he repeated himself. "Since we're allies, why did you attack us?"

"Attack you?" Malone glanced at the Orc he'd struck. The creature lay on the ground, unable to get back up and managing only a weak groan. "He attacked me first, didn't he? I was just defending myself. But how did you know I was your ally?"

Malone still remembered how, the moment he'd walked in, the Orc had shouted that he would kill him and then punched him hard—though it hadn't hurt much.

"Now that you mention it, that's true..." Kaldara said with a nod.

"But you can't blame Talrama. You hadn't spoken yet, after all. If you hadn't been so fluent in Orcish, I might have thought you were human, too. You look nothing like Teron Gorefiend. His face..."

Kaldara trailed off, confident that the other man would understand what he meant.

Kaldara had once seen Teron Gorefiend in Orgrim Doomhammer's tent. Teron had removed the veil covering his face, and the sight had been terrifying—uglier even than the four-legged demons with tentacles that Warlocks summoned.

"You know who I am..." Malone murmured.

Only now did Malone understand what Kaldara meant. Clearly, this Blademaster of the Burning Blade Clan knew that Death Knights existed, and that they tended to look more human.

It was even easier to figure out how Malone was an ally. How could a human appear in a camp where tens of thousands of Orcs had gathered? Even if Malone wasn't a Death Knight, anyone with a little sense would know he was at least a human who had joined the Orcs.

"Then, if I recall correctly, Death Knights have their own camp, don't they? It's not far from here, I believe. So why are you in the prisoner camp?"

Kaldara always spoke in such a formal manner that Malone found it rather hard to get used to.

If Kaldara weren't a fearsome-looking Orc, Malone might almost have thought he was speaking to a human.

"She's the reason." Malone pointed behind Kaldara. The human girl was curled up there, watching them with a terrified expression.

The girl's sleeve had been torn off. Her dress was still on, but one smooth, pale arm was exposed.

At least it looked like Malone hadn't arrived too late. The Orcs hadn't yet had a chance to go any further.

"Her?" Kaldara didn't turn around, but his tone grew slightly stiff.

"She's our spoil of war, Death Knight. We ran into a group of humans a long way from camp. We killed most of them and brought back the ones who were still alive. Is there a problem?"

Kaldara's tone remained humble, but Malone never let down his guard around him. He knew that people like this were like vipers lurking in the grass, their calm exteriors hiding deadly fangs.

As he listened to Kaldara, Malone kept an eye on the other Orcs. The three of them were gradually shifting around him, joining Kaldara to form a ring.

"How many humans did you run into?" Though Malone knew it was too late to change anything, he couldn't stop himself from asking.

"Seven in all."

The long blade in Kaldara's hand dipped slightly toward the ground, but Malone knew he could attack at any moment. He wasn't sure he could take on enemies who outnumbered and outmatched him in experience with his bare hands, but he was already in too deep to back out.

"You killed them all?" Kaldara had already told him the outcome, but Malone still found it horrifying.

Seven people! They'd been killed just like that? Malone had lived for more than twenty years on Earth and had never seen so many dead people.

"Isn't it normal for Orcs to slaughter humans? Death Knight, I don't quite understand what you mean. If I'm not mistaken, your people have joined the Horde, too. Before long, you may well have killed far more humans than that."

Kaldara sounded puzzled by Malone's reaction.

I'm not a beast like you... Malone seethed inwardly.

"Let her go." Malone forced the words through clenched teeth.

"Let her go?" Kaldara's eyes narrowed slightly. "She's our spoil of war, Death Knight. Orcs can do as they please with what they claim."

"I said let her go! Otherwise, I'll make you end up like him!" Malone pointed at the Orc sprawled on the ground and clenched his fists.

"Kaldara, take this guy out. Toss his body outside the camp. No one will know," an Orc growled behind Malone.

The breathing behind him grew heavier. Malone knew the Orcs were itching to attack.

But he couldn't turn to face them yet. Kaldara, standing right in front of him, was the greatest threat. If Malone dared to turn his back on him now, his head would be on the ground the next second.

Even a Death Knight was finished without his head. There were tales of headless horsemen in Azeroth, but those were nothing more than a Blizzard Halloween gag.

"Put your weapons away." Kaldara studied Malone for a moment, then unexpectedly sheathed the blade in his hand and slung it behind his back.

"What?" Uneven growls came from behind Malone.

"I never thought Death Knights could have an interest like this..." Kaldara said, his tone teasing. "Since you're in the mood, go ahead. We can wait a little. We've already had our fun out in the wild."

"Kaldara, how can you..." an Orc shouted behind Malone. "We should cut this guy down, and then..."

"Shut up, you stupid swine!" Kaldara barked.

"You saw the punch Talrama took just now. If this Death Knight decides to run, can you stop him? And if you can't, do you know what that means?"

Kaldara's words made no sense to Malone. The Orc behind him probably didn't understand either. But Malone could tell Kaldara commanded a great deal of respect within the group. The other Orcs were still snarling and panting, but none of them attacked him.