Page 23 of Alien Orc's Prize
I really, really wanted to see what Prince Gal looked like, sounded like, shuddered like when he came. Inside me.
The thought was so stunningly arousing that I would have let my hand slip down between my legs while fleshing it out in my mind if not for a knock at the chamber door. It was Doree.
“Prince Gal has commanded you be fitted for new clothing immediately,” she said as she came into the room. She paused near the side of the bed and raised her thumbs up to touch her tusks. It seemed to be some sort of orc greeting. I raised my own thumbs, but as I had no tusks, I settled on giving her what was probably a slightly manic-looking thumbs-up with my hands on either side of my grinning mouth. She looked startled, but then shyly pleased by the gesture, so I figured I’d done alright.
“I’m kind of, er, in the nude over here,” I said, holding tightly to the edge of the blanket.
Doree didn’t seem bothered. Modesty was apparently more of a human virtue than an orc one.
“That will simply make the measurements more accurate.”
“Well. Okie dokie, then. Guess I can’t argue with that…”
I extricated myself and stood awkwardly before her as she went to work. Luckily it didn’t take long. She had a small, handheld tool that cast a blue light, almost like a scan, across my body. It took a bunch of measurements at once.
“I’m surprised you’re not using something like a tape measure,” I told her as I pulled the blanket off the bed and wrapped myself up in it once more. “Prince Gal seems to favour candles more than powered lights.”
“We all appreciate tradition. But not at the total expense of efficiency,” she said.
“No, actually, I kind of get it,” I replied. “I used to work in the cafeteria of a ship. Most of the job was just heating industrial-sized portions of, like, protein cubes or whatever. But every once in a while, I got to make something by-hand with naturalingredients. Usually when somebody important was on the ship. That was always the most fun.”
Much like the thumbs-up, Doree once again looked startled but pleased by me. Maybe it hadn’t occurred to her that the new high princess had worked, and not justworkedbut really, seriously busted her human tush before coming here.
Doree offered to re-pin a new dress onto my body while I waited for the new clothing, but I winced at the memory of the poky pins and told her I’d just wear my old clothes for today. Thankfully, it did appear (and smell) like they’d been laundered before being brought to this room. I quickly washed and dressed and put my wet hair into a simple braid.
Urged on by a grumbling stomach and the hope for something good for breakfast, I wandered out of the chambers, heading back the way Prince Gal and I had come last night. As I went, I admired the palace. It had been too dark last night for me to fully appreciate the carved crystal of the windows set into the stone walls of these halls. Even the stone had a quality of light to it, gleefully reflecting back the morning sunshine. It wasn’t blocky or heavy or dark, but pale sandy-white and finely smoothed. Every few paces, there was gleaming, colourful tilework decorating the walls, floor, or edging around the windows, depicting glittering blue waves, impressive arrays of weapons, or ancient water ships complete with oars and sails.
Before I could make it to the hall where we’d eaten last night, I was nearly bowled over by Noona and Neena careening around the corner ahead.
“Luna!” they cried in ecstatic unison.
“Good morning,” I said, giving them a genuine smile. It was nice to have some friends around the place besides my grumpy, horny, and currently nowhere-to-be-found husband. I was also quite pleased to say I was able to tell who was who. Neena’seyebrows tended to lift a little higher on the right side, and her large red tusks were a bit shinier than Noona’s.
“We were just coming in search of you!” she cried. She hoisted a basket as Noona added, “We’re taking a morning picnic to the beach!”
“That sounds amazing!” I said earnestly. I really wanted to see the beach and I was starving. Win, win.
“Let’s go!” the twins said, turning with identical grace and leading me through more sunlit halls until we were out the big main doors I’d come in through yesterday. Before we could turn ourselves towards the beach, the sound of whirring and a male voice calling out made all three of us pause.
On the wide, natural stone path between lush gardens ahead, a vehicle was approaching. It looked to be some sort of individual hovercraft, with a set of handlebars for steering and a seat in the middle of its narrow, compact body. It landed, sending up a small puff of dust, and a tall orc male leaped down, striding towards us with large, swaggering steps.
“Cousin Althrop!” the twins exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”
“I have heard that my dear cousin Prince Gal has taken a bride. And not just any bride, but a human.”
There was a distinct drip of what sounded a hell of a lot like disdain all over the words “dear” and “human.” I decided immediately I didn’t like this cousin guy one bit. But I plastered a polite smile on my face anyway, because this was obviously an important member of my husband’s family and, damnit, I was going to make a good impression.
“Hello. My name is Luna. I’m Prince Gal’s wife. The high princess,” I said brightly.
His eyes snapped to me, as if he hadn’t even noticed me with the twins before. I watched with a combination of satisfaction and foreboding as his brows climbed higher and higher at thesight of me. His gaze did a none-too-quick survey of my body, too, dragging up and down my form in a way that set my teeth on edge.
“It is my deepest pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lana.”
“Luna,” I corrected through clenched teeth.
“Luna. Quite. Well, am I ever glad I came to see you for myself! I would have arrived last night, but it grew late, and I had to stop and stay at a nearby inn. Alas, I was not invited to attend the royal wedding.”
“None of us were,” Noona lamented.