New Home

Two-thirds of the boys survived this brutal battle. Guk led them into the massive rock formation rising from the endless desert. Though the inside had been wrecked beyond recognition by the Harpies—though it had not been much better before—Guk was still delighted to have a new place to settle.

The interior of the entire rock formation was riddled with irregular spiral passageways that stretched from the bottom all the way to the top. Some were narrow, rough tunnels dug by Orks in the past, while others were broad natural corridors with smooth, even walls. Strange patterns ran across the rock faces. Guk always felt they looked unlike any stone he had seen before, more like the cross-section of snapped deadwood, but he soon forgot about it.

Every passage connected to large caverns. Some led all the way to the outer layers of the rock, while others were buried deep within it. According to the surviving boys of the Blackstone Tribe, there was a huge space in the lower levels where many shade-loving mushrooms grew, along with pools whose depths constantly changed. Their food and water came from there, with the Snotlings tending the area.

The middle levels were where the boys usually lived. Of course, Orks mostly had no concept of "private space," so it was difficult to say who lived where. In any case, because it was easier to get food, the lower caverns were more sought-after. So when Guk asked about the upper levels, every boy gave the same answer.

"Never been there. Couldn't be bothered."

Not an unexpected answer. Guk decided to go up and take a look himself, leaving the mess below for these chaotic lot to sort out. Once everything had been arranged—probably—Guk followed the broad natural passageways upward. After passing through cavern after cavern, he noticed that the number of tunnels was dwindling, as if they all converged on the same place.

"Bit strange..."

Though there was not a trace of light, Guk's eyes could still see everything clearly. After passing through ten or more tunnels, he arrived in a vast semi-elliptical chamber. It was an enormous enclosed space, almost as large as all the caverns he had passed through combined. The half-arched ceiling looked as though something had clawed at it, leaving it unnaturally smooth. Every step Guk took produced a strange echo, like the pained murmur of something suffering.

Just as he thought this was the end, a faint breeze brushed across his face, as if some invisible presence had blown on him. He unfastened the weapon at his waist and slowly moved toward the source of the wind, alert and wary.

"Welcome..."

After walking more than a hundred steps, Guk was surprised to discover a hidden passage beyond the range of his sight. It was absurdly wide, several times larger than any tunnel he had passed through before. He carefully sniffed the breeze blowing from within. Finding nothing unusual, Guk gripped his weapon tightly and entered.

It was an S-shaped passage. He followed the smooth stone walls upward, and after rounding the first bend, he saw light at the second turn not far ahead. Faint sounds drifted from the illuminated area.

"What a great place!"

After rounding the second bend, Guk found a strange cave opening up before him. The surrounding rock walls rose and narrowed, forming a cone-shaped structure that was broad at the bottom and narrow at the top. Gentle light shone down from above, but that did not mean the place was exposed to the open air, because the passage leading outside was covered in fine, translucent crystalline webs.

Beneath the crystal web, in the center of the empty cave, lay a bizarre "rock." It was C-shaped, its surface a pure dark gray. Under the sunlight, it gave off a withered, lifeless air, like the remains scattered across the desert.

"Rocks ain't like this."

Guk approached the object and found its surface evenly covered in scale-like patterns. When he reached out to touch it, it was not cold as he had imagined. Instead, it was pleasantly warm, perhaps because it had been exposed to sunlight. Guk then walked into the hollow of the C-shape and found a thick white pelt spread inside. He did not know what kind of creature it had come from. Glittering odds and ends were placed around it. Guk did not know what any of them were, but the scent told him they belonged to that red bird. Clearly, she had meant to make this her nest.

As for that unlucky Harpy, Guk had still been able to faintly hear her groaning from outside earlier. Now there was nothing. She had probably stopped breathing. But that was none of his concern.

"Mm, not bad."

Heavily dropping onto the pelt and leaning his back against the rock behind him, Guk let out a pleased grunt. He twisted his waist and found the stinking leather armor made from Squig hide increasingly uncomfortable. So he simply tore it in half and tossed it away. Free of restraint, he lay back even more comfortably.

"This is..."

Suddenly, Guk heard the sound of liquid sloshing. Turning his head, he found his right hand pressing down on a soft brown waterskin. He happened to be thirsty, so he picked it up, pulled out the wooden stopper, and sniffed inside. The result puzzled him. It did not seem to contain water, but something with a strange smell.

"Who cares!"

The most important thing about being an Ork was having fun. If he was thirsty, then he should drink. Without giving it much thought, Guk tilted his head back and took a gulp.

"Mm, not bad."

It was a little harsh going down and somewhat sour, but it was surprisingly better than water overall. Guk took several more gulps, then suddenly remembered the boys mentioning something called "alcohol." Could this be it?

Finding it more flavorful with every drink, Guk drained the waterskin in no time. He shook the empty skin with a touch of regret, then tossed it aside. After stretching lazily in satisfaction, he fell asleep...

Slowly, as time passed, Guk's eyes began moving beneath his lids. His thoughts gradually awoke from a deep unconsciousness, though he himself had not truly awakened. A strange power ruled his mind. Within a bizarre, dreamlike realm, he heard a boisterous noise. He tried to move closer and look, but saw only patches of green light filled with lively energy. Then he seemed to hear the same clamor in the distance. He hurried toward it and found more patches of green light, but these were dazzling, filled with fierce passion and rising vigor. It was a feeling familiar and pleasant to him.

More and more light spots filled the surroundings, seeming ready to gather into a green sea. The fierce energy gave the forming sea the appearance of raging waves. Guk was like a seabird dancing on the crest of the surf, rolling and diving through it without tiring, until a rectangular Weirdface suddenly appeared before him. It was an exaggerated face, painted with colorful lines. Its eyes bulged high, while its square face held no emotion at all.

"Waaagh! What's that!"

Guk was badly startled. That face seemed to notice him as well, and the two simply stared at each other.

"You... are not..."

A vague voice drifted from the Weirdface's mouth. Guk could not hear it clearly, but he was not about to back down. Getting startled like that had already made him feel embarrassed.

"Me! Guk!"

"Gu..."

"Boss! Boss!"

Before he could hear what the Weirdface was going to say, a piercing burst of noise dragged Guk from the strange dream back into reality. When he opened his eyes, he saw the wrinkled face of Grass Rope, the Snotling. Not far away, a boy was casually heading toward the passageway. Sharp-eyed Guk quickly noticed that he seemed to be holding something golden in his hand.

"Waaagh!!!"

Amid Grass Rope's scream, Guk grabbed the axe beside him and hurled it hard. The boy had not even reacted before the back of his head was split open. He dropped to the ground at once, blood spraying everywhere.

"Get this cleaned up before I come back, or else... heh heh!"

After pulling the axe from the back of the boy's head and leaving that threat for the trembling Snotling, Guk dragged the unlucky corpse through the passageway to the huge space on the next level. A large number of boys had gathered there. Several massive bonfires lit the place brightly. The Harpy corpses had become the main course of the feast. After being cleaned and gutted—probably—they were skewered on sticks and roasted over the flames. The Snotlings showed off their skills, cooking the meat crisp outside and tender within. Jars of mushroom liquor that had been hidden away were brought out. The boys ate meat, drank, shouted, and made a racket. Fights naturally broke out everywhere. The scene was lively beyond measure, but it all stopped the moment Guk appeared.

"Bos—"

Crooked Mouth had been gnawing on a bird leg. When he saw Guk, he excitedly waved. But after noticing Guk's "kind" expression and the corpse in his hand, he shrank back and slipped into the crowd.

The atmosphere turned cold in an instant.

"Everyone! Here or not here! Remember this! Without my permission, anyone who dares enter my room... dies!!!!!!"

After announcing his first rule while holding up the unlucky boy's corpse, Guk threw the body into the fire. Then he picked up a jar of mushroom liquor and roared:

"You murderous bastards didn't even call me! Come on! Drink!!!!!!!!!"

"Waaagh waaagh!!! Drink!!!!!"

"Boss! Drink!!"

The boys erupted again, and the scene became even more chaotic. Guk had the Snotlings build a platform from the Harpies' remains, then sat on it like a king. The boys around him came one after another to drink with him. One Snotling even struggled through the crowd to present Guk with a "spicy mushroom-roasted bird leg" it had carefully cooked. Guk took a bite. The skin was crisp, the meat tender, and the juices rich. He gave the Snotling a huge nod of approval and appointed it his personal cook.

At that moment, Crooked Mouth appeared beside Guk again. He handed Guk a fresh jar of mushroom liquor, then said in a very puzzled tone:

"Boss, why do I feel like... you got a little bigger?"

"Pah! He got a whole lot bigger!"

Big Cleaver had appeared nearby at some point. He was working hard on a human arm.

"Quit talking rubbish! How come I can't feel it? Oh, right."

Suddenly, Guk sprang to his feet and hauled the two of them up as well.

"From now on, you two guard my door! Anyone who dares come near it, you kill 'em on the spot!"

"Yes, Boss!"

Satisfied, Guk sat back down on his "seat" and began eating and drinking with the boys around him. Though it was already deep into the night outside, time meant nothing when Orks were having fun.

"Hm?"

While drinking merrily, Guk's foot suddenly bumped into something. Looking down, he found a Harpy's head. He set down his jar and picked up the vicious-looking head. The boys and Snotlings did not like eating heads, so most heads had been cut off before cooking and fed to the Squigs.

"Boss, what's so interesting about that bird head!"

"Shut it!"

After barking at him, Guk carefully examined the small head. Ugly features, messy feathers, and those wide-open eyes. There was nothing particularly special about this bloody head.

"It was too weak."

That was what Guk thought. His first thought had actually been to strip the head clean and take out the skull as decoration, because he remembered that the leader he had chopped down earlier wore a few skulls. They had looked pretty good. But now he had changed his mind. If he wore none, then fine. But if he wore skulls, they had to be from the strongest.

At that thought, his previous contentment was swallowed by a vast emptiness. He flung the head aside and took several hard swigs of liquor, but that only made him more irritated. A nameless anger quickly rose, igniting his mind. He grabbed the innocent-looking Crooked Mouth and snarled:

"Are there any decent tough guys around here!"

"Dunno, Boss!"

"What about you!"

He shoved Crooked Mouth aside and grabbed Big Cleaver instead.

"I don't know either!"

"Useless!"

Guk shot to his feet and drew every boy's attention with a roar. Waving his right arm forcefully, he shouted:

"At first light, everyone! Go look! I don't care what it is, find me someone who can fight me! If you can't find anyone, then you lot fight me!"

That gave every boy a fright. Before any of them could speak, a violent tremor suddenly surged up from beneath their feet. The boys immediately toppled over in all directions. The bonfires they had built scattered in the shaking, then ignited the liquor spilled across the ground. The Snotlings fled in panic with their heads in their hands. Curses and screams mingled with the echoes, and the scene became utterly chaotic.

"Stop! Everyone shut the hell up! Anyone who makes another sound, I'll kill him!"

Guk had also been badly shaken by the sudden tremor, but he recovered quickly and immediately stopped the chaos from spreading. Under the threat of death, every Ork and Snotling clamped their mouths shut.

"Bossbossbossboss!!!!"

As the shaking gradually faded, a Snotling came rushing out of the lower passage in a frantic panic.

"Outside, outside! You gotta come look!"

"Lead the way!"

Following the Snotling to a lower cavern that opened outside, Guk and all the boys with him widened their eyes. The sight before them was truly astonishing. The once-hazy sky was now filled with brilliant bands of color, magnificent beyond compare, like paint splashed carelessly across a canvas. The freezing wind that should have been howling had vanished without a trace, and the entire wilderness lay silent.

Crack~

Suddenly, Guk heard an almost imperceptible sound, as though something had shattered. Then the sky began to twist violently, as if an invisible giant hand were tearing at the heavens.

Boom!!!!

A deafening roar erupted. In an instant, all colors disappeared, and the sky rapidly darkened. Heavy clouds began to gather, and the wind started blowing again. Yet it was no longer as bitterly cold as before. It even seemed to carry a trace of moisture...

"This!"

Suddenly, Guk felt something fall onto his face. He reached up and touched it. It was cold—and liquid.

Raindrops as large as beans began falling from the sky, growing more and more numerous until they quickly became a terrifying downpour. Everything between heaven and earth blurred into obscurity. Yet Guk and his boys stood dumbly in the rain, staring wide-eyed at the sky. At that moment, only one thought echoed in every Ork's mind...

"Booze falls from the sky too!"