Page 35 of Warlord’s Plaything
35
HIRA
I don’t have a sense of belongingness here.
But where the fuck else can I go?
Xyron is in chains, waiting to be paraded like a fallen god before they cut his throat.
The gladiators I once trained—the men who fought beside me, who bled with me—will be executed alongside him.
And I’m standing here, trapped between two impossible choices.
"Hira."
The voice is deep, unfamiliar.
But there’s something about it.
Something that hooks into my ribs, tight and sharp, as if it belongs to a memory I should have but don’t.
I turn.
And he’s there.
The orc is towering, broader than any I’ve ever seen.
His skin is a deep shade of green, his tusks gleaming in the dim firelight.
His eyes are sharp, calculating—but not cruel.
He looks at me like he knows me.
Like he’s been waiting for me.
"Who the fuck are you?" My voice is flat, unimpressed.
The orc grins. “ That is a question I have been asking myself for twenty years, Hira. Because you are my daughter."
The words slam into me.
For a moment, everything stops.
The murmurs of the rebels. The distant drip of water from the ceiling. The heavy beat of my own fucking pulse.
I stare.
And then, I laugh.
It’s a sharp, cruel sound.
"Nice try." I shake my head. "But I don’t have a father."
The orc—Menias, apparently—doesn’t flinch.
"You did."
He steps forward, slowly, like he’s approaching something half-wild.
"And I have spent years looking for you."
My stomach twists.
I want to believe it’s a lie.
But something in his eyes—something in his fucking voice—makes my breath catch.
"My mother never mentioned you."
Menias’ face hardens.
"Because she was taken from you before she could."
His voice dips lower, there’s something raw beneath the surface trying to crawl out.
"She was hunted. Hated for what we were. For what you are."
I freeze.
"And what the fuck is that?"
Menias studies me for a long moment.
"A daughter of two worlds."
His eyes flick over me, assessing.
"I see it in you, Hira. The strength. The fire. The rage."
He raises his head.
"You always wondered why you were different, didn’t you?"
The words slam into me like a hammer.
I did.
I always fucking knew I wasn’t normal.
I was too strong, too fast, too much.
But I never had an answer.
I never fucking knew.
And now—this?
This is what I get?
"Why now?" My voice is quieter.
Menias exhales, tilting his head.
"Because now, you need me."
His gaze sharpens.
"Now, you are in a war you cannot win alone."
The words press against me, heavy and unshakable.
He’s right.
I know it.
I fucking know it.
But I don’t want to.
Menias isn’t just offering me help.
He’s offering me a leash.
"And what do you want in return?" I ask, voice cold, steady.
Menias smiles, slow and knowing.
"You are my daughter. It is time you took your place among my people. Marry an orc chieftain. Strengthen our bloodlines. Secure our future."
His eyes glint.
"Do this, and I will give you an army."
The air turns to ice.
For a moment, I can’t fucking breathe.
This is not a request.
It’s a cage.
A beautifully forged, gold-lined cage.
And I need it.
The room is too fucking small.
The walls feel closer, pressing in.
I shake my head, taking a step back.
"You’re out of your fucking mind."
Menias doesn’t react.
"Am I?"
His gaze flicks to the rebels surrounding us.
"You cannot fight this war alone. You cannot save him alone."
He steps closer.
"You can either take my hand, or watch them all die."
I swallow back bile.
It’s a choice that isn’t a choice at all.
My options are dwindling, in fact, they’re non-existent.
I can hear the rebels murmuring now—confirming the worst fucking news.
"The executions are set."
"They’ll be killing them in the pits—Xyron and the human gladiators who were captured in the last rebellion."
"A public execution."
"A slaughter."
This isn’t just about Xyron anymore.
This isn’t just about me.
This is war.
And if I say no, I might as well be cutting their throats myself.
"I need time."
Menias watches me.
Then, finally, he nods. "Choose wisely, daughter."
And then, he’s gone.
Leaving me standing in the darkness, caught between blood and ruin.